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Enhanced interactions of Kuroshio Extension with tropical Pacific in a changing climate

Journal Article · · Scientific Reports
 [1];  [2];  [3];  [4]
  1. Georgia Inst. of Technology, Atlanta, GA (United States). School of Earth and Atomospheric Sciences; Princeton Univ., NJ (United States). Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences; OSTI
  2. Georgia Inst. of Technology, Atlanta, GA (United States). School of Earth and Atomospheric Sciences
  3. Univ. of Miami, Miami, FL (United States). Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science
  4. Univ. of Miami, Miami, FL (United States). Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science; Univ. of Miami, Miami, FL (United States). Cooperative Inst. for Marine and Atmospheric Studies
+ Show Author Affiliations
Quasi-decadal climate of the Kuroshio Extension (KE) is pivotal to understanding the North Pacific coupled ocean–atmosphere dynamics and their predictability. Recent observational studies suggest that extratropical-tropical coupling between the KE and the central tropical Pacific El Niño Southern Oscillation (CP-ENSO) leads to the observed preferred decadal time-scale of Pacific climate variability. By combining reanalysis data with numerical simulations from a high-resolution climate model and a linear inverse model (LIM), we confirm that KE and CP-ENSO dynamics are linked through extratropical-tropical teleconnections. Specifically, the atmospheric response to the KE excites Meridional Modes that energize the CP-ENSO (extratropicstropics), and in turn, CP-ENSO teleconnections energize the extratropical atmospheric forcing of the KE (tropicsextratropics). However, both observations and the model show that the KE/CP-ENSO coupling is non-stationary and has intensified in recent decades after the mid-1980. Given the short length of the observational and climate model record, it is difficult to attribute this shift to anthropogenic forcing. However, using a large-ensemble of the LIM we show that the intensification in the KE/CP-ENSO coupling after the mid-1980 is significant and linked to changes in the KE atmospheric downstream response, which exhibit a stronger imprint on the subtropical winds that excite the Pacific Meridional modes and CP-ENSO.
Research Organization:
Georgia Inst. of Technology, Atlanta, GA (United States). Georgia Tech Research Institute; Univ. of Miami, Miami, FL (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC)
Grant/Contract Number:
SC0019418; SC0019433
OSTI ID:
1816447
Journal Information:
Scientific Reports, Journal Name: Scientific Reports Journal Issue: 1 Vol. 11; ISSN 2045-2322
Publisher:
Nature Publishing GroupCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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