scholarly journals History of El Niño impacts on the global carbon cycle 1957–2017: a quantification from atmospheric CO 2 data

2018 ◽  
Vol 373 (1760) ◽  
pp. 20170303 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Rödenbeck ◽  
S. Zaehle ◽  
R. Keeling ◽  
M. Heimann
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Cycle ◽  
Air Temperature ◽  
El Niño ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
El Nino ◽  
Geographical Area ◽  
Geographical Location ◽  
Net Ecosystem Exchange ◽  
Mixing Ratios ◽  
The Impact

Interannual variations in the large-scale net ecosystem exchange (NEE) of CO 2 between the terrestrial biosphere and the atmosphere were estimated for 1957–2017 from sustained measurements of atmospheric CO 2 mixing ratios. As the observations are sparse in the early decades, available records were combined into a ‘quasi-homogeneous’ dataset based on similarity in their signals, to minimize spurious variations from beginning or ending data records. During El Niño events, CO 2 is anomalously released from the tropical band, and a few months later also in the northern extratropical band. This behaviour can approximately be represented by a linear relationship of the NEE anomalies and local air temperature anomalies, with sensitivity coefficients depending on geographical location and season. The apparent climate sensitivity of global total NEE against variations in pan-tropically averaged annual air temperature slowly changed over time during the 1957–2017 period, first increasing (though less strongly than in previous studies) but then decreasing again. However, only part of this change can be attributed to actual changes in local physiological or ecosystem processes, the rest probably arising from shifts in the geographical area of dominating temperature variations. This article is part of a discussion meeting issue ‘The impact of the 2015/2016 El Niño on the terrestrial tropical carbon cycle: patterns, mechanisms and implications’.

scholarly journals Examining the sensitivity of the terrestrial carbon cycle to the expression of El Niño

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lina Teckentrup ◽  
Martin G. De Kauwe ◽  
Andrew J. Pitman ◽  
Benjamin Smith
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Cycle ◽  
El Niño ◽  
El Nino ◽  
Terrestrial Carbon ◽  
Near Surface ◽  
Terrestrial Carbon Cycle ◽  
El Niño Events ◽  
Ep El Niño ◽  
The Impact ◽  
El Nino Events

Abstract. The El Niño‐Southern Oscillation (ENSO) influences the global climate and the variability in the terrestrial carbon cycle on interannual timescales. Two different expressions of El Niño have recently been identified: (i) Central–Pacific (CP) and (ii) Eastern–Pacific (EP). Both types of El Nino are characterised by above average sea surface temperature anomalies in the respective locations. Studies exploring the impact of these expressions of El Niño on the carbon cycle have identified changes in the amplitude of the concentration of interannual atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) variability, as well as different lags in terrestrial CO2 release to the atmosphere following increased tropical near surface air temperature. We employ the dynamic global vegetation model LPJ–GUESS within a synthetic experimental framework to examine the sensitivity and potential long term impacts of these two expressions of El Niño on the terrestrial carbon cycle. We manipulated the occurrence of CP and EP events in two climate reanalysis datasets during the later half of the 20th and early 21st century by replacing all EP with CP and separately all CP with EP El Niño events. We found that the different expressions of El Niño affect interannual variability in the terrestrial carbon cycle. However, the effect on longer timescales was negligible for both climate reanalysis datasets. We conclude that capturing any future trends in the relative frequency of CP and EP El Niño events may not be critical for robust simulations of the terrestrial carbon cycle.

scholarly journals The role of satellite observations in understanding the impact of El Niño on the carbon cycle: current capabilities and future opportunities

2018 ◽  
Vol 373 (1760) ◽  
pp. 20170407 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul I. Palmer
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Cycle ◽  
Satellite Data ◽  
El Niño ◽  
El Nino ◽  
Carbon Dynamics ◽  
Climate Variation ◽  
Satellite Observations ◽  
Future Research ◽  
The Impact

The 2015/2016 El Niño was the first major climate variation when there were a range of satellite observations that simultaneously observed land, ocean and atmospheric properties associated with the carbon cycle. These data are beginning to provide new insights into the varied responses of land ecosystems to El Niño, but we are far from fully exploiting the information embodied by these data. Here, we briefly review the atmospheric and terrestrial satellite data that are available to study the carbon cycle. We also outline recommendations for future research, particularly the closer integration of satellite data with forest biometric datasets that provide detailed information about carbon dynamics on a range of timescales. This article is part of a discussion meeting issue ‘The impact of the 2015/2016 El Niño on the terrestrial tropical carbon cycle: patterns, mechanisms and implications’.

scholarly journals The impact of the 2015/2016 El Niño on global photosynthesis using satellite remote sensing

2018 ◽  
Vol 373 (1760) ◽  
pp. 20170409 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiangzhong Luo ◽  
Trevor F. Keenan ◽  
Joshua B. Fisher ◽  
Juan-Carlos Jiménez-Muñoz ◽  
Jing M. Chen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Remote Sensing ◽  
Carbon Cycle ◽  
El Niño ◽  
El Nino ◽  
Southern Oscillation ◽  
Carbon Sink ◽  
Global Climate ◽  
Prognostic Models ◽  
Positive Anomaly ◽  
The Impact

The El Niño-Southern Oscillation exerts a large influence on global climate regimes and on the global carbon cycle. Although El Niño is known to be associated with a reduction of the global total land carbon sink, results based on prognostic models or measurements disagree over the relative contribution of photosynthesis to the reduced sink. Here, we provide an independent remote sensing-based analysis on the impact of the 2015–2016 El Niño on global photosynthesis using six global satellite-based photosynthesis products and a global solar-induced fluorescence (SIF) dataset. An ensemble of satellite-based photosynthesis products showed a negative anomaly of −0.7 ± 1.2 PgC in 2015, but a slight positive anomaly of 0.05 ± 0.89 PgC in 2016, which when combined with observations of the growth rate of atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations suggests that the reduction of the land residual sink was likely dominated by photosynthesis in 2015 but by respiration in 2016. The six satellite-based products unanimously identified a major photosynthesis reduction of −1.1 ± 0.52 PgC from savannahs in 2015 and 2016, followed by a highly uncertain reduction of −0.22 ± 0.98 PgC from rainforests. Vegetation in the Northern Hemisphere enhanced photosynthesis before and after the peak El Niño, especially in grasslands (0.33 ± 0.13 PgC). The patterns of satellite-based photosynthesis ensemble mean were corroborated by SIF, except in rainforests and South America, where the anomalies of satellite-based photosynthesis products also diverged the most. We found the inter-model variation of photosynthesis estimates was strongly related to the discrepancy between moisture forcings for models. These results highlight the importance of considering multiple photosynthesis proxies when assessing responses to climatic anomalies. This article is part of a discussion meeting issue ‘The impact of the 2015/2016 El Niño on the terrestrial tropical carbon cycle: patterns, mechanisms and implications'.

scholarly journals Tropical land carbon cycle responses to 2015/16 El Niño as recorded by atmospheric greenhouse gas and remote sensing data

2018 ◽  
Vol 373 (1760) ◽  
pp. 20170302 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emanuel Gloor ◽  
Chris Wilson ◽  
Martyn P. Chipperfield ◽  
Frederic Chevallier ◽  
Wolfgang Buermann ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Cycle ◽  
East Asia ◽  
El Niño ◽  
Carbon Flux ◽  
El Nino ◽  
Minor Amount ◽  
Tropical Africa ◽  
Tropical Vegetation ◽  
Carbon Release ◽  
The Impact

The outstanding tropical land climate characteristic over the past decades is rapid warming, with no significant large-scale precipitation trends. This warming is expected to continue but the effects on tropical vegetation are unknown. El Niño-related heat peaks may provide a test bed for a future hotter world. Here we analyse tropical land carbon cycle responses to the 2015/16 El Niño heat and drought anomalies using an atmospheric transport inversion. Based on the global atmospheric CO 2 and fossil fuel emission records, we find no obvious signs of anomalously large carbon release compared with earlier El Niño events, suggesting resilience of tropical vegetation. We find roughly equal net carbon release anomalies from Amazonia and tropical Africa, approximately 0.5 PgC each, and smaller carbon release anomalies from tropical East Asia and southern Africa. Atmospheric CO anomalies reveal substantial fire carbon release from tropical East Asia peaking in October 2015 while fires contribute only a minor amount to the Amazonian carbon flux anomaly. Anomalously large Amazonian carbon flux release is consistent with downregulation of primary productivity during peak negative near-surface water anomaly (October 2015 to March 2016) as diagnosed by solar-induced fluorescence. Finally, we find an unexpected anomalous positive flux to the atmosphere from tropical Africa early in 2016, coincident with substantial CO release. This article is part of a discussion meeting issue ‘The impact of the 2015/2016 El Niño on the terrestrial tropical carbon cycle: patterns, mechanisms and implications’.

scholarly journals What Is the Impact of Additional Tropical Observations on a Modern Data Assimilation System?

2019 ◽  
Vol 147 (7) ◽  
pp. 2433-2449
Author(s):  
Laura C. Slivinski ◽  
Gilbert P. Compo ◽  
Jeffrey S. Whitaker ◽  
Prashant D. Sardeshmukh ◽  
Jih-Wang A. Wang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
El Niño ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
El Nino ◽  
Mean Square ◽  
Observational Network ◽  
In Situ Observations ◽  
The Mean ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Assimilation System

Abstract Given the network of satellite and aircraft observations around the globe, do additional in situ observations impact analyses within a global forecast system? Despite the dense observational network at many levels in the tropical troposphere, assimilating additional sounding observations taken in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean during the 2016 El Niño Rapid Response (ENRR) locally improves wind, temperature, and humidity 6-h forecasts using a modern assimilation system. Fields from a 50-km reanalysis that assimilates all available observations, including those taken during the ENRR, are compared with those from an otherwise-identical reanalysis that denies all ENRR observations. These observations reveal a bias in the 200-hPa divergence of the assimilating model during a strong El Niño. While the existing observational network partially corrects this bias, the ENRR observations provide a stronger mean correction in the analysis. Significant improvements in the mean-square fit of the first-guess fields to the assimilated ENRR observations demonstrate that they are valuable within the existing network. The effects of the ENRR observations are pronounced in levels of the troposphere that are sparsely observed, particularly 500–800 hPa. Assimilating ENRR observations has mixed effects on the mean-square difference with nearby non-ENRR observations. Using a similar system but with a higher-resolution forecast model yields comparable results to the lower-resolution system. These findings imply a limited improvement in large-scale forecast variability from additional in situ observations, but significant improvements in local 6-h forecasts.

scholarly journals Large-Scale Mode Impacts on the Sea Level over the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (19) ◽  
pp. 2224 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kamal A. Alawad ◽  
Abdullah M. Al-Subhi ◽  
Mohammed A. Alsaafani ◽  
Turki M. Alraddadi ◽  
Monica Ionita ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sea Level ◽  
Red Sea ◽  
El Niño ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
El Nino ◽  
Southern Oscillation ◽  
Positive Phase ◽  
El Nino Southern Oscillation ◽  
Gulf Of Aden ◽  
The Impact

Falling between seasonal cycle variability and the impact of local drivers, the sea level in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden has been given less consideration, especially with large-scale modes. With multiple decades of satellite altimetry observations combined with good spatial resolution, the time has come for diagnosis of the impact of large-scale modes on the sea level in those important semi-enclosed basins. While the annual cycle of sea level appeared as a dominant cycle using spectral analysis, the semi-annual one was also found, although much weaker. The first empirical orthogonal function mode explained, on average, about 65% of the total variance throughout the seasons, while their principal components clearly captured the strong La Niña event (1999–2001) in all seasons. The sea level showed a strong positive relation with positive phase El Niño Southern Oscillation in all seasons and a strong negative relation with East Atlantic/West Russia during winter and spring over the study period (1993–2017). We show that the unusually stronger easterly winds that are displaced north of the equator generate an upwelling area near the Sumatra coast and they drive both warm surface and deep-water masses toward the West Indian Ocean and Arabian Sea, rising sea level over the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. This process could explain the increase of sea level in the basin during the positive phase of El Niño Southern Oscillation events.

scholarly journals 1997/98 El Niño–Induced Changes in Rainfall Vertical Structure in the East Pacific

2011 ◽  
Vol 24 (24) ◽  
pp. 6373-6391 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rui Li ◽  
Qilong Min ◽  
Yunfei Fu
Keyword(s):  
El Niño ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Vertical Structure ◽  
Rain Rate ◽  
El Nino ◽  
Latent Heating ◽  
East Pacific ◽  
Surface Rain Rate ◽  
Induced Changes ◽  
The Impact

Abstract The 1997/98 El Niño–induced changes in rainfall vertical structure in the east Pacific (EP) are investigated by using collocated Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) precipitation radar (PR) and associated daily SST and 6-hourly reanalysis data during January, February, March, and April of 1998, 1999, and 2000. This study shows that there are five key parameters, that is, surface rain rate, precipitation-top height (or temperature), and precipitation growth rates at upper, middle, and low layers to define a rainfall profile, and those five key parameters are strongly influenced by both SST and large-scale dynamics. Under the influence of 1997/98 El Niño, the precipitation-top heights in the EP were systematically higher by about 1 km than those under non–El Niño conditions, while the freezing level was about 0.5 km higher. Under the constraints of rain type, surface rain rate, and the precipitation top, the shape of rainfall profile still showed significant differences: the rain growth was relatively faster in the mid-layer (−5° to +2°C isotherm) but slower in the lower layer (below +2°C isotherm) under the influence of El Niño. It is also evident that the dependence of precipitation top height on SST was stronger under large-scale decent (non–El Niño) circulations but much weaker under large-scale ascent (El Niño) circulations. The combined effect of larger vertical extent and greater growth rate in the middle layer further shifted latent heating upward as compared with the impact of horizontal changes in the rain type fractions (convective versus stratiform). Such additional latent heating shift would certainly further elevate circulation centers and strengthen the upper-layer circulation.

scholarly journals Examining the sensitivity of the terrestrial carbon cycle to the expression of El Niño

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (6) ◽  
pp. 2181-2203
Author(s):  
Lina Teckentrup ◽  
Martin G. De Kauwe ◽  
Andrew J. Pitman ◽  
Benjamin Smith
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Cycle ◽  
El Niño ◽  
El Nino ◽  
Terrestrial Carbon ◽  
Near Surface ◽  
Terrestrial Carbon Cycle ◽  
El Niño Events ◽  
Ep El Niño ◽  
The Impact ◽  
El Nino Events

Abstract. The El Niño‐-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) influences the global climate and the variability in the terrestrial carbon cycle on interannual timescales. Two different expressions of El Niño have recently been identified: (i) central Pacific (CP) and (ii) eastern Pacific (EP). Both types of El Niño are characterised by above-average sea surface temperature anomalies at the respective locations. Studies exploring the impact of these expressions of El Niño on the carbon cycle have identified changes in the amplitude of the concentration of interannual atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) variability following increased tropical near-surface air temperature and decreased precipitation. We employ the dynamic global vegetation model LPJ-GUESS (Lund–Potsdam–Jena General Ecosystem Simulator) within a synthetic experimental framework to examine the sensitivity and potential long-term impacts of these two expressions of El Niño on the terrestrial carbon cycle. We manipulated the occurrence of CP and EP events in two climate reanalysis datasets during the latter half of the 20th and early 21st century by replacing all EP with CP and separately all CP with EP El Niño events. We found that the different expressions of El Niño affect interannual variability in the terrestrial carbon cycle. However, the effect on longer timescales was small for both climate reanalysis datasets. We conclude that capturing any future trends in the relative frequency of CP and EP El Niño events may not be critical for robust simulations of the terrestrial carbon cycle.

scholarly journals Impact of the 2015/2016 El Niño on the terrestrial carbon cycle constrained by bottom-up and top-down approaches

2018 ◽  
Vol 373 (1760) ◽  
pp. 20170304 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ana Bastos ◽  
Pierre Friedlingstein ◽  
Stephen Sitch ◽  
Chi Chen ◽  
Arnaud Mialon ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Cycle ◽  
El Niño ◽  
El Nino ◽  
Carbon Sink ◽  
Terrestrial Carbon ◽  
Fire Emissions ◽  
Terrestrial Carbon Cycle ◽  
Depth Analysis ◽  
The Tropics ◽  
The Impact

Evaluating the response of the land carbon sink to the anomalies in temperature and drought imposed by El Niño events provides insights into the present-day carbon cycle and its climate-driven variability. It is also a necessary step to build confidence in terrestrial ecosystems models' response to the warming and drying stresses expected in the future over many continents, and particularly in the tropics. Here we present an in-depth analysis of the response of the terrestrial carbon cycle to the 2015/2016 El Niño that imposed extreme warming and dry conditions in the tropics and other sensitive regions. First, we provide a synthesis of the spatio-temporal evolution of anomalies in net land–atmosphere CO 2 fluxes estimated by two in situ measurements based on atmospheric inversions and 16 land-surface models (LSMs) from TRENDYv6. Simulated changes in ecosystem productivity, decomposition rates and fire emissions are also investigated. Inversions and LSMs generally agree on the decrease and subsequent recovery of the land sink in response to the onset, peak and demise of El Niño conditions and point to the decreased strength of the land carbon sink: by 0.4–0.7 PgC yr −1 (inversions) and by 1.0 PgC yr −1 (LSMs) during 2015/2016. LSM simulations indicate that a decrease in productivity, rather than increase in respiration, dominated the net biome productivity anomalies in response to ENSO throughout the tropics, mainly associated with prolonged drought conditions. This article is part of a discussion meeting issue ‘The impact of the 2015/2016 El Niño on the terrestrial tropical carbon cycle: patterns, mechanisms and implications’.

scholarly journals The Impact of El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) on Temperature: A Case Study in Kuching, Sarawak

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 289-297
Author(s):  
Ricky Anak Kemarau ◽  
Oliver Valentine Eboy
Keyword(s):  
El Niño ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Building Materials ◽  
El Nino ◽  
Southern Oscillation ◽  
Meteorological Data ◽  
El Niño Southern Oscillation ◽  
El Nino Southern Oscillation ◽  
The Impact

The El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) event is a climate event that has an impact on the world climate. The effects of ENSO are often associated with prolonged droughts and floods since 1980 following global climate change. In addition to causing flooding and drought. Indirectly, the occurrence of ENSO causes health problems, environmental destruction, affecting economic activities such as agriculture and fisheries. Many studies on ENSO have been conducted. However, there is still a lack of research on the effect of ENSO on temperature in local knowledge areas, especially urban areas because the urban environment especially building materials that can absorb and release heat. In addition, previous studies have focused on large-scale areas. Beside that there still gap to understand and increase knowledge about the effect of ENSO on local temperatures, especially in urban areas. This study uses meteorological data and Oceanic Nino Index (ONI) from 1988 to 2019. This study found that the occurrence of ENSO has an effect on the value of daily temperature but differs based on the value of the ONI index. In addition, this study uses linear regression in predicting the effect of ENSO on temperature. The results of this study are useful to those responsible for understanding the impact of ENSO on temperature in urban areas to provide infrastructure in reducing the impact of ENSO as well as adjustment measures during the occurrence of ENSO.

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