Hyoeun Oh

Prediction of dominant intraseasonal modes in the East Asian-western North Pacific summer monsoon

Intraseasonal monsoon prediction is the most imperative task, but there remains an enduring challenge in climate science. The present study aims to provide a physical understanding of the sources for prediction of dominant intraseasonal modes in the East Asian-western North Pacific summer monsoon (EA-WNPSM): pre-Meiyu&Baiu, Changma&Meiyu, WNPSM, and monsoon gyre modes classified by the self-organizing map analysis. Here, we use stepwise regression to determine the predictors for the four modes in the EA-WNPSM. The selected predictors are based on the persistent and tendency signals of the sea surface temperature (SST)/2m air temperature and sea level pressure fields, which reflect the asymmetric response to the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and the ocean and land surface anomalous conditions. For the pre-Meiyu&Baiu mode, the SST cooling tendency over the western North Pacific (WNP), which persists into summer, is the distinguishing contributor that results in strong baroclinic instability. A major precursor for the Changma&Meiyu mode is related to the WNP subtropical high, induced by the persistent SST difference between the Indian Ocean and the western Pacific. The WNPSM mode is mostly affected by the Pacific-Japan pattern, and monsoon gyre mode is primarily associated with a persistent SST cooling over the tropical Indian Ocean by the preceding ENSO signal. This study carries important implications for prediction by establishing valuable precursors of the four modes including nonlinear characteristics.

Combined effect of the East Atlantic/West Russia and Western Pacific teleconnections on the East Asian winter monsoon

This study investigates the individual effects of the East Atlantic/West Russia (EATL/WRUS) and Western Pacific (WP) teleconnection patterns and their combined effect on the East Asian winter monsoon (EAWM). The contributions of the respective EATL/WRUS and WP teleconnection patterns to the EAWM are revealed by removing the dependence on the Arctic Oscillation (AO) and the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) using a linear regression, which are named as N_EATL/WRUS and N_WP, respectively. This is because the EATL/WRUS (WP) is closely linked to the Arctic (tropics) region. A significant increase (decrease) in temperature over East Asia (EA) corresponding to a weak (strong) EAWM is associated with the N_EATL/WRUS and N_WP teleconnection patterns during the positive (negative) phases. In order to examine impacts of these two teleconnections on the EAWM, three types of effects are reconstructed on the basis of ± 0.5 standard deviation: 1) Combined effect, 2) N_EATL/WRUS effect, and 3) N_WP effect. The positive N_EATL/WRUS teleconnection induces to a weakened Siberian High and a shallow EA trough at the mid-troposphere through wave propagation, leading to the weak EAWM. During the positive N_WP pattern, warm air from the tropics flows toward the EA along western flank of an anomalous anticyclone over the North Pacific that is relevant to the meridional shift of the Aleutian Low. When the two mid-latitude teleconnections have the in-phase combination, the increase in temperature over EA appears to be more pronounced than the individual effects by transporting warm air from tropics via strong southeasterly wind anomalies induced by anomalous zonal pressure gradient between the Siberian High and Aleutian Low. Therefore, the impact of the mid-latitude teleconnections on the EAWM becomes robust and linearly superimposed, unlike a nonlinear in-phase combined effect of the AO and ENSO.