Abstract
The Pacific–North American (PNA) teleconnection pattern has recently been found to be influenced by the South China Sea (SCS) sea surface temperature anomaly (SSTA). This study further demonstrates that, the SCS SSTA can induce a new type of PNA response. The SCS-induced PNA pattern and its evolution are shown to be distinctly different from its conventional counterparts and, particularly, the ENSO-induced pattern. In contrast to the observed conventional patterns, the SCS-induced PNA seems to agree remarkably well with the classical theory of Rossby wave propagation on a sphere by Hoskins and Karoly (1981), with the centers following the great circle route, and it shows a more zonally oriented new pathway of evolution led by a precursory center not seen before. Further study of the dynamical processes underlying the new PNA response reveals a specific air-sea interaction triggered by SCS SSTA, which results in an upper-level Rossby wave source and induces the precursory center. We remark that, although the SCS SSTA is relatively small in amplitude, it has an effect on PNA almost as conspicuous as that from ENSO.
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Data availability statement
The ERA5 reanalysis dataset used for this study is available at https://cds.climate.copernicus.eu/cdsapp#!/dataset/reanalysis-era5-pressure-levels?tab=overview.
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Acknowledgements
We appreciate the suggestions by an anonymous reviewer. Yinchen Zhang thanks Yineng Rong, Yuhui Zhao, and Weibang He for helpful suggestions. The reanalysis data are made available by ECMWF, and the computing resources are provided by the Supercomputing Center of Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, to whom we are gratitude. This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 41975064, 42230105), the Shanghai International Science and Technology Partnership Project (Grant No. 21230780200), and the startup funds to XSL by Fudan University and Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai).
Funding
National Natural Science Foundation of China, 41975064, X. San Liang, 42230105, X. San Liang, Shanghai International Science and Technology Partnership Project, 21230780200, X. San Liang, Fudan University Startup Fund, X. San Liang, Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai) Startup Fund, X. San Liang.
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Zhang, Y., Liang, X.S. The distinct PNA pattern induced by the South China Sea. Clim Dyn 61, 1123–1138 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00382-022-06607-4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00382-022-06607-4