scholarly journals Are the Near-Antarctic Easterly Winds Weakening in Response to Enhancement of the Southern Annular Mode?

2019 ◽  
Vol 32 (6) ◽  
pp. 1895-1918 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julia E. Hazel ◽  
Andrew L. Stewart
Keyword(s):  
Continental Shelf ◽  
Ocean Circulation ◽  
Seasonal Cycle ◽  
Austral Summer ◽  
Southern Annular Mode ◽  
Ekman Transport ◽  
Easterly Wind ◽  
Annular Mode ◽  
Coastal Winds ◽  
Meteorological Observations

Previous studies have highlighted the sensitivity of the Southern Ocean circulation to the strengthening, poleward-shifting westerlies, associated with the increasingly positive southern annular mode (SAM). The impacts of the SAM have been hypothesized to weaken momentum input to the ocean from the easterly winds around the Antarctic margins. Using ERA-Interim data, the authors show that the circumpolar-averaged easterly wind stress has not weakened over the past 3–4 decades, and, if anything, has slightly strengthened by around 7%. However, there has been a substantial increase in the seasonality of the easterlies, with a weakening of the easterly winds during austral summer and a strengthening during winter. A similar trend in the seasonality of the easterlies is found in three other reanalysis products that compare favorably with Antarctic meteorological observations. The authors associate the strengthening of the easterly winds during winter with an increase in the pressure gradient between the coast and the pole. Although the trend in the overall easterly wind strength is small, the change in the seasonal cycle may be expected to reduce the shoreward Ekman transport of summer surface waters and also to admit more warm Circumpolar Deep Water to the continental shelf in summer. Changes in the seasonal cycle of the near-coastal winds may also project onto seasonal formation and export of sea ice, fluctuations in the strengths of the Weddell and Ross Gyres, and seasonal export of Antarctic Bottom Water from the continental shelf.

Extratropical Southern Hemisphere Synchronous Pressure Variability in the Early 20th Century

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-41
Author(s):  
Ryan L. Fogt ◽  
Charlotte J. Connolly
Keyword(s):  
Southern Hemisphere ◽  
Historical Data ◽  
Austral Summer ◽  
Southern Annular Mode ◽  
Early 20Th Century ◽  
Annular Mode ◽  
Tropical Variability ◽  
Zonal Wavenumber ◽  
Meteorological Observations ◽  
Statistical Relationships

AbstractBecause continuous meteorological observations across Antarctica did not start until the middle of the 20th century, little is known about the full spatial pattern of pressure variability across the extratropical Southern Hemisphere (SH) in the early 20th century, defined here as the period from 1905-1956. To fill this gap, this study analyzes pressure observations across the SH in conjunction with seasonal pressure reconstructions across Antarctica, which are based on observed station-to-station statistical relationships between pressure over Antarctica and the southern midlatitudes. Using this newly generated dataset, it is found that the early 20th century is characterized by synchronous, but opposite signed pressure relationships between Antarctica and the SH midlatitudes, especially in austral summer and autumn. The synchronous pressure relationships are consistent with the Southern Annular Mode, extending its well-known influence on SH extratropical pressure since 1957 into the early 20th century. Apart from connections with the Southern Annular Mode, regional and shorter-duration pressure trends are found to be associated with influences from tropical variability and potentially the zonal wavenumber three pattern. Although the reduced network of SH observations and Antarctic reconstruction capture the Southern Annular Mode in the early 20th century, reanalyses products show varying skill in reproducing trends and variability, especially over the oceans and high southern latitudes prior to 1957, which stresses the importance of continual efforts of historical data rescue in data sparse regions to improve their quality.

Extratropical Southern Hemisphere Synchronous Pressure Variability in the Early Twentieth Century

2021 ◽  
Vol 34 (14) ◽  
pp. 5795-5811
Author(s):  
Ryan L. Fogt ◽  
Charlotte J. Connolly
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
Southern Hemisphere ◽  
Austral Summer ◽  
Southern Annular Mode ◽  
Annular Mode ◽  
Tropical Variability ◽  
Early Twentieth Century ◽  
Zonal Wavenumber ◽  
Meteorological Observations ◽  
Statistical Relationships

Abstract Because continuous meteorological observations across Antarctica did not start until the middle of the twentieth century, little is known about the full spatial pattern of pressure variability across the extratropical Southern Hemisphere (SH) in the early twentieth century, defined here as the period from 1905 to 1956. To fill this gap, this study analyzes pressure observations across the SH in conjunction with seasonal pressure reconstructions across Antarctica, which are based on observed station-to-station statistical relationships between pressure over Antarctica and the southern midlatitudes. Using this newly generated dataset, it is found that the early twentieth century is characterized by synchronous but opposite-signed pressure relationships between Antarctica and the SH midlatitudes, especially in austral summer and autumn. The synchronous pressure relationships are consistent with the southern annular mode, extending its well-known influence on SH extratropical pressure since 1957 into the early twentieth century. Apart from connections with the southern annular mode, regional and shorter-duration pressure trends are found to be associated with influences from tropical variability and potentially the zonal wavenumber 3 pattern. Although the reduced network of SH observations and Antarctic reconstruction captures the southern annular mode in the early twentieth century, reanalysis products show varying skill in reproducing trends and variability, especially over the oceans and high southern latitudes prior to 1957, which stresses the importance of continual efforts of historical data rescue in data-sparse regions to improve their quality.

Multiple Timescales of the Southern Annular Mode

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qiuyan Zhang ◽  
Yang Zhang ◽  
Zhaohua Wu
Keyword(s):  
Seasonal Variability ◽  
Low Frequency ◽  
Austral Summer ◽  
Zonal Flow ◽  
Southern Annular Mode ◽  
Multiple Timescales ◽  
Annular Mode ◽  
Flow Interactions ◽  
The Cross ◽  
Sst Anomalies

<p>Using the ensemble empirical mode decomposition (EEMD) method, this study systematically investigates the multiple timescales of the Southern Annular Mode (SAM) and identifies their relative contributions to the low-frequency persistence of SAM. Analyses show that the subseasonal sustaining of SAM mainly depends on the contribution of longer-timescale variabilities, especially the cross-seasonal variability. When subtracting the cross-seasonal variability from the SAM, the positive covariance between the eddy and zonal flow, which is suggested the positive eddy feedback in SAM, disappears. Composite analysis shows that only with strong cross-seasonal variability, the meridional shift of zonal wind, eddy momentum forcing and baroclinicity anomalies can be maintained for more than 20 days, mainly resulting from the longer-timescale (especially the cross-seasonal timescale) eddy-zonal flow interactions. This study further suggests that the dipolar sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies in the mid latitude of Southern Hemisphere (SH) is a possible cause for the cross-seasonal variability. Analysis shows that about half of the strong cross-seasonal timescale events are accompanied by evident dipolar SST anomalies, which mostly occur in austral summer. The cross-seasonal dependence of the eddy-zonal flow interactions suggests the longer-timescale (especially the cross-seasonal timescale) contribution cannot be neglected in subseasonal prediction of SAM.</p>

scholarly journals Tropical influence independent of ENSO on the austral summer Southern Annular Mode

2014 ◽  
Vol 41 (10) ◽  
pp. 3643-3648 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hui Ding ◽  
Richard J. Greatbatch ◽  
Gereon Gollan
Keyword(s):  
Austral Summer ◽  
Southern Annular Mode ◽  
Annular Mode

Seasonal prediction of the austral summer Southern Annular Mode, and investigation of its connection to the Southern Ocean

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tim Hempel ◽  
André Düsterhus ◽  
Johanna Baehr
Keyword(s):  
Southern Ocean ◽  
Austral Summer ◽  
Seasonal Prediction ◽  
Southern Annular Mode ◽  
Skill Score ◽  
Prediction Skill ◽  
High Latitudes ◽  
Max Planck ◽  
Annular Mode ◽  
Atmospheric Variables

<div>The Southern Annular Mode (SAM) modulates the eddy-driven-westerly jet in the southern mid- to high-latitudes. This modulation has major impacts on the seasonal climate in the southern hemisphere. Thus, a seasonal prediction of the SAM is desirable. Still, only few studies show a significant prediction skill on this timescale. In this contribution the prediction skill of the SAM is improved by using its physical links to the Southern Ocean.</div><div>We use the seasonal prediction system based on the Max-Planck-Institute Earth-System-Model (MPI-ESM) in mixed resolution (MR). In ensemble reforecasts for 1982 to 2016 we find large regions of the surface ocean in the southern mid- to high-latitudes to be significantly predictable on seasonal timescales. In contrast, the atmospheric variables in the same regions show only very little skill. In the austral summer season (December-January-February (DJF)) different ensemble members evolve considerably different in the ocean and the atmosphere. With physical links between the Southern Ocean and the SAM, identified in ERA-Interim, we only select ensemble members that also show these links. This process is repeated every year and leads to a new time series with a reduced number of ensemble members. To evaluate the prediction skill of the new ensemble mean SAM we use the correlation coefficient and the Heidke Skill Score (HSS). The reduced ensemble has a correlation with ERA of 0.50, while the full ensemble shows a correlation of 0.31. Similarly the reduced ensemble has a HSS of 0.35 compared to the HSS of the full ensemble of 0.17.</div><div>We additionally show that choosing the same ensemble members we selected for the SAM also increases the prediction skill for other atmospheric variables. The reduced ensemble has an increased prediction skill for pressure, wind, and temperature in the southern mid- to high-latitudes, to which the selection is targeted.</div>

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