North-Pacific sea-ice and Kuroshio SST variability and its relation to the winter Monsoon

• FANG Z.-F.

  Chengdu Institute of Meteorology

• WALLACE John M.

  Department of Atmospheric Sciences, University of Washington

Abstract

In this paper, the relationship among large scale patterns of the atmospheric variability, sea-ice concentration and SST over the North-Pacific sector in winter is investigated, making use of the Singular Value Decomposition (SVD) of the temporal covariance matrix. The conclusions are as follows : the main sea-ice pattern over the Pacific sector is comprised of a dipole with opposing centers of action in the Bering Sea and the Sea of Okhotsk. Its temporal variability is strongly related to the atmospheric West Pacific (WP) Pattern, and to the pattern formed in the atmosphere one month earlier than in the sea ice. The WP pattern also affects the SST in the Kuroshio one month later. When the 500hPa height anomalies are negative over 60°N, 150°E, and positive over 30°N, 150°E, the north part of the East Asian trough is stronger than normal, and the storm track is shifted to the north of its climatic mean position. In the SLP field, the Siberian high and the Aleutian low are weaker than normal, and it is a weak winter monsoon situation in the East Asia. The northerly wind replaces the normal easterly wind over the Sea of Okhotsk, which would be conducive to the advance of the ice edge. The southeasterly wind covers the Bering Sea, which is probably the result of reduced southward transport of sea ice. The northerly wind to the east of Japan in the Pacific is weaker than normal, which would cause positive SST anomalies in the Kuroshio, and vice versa.

Journal

• Pol. Meteorol. Glaciol.

  Pol. Meteorol. Glaciol. 12 58-67, 1998

  National Institute of Polar Research

Details

• CRID: 1573105976736134656
• NII Article ID: 110001068150
• NII Book ID: AA1129795X
• ISSN: 13443437
• Text Lang: en
• Data Source:
  • CiNii Articles