北大西洋年际变率的海气耦合模式模拟Ⅱ:热带太平洋强迫

利用一个全球海气耦合模式(BCM),结合观测资料,讨论了热带太平洋强迫对北大西洋年际气候变率的影响.研究表明,BCM能够相对合理地模拟赤道太平洋的年际变率模态及相应的海温距平型和大气遥相关型,尽管其准3年的振荡周期过于规则.来自数值模式和观测上的证据都表明,北大西洋冬季海温的主导性变率模态,即自北而南出现的"-+-"的海温距平型,受到来自热带太平洋强迫的显著影响,其正位相与赤道中东太平洋冷事件相对应.换言之,赤道太平洋暖事件的发生,在太平洋-北美沿岸激发出PNA遥相关型,进而通过在北大西洋产生类似NAO负位相的气压距平型,削弱本来与NAO正位相直接联系的三核型海温距平.北大西洋三核型海温距平对热带太平洋强迫的响应,要滞后2-3个月的时间.     

北大西洋年际变率的海气耦合模式模拟Ⅰ：局地海气相互作用

检验了一个全球海气耦合模式对北大西洋年际气候变率的模拟,讨论了导致这种年际变率型的物理机制,并分析了其对年代际变率的可能影响。北大西洋冬季SST的主导变率模态,在经向上表现为三核型,自北而南出现“- -”的带状距平型;最大距平中心位于副极地大洋、中纬度大洋的西部以及热带海域,耦合模式较为真实地再现了这一特征。与三核型SST异常相对应的大气环流型表现为北大西洋涛动,具有显著的正压结构。上述异常型主要发生在年际尺度,具有3—4年的谱峰;在次年代际尺度上,也存在谱峰。分析表明,模式中三核型SST异常的产生,主要来自大气的强迫,NAO增强,中纬度大洋上的西风减弱,海洋感热和潜热通量损失减少,中纬度大洋得到的净热通量增加,导致SST出现正距平;在包括Labrador海在内的副极地大洋,NAO增强、冰岛低压加深,气旋性环流增强,来自高纬度的冷空气吹过洋面,海气温差加大,大洋的感热通量损失增加,SST降低。热带地区东风的增强,也是导致那里SST降低的重要机制。三核型SST异常对大气的反馈作用较弱,文中没有证据表明它能够影响到北大西洋地区的年代际气候变率。     

春季北大西洋三极型海温异常变化及其与NAO和ENSO的联系

利用1951—2016年HadISST逐月海表温度(Sea Surface Temperature,SST)资料,NCEP/NCAR再分析资料以及1958—2016年美国伍兹霍尔海洋研究所(Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution,WHOI)提供的OAFlux数据集,运用经验正交函数分解(Empirical Orthogonal Function,EOF)和偏相关分析等统计方法,研究了春季北大西洋海温异常的主要特征及其与春季NAO和前期冬季ENSO联系。结果表明:春季北大西洋海温异常EOF的第一模态是自北而南出现的三极结构的海温距平型,其方差贡献率为35.7%。春季北大西洋三极型海温异常的形成主要受到春季NAO主导作用,还受到前期冬季热带中东太平洋海温异常的影响。消除前期冬季Niňo3.4的影响后,春季北大西洋三极型海温异常指数与同期北大西洋涛动(North Atlantic Oscillation,NAO)指数的偏相关系数分别为0.50,通过了99%置信度水平的显著性检验。消除春季NAO的影响后,春季北大西洋三极型海温异常指数与前期冬季Niňo3.4指数的偏相关系数为-0.26,通过了95%信度水平的显著性检验。春季NAO正(负)位相引起的海表风场和海表湍流热通量的异常,进而激发出正(负)位相的北大西洋三极型海温异常。前期冬季ENSO事件可以引起春季大气环流异常和热带外海温异常,进而调制春季NAO对北大西洋三极型海温异常的影响。     

全球热带海气耦合距平模式及其数值模拟

用观测海温距平对一个中等分辨率的细网格大气模式和观测 FSU假风应力对全球热带三大洋距平海洋模式分别进行强迫试验。结果表明 :无论是大气模式还是海洋模式均在一定程度上较好地模拟了观测事实 ,热带大西洋的模拟效果好于热带印度洋。对大气模式而言 ,经向风距平的模拟要好于纬向风距平 ,热带大西洋西部好于东部 ,热带印度洋东部好于西部 ,赤道南侧好于北侧。对海洋模式而言 ,热带大西洋模拟最好的区域是赤道中东部 ,对赤道东印度洋的暖事件及偶极子事件年际变率模拟也较好。在此基础上 ,用和海气耦合模式同样的耦合方式将两者耦合起来 ,构成了一个中等复杂程度的全球热带海气耦合模式 ,这是进一步研究全球热带海气相互作用的基础     

海温异常对东亚夏季风影响机理的研究进展

从短期气候预测关注的外强迫信号角度出发,回顾了国内外在海温异常对东亚夏季风和我国汛期降水影响机理方面的主要研究进展,重点评述了热带太平洋ENSO循环、热带印度洋全区一致型海温模态、热带印度洋海温异常偶极子、南印度洋偶极子和北大西洋海温三极子模态的年际变化及其对东亚夏季风年际变率的影响。从研究成果在短期气候预测业务中应用的角度,重点关注海温异常和东亚夏季风年际变率以及我国汛期降水多雨带位置的关系,总结了海温异常作为外强迫信号对我国汛期降水预测的指示意义以及汛期降水预测的难度。最后指出气候预测业务对东亚夏季风影响的机理研究和动力气候模式发展方面的需求。     

冬季北太平洋风暴轴的年际变化及其与500hPa高度以及热带和北太平洋海温的联系

文中研究了冬季北太平洋风暴轴的年际异常及其与500hPa高度以及热带和北太平洋海温的联系。结果发现,各年冬季北太平洋风暴轴的中心强度和位置具有显著的年际差异。对15个冬季北太平洋风暴轴区域500hPa天气尺度滤波位势高度方差与热带和北太平洋海温的SVD分析表明,第一对空间典型分布反映了赤道中、东太平洋区域海温异常对风暴轴年际变化的影响,而第二对空间典型分布反映了黑潮区域海温异常对风暴轴年际变化的影响。进一步的合成分析显示,赤道中、东太平洋区域海温异常主要影响冬季北太平洋风暴轴的东西摆动和中、东端的强度变化,而黑潮区域海温异常则主要影响冬季北太平洋风暴轴中、西端的强度变化和南北位移。并且这种影响分别与500hPa高度场上的PNA遥相关型和WP遥相关型有密切联系。     

北方涛动同北半球温带大气环流的遥相关(一)——基本结构

本文利用1951—1980年逐季的平均值资料(共120个季)讨论了北方涛动和与其相联系的北太平洋海温与北半球海平面气压场、500hPa位势高度场遥相关的基本结构,并与南方涛动和赤道东太平洋海温的结果进行了对比分析.发现北太平洋Namias海区和加利福尼亚海流区海温的变化与北方涛动具有很密切的联系;北方涛动和这两个海区的海温同北半球中高纬度大气环流特别是PNA型和NAO型环流异常存在明显的遥相关关系;南方涛动和赤道太平洋海温同WP型或NPO型环流异常关系比较密切,而与PNA型和NAO型的关系不如北方涛动和Namias海区及加利福尼亚海流区海温的显著.     

全球变暖背景下热带太平洋海温长期趋势研究

热带太平洋对全球的气候有重要作用。然而,关于全球变暖背景下热带太平洋海温长期趋势的研究,迄今为止仍有争议。本文利用多套海表温度资料和次表层海温资料,基于无参的趋势估计方法（Theil-Sen趋势）,分析了热带太平洋海表温度长期趋势及赤道太平洋次表层海温长期趋势。多套资料的结果均表明在全球变暖背景下,热带太平洋冷舌区为长期冷趋势,而冷舌区之外的热带太平洋区域为长期暖趋势,即似La Ni?a（La Ni?a-like）海温长期趋势。此海温长期趋势是由热带太平洋冷舌模态所引起。当冷舌模态为正位相时,对应热带太平洋冷舌区为冷海温异常,而冷舌区之外的热带太平洋为暖海温异常。冷舌模态时间序列主要为长期趋势,而造成冷舌模态长期趋势的机制是全球变暖强迫下的海洋动力反馈过程。赤道太平洋的表层和次表层海温似La Ni?a型的长期趋势,是冷舌模态在表层海温和次表层海温上的不同体现。     

中纬度北太平洋依赖于ENSO事件及独立于ENSO事件的变率特征:观测事实与海气耦合模式模拟

观测事实显示,在E1 Ni(?)o发生期间,伴随着赤道中东太平洋的增暖,中纬度北大平洋中部表层海温（SST）常出现冷距平,而北美大陆西海岸SST则出现暖距平。借助观测资料分析和海气耦合模式模拟两种手段,检验了北太平洋对ENSO事件的上述响应。观测证据和数值模拟都支持有关学者提出的“大气桥”概念,即大气对赤道中东太平洋SST异常增暖的响应,随后强迫中纬度北太平洋,并导致那里SST的变冷,从而起到了连接热带和热带外特别是中纬度北太平洋的“桥梁”的作用。关于其机制,本文认为主要是海洋对大气强迫的动力响应导致那里的SST变冷,尽管潜热通量的贡献也很显著。至少模式结果证明短波辐射、长波辐射和感热通量的贡献都是次要的。进一步的分析揭示,北太平洋存在着线性独立于ENSO事件的所谓“北太平洋模态”,在空间型上,它和线性地依赖于ENSO事件的模态非常相近,即它们的纬向结构都呈现出扁平的“双极”型,只是彼此间SST距平极大值的中心位置不同。模拟结果表明,北太平洋模态与大气的耦合作用,主要是通过海气热通量交换实现的,其中短波辐射和长波辐射的作用居主导地位,而潜热通量的贡献则基本可以忽略。     

气候系统模式FGOALS_gl模拟的赤道太平洋年际变率

本文分析了中国科学院大气物理研究所大气科学和地球流体力学数值模拟国家重点实验室 (LASG/IAP) 发展的气候系统模式FGOALS_gl对赤道太平洋年际变率的模拟能力。结果表明, FGOALS_gl可以较好地模拟出赤道太平洋SST异常年际变率的主要特征, 但模拟的ENSO事件振幅偏大, 且变率周期过于规则。耦合模式模拟的气候平均风应力在热带地区比ERA40再分析资料的风应力强度偏弱30%左右, 由此引起的海洋平均态的变化, 是造成模拟的ENSO振幅偏强的主要原因。FGOALS_gl模拟的ENSO峰值多出现在春季或夏季, 原因可归之于模式模拟的SST季节循环偏差。耦合模式可以合理再现ENSO演变过程, 但观测中SST异常的东传特征在模式中没有得到再现, 这与模拟的ENSO发展模态表现为单一的 “SST模态” 有关。模拟的ENSO位相转换机制与 “充电—放电” 概念模型相符合, 赤道太平洋热含量的变化是维持ENSO振荡的机制。在ENSO暖位相时期, 赤道中东太平洋与印度洋—西太平洋暖池区的海平面气压距平型表现为南方涛动型 (SO型), 200 hPa位势高度分布表现为太平洋—北美遥相关型 (PNA型)。     

青藏高原西侧地区冬季降水的年际变率及其影响因子

基于全球降水气候中心（GPCC）和全球降水气候计划（GPCP）的降水数据及ERA-interim再分析资料,分析了1979~2012年冬季青藏高原（简称高原）西侧地区降水的基本特征及影响其年际变率的潜在因子。结果表明高原冬季降水主要发生在其西侧地区且为全区变化一致型,降水所需的水汽主要来自上游地区,从该区域的西边界输入。然而,高原西侧地区冬季降水的年际变率主要由水汽输送的动力过程所决定,表现为高原西侧的西南风异常。此外,高原西侧冬季降水的年际变率与其上游典型的大气内部变率北大西洋涛动和北极涛动相关性不强,而与赤道西印度洋和热带中东太平洋的海温显著相关。热带中东太平洋海温异常通过影响大气环流变化,在印度洋北部激发一个反气旋式的环流异常,使得高原西侧地区出现异常西南风,从而加强了水汽通量输送的动力作用。同时在赤道异常东风的作用下,暖水也向印度洋西部输送堆积。赤道中东太平洋海温的异常可进一步导致西风急流发生南北移动,从而也在一定程度上影响了高原西侧冬季水汽输送以及降水的年际变率。     

The influence of tropical Pacific forcing on the Arctic Oscillation

The potential role of tropical Pacific forcing in driving the seasonal variability of the Arctic Oscillation (AO) is explored using both observational data and a simple general circulation model (SGCM). A lead–lag regression technique is first applied to the monthly averaged sea surface temperature (SST) and the AO index. The AO maximum is found to be related to a negative SST anomaly over the tropical Pacific three months earlier. A singular value decomposition (SVD) analysis is then performed on the tropical Pacific SST and the sea level pressure (SLP) over the Northern Hemisphere. An AO-like atmospheric pattern and its associated SST appear as the second pair of SVD modes. Ensemble integrations are carried out with the SGCM to test the atmospheric response to different tropical Pacific forcings. The atmospheric response to the linear fit of the model’s empirical forcing associated with the SST variability in the second SVD modes strongly projects onto the AO. Idealized thermal forcings are then designed based on the regression of the seasonally averaged tropical Pacific precipitation against the AO index. Results indicate that forcing anomalies over the western tropical Pacific are more effective in generating an AO-like response while those over the eastern tropical Pacific tend to produce a Pacific-North American (PNA)-like response. The physical mechanisms responsible for the energy transport from the tropical Pacific to the extratropical North Atlantic are investigated using wave activity flux and vorticity forcing formalisms. The energy from the western tropical Pacific forcing tends to propagate zonally to the North Atlantic because of the jet stream waveguide effect while the transport of the energy from the eastern tropical Pacific forcing mostly concentrates over the PNA area. The linearized SGCM results show that nonlinear processes are involved in the generation of the forced AO-like pattern.     

Natural forcing of climate during the last millennium: fingerprint of solar variability

The variability of the climate during the last millennium is partly forced by changes in total solar irradiance (TSI). Nevertheless, the amplitude of these TSI changes is very small so that recent reconstruction data suggest that low frequency variations in the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) and in the thermohaline circulation may have amplified, in the North Atlantic sector and mostly in winter, the radiative changes due to TSI variations. In this study we use a state-of-the-art climate model to simulate the last millennium. We find that modelled variations of surface temperature in the Northern Hemisphere are coherent with existing reconstructions. Moreover, in the model, the low frequency variability of this mean hemispheric temperature is found to be correlated at 0.74 with the solar forcing for the period 1001?C1860. Then, we focus on the regional climatic fingerprint of solar forcing in winter and find a significant relationship between the low frequency TSI forcing and the NAO with a time lag of more than 40?years for the response of the NAO. Such a lag is larger than the around 20-year lag suggested in other studies. We argue that this lag is due, in the model, to a northward shift of the tropical atmospheric convection in the Pacific Ocean, which is maximum more than four decades after the solar forcing increase. This shift then forces a positive NAO through an atmospheric wave connection related to the jet-stream wave guide. The shift of the tropical convection is due to the persistence of anomalous warm SST forcing the anomalous precipitation, associated with the advection of warm SST by the North Pacific subtropical gyre in a few decades. Finally, we analyse the response of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation to solar forcing and find that the former is weakened when the latter increases. Changes in wind stress, notably due to the NAO, modify the barotropic streamfunction in the Atlantic 50?years after solar variations. This implies a wind-driven modification of the oceanic circulation in the Atlantic sector in response to changes in solar forcing, in addition to the variations of the thermohaline circulation.     

Holocene climate variability as derived from alkenone sea surface temperature and coupled ocean-atmosphere model experiments

Holocene climate modes are identified by the statistical analysis of reconstructed sea surface temperatures (SSTs) from the tropical and North Atlantic regions. The leading mode of Holocene SST variability in the tropical region indicates a rapid warming from the early to mid Holocene followed by a relatively weak warming during the late Holocene. The dominant mode of the North Atlantic region SST captures the transition from relatively warm (cold) conditions in the eastern North Atlantic and the western Mediterranean Sea (the northern Red Sea) to relatively cold (warm) conditions in these regions from the early to late Holocene. This pattern of Holocene SST variability resembles the signature of the Arctic Oscillation/North Atlantic Oscillation (AO/NAO). The second mode of both tropical and North Atlantic regions captures a warming towards the mid Holocene and a subsequent cooling. The dominant modes of Holocene SST variability emphasize enhanced variability around 2300 and 1000 years. The leading mode of the coupled tropical-North Atlantic Holocene SST variability shows that an increase of tropical SST is accompanied by a decrease of SST in the eastern North Atlantic. An analogy with the instrumental period as well as the analysis of a long-term integration of a coupled ocean-atmosphere general circulation model suggest that the AO/NAO is one dominant mode of climate variability at millennial time scales.     

我国南方盛夏气温主模态特征及其与海温异常的联系

利用NCEP/NCAR大气环流资料、HadISST海温数据以及中国160站气温数据等,通过EOF分解、线性相关等统计方法,分析了我国南方盛夏气温异常的主导模态及其所对应的关键环流系统和可能的海洋外强迫信号。结果表明:我国南方盛夏气温偏高有两种不同的分布模态,一是以江淮地区为中心的江淮型高温,二是以江南和华南为中心的江南型高温,导致这两种高温型发生的环流影响系统和海温外强迫因子均有显著差异。影响江淮型高温的关键环流系统是高低空正压结构的高度场正距平和偏弱的东亚副热带西风急流。而影响这两个关键环流系统的海洋外强迫因子包括热带印度洋至东太平洋的"-+-"海温异常分布型及北大西洋中纬度的暖海温异常。2016年盛夏江淮型高温的大气环流和海温异常均表现出典型江淮型高温年的特征,更好的证明了统计分析的结论。而江南型高温的关键环流系统主要是加强西伸的西太平洋副热带高压。其海洋外强迫因子包括前冬赤道中东太平洋的暖海温异常和春季-盛夏热带印度洋全区一致型暖海温异常,其中热带印度洋海温的影响更为持续和显著。     

Changes of interannual NAO variability in response to greenhouse gases forcing

Observations show that there was change in interannual North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) variability in the mid-1970s. This change was characterized by an eastward shift of the NAO action centres, a poleward shift of zonal wind anomalies and a downstream extension of climate anomalies associated with the NAO. The NAO interannual variability for the period after the mid-1970s has an annular mode structure that penetrates deeply into the stratosphere, indicating a strengthened relationship between the NAO and the Arctic Oscillation (AO) and strengthened stratosphere-troposphere coupling. In this study we have investigated possible causes of these changes in the NAO by carrying out experiments with an atmospheric GCM. The model is forced either by doubling CO₂, or increasing sea surface temperatures (SST), or both. In the case of SST forcing the SST anomaly is derived from a coupled model simulation forced by increasing CO₂. Results indicate that SST and CO₂ change both force a poleward and eastward shift in the pattern of interannual NAO variability and the associated poleward shift of zonal wind anomalies, similar to the observations. The effect of SST change can be understood in terms of mean changes in the troposphere. The direct effect of CO₂ change, in contrast, can not be understood in terms of mean changes in the troposphere. However, there is a significant response in the stratosphere, characterized by a strengthened climatological polar vortex with strongly enhanced interannual variability. In this case, the NAO interannual variability has a strong link with the variability over the North Pacific, as in the annular AO pattern, and is also strongly related to the stratospheric vortex, indicating strengthened stratosphere-troposphere coupling. The similarity of changes in many characteristics of NAO interannual variability between the model response to doubling CO₂ and those in observations in the mid-1970s implies that the increase of greenhouse gas concentration in the atmosphere, and the resulting changes in the stratosphere, might have played an important role in the multidecadal change of interannual NAO variability and its associated climate anomalies during the late twentieth century. The weak change in mean westerlies in the troposphere in response to CO₂ change implies that enhanced and eastward extended mid-latitude westerlies in the troposphere might not be a necessary condition for the poleward and eastward shift of the NAO action centres in the mid-1970s.     

Tropical/extratropical forcing on wintertime variability of the extratropical temperature and circulation

The secular trends and interannual variability of wintertime temperatures over northern extratropical lands and circulations over the northern hemisphere are examined using the NCEP/NCAR reanalysis from 1961 to 2010. A primitive equation dry atmospheric model, driven by time-averaged forcing in each winter diagnosed from the NCEP reanalysis, is then employed to investigate the influences of tropical and extratropical forcing on the temperature and circulation variability. The model has no topography and the forcing is thus model specific. The dynamic and thermodynamic maintenances of the circulation and temperature anomalies are also diagnosed. Distinct surface temperature trends over 1961–1990 and 1991–2010 are found over most of the extratropical lands. The trend is stronger in the last two decades than that before 1990, particularly over eastern Canadian Arctic, Greenland, and Asia. The exchange of midlatitude and polar air supports the temperature trends. Both the diagnosed extratropical and tropical forcings contribute to the temperature and circulation trends over 1961–1990, while the extratropical forcing dominates tropical forcing for the trends over 1991–2010. The contribution of the tropical forcing to the trends is sensitive to the period considered. The temperature and circulation responses to the diagnosed tropical and extratropical forcings are approximately additive and partially offsetting. Covariances between the interannual surface temperature and 500-hPa geopotential anomalies for the NCEP reanalysis from 1961 to 2010 are dominated by two leading modes associated with the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) and Pacific-North American (PNA) teleconnection patterns. The diagnosed extratropical forcing accounts for a significant part of the NAO and PNA associated variability, including the interannual variability of stationary wave anomalies, as well as dynamically and thermodynamically synoptic eddy feedbacks over the North Atlantic and North Pacific. The tropical forcing contributes to the PNA related temperature and circulation variability, but has a small contribution to the NAO associated variability. Additionally, relative contributions of tropical Indian and Pacific forcings are also assessed.     

An overview of the performance of CMIP6 models in the tropical Atlantic: mean state,variability, and remote impacts

General circulation models of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 (CMIP6) are examined with respect to their ability to simulate the mean state and variability of the tropical Atlantic and its linkage to the tropical Pacific. While, on average, mean state biases have improved little, relative to the previous intercomparison (CMIP5), there are now a few models with very small biases. In particular the equatorial Atlantic warm SST and westerly wind biases are mostly eliminated in these models. Furthermore, interannual variability in the equatorial and subtropical Atlantic is quite realistic in a number of CMIP6 models, which suggests that they should be useful tools for understanding and predicting variability patterns. The evolution of equatorial Atlantic biases follows the same pattern as in previous model generations, with westerly wind biases during boreal spring preceding warm sea-surface temperature (SST) biases in the east during boreal summer. A substantial portion of the westerly wind bias exists already in atmosphere-only simulations forced with observed SST, suggesting an atmospheric origin. While variability is relatively realistic in many models, SSTs seem less responsive to wind forcing than observed, both on the equator and in the subtropics, possibly due to an excessively deep mixed layer originating in the oceanic component. Thus models with realistic SST amplitude tend to have excessive wind amplitude. The models with the smallest mean state biases all have relatively high resolution but there are also a few low-resolution models that perform similarly well, indicating that resolution is not the only way toward reducing tropical Atlantic biases. The results also show a relatively weak link between mean state biases and the quality of the simulated variability. The linkage to the tropical Pacific shows a wide range of behaviors across models, indicating the need for further model improvement.

     

North Atlantic decadal regimes in a coupled GCM simulation

 The non-stationarity of the North Atlantic atmosphere-ocean coupling is investigated utilizing a long time integration of a coupled atmosphere-ocean general circulation model (GCM) and a consistent atmospheric experiment forced by the climatological sea surface temperature (SST) of the coupled GCM. The temporal behavior of the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) is non-stationary with two different decadal regimes being identified: (a) phases with enhanced (active) low-frequency variability of the NAO index are characterized by regional modes with a baroclinic Pacific-North America (PNA) and a dominant barotropic North Atlantic pattern; (b) in phases with reduced (passive) low-frequency variability a global mode connects tropics and midlatitudes. The characteristic space scales are similar in the coupled and the consistent atmospheric experiment; the time scales of the atmospheric eigenmodes are modified by ocean dynamics. In the active (passive) phase the corresponding atmospheric mode is reinforced by the North Atlantic (tropical Pacific) SST. Received: 15 September 2000 / Accepted: 30 March 2001     

Remotely forced variability in the tropical Atlantic Ocean

An ensemble of eight hindcasts has been conducted using an ocean-atmosphere general circulation model fully coupled only within the Atlantic basin, with prescribed observational sea surface temperature (SST) for 1950–1998 in the global ocean outside the Atlantic basin. The purpose of these experiments is to understand the influence of the external SST anomalies on the interannual variability in the tropical Atlantic Ocean. Statistical methods, including empirical orthogonal function analysis with maximized signal-to-noise ratio, have been used to extract the remotely forced Atlantic signals from the ensemble of simulations. It is found that the leading external source on the interannual time scales is the El Niño/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) in the Pacific Ocean. The ENSO signal in the tropical Atlantic shows a distinct progression from season to season. During the boreal winter of a maturing El Niño event, the model shows a major warm center in the southern subtropical Atlantic together with warm anomalies in the northern subtropical Atlantic. The southern subtropical SST anomalies is caused by a weakening of the southeast trade winds, which are partly associated with the influence of an atmospheric wave train generated in the western Pacific Ocean and propagating into the Atlantic basin in the Southern Hemisphere during boreal fall. In the boreal spring, the northern tropical Atlantic Ocean is warmed up by a weakening of the northeast trade winds, which is also associated with a wave train generated in the central tropical Pacific during the winter season of an El Niño event. Apart from the atmospheric planetary waves, these SST anomalies are also related to the sea level pressure (SLP) increase in the eastern tropical Atlantic due to the global adjustment to the maturing El Niño in the tropical Pacific. The tropical SLP anomalies are further enhanced in boreal spring, which induce anomalous easterlies on and to the south of the equator and lead to a dynamical oceanic response that causes cold SST anomalies in the eastern and equatorial Atlantic from boreal spring to summer. Most of these SST anomalies persist into the boreal fall season.

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