Controls on the Vertical Profile of Moistening as a Function of Precipitation Rate

Abstract

The relationship between moisture tendency and precipitation rate has been identified as a process diagnostic relevant for simulation of the MJO. AGCMs with moistening that progressively deepens with precipitation rate demonstrate greater MJO skill (Klingamanet al., 2015). However, the processes that give rise to this net moistening pattern are poorly understood. Here we use the NASA Global Earth Observing System (GEOS) AGCM to examine the moisture budget in precipitation-space and understand its sensitivity to changes in model parameters. Comparison is made with the MERRA-2 and ERA-5 reanalysesto place model results in context