Thermodynamic and dynamic effects of increased moisture sources over the Tropical Indian Ocean in recent decades

• In the present work, the mechanisms for the changes in moisture sources (evaporation minus precipitation; EmP) during boreal summer (May-September) are explored over the tropical Indian Ocean during 1979-2016. We apply a moisture budget analysis to quantify the thermodynamic and dynamic effects. Our results show that the EmP in the tropical central-eastern and southwestern Indian Oceans experienced significant increasing trends during boreal summer. The increased EmP in the tropical central-eastern Indian Ocean is due to the enhanced dynamic divergence (account for approximately 51%), while a stronger dynamic advection contributes more moisture supply to the southwestern Indian Ocean (account for approximately 34%). We find that during recent decades, the enhanced east-west thermal gradient in the Pacific strengthens the Walker Circulation, which leads to a westward shift in convection over the Indian Ocean warm pool, resulting in weakened convection and ascent over the tropical central-eastern Indian Ocean. The weakened convection leads to an anomalous low-level atmospheric divergent circulation, which intensifies the dynamic divergence contributing to the enhanced EmP over the tropical central-eastern Indian Ocean. Additionally, the warming climate during recent decades also increases the land-sea thermal contrast in the vicinity of the Indian Ocean, which enhances the southeastern wind in the low-level troposphere and leads to an enhanced EmP over the southwestern Indian Ocean.

Ämnesord

NATURVETENSKAP  -- Geovetenskap och miljövetenskap (hsv//swe)

NATURAL SCIENCES  -- Earth and Related Environmental Sciences (hsv//eng)

Nyckelord

Moisture source

Atmospheric moisture budget

Dynamic and thermodynamic mechanisms

Walker circulation

Land-sea thermal contrast

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