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Abstract Recent observations have indicated significant modulation of the Madden–Julian oscillation (MJO) by the phase of the stratospheric quasi-biennial oscillation (QBO) during boreal winter. Composites of the MJO show that upper-tropospheric ice cloud fraction and water vapor anomalies are generally collocated, and that an eastward tilt with height in cloud fraction exists. Through radiative transfer calculations, it is shown that ice clouds have a stronger tropospheric radiative forcing than do water vapor anomalies, highlighting the importance of incorporating upper-tropospheric–lower-stratospheric processes into simple models of the MJO. The coupled troposphere–stratosphere linear model previously developed by the authors is extended by including a mean wind in the stratosphere and a prognostic equation for cirrus clouds, which are forced dynamically and allowed to modulate tropospheric radiative cooling, similar to the effect of tropospheric water vapor in previous formulations. Under these modifications, the model still produces a slow, eastward-propagating mode that resembles the MJO. The sign of zonal mean wind in the stratosphere is shown to control both the upward wave propagation and tropospheric vertical structure of the mode. Under varying stratospheric wind and interactive cirrus cloud radiation, the MJO-like mode has weaker growth rates under stratospheric westerlies than easterlies, consistent with the observed MJO–QBO relationship. These results are directly attributable to an enhanced barotropic mode under QBO easterlies. It is also shown that differential zonal advection of cirrus clouds leads to weaker growth rates under stratospheric westerlies than easterlies. Implications and limitations of the linear theory are discussed. Significance StatementRecent observations have shown that the strength of the Madden–Julian oscillation (MJO), a global-scale envelope of wind and rain that slowly moves eastward in the tropics and dominates global-weather variations on time scales of around a month, is strongly influenced by the direction of the winds in the lower stratosphere, the layer of the atmosphere that lies above where weather occurs. So far, modeling studies have been unable to reproduce this connection in global climate models. The purpose of this study is to investigate the mechanisms through which the stratosphere can modulate the MJO, by using simple theoretical models. In particular, we point to the role that ice clouds high in the atmosphere play in influencing the MJO.
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Sensitivity of Linear Models of the Madden–Julian Oscillation to Convective Representation
Abstract Two analytical models with different starting points of convective parameterizations, the Fuchs and Raymond model on one hand and the Khairoutdinov and Emanuel model on the other, are used to develop “minimal difference” models for the MJO. The main physical mechanisms that drive the MJO in both models are wind-induced surface heat exchange (WISHE) and cloud–radiation interactions (CRI). The dispersion curves for the modeled eastward-propagating mode, the MJO mode, are presented for an idealized case with zero meridional wind and for the realistic cases with higher meridional numbers. In both cases, the two models produce eastward-propagating modes with the growth rate greatest at the largest wavelengths despite having different representations of cumulus convection. We show that the relative contributions of WISHE and CRI are sensitive to how the convection and entropy/moisture budgets are represented in models like these. Significance StatementThe Madden–Julian oscillation is the largest weather disturbance on our planet. It propagates eastward encompassing the whole tropical belt. It influences weather all around the globe by modulating hurricanes, atmospheric rivers, and other phenomena. Numerical models that forecast the Madden–Julian oscillation need improvement. Here we explore the physics behind the Madden–Julian oscillation using simple analytical models. Our models are based on the assumption that surface enthalpy fluxes and cloud–radiation interactions are responsible for the Madden–Julian oscillation but it should be borne in mind that other physical mechanisms have been proposed for the MJO. The impact of this research is to better understand the Madden–Julian oscillation mechanism.
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- PAR ID:
- 10375005
- Publisher / Repository:
- American Meteorological Society
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences
- Volume:
- 79
- Issue:
- 6
- ISSN:
- 0022-4928
- Format(s):
- Medium: X Size: p. 1575-1584
- Size(s):
- p. 1575-1584
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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