scholarly journals Supplementary material to "El Niño-like conditions and seasonal aridity in the Indo-Pacific Warm Pool during the Younger Dryas"

Author(s):  
Petter Lars Hällberg ◽  
Frederik Schenk ◽  
Kweku Afrifa Yamoah ◽  
Xueyuen Kuang ◽  
Rienk Hajo Smittenberg
Science ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 344 (6179) ◽  
pp. 84-87 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yi Ge Zhang ◽  
Mark Pagani ◽  
Zhonghui Liu

The appearance of permanent El Niño–like conditions prior to 3 million years ago is founded on sea-surface temperature (SST) reconstructions that show invariant Pacific warm pool temperatures and negligible equatorial zonal temperature gradients. However, only a few SST records are available, and these are potentially compromised by changes in seawater chemistry, diagenesis, and calibration limitations. For this study, we establish new biomarker-SST records and show that the Pacific warm pool was ~4°C warmer 12 million years ago. Both the warm pool and cold tongue slowly cooled toward modern conditions while maintaining a zonal temperature gradient of ~3°C in the late Miocene, which increased during the Plio-Pleistocene. Our results contrast with previous temperature reconstructions that support the supposition of a permanent El Niño–like state.


2017 ◽  
Vol 44 (1) ◽  
pp. 438-445 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gregory C. Johnson ◽  
Abigail N. Birnbaum
Keyword(s):  
El Niño ◽  
El Nino ◽  

2013 ◽  
Vol 26 (13) ◽  
pp. 4816-4827 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nathaniel C. Johnson

Abstract It is now widely recognized that El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) occurs in more than one form, with the canonical eastern Pacific (EP) and more recently recognized central Pacific (CP) ENSO types receiving the most focus. Given that these various ENSO “flavors” may contribute to climate variability and long-term trends in unique ways, and that ENSO variability is not limited to these two types, this study presents a framework that treats ENSO as a continuum but determines a finite maximum number of statistically distinguishable representative ENSO patterns. A neural network–based cluster analysis called self-organizing map (SOM) analysis paired with a statistical distinguishability test determines nine unique patterns that characterize the September–February tropical Pacific SST anomaly fields for the period from 1950 through 2011. These nine patterns represent the flavors of ENSO, which include EP, CP, and mixed ENSO patterns. Over the 1950–2011 period, the most significant trends reflect changes in La Niña patterns, with a shift in dominance of La Niña–like patterns with weak or negative western Pacific warm pool SST anomalies until the mid-1970s, followed by a dominance of La Niña–like patterns with positive western Pacific warm pool SST anomalies, particularly after the mid-1990s. Both an EP and especially a CP El Niño pattern experienced positive frequency trends, but these trends are indistinguishable from natural variability. Overall, changes in frequency within the ENSO continuum contributed to the pattern of tropical Pacific warming, particularly in the equatorial eastern Pacific and especially in relation to changes of La Niña–like rather than El Niño–like patterns.


2007 ◽  
Vol 20 (13) ◽  
pp. 2895-2916 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qian Song ◽  
Gabriel A. Vecchi ◽  
Anthony J. Rosati

Abstract The interannual variability of the Indian Ocean, with particular focus on the Indian Ocean dipole/zonal mode (IODZM), is investigated in a 250-yr simulation of the GFDL coupled global general circulation model (CGCM). The CGCM successfully reproduces many fundamental characteristics of the climate system of the Indian Ocean. The character of the IODZM is explored, as are relationships between positive IODZM and El Niño events, through a composite analysis. The IODZM events in the CGCM grow through feedbacks between heat-content anomalies and SST-related atmospheric anomalies, particularly in the eastern tropical Indian Ocean. The composite IODZM events that co-occur with El Niño have stronger anomalies and a sharper east–west SSTA contrast than those that occur without El Niño. IODZM events, whether or not they occur with El Niño, are preceded by distinctive Indo-Pacific warm pool anomaly patterns in boreal spring: in the central Indian Ocean easterly surface winds, and in the western equatorial Pacific an eastward shift of deep convection, westerly surface winds, and warm sea surface temperature. However, delayed onsets of the anomaly patterns (e.g., boreal summer) are often not followed by IODZM events. The same anomaly patterns often precede El Niño, suggesting that the warm pool conditions favorable for both IODZM and El Niño are similar. Given that IODZM events can occur without El Niño, it is proposed that the observed IODZM–El Niño relation arises because the IODZM and El Niño are both large-scale phenomena in which variations of the Indo-Pacific warm pool deep convection plays a central role. Yet each phenomenon has its own dynamics and life cycle, allowing each to develop without the other. The CGCM integration also shows substantial decadal modulation of the occurrence of IODZM events, which is found to be not in phase with that of El Niño events. There is a weak, though significant, negative correlation between the two. Moreover, the statistical relationship between the IODZM and El Niño displays strong decadal variability.


2001 ◽  
Vol 14 (9) ◽  
pp. 2129-2137 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert D. Cess ◽  
Minghua Zhang ◽  
Bruce A. Wielicki ◽  
David F. Young ◽  
Xue-Long Zhou ◽  
...  

2008 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 163-185 ◽  
Author(s):  
Q. Qi ◽  
Y. Hou ◽  
Q. Zhang ◽  
T. Yan

Abstract. The zonal displacement of the western Pacific warm pool (WPWP) and the meridional displacement of the eastern Pacific warm pool (EPWP) and their responses to wind anomalies over the tropical Pacific were investigated. Joint effect of the WPWP and EPWP on ENSO was examined based on a joint effect index, which is a combination of the standardized anomaly time series of the eastern edge of the WPWP and the southern edge of the EPWP. Results show that both WPWP and EPWP are major providers of warm water in the eastern equatorial Pacific. The anomalous eastward extension of the WPWP and abnormal southward extension of the EPWP can supply a large amount of warm water into Nino3 region of the north equator, result in dramatic local SST increase, and trigger El Niño. To the contrary, as scope of the WPWP retreats westward and the EPWP retreats northward, a La Niña will outburst. One cannot separate apart the roles played by the WPWP and EPWP on ENSO, and the joint effect of both warm pools must be considered. A joint index of 1.6 means a new El Niño event is likely to happen.


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