Understanding the Central-Pacific El Nino-Southern Oscillation

了解中太平洋厄尔尼诺-南方涛动

• 批准号: 1233542
• 负责人: Jin-Yi Yu
• 金额: $ 64.26万
• 依托单位: University of California-Irvine
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2012
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2012-10-01 至 2016-09-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1233542&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Understanding; Central; Pacific; El; Nino

This project considers El Nino/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) which occur in the Central Equatorial Pacific (CP). CP ENSO events are distinct from the canonical ENSO events which occur in the Eastern Equatorial Pacific (EP) and appear as a narrow tongue of sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies extending along the equatorial cold tongue from the South American coast. In contrast, SST anomalies for CP ENSO events extend poleward and eastward from the CP to the subtropical coasts of North and South America, with stronger extension in the Northern Hemisphere. Furthermore, the evolution of EP ENSO events is associated with propagation or basin-wide fluctuation of subsurface ocean temperature anomalies at thermocline depth, while CP ENSO events have subsurface temperature anomalies which develop in situ, without propagation. The PIs note that CP ENSO events have become more common since the 1990s, and recent studies suggest that global warming may lead to further enhancement in CP over EP ENSO activity. They also note that the CP ENSO has received less attention in the literature than the EP ENSO, and studies of ENSO and its connections to the extratropics, including both extratropical precursors and extratropical impacts, have not considered the two ENSO types separately. The project addresses three scientific issues related to CP ENSO events. First, research addresses the underlying dynamics of CP events, and the relationship between CP and EP ENSO dynamics, through the use of idealized models and models of intermediate complexity. Second, the project addresses the role of extratropical forcing in generating CP ENSO events, based on earlier research which identified precursor patterns in sea surface temperatures in the Northern Hemisphere subtropics. Third, the research considers differences in the global impacts of CP and EP ENSO events, based in part on prevous work suggesting that EP events produce a north-south pattern of winter temperature anomalies over the US, while CP events produce an east-west oriented pattern.Beyond its scientific merit, the project has broader impacts due to the societal impacts of ENSO events. ENSO is the leading mode of short-term climate variability over the globe, and research to understand the dynamics and consequences of ENSO events could be instrumental in improving ENSO predictions. In addition, the work will support and train graduate and undergraduate students, as well as a postdoctoral researcher, thereby developing the scientific workforce in this area.

该项目考虑了发生在赤道太平洋中部（CP）的厄尔尼诺/南方涛动（ENSO）。 CP ENSO事件不同于发生在赤道东太平洋（EP）的典型ENSO事件，表现为从南美海岸沿着赤道冷舌延伸的一条窄的海表温度（SST）异常舌。 相反，太平洋ENSO事件的海温异常从太平洋向南北美洲副热带海岸的极向和向东延伸，在北方半球的延伸更强。 此外，EP ENSO事件的演变与温跃层深度的次表层海洋温度异常的传播或全流域波动有关，而CP ENSO事件的次表层温度异常在原地发展，而没有传播。 研究人员指出，自1990年代以来，CP ENSO事件变得更加普遍，最近的研究表明，全球变暖可能导致CP进一步增强而不是EP ENSO活动。 他们还指出，在文献中，对南极洲厄尔尼诺/南方涛动的关注少于南极洲厄尔尼诺/南方涛动，对厄尔尼诺/南方涛动及其与热带外的联系，包括热带外的前兆和热带外的影响的研究没有分别考虑这两种类型的厄尔尼诺/南方涛动。 该项目涉及与南极洲厄尔尼诺/南方涛动事件有关的三个科学问题。 首先，通过使用理想化模型和中等复杂性模型，研究解决了CP事件的基本动力学，以及CP和EP ENSO动力学之间的关系。 第二，该项目根据查明北方亚热带海面温度前兆模式的早期研究，探讨了热带外强迫在产生南极洲厄尔尼诺/南方涛动事件中的作用。 第三，该研究认为，在全球影响的CP和EP ENSO事件的差异，部分基于大量的工作表明，EP事件产生的冬季温度异常在美国南北的模式，而CP事件产生的东西向的模式。除了其科学价值，该项目有更广泛的影响，由于ENSO事件的社会影响。 厄尔尼诺/南方涛动是地球仪短期气候变化的主要模式，为了解厄尔尼诺/南方涛动的动态和后果而进行的研究有助于改进厄尔尼诺/南方涛动的预测。 此外，这项工作将支持和培训研究生和本科生，以及博士后研究人员，从而发展这一领域的科学劳动力。