| 1. |
- Ferreira, David, et al.
(författare)
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Atlantic-Pacific Asymmetry in Deep Water Formation
- 2018
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Ingår i: Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Science. - : Annual Reviews. - 0084-6597 .- 1545-4495. ; 46, s. 327-352
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Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- While the Atlantic Ocean is ventilated by high-latitude deep water formation and exhibits a pole-to-pole overturning circulation, the Pacific Ocean does not. This asymmetric global overturning pattern has persisted for the past 2-3 million years, with evidence for different ventilation modes in the deeper past. In the current climate, the Atlantic-Pacific asymmetry occurs because the Atlantic is more saline, enabling deep convection. To what extent the salinity contrast between the two basins is dominated by atmospheric processes (larger net evaporation over the Atlantic) or oceanic processes (salinity transport into the Atlantic) remains an outstanding question. Numerical simulations have provided support for both mechanisms; observations of the present climate support a strong role for atmospheric processes as well as some modulation by oceanic processes. A major avenue for future work is the quantification of the various processes at play to identify which mechanisms are primary in different climate states.
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| 2. |
- Garfinkel, Chaim I., et al.
(författare)
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The Non-Gaussianity and Spatial Asymmetry of Temperature Extremes Relative to the Storm Track : The Role of Horizontal Advection
- 2017
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Ingår i: Journal of Climate. - 0894-8755 .- 1520-0442. ; 30:2, s. 445-464
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The distribution of near-surface and tropospheric temperature variability in midlatitudes is distinguishable from a Gaussian in meteorological reanalysis data; consistent with this, warm extremes occur preferentially poleward of the location of cold extremes. To understand the factors that drive this non-Gaussianity, a dry general circulation model and a simple model of Lagrangian temperature advection are used to investigate the connections between dynamical processes and the occurrence of extreme temperature events near the surface. The non-Gaussianity evident in reanalysis data is evident in the dry model experiments, and the location of extremes is influenced by the location of the jet stream and storm track. The cause of this in the model can be traced back to the synoptic evolution within the storm track leading up to cold and warm extreme events: negative temperature extremes occur when an equatorward propagating high-low couplet (high to the west) strongly advects isotherms equatorward over a large meridional fetch over more than two days. Positive temperature anomalies occur when a poleward propagating low-high couplet (low to the west) advects isotherms poleward over a large meridional fetch over more than two days. The magnitude of the extremes is enhanced by the meridional movement of the systems. Overall, horizontal temperature advection by storm track systems can account for the warm/cold asymmetry in the latitudinal distribution of the temperature extremes.
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| 3. |
- Harnik, Nili, et al.
(författare)
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On the equilibration of asymmetric barotropic instability
- 2014
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Ingår i: Quarterly Journal of the Royal Meteorological Society. - : Wiley. - 0035-9009 .- 1477-870X. ; 140:685, s. 2444-2464
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The conjunction of turbulence, waves and zonal jets in geophysical flows gives rise to the formation of potential vorticity staircases and to the sharpening of jets by eddies. The effect of eddies on jet structure, however, is fundamentally different if the eddies arise from barotropic rather than from baroclinic instability. As is well known, barotropic instability may occur on zonal jets when there is a reversal of potential vorticity gradients at the jet flanks. In this article we focus on the nonlinear stages of this instability and its eventual saturation. We consider an idealized initial state consisting of an anticyclonic potential vorticity strip sitting in the flanks of an eastward jet. This asymmetric configuration, a generalization of the Rayleigh problem, is one of the simplest barotropic jet configurations which incorporates many fundamental aspects of real flows, including linear instability and its equilibration, nonlinear interactions, scale cascades, vortex dynamics, and jet sharpening. We make use of the simplicity of the problem to conduct an extensive parameter sweep, and develop a theory relating the properties of the equilibrated flow to the initial flow state by considering the marginal stability limit, together with conservation of circulation and wave activity.
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| 4. |
- Harnik, Nili, et al.
(författare)
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The Circumglobal North American wave pattern and its relation to cold events in eastern North America
- 2016
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Ingår i: Geophysical Research Letters. - 0094-8276 .- 1944-8007. ; 43:20, s. 11015-11023
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Extreme large-scale North American cold events are associated with strong undulations in the tropospheric jet stream which bring cold polar air southward over the continent. Here we propose that these jet undulations are associated with the North American part of the Circumglobal Teleconnection Patterna pair of zonally oriented waves of zonal wave number 5 which are in zonal quadrature with each other. While the Pacific/North American pattern is associated with the first circumglobal wave pattern, North American extreme cold events are associated with the second pattern. The 300hPa meridional wind and surface temperature anomalies associated with the Circumglobal North American wave packet are similar to those associated with the strongest eastern U.S. cold events. Both types of events are associated with a wave packet propagating all the way from Asia across the Pacific and across North America, with cold temperature anomalies spreading southeastward from Canada over the continent.
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| 5. |
- Lachmy, Orli, et al.
(författare)
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Wave and Jet Maintenance in Different Flow Regimes
- 2016
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Ingår i: Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences. - 0022-4928 .- 1520-0469. ; 73:6, s. 2465-2484
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The wave spectrum and zonal-mean-flow maintenance in different flow regimes of the jet stream are studied using a two-layer modified quasigeostrophic (QG) model. As the wave energy is increased by varying the model parameters, the flow transitions from a subtropical jet regime to a merged jet regime and then to an eddy-driven jet regime. The subtropical jet is maintained at the Hadley cell edge by zonal-mean advection of momentum, while eddy heat flux and eddy momentum flux convergence (EMFC) are weak and concentrated far poleward. The merged jet is narrow and persistent and is maintained by EMFC from a narrow wave spectrum, dominated by zonal wavenumber 5. The eddy-driven jet is wide and fluctuating and is maintained by EMFC from a wide wave spectrum. The wave-mean flow feedback mechanisms that maintain each regime are explained qualitatively.The regime transitions are related to transitions in the wave spectrum. An analysis of the wave energy spectrum budget and a comparison with a quasi-linear version of the model show that the balance maintaining the spectrum in the merged and subtropical jet regimes is mainly a quasi-linear balance, whereas in the eddy-driven jet regime nonlinear inverse energy cascade takes place. The amplitude and wavenumber of the dominant wave mode in the merged and subtropical jet regimes are determined by the constraint that this mode would produce the wave fluxes necessary for maintaining a mean flow that is close to neutrality. In contrast, the equilibrated mean flow in the eddy-driven jet regime is weakly unstable.
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| 6. |
- Lubis, Sandro W., et al.
(författare)
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How does downward planetary wave coupling affect polar stratospheric ozone in the Arctic winter stratosphere?
- 2017
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Ingår i: Atmospheric Chemistry And Physics. - : Copernicus GmbH. - 1680-7316 .- 1680-7324. ; 17:3, s. 2437-2458
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- It is well established that variable wintertime planetary wave forcing in the stratosphere controls the variability of Arctic stratospheric ozone through changes in the strength of the polar vortex and the residual circulation. While previous studies focused on the variations in upward wave flux entering the lower stratosphere, here the impact of downward planetary wave reflection on ozone is investigated for the first time. Utilizing the MERRA2 reanalysis and a fully coupled chemistry-climate simulation with the Community Earth System Model (CESM1(WACCM)) of the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), we find two downward wave reflection effects on ozone: (1) the direct effect in which the residual circulation is weakened during winter, reducing the typical increase of ozone due to upward planetary wave events and (2) the indirect effect in which the modification of polar temperature during winter affects the amount of ozone destruction in spring. Winter seasons dominated by downward wave reflection events (i.e., reflective winters) are characterized by lower Arctic ozone concentration, while seasons dominated by increased upward wave events (i.e., absorptive winters) are characterized by relatively higher ozone concentration. This behavior is consistent with the cumulative effects of downward and upward planetary wave events on polar stratospheric ozone via the residual circulation and the polar temperature in winter. The results establish a new perspective on dynamical processes controlling stratospheric ozone variability in the Arctic by highlighting the key role of wave reflection.
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| 7. |
- Lubis, Sandro W., et al.
(författare)
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Influence of the Quasi-Biennial Oscillation and Sea Surface Temperature Variability on Downward Wave Coupling in the Northern Hemisphere
- 2016
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Ingår i: Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences. - 0022-4928 .- 1520-0469. ; 73:5, s. 1943-1965
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Downward wave coupling occurs when an upward-propagating planetary wave from the troposphere decelerates the flow in the upper stratosphere and forms a downward reflecting surface that redirects waves back to the troposphere. To test this mechanism and potential factors influencing the downward wave coupling, three 145-yr sensitivity simulations with NCAR's Community Earth System Model [CESM1(WACCM)], a state-of-the-art high-top chemistry-climate model, are analyzed. The results show that the quasi-biennial oscillation (QBO) and SST variability significantly impact downward wave coupling. Without the QBO, the occurrence of downward wave coupling is significantly suppressed. In contrast, stronger and more persistent downward wave coupling occurs when SST variability is excluded. The above influence on the occurrence of downward wave coupling is mostly due to a direct influence of the QBO and SST variability on stratospheric planetary wave source and propagation. The strengths of the tropospheric circulation and surface responses to a given downward wave coupling event, however, behave differently. The surface anomaly is significantly weaker (stronger) in the experiment with fixed SSTs (without QBO), even though the statistical signal of downward wave coupling is strongest (weakest) in this experiment. This apparent mismatch is explained by the differences in the strength of the synoptic-scale eddy-mean flow feedback and the possible contribution of SST anomalies in the North Atlantic during the downward wave coupling event. The weaker synoptic-scale eddy-mean flow feedback and the absence of the positive NAO-related SST-tripole pattern in the fixed SST experiment are consistent with a weaker tropospheric response to downward wave coupling. The results highlight the importance of synoptic-scale eddies in setting the tropospheric response to downward wave coupling.
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| 8. |
- Messori, Gabriele, et al.
(författare)
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A dynamical systems characterization of atmospheric jet regimes
- 2021
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Ingår i: Earth System Dynamics. - : Copernicus GmbH. - 2190-4979 .- 2190-4987. ; 12:1, s. 233-251
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Atmospheric jet streams are typically separated into primarily eddy-driven (or polar-front) jets and primarily thermally driven (or subtropical) jets. Some regions also display merged jets, resulting from the (quasi-)collocation of the regions of eddy generation with the subtropical jet. The different locations and driving mechanisms of these jets arise from very different underlying mechanisms and result in very different jet characteristics. Here, we link the current understanding of dynamical jet maintenance mechanisms, mostly arising from conceptual or idealized models, to the phenomena observed in reanalysis data. We specifically focus on developing a unitary analysis framework grounded in dynamical systems theory, which may be applied to both idealized models and reanalysis, as well as allowing for direct intercomparison. Our results illustrate the effectiveness of dynamical systems indicators to diagnose jet regimes.
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