scholarly journals Expansion of the Hadley Cell under Global Warming: Winter versus Summer

2012 ◽  
Vol 25 (24) ◽  
pp. 8387-8393 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah M. Kang ◽  
Jian Lu

Abstract A scaling relationship is introduced to explain the seasonality in the outer boundary of the Hadley cell in both climatology and trend in the simulations of phase 3 of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP3). In the climatological state, the summer cell reaches higher latitudes than the winter cell since the Hadley cell in summer deviates more from the angular momentum conserving state, resulting in weaker upper-level zonal winds, which enables the Hadley cell to extend farther poleward before becoming baroclinically unstable. The Hadley cell can also reach farther poleward as the ITCZ gets farther away from the equator; hence, the Hadley cell extends farther poleward in solstices than in equinoxes. In terms of trend, a robust poleward expansion of the Hadley cell is diagnosed in all seasons with global warming. The scaling analysis indicates this is mostly due to an increase in the subtropical static stability, which pushes poleward the baroclinically unstable zone and hence the poleward edge of the Hadley cell. The relation between the trends in the Hadley cell edge and the ITCZ is also discussed.

2019 ◽  
Vol 32 (20) ◽  
pp. 6961-6975 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hien X. Bui ◽  
Eric D. Maloney

Abstract Mechanisms that cause changes in Madden–Julian oscillation (MJO) precipitation amplitude under global warming are examined in models from phase 5 of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project. Under global warming in representative concentration pathway 8.5, MJO precipitation intensifies in most models relative to current climate while MJO wind circulations increase at a slower rate or weaken. Changes in MJO precipitation intensity are partially controlled by changes in moisture profiles and static stability. The vertical moisture gradient increases in the lower half of the troposphere in response to the surface warming, while the vertical static stability gradient increases due to preferential warming in the upper troposphere. A nondimensional quantity called α has been defined that gives the efficiency of vertical advective moistening associated with diabatic processes in the free troposphere, and has been hypothesized by previous studies to regulate MJO amplitude. The term α is proportional to the vertical moisture gradient and inversely proportional to static stability. Under global warming, the increased vertical moisture gradient makes α larger in models, despite increased static stability. Although α increases in all models, MJO precipitation amplitude decreases in some models, contrary to expectations. It is demonstrated that in these models more top-heavy MJO diabatic heating with warming overwhelms the effect of increased α to make vertical moisture advection less efficient.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
June-Yi Lee ◽  
Kyung-Sook Yun ◽  
Arjun Babu ◽  
Young-Min Yang ◽  
Eui-Seok Chung ◽  
...  

<p><span>The Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5) models have showed substantial inter-model spread in estimating annual global-mean precipitation change per one-degree greenhouse-gas-induced warming (precipitation sensitivity), ranging from -4.5</span><span>–4.2</span><span>%</span><sup><span>o</span></sup><span>C<sup>-1</sup>in the Representative Concentration Pathway (RCP) 2.6, the lowest emission scenario, to 0.2–4.0</span><span>%</span><sup><span>o</span></sup><span>C<sup>-1</sup>in the RCP 8.5, the highest emission scenario. The observed-based estimations in the global-mean land precipitation sensitivity during last few decades even show much larger spread due to the considerable natural interdecadal variability, role of anthropogenic aerosol forcing, and uncertainties in observation. This study tackles to better quantify and constrain global land precipitation change in response to global warming by analyzing the new range of Shared Socio-economic Pathway (SSP) scenarios in the </span><span>Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 (CMIP6) compared with RCP scenarios in the CMIP5. We show that the range of projected change in annual global-mean land (ocean) precipitation by the end of the 21<sup>st</sup>century relative to the recent past (1995-2014) in the 23 CMIP6 models is over 50% (20%) larger than that in corresponding scenarios of the 40 CMIP5 models. The estimated ranges of precipitation sensitivity in four Tier-1 SSPs are also larger than those in corresponding CMIP5 RCPs. The large increase in projected precipitation change in the highest quartile over ocean is mainly due to the increased number of high equilibrium climate sensitivity (ECS) models in CMIP6 compared to CMIP5, but not over land due to different response of thermodynamic moisture convergence and dynamic processes to global warming. We further discuss key challenges in constraining future precipitation change and source of uncertainties in land precipitation change.</span></p>


2019 ◽  
Vol 32 (5) ◽  
pp. 1443-1459 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tao Geng ◽  
Yun Yang ◽  
Lixin Wu

Abstract Changes of the Pacific decadal oscillation (PDO) under global warming are investigated by using outputs from phase 5 of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP5) and a theoretical midlatitude air–sea coupled model. In a warming climate, the decadal variability of the PDO is found to be significantly suppressed, with the amplitude reduced and the decadal cycle shifted toward a higher-frequency band. We used the theoretical model put forward by Goodman and Marshall (herein the GM model) to underpin the potential mechanisms. The GM model exhibits a growing coupled mode that resembles the simulated PDO. It is found that the suppression of the PDO appears to be associated with the acceleration of Rossby waves due to the enhanced oceanic stratification under global warming. This shortens the PDO period and reduces PDO amplitude by limiting the growth time of the coupled mode. The GM model also suggests that the increase of growth rate due to strengthening of oceanic stratification tends to magnify the PDO amplitude, counteracting the Rossby wave effect. This growth rate influence, however, plays a secondary role.


Author(s):  
Sukyoung Lee ◽  
Yohai Kaspi

AbstractThe structure and stability of Jupiter’s atmosphere is analyzed using transformed Eulerian mean (TEM) theory. Utilizing the ammonia distribution derived from microwave radiometer measurements of the Juno orbiter, the latitudinal and vertical distribution of the vertical velocity in the interior of Jupiter’s atmosphere is inferred. The resulting overturning circulation is then interpreted in the TEM framework to offer speculation of the vertical and meridional temperature distribution. In the extratropics, the analyzed vertical velocity field shows Ferrel-cell-like patterns associated with each of the jets. A scaling analysis of the TEM overturning circulation equation suggests that in order for the Ferrel-cell-like patterns to be visible in the ammonia distribution, the static stability of Jupiter’s weather layer should be on the order of 1 × 10−2 s−1. In the tropics, the ammonia distribution suggests strong upward motion which is reminiscent of the rising branch of the Hadley cell where the static stability is weaker. Taken together, the analysis suggests that the temperature lapse rate in the extratropics is markedly greater than that in the tropics. Because the cloud top temperature is nearly uniform across all latitudes, the analysis suggests that in the interior of the weather layer, there could exist a temperature gradient between the tropical and extratropical regions.


2009 ◽  
Vol 22 (14) ◽  
pp. 3993-4013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Guillaume Gastineau ◽  
Laurent Li ◽  
Hervé Le Treut

Abstract Sea surface temperature (SST) changes constitute a major indicator and driver of climate changes induced by greenhouse gas increases. The objective of the present study is to investigate the role played by the detailed structure of the SST change on the large-scale atmospheric circulation and the distribution of precipitation. For that purpose, simulations from the Institut Pierre-Simon Laplace Coupled Model, version 4 (IPSL-CM4) are used where the carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration is doubled. The response of IPSL-CM4 is characterized by the same robust mechanisms affecting the other coupled models in global warming simulations, that is, an increase of the hydrological cycle accompanied by a global weakening of the large-scale circulation. First, purely atmospheric simulations are performed to mimic the results of the coupled model. Then, specific simulations are set up to further study the underlying atmospheric mechanisms. These simulations use different prescribed SST anomalies, which correspond to a linear decomposition of the IPSL-CM4 SST changes in global, longitudinal, and latitudinal components. The simulation using a globally uniform increase of the SST is able to reproduce the modifications in the intensity of the hydrological cycle or in the mean upward mass flux, which also characterize the double CO2 simulation with the coupled model. But it is necessary (and largely sufficient) to also take into account the zonal-mean meridional structure of the SST changes to represent correctly the changes in the Hadley circulation strength or the zonal-mean precipitation changes simulated by the coupled model, even if these meridional changes by themselves do not change the mean thermodynamical state of the tropical atmosphere. The longitudinal SST anomalies of IPSL-CM4 also have an impact on the precipitation and large-scale tropical circulation and tend to introduce different changes over the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. The longitudinal SST changes are demonstrated to have a smaller but opposite effect from that of the meridional anomalies on the Hadley cell circulations. Results indicate that the uncertainties in the simulated meridional patterns of the SST warming may have major consequences on the assessment of the changes of the Hadley circulation and zonal-mean precipitation in future climate projections.


2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (7) ◽  
pp. 2849
Author(s):  
Li Yu ◽  
Fengxue Gu ◽  
Mei Huang ◽  
Bo Tao ◽  
Man Hao ◽  
...  

Assessing potential impacts of 1.5 °C and 2 °C global warming and identifying the risks of further 0.5 °C warming are crucial for climate adaptation and disaster risk management. Four earth system models in the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5) and a process-based ecosystem model are used in this study to assess the impacts and potential risks of the two warming targets on the carbon cycle of China’s terrestrial ecosystems. Results show that warming generally stimulates the increase of net primary productivity (NPP) and net ecosystem productivity (NEP) under both representative concentration pathway (RCP) 4.5 and RCP8.5 scenarios. The projected increments of NPP are higher at 2 °C warming than that at 1.5 °C warming for both RCP4.5 and RCP8.5 scenarios; approximately 13% and 19% under RCP4.5, and 12.5% and 20% under RCP8.5 at 1.5 °C and 2 °C warming, respectively. However, the increasing rate of NPP was projected to decline at 2 °C warming under the RCP4.5 scenario, and the further 0.5 °C temperature rising induces the decreased NPP linear slopes in more than 81% areas of China’s ecosystems. The total NEP is projected to be increased by 53% at 1.5 °C, and by 81% at 2 °C warming. NEP was projected to increase approximately by 28% with the additional 0.5 °C warming. Furthermore, the increasing rate of NEP weakens at 2 °C warming, especially under the RCP8.5 scenario. In summary, China’s total NPP and NEP were projected to increase under both 1.5 °C and 2 °C warming scenarios, although adverse effects (i.e., the drop of NPP growth and the reduction of carbon sequestration capacity) would occur in some regions such as northern China in the process of global warming.


2013 ◽  
Vol 26 (16) ◽  
pp. 6067-6080 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiao-Tong Zheng ◽  
Shang-Ping Xie ◽  
Yan Du ◽  
Lin Liu ◽  
Gang Huang ◽  
...  

Abstract The response of the Indian Ocean dipole (IOD) mode to global warming is investigated based on simulations from phase 5 of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP5). In response to increased greenhouse gases, an IOD-like warming pattern appears in the equatorial Indian Ocean, with reduced (enhanced) warming in the east (west), an easterly wind trend, and thermocline shoaling in the east. Despite a shoaling thermocline and strengthened thermocline feedback in the eastern equatorial Indian Ocean, the interannual variance of the IOD mode remains largely unchanged in sea surface temperature (SST) as atmospheric feedback and zonal wind variance weaken under global warming. The negative skewness in eastern Indian Ocean SST is reduced as a result of the shoaling thermocline. The change in interannual IOD variance exhibits some variability among models, and this intermodel variability is correlated with the change in thermocline feedback. The results herein illustrate that mean state changes modulate interannual modes, and suggest that recent changes in the IOD mode are likely due to natural variations.


2017 ◽  
Vol 30 (20) ◽  
pp. 8045-8059 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin M. Quinn ◽  
J. David Neelin

Abstract Distributions of precipitation cluster power (latent heat release rate integrated over contiguous precipitating pixels) are examined in 1°–2°-resolution members of phase 5 of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP5) climate model ensemble. These approximately reproduce the power-law range and large event cutoff seen in observations and the High Resolution Atmospheric Model (HiRAM) at 0.25°–0.5° in Part I. Under the representative concentration pathway 8.5 (RCP8.5) global warming scenario, the change in the probability of the most intense storm clusters appears in all models and is consistent with HiRAM output, increasing by up to an order of magnitude relative to historical climate. For the three models in the ensemble with continuous time series of high-resolution output, there is substantial variability on when these probability increases for the most powerful storm clusters become detectable, ranging from detectable within the observational period to statistically significant trends emerging only after 2050. A similar analysis of National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP)–U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) AMIP-II reanalysis and Special Sensor Microwave Imager and Imager/Sounder (SSM/I and SSMIS) rain-rate retrievals in the recent observational record does not yield reliable evidence of trends in high power cluster probabilities at this time. However, the results suggest that maintaining a consistent set of overlapping satellite instrumentation with improvements to SSM/I–SSMIS rain-rate retrieval intercalibrations would be useful for detecting trends in this important tail behavior within the next couple of decades.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peng Ji ◽  
Xing Yuan ◽  
Feng Ma ◽  
Ming Pan

Abstract. Serving source water for the Yellow, Yangtze and Lancang-Mekong rivers, the Sanjiangyuan region concerns ~ 700 million people over its downstream areas. Recent research suggests that the Sanjiangyuan region will become wetter in a warming future, but future changes in streamflow extremes remain unclear due to the complex hydrological processes over high-land areas and limited knowledge of the influences of land cover change and CO2 physiological forcing. Based on high resolution land surface modeling during 1979~2100 driven by the climate and ecological projections from 11 newly released Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 (CMIP6) climate models, we show that different accelerating rates of precipitation and evapotranspiration at 1.5 °C global warming level induce 55 % more dry extremes over Yellow river and 138 % more wet extremes over Yangtze river headwaters compared with the reference period (1985~2014). An additional 0.5 °C warming leads to a further nonlinear and more significant increase for both dry extremes over Yellow river (22 %) and wet extremes over Yangtze river (64 %). The combined role of CO2 physiological forcing and vegetation greening, which used to be neglected in hydrological projections, is found to alleviate dry extremes at 1.5 and 2.0 °C warming levels but to intensify dry extremes at 3.0 °C warming level. Moreover, vegetation greening contributes half of the differences between 1.5 and 3.0 °C warming levels. This study emphasizes the importance of ecological processes in determining future changes in streamflow extremes, and suggests a dry gets drier, wet gets wetter condition over headwaters.


2017 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 267-281 ◽  
Author(s):  
Seok-Woo Son ◽  
Seo-Yeon Kim ◽  
Seung-Ki Min

Abstract The Hadley cell (HC) change from paleoclimate to future climate is examined by comparing coupled model simulations archived for the Paleoclimate Modeling Intercomparison Project phase 3 (PMIP3) and phase 5 of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP5). Specifically, HC width and strength are evaluated using 100-yr equilibrium simulations for the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), preindustrial (PI), and extended concentration pathway 4.5 (ECP4.5) conditions. Where available, ECP8.5 simulations are also examined to increase the sample size. All models show a systematic widening of the HC from the LGM to the PI and to the ECP4.5 and ECP8.5 simulations. Such widening, which is found in both hemispheres with more robust change in the Southern Hemisphere (SH) than in the Northern Hemisphere (NH), is significantly correlated with global-mean surface air temperature change and the associated static stability change in the subtropics. Based on the zero-crossing latitude of 500-hPa mass streamfunction, about 4.5° latitude widening of the HC results from global warming of 10°C. HC strength also exhibits a systematic weakening in the NH. However, in the SH, HC strength shows a rather minor change from LGM to ECP4.5 conditions because of the cancellation between HC weakening during the austral summer–fall and its strengthening during the spring. This result, which suggests no systematic relationship between HC width and strength changes, is discussed in the context of quasigeostrophic zonal-mean dynamics. Overall findings are also compared with recent studies that are based on transient climate model simulations.


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