Relationship between the stratospheric quasi-biennial oscillation and the spring rainfall in the western North Pacific

Key Points Lower stratospheric QBO affects spring rainfall variability in the WNP region Changes in WNP subtropical high and jet result in spring rainfall variability QBO‐related change in Hadley circulation influences subtropical high and jet The effects of the stratospheric quasi‐biennial oscillat...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Geophysical research letters 2013-11, Vol.40 (22), p.5949-5953
Main Authors: Seo, Jihoon, Choi, Wookap, Youn, Daeok, Park, Doo-Sun R., Kim, Jin Young
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Earth sciences
Earth, ocean, space
East Asian jet
El Nino
Exact sciences and technology
Hadley circulation
Islands
Meteorology
Ocean circulation
Ocean-atmosphere interaction
Oscillations
Phases
Quasi-biennial oscillation
Rain
Rainfall
Southern Oscillation
spring rainfall
Springs
Springs (elastic)
Stratosphere
WNP subtropical high
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Summary:Key Points Lower stratospheric QBO affects spring rainfall variability in the WNP region Changes in WNP subtropical high and jet result in spring rainfall variability QBO‐related change in Hadley circulation influences subtropical high and jet The effects of the stratospheric quasi‐biennial oscillation (QBO) on spring rainfall in the western North Pacific (WNP) are investigated using observational and reanalysis data for 1979–2012. After excluding the strong El Niño–Southern Oscillation events, composite analyses between opposite phases of the QBO are applied to the rainfall and related meteorological fields to show the differences in each QBO phase. In comparison with the easterly phase, during the westerly QBO, a midlatitude spring rainband extending from southeastern China to the east of the Japanese Islands is displaced southward, and thus, the spring rainfall over Korea and Japan exhibits a significant decrease. Such changes in the spring WNP rainfall are related to the location and intensity of the WNP subtropical high (WNPSH) and the East Asian jet (EAJ). The possible role of the QBO in modulating the WNPSH and the EAJ is discussed with regard to the strength of the Hadley circulation.
ISSN:0094-8276
1944-8007
DOI:10.1002/2013GL058266