Abstract. Stratosphere-to-troposphere mass transport to the planetaryboundary layer (STT-PBL) peaks over the western United States during borealspring, when deep stratospheric intrusions are most frequent. Thetropopause-level jet structure modulates the frequency and character ofintrusions, although the precise relationship between STT-PBL and jetvariability has not been extensively investigated. In this study, wedemonstrate how the North Pacific jet transition from winter to summer leadsto the observed peak in STT-PBL. We show that the transition enhancesSTT-PBL through an increase in storm track activity which produceshighly amplified Rossby waves and more frequent deep stratosphericintrusions over western North America. This dynamic transition coincideswith the gradually deepening PBL, further facilitating STT-PBL in spring. Wefind that La Niña conditions in late winter are associated with anearlier jet transition and enhanced STT-PBL due to deeper and more frequenttropopause folds. An opposite response is found during El Niñoconditions. El Niño–SouthernOscillation (ENSO) conditions also influence STT-PBL in late spring or earlysummer, during which time La Niña conditions are associated with largerand more frequent tropopause folds than both El Niño and ENSO-neutralconditions. These results suggest that knowledge of ENSO state and the North Pacific jet structure in late winter could be leveraged for predicting thestrength of STT-PBL in the following months.
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Subseasonal prediction of springtime Pacific–North American transport using upper-level wind forecasts
Abstract. Forecasts of Pacific jet variability are used to predictstratosphere-to-troposphere transport (STT) and tropical-to-extratropicalmoisture export (TME) during boreal spring over the Pacific–North Americanregion. A retrospective analysis first documents the regionality of STT andTME for different Pacific jet patterns. Using these results as a guide,Pacific jet hindcasts, based on zonal-wind forecasts from the European Centrefor Medium-Range Weather Forecasting Integrated Forecasting System, areutilized to test whether STT and TME over specific geographic regions may bepredictable for subseasonal forecast leads (3–6 weeks ahead of time). Largeanomalies in STT to the mid-troposphere over the North Pacific, TME to thewest coast of the United States, and TME over Japan are found to have the bestpotential for subseasonal predictability using upper-level wind forecasts. STTto the planetary boundary layer over the intermountain west of the UnitedStates is also potentially predictable for subseasonal leads but likely onlyin the context of shifts in the probability of extreme events. While STT andTME forecasts match verifications quite well in terms of spatial structure andanomaly sign, the number of anomalous transport days is underestimatedcompared to observations. The underestimation of the number of anomaloustransport days exhibits a strong seasonal cycle, which becomes steadily worseas spring progresses into summer.
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- Award ID(s):
- 1756958
- PAR ID:
- 10308571
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Weather and Climate Dynamics
- Volume:
- 2
- Issue:
- 2
- ISSN:
- 2698-4016
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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- Free Publicly Accessible Full Text
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Accepted Manuscript1.0
- Journal Article:
- https://doi.org/10.5194/wcd-2-433-2021
