Asymmetry of Atmospheric Circulation Anomalies over the Western North Pacific between El Niño and La Niña*

2010 ◽  
Vol 23 (18) ◽  
pp. 4807-4822 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bo Wu ◽  
Tim Li ◽  
Tianjun Zhou
Keyword(s):  
Atmospheric Circulation ◽  
El Niño ◽  
North Pacific ◽  
Western North Pacific ◽  
El Nino ◽  
Precipitation Anomaly ◽  
La Niña ◽  
La Nina ◽  
The Asymmetry ◽  
Atmospheric Circulation Anomalies

Abstract The asymmetry of the western North Pacific (WNP) low-level atmospheric circulation anomalies between the El Niño and La Niña mature winter is examined. An anomalous WNP cyclone (WNPC) center during La Niña tends to shift westward relative to an anomalous WNP anticyclone (WNPAC) center during El Niño. Two factors may contribute to this asymmetric response. The first factor is the longitudinal shifting of El Niño and La Niña anomalous heating. The composite negative precipitation anomaly center during La Niña is located farther to the west of the composite positive precipitation anomaly center during El Niño. The westward shift of the heating may further push the WNPC westward relative to the position of the WNPAC. The second factor is the amplitude asymmetry of sea surface temperature anomalies (SSTAs) in the WNP, namely, the amplitude of local cold SSTA during El Niño is greater than that of warm SSTA during La Niña. The asymmetry of SSTA is originated from the asymmetric SSTA tendencies during the ENSO developing summer. Although both precipitation and surface wind anomalies are approximately symmetric, the surface latent heat flux anomalies are highly asymmetric over the key WNP region, where the climate mean zonal wind speed is small. Both the anomalous westerly during El Niño and the anomalous easterly during La Niña in the region lead to an enhanced surface evaporation, strengthening (weakening) the enhancement of the cold (warm) SSTA in situ during El Niño (La Niña). The asymmetry of the SSTA in the WNP is further amplified due to anomalous wind differences between El Niño and La Niña in their mature winter. Atmospheric general circulation model experiments demonstrate that both factors contribute to the asymmetry between the WNPAC and WNPC. The asymmetric circulation in the WNP contributes to the asymmetry of temporal evolutions between El Niño and La Niña.

scholarly journals The roles of ENSO on the occurrence of abruptly recurving tropical cyclones over the Western North Pacific Ocean Basin

2006 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. 139-148 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. K. W. Cheung
Keyword(s):  
Tropical Cyclones ◽  
El Niño ◽  
North Pacific ◽  
Western North Pacific ◽  
Pressure Field ◽  
El Nino ◽  
North Pacific Ocean ◽  
Ocean Basin ◽  
La Niña ◽  
La Nina

Abstract. The abruptly recurving tropical cyclones over the Western North Pacific Ocean Basin during El Niño and La Niña events are studied. Temporal and spatial variations of these anomalous tracks under different phases of ENSO are shown. The anomalies of the pressure field in relation to ENSO circulation for the occurrence of the abruptly recurving cyclone tracks are investigated using fuzzy method. These are supplemented by wind field analyses. It is found that the occurrence of recurving-left (RL) and recurving-right (RR) tropical cyclones under the modification of the steering currents, including the re-adjustment of the westerly trough, the expansion or contraction of the sub-tropical high pressure, the intensifying easterly flow and the strengthening of the cross-equatorial flow, can be in El Niño or La Niña events. Evidently, there is a higher chance of occurrence of anomalous tropical cyclone trajectories in El Niño rather than La Niña events, but there is not any pronounced spatial pattern of anomalous tropical cyclone tracks. By analyzing the pressure-field, it is seen RL (RR) tropical cyclones tend to occur when the subtropical high pressure is weak (strong) in El Niño and La Niña events. More importantly, how the internal force of tropical cyclones changed by the steering current, which relies upon the relative location of tropical cyclones to the re-adjustment of the weather systems, shows when and where RL and RR tropical cyclones occur in El Niño and La Niña events.

scholarly journals Improved Simulation of Tropical Cyclone Responses to ENSO in the Western North Pacific in the High-Resolution GFDL HiFLOR Coupled Climate Model*

2016 ◽  
Vol 29 (4) ◽  
pp. 1391-1415 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wei Zhang ◽  
Gabriel A. Vecchi ◽  
Hiroyuki Murakami ◽  
Thomas Delworth ◽  
Andrew T. Wittenberg ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
High Resolution ◽  
Tropical Cyclone ◽  
El Niño ◽  
North Pacific ◽  
Western North Pacific ◽  
El Nino ◽  
Walker Circulation ◽  
La Niña ◽  
Sea Surface ◽  
La Nina

Abstract This study aims to assess whether, and the extent to which, an increase in atmospheric resolution of the Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory (GFDL) Forecast-Oriented Low Ocean Resolution version of CM2.5 (FLOR) with 50-km resolution and the High-Resolution FLOR (HiFLOR) with 25-km resolution improves the simulation of the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO)–tropical cyclone (TC) connections in the western North Pacific (WNP). HiFLOR simulates better ENSO–TC connections in the WNP including TC track density, genesis, and landfall than FLOR in both long-term control experiments and sea surface temperature (SST)- and sea surface salinity (SSS)-restoring historical runs (1971–2012). Restoring experiments are performed with SSS and SST restored to observational estimates of climatological SSS and interannually varying monthly SST. In the control experiments of HiFLOR, an improved simulation of the Walker circulation arising from more realistic SST and precipitation is largely responsible for its better performance in simulating ENSO–TC connections in the WNP. In the SST-restoring experiments of HiFLOR, more realistic Walker circulation and steering flow during El Niño and La Niña are responsible for the improved simulation of ENSO–TC connections in the WNP. The improved simulation of ENSO–TC connections with HiFLOR arises from a better representation of SST and better responses of environmental large-scale circulation to SST anomalies associated with El Niño or La Niña. A better representation of ENSO–TC connections in HiFLOR can benefit the seasonal forecasting of TC genesis, track, and landfall; improve understanding of the interannual variation of TC activity; and provide better projection of TC activity under climate change.

How Much Do Tropical Cyclones Affect Seasonal and Interannual Rainfall Variability over the Western North Pacific?

2009 ◽  
Vol 22 (20) ◽  
pp. 5495-5510 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hisayuki Kubota ◽  
Bin Wang
Keyword(s):  
Tropical Cyclones ◽  
El Niño ◽  
North Pacific ◽  
Western North Pacific ◽  
El Nino ◽  
Rainfall Variability ◽  
La Niña ◽  
Total Rainfall ◽  
La Nina ◽  
Interannual Rainfall Variability

Abstract The authors investigate the effects of tropical cyclones (TCs) on seasonal and interannual rainfall variability over the western North Pacific (WNP) by using rainfall data at 22 stations. The TC-induced rainfall at each station is estimated by using station data when a TC is located within the influential radius (1000 km) from the station. The spatial–temporal variability of the proportion of TC rainfall is examined primarily along the east–west island chain near 10°N (between 7° and 13°N) and the north–south island chain near 125°E (between 120° and 130°E). Along 10°N the seasonality of total rainfall is mainly determined by non-TC rainfall that is influenced by the WNP monsoon trough. The proportion of the TC rain is relatively low. During the high TC season from July to December, TC rainfall accounts for 30% of the total rainfall in Guam, 15%–23% in Koror and Yap, and less than 10% at other stations. In contrast, along 125°E where the WNP subtropical high is located, the TC rainfall accounts for 50%–60% of the total rainfall between 18° and 26°N during the peak TC season from July to October. In Hualien of Taiwan, TC rainfall exceeds 60% of the total rainfall. The interannual variability of the TC rainfall and total rainfall is primarily modulated by El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO). Along 10°N, the ratio of TC rainfall versus total rainfall is higher than the climatology during developing and mature phases of El Niño (from March to the following January), whereas the ratio is below the climatology during the decaying phase of El Niño. The opposite is true for La Niña, except that the impact of La Niña is shorter in duration. Furthermore, in summer of El Niño developing years, the total seasonal rainfall increases primarily because of the increase of TC rainfall. In the ensuing autumn, an anticyclonic anomaly develops over the Philippine Sea and TC rainfall shifts eastward; as a result, the total rainfall over the Philippines and Taiwan decreases. The total rainfall to the east of 140°E, however, changes little, because the westward passage of TCs enhances TC rainfall, which offsets the decrease of non-TC rainfall. Along the meridional island chain between 120° and 130°E, the total rainfall anomaly is affected by ENSO starting from the autumn to the following spring, and the variation in TC rainfall dominates the total rainfall variation only in autumn (August–November) of ENSO years. The results from this study suggest that in the tropical WNP and subtropical East Asian monsoon regions (east of 120°E), the seasonal and interannual variations of rainfall are controlled by changes in nonlocal circulations. These changes outside the monsoon domain may substantially affect summer monsoon rainfall by changing TC genesis and tracks.

scholarly journals Characteristics of the Onset, Withdrawal, and Breaks of the Western North Pacific Summer Monsoon in the 1949–2014 Period

2020 ◽  
Vol 33 (17) ◽  
pp. 7371-7389
Author(s):  
Inmaculada Vega ◽  
Pedro Ribera ◽  
David Gallego
Keyword(s):  
Interannual Variability ◽  
Summer Monsoon ◽  
El Niño ◽  
North Pacific ◽  
Western North Pacific ◽  
El Nino ◽  
La Niña ◽  
Onset Date ◽  
Central Pacific ◽  
La Nina

ABSTRACTThe western North Pacific summer monsoon (WNPSM) onset and withdrawal dates as well as its breaks have been determined throughout the 1949–2014 period by defining the monsoon daily directional index (MDDI). This index, developed exclusively with wind direction observations, is an upgrade of the monthly western North Pacific directional index. The onset date shows a high interannual variability, varying between early May and early August, whereas the WNPSM withdrawal shows a lower interannual variability, occurring between October and mid-November. The MDDI reflects the multibreak character of the WNPSM. Breaks, which tend to last a few weeks, are more likely to happen from mid-August to early September and from late June to mid-July. This bimodal distribution shows decadal variability. In addition, the monsoon dates determined by the MDDI show very good agreement with relationships previously described in literature, such as the influence of tropical Pacific SST on the monsoon onset/withdrawal and changes in tropical cyclone (TC) tracks related to monsoon breaks. The WNPSM tends to start earlier (later) and finish later (earlier) under eastern Pacific (EP) La Niña (El Niño) conditions, especially from the 1980s on. Central Pacific (CP) ENSO is also associated with the monsoon withdrawal, which is advanced (delayed) under CP El Niño (La Niña). TCs tend to move from the Philippine Sea to the South China Sea during active monsoon days whereas they tend to reach higher latitudes during inactive monsoon days, especially in August and July.

scholarly journals Asymmetric Modulation of Western North Pacific Cyclogenesis by the Madden–Julian Oscillation under ENSO Conditions

2012 ◽  
Vol 25 (15) ◽  
pp. 5374-5385 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard C. Y. Li ◽  
Wen Zhou ◽  
Johnny C. L. Chan ◽  
P. Huang
Keyword(s):  
El Niño ◽  
North Pacific ◽  
Western North Pacific ◽  
El Nino ◽  
La Niña ◽  
Western Region ◽  
Madden Julian Oscillation ◽  
Asymmetric Modulation ◽  
La Nina ◽  
The Western Region

Abstract The present study investigates the modulation by the Madden–Julian oscillation (MJO) and the impact of the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) on tropical cyclone (TC) genesis in the western North Pacific (WNP) during the period 1975–2010. Results reveal a stronger modulation of cyclogenesis by the MJO during El Niño years, while the modulations in neutral and La Niña years are comparable to each other. The asymmetric background modification by ENSO is found to greatly affect the extent of MJO modulation under different ENSO conditions. First, MJO activity is intensified and extends farther eastward during El Niño years, instead of being confined west of 150°E as in neutral and La Niña periods. Thus, the influence of MJO is stronger and more zonally widespread in El Niño years, causing significant differences in cyclogenesis parameters in most parts of the WNP. In El Niño years, cyclogenesis is further enhanced in the active phase due to synchronization of MJO signals with favorable background ENSO conditions. While in the inactive phase, the dominance of the strong MJO signals leads to further suppression in TC formation. This leads to overall enhancement of the MJO–TC relationship during El Niño years. On the other hand, the MJO signals confined to the western region west of 150°E in neutral and La Niña years lead to changes in TC-related parameters mainly in the western region, which contribute to the comparatively weaker TC modulations. It can thus be concluded that the MJO has an asymmetric modulation on cyclogenesis in the WNP under different ENSO conditions.

scholarly journals Modulation of Boreal Summer Intraseasonal Oscillations over the Western North Pacific by ENSO

2016 ◽  
Vol 29 (20) ◽  
pp. 7189-7201 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fei Liu ◽  
Tim Li ◽  
Hui Wang ◽  
Li Deng ◽  
Yuanwen Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Indian Ocean ◽  
El Niño ◽  
North Pacific ◽  
Western North Pacific ◽  
El Nino ◽  
Southern Oscillation ◽  
La Niña ◽  
Boreal Summer ◽  
Maritime Continent ◽  
La Nina

Abstract The authors investigate the effects of El Niño and La Niña on the intraseasonal oscillation (ISO) in the boreal summer (May–October) over the western North Pacific (WNP). It is found that during El Niño summers, the ISO is dominated by a higher-frequency oscillation with a period of around 20–40 days, whereas during La Niña summers the ISO is dominated by a lower-frequency period of around 40–70 days. The former is characterized by northwestward-propagating convection anomalies in the WNP, and the latter is characterized by northward- and eastward-propagating convective signals over the tropical Indian Ocean/Maritime Continent. The possible mechanisms through which El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO)-induced background mean state changes influence the ISO behavior are examined through idealized numerical experiments. It is found that enhanced (weakened) mean moisture and easterly (westerly) vertical wind shear in the WNP during El Niño (La Niña) are the main causes of the strengthened (weakened) 20–40-day northwestward-propagating ISO mode, whereas the 40–70-day ISO initiated from the Indian Ocean can only affect the WNP during La Niña years because the dry (moist) background moisture near the Maritime Continent during El Niño (La Niña) suppresses (enhances) the ISO over the Maritime Continent, and the ISO propagates less over the Maritime Continent during El Niño years than in La Niña years.

scholarly journals The Zonal Oscillation and the Driving Mechanisms of the Extreme Western North Pacific Subtropical High and Its Impacts on East Asian Summer Precipitation

2019 ◽  
Vol 32 (10) ◽  
pp. 3025-3050 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tat Fan Cheng ◽  
Mengqian Lu ◽  
Lun Dai
Keyword(s):  
Summer Monsoon ◽  
El Niño ◽  
North Pacific ◽  
Western North Pacific ◽  
El Nino ◽  
La Niña ◽  
Positive Phase ◽  
La Nina ◽  
Asian Summer ◽  
Zonal Oscillation

Abstract This paper scrutinizes the zonal oscillation of the western North Pacific subtropical high (WNPSH) via diagnosing its two extreme phases, which are defined by the top 10% strongest (positive phase) and the weakest (negative phase) WNPSH index (WNPSHI) days during summers in 1979–2016. Key findings include the following: a tripole pattern consisting of intensified (weakened) precipitation over the Maritime Continent and the East Asian summer monsoon regions, and suppressed (strengthened) precipitation over the western North Pacific summer monsoon region during positive (negative) WNPSH phases; a westward movement of WNPSH-induced precipitation anomalies that subsequently affects eastern China, Japan, and the Korean Peninsula at different time lags; an OLR–vorticity pattern explained by atmospheric responses to thermal sources is suggested to drive the oscillation; and the competitive interaction of local air–sea feedbacks, especially during the positive phase. In addition, moderate-to-strong positive correlations between the WNPSHI and the Niño-3.4 index are found on 1–2-, 2–3-, and 3–6-yr time scales; both exhibit decadal shifts to a higher-frequency mode, suggesting the intensification of both the zonal WNPSH oscillation and the ENSO under the changing climate and their close interdecadal association. A nonlinear quasi-biennial WNPSH–ENSO relationship is identified: the positive (negative) WNPSH phase sometimes occurs during 1) a decaying El Niño (La Niña) in the preceding summer/autumn, and/or 2) a developing La Niña (El Niño) in the current summer/autumn. A full ENSO transition from moderate-to-strong El Niño to La Niña is often seen during the positive phase, offering potential in predicting ENSO events and extreme WNPSH phases and thereby the summer monsoon rainfall in East Asia.

scholarly journals Asymmetric Relationship between Indian Ocean SST and the Western North Pacific Summer Monsoon

2015 ◽  
Vol 28 (4) ◽  
pp. 1383-1395 ◽  
Author(s):  
Riyu Lu ◽  
Shu Lu
Keyword(s):  
Indian Ocean ◽  
El Niño ◽  
North Pacific ◽  
Western North Pacific ◽  
El Nino ◽  
Summer Precipitation ◽  
La Niña ◽  
La Nina ◽  
Precipitation Anomalies ◽  
Sst Anomalies

Abstract The summer precipitation anomalies over the tropical western North Pacific (WNP), which greatly affect East Asian climate, are closely related to Indian Ocean (IO) SST anomalies, and this WNP–IO relationship is widely assumed to be linear. This study indicates that the IO SST–WNP precipitation relationship is generally linear only when the IO SST anomalies are positive and not when the IO SST anomalies are negative, that is, a strongly cooler IO, in comparison with a moderately cooler IO, does not correspond to stronger precipitation enhancement over the WNP. Further analysis suggests that the phases of ENSO play a crucial role in modifying the impacts of IO SSTs on WNP anomalies. The reverse IO SST–WNP precipitation relationship, which exists without apparent ENSO development/decay, is intensified by El Niño decay through the enhancement of IO SST anomalies, but weakened by El Niño development and La Niña decay through the concurrence of SST anomalies in the tropical central and eastern Pacific. After removing El Niño developing and La Niña decaying cases, the IO SST and WNP precipitation anomalies show a clear linear relationship. Because of the effects of the phases of ENSO, the years of negative precipitation or anticyclonic anomalies over the WNP are highly concentrated over strongly warmer IO and El Niño decaying years, which is consistent with previous studies. However, the years of positive precipitation anomalies are scattered over cooler IO and moderately warmer IO years, implying a complexity of tropical SST forcing on positive WNP precipitation anomalies.

scholarly journals Reconstructing the Western North Pacific Summer Monsoon since the Late Nineteenth Century

2017 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 355-368 ◽  
Author(s):  
Inmaculada Vega ◽  
David Gallego ◽  
Pedro Ribera ◽  
F. de Paula Gómez-Delgado ◽  
Ricardo García-Herrera ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
Summer Monsoon ◽  
El Niño ◽  
North Pacific ◽  
Western North Pacific ◽  
El Nino ◽  
La Niña ◽  
El Niño Modoki ◽  
La Nina ◽  
The Relationship

Abstract A new index, the western North Pacific directional index (WNPDI), based on historical wind direction observations taken aboard sailing ships, has been developed to characterize the western North Pacific summer monsoon (WNPSM) since 1898. The WNPDI measures the persistence of the surface westerly winds in the region 5°–15°N, 100°–130°E and easterly winds in the region 20°–30°N, 110°–140°E, exhibiting a consistent relationship with the summer precipitation in the areas affected by the WNPSM throughout the entire twentieth century. Its length doubles that of the previous WNPSM index (1948–2014) based on reanalysis products, which allows uncovering different relevant features of the WNPSM variability. The WNPSM had a significant interdecadal variability throughout the twentieth century. In particular, the period 1918–48 was characterized by less variable and stronger monsoons than in recent decades. Additionally, the relationship between the WNPSM and ENSO or El Niño Modoki has been evaluated during the entire twentieth century for the first time. It is confirmed that the WNPSM tends to be strong (weak) when El Niño (La Niña) develops during the whole record. Nevertheless, the relationship during the ENSO-decaying phase is not stable in time. Thus, the WNPSM tended to be strong (weak) when La Niña (El Niño) decayed only since the late 1950s, with an opposite relationship in the earliest part of the record. El Niño Modoki shows a rather stable and high correlation with the WNPDI during the whole study period throughout the twentieth century.

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