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2008 Vol. 25, No. 4

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Preface
YU Rucong, WU Guoxiong
2008, 25(4): 517-517. doi: 10.1007/s00376-008-0517-3
Abstract:
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Influence of the Tibetan Plateau on the Summer Climate Patterns over Asia in the IAP/LASG SAMIL Model
DUAN Anmin, WU Guoxiong, LIANG Xiaoyun
2008, 25(4): 518-528. doi: 10.1007/s00376-008-0518-2
Abstract:
A series of numerical experiments are carried out by using the Spectral Atmospheric Model of State Key Laboratory of Numerical Modeling Atmospheric Sciences and Geophysical Fluid Dynamics/Institute of Atmospheric Physics (SAMIL) to investigate how the Tibetan Plateau (TP) mechanical and thermal forcing affect the circulation and climate patterns over subtropical Asia. It is shown that, compared to mechanical forcing, the thermal forcing of TP plays a dominant role in determining the large-scale circulation in summer. Both the sensible heating and the latent heating over TP tend to generate a surface cyclonic circulation and a gigantic anticyclonic circulation in the mid- and upper layers, whereas the direct effect of the latter is much more significant. Following a requirement of the time-mean quasi-geostrophic vorticity equation for large-scale air motion in the subtropics, convergent flow and vigorous ascending motion must appear to the east of TP. Hence the summer monsoon in East China is reinforced efficiently by TP. In contrast, the atmosphere to the west of TP is characterized by divergent flow and downward motion, which induces the arid climate in Mid-Asia.
Sensitivity of the Grid-point Atmospheric Model of IAP LASG (GAMIL1.1.0) Climate Simulations to Cloud Droplet Effective Radius and Liquid Water Path
LI Lijuan, Yuqing WANG, WANG Bin, ZHOU Tianjun
2008, 25(4): 529-540. doi: 10.1007/s00376-008-0529-z
Abstract:
This paper documents a study to examine the sensitivity to cloud droplet effective radius and liquid water path and the alleviation the energy imbalance at the top of the atmosphere and at the surface in the latest version of the Grid-point Atmospheric Model of the State Key Laboratory of Numerical Modeling for Atmospheric Sciences and Geophysical Fluid Dynamics (LASG), Institute of Atmospheric Physics (IAP) (GAMIL1.1.0). Considerable negative biases in all flux components, and thus an energy imbalance, are found in GAMIL1.1.0. In order to alleviate the energy imbalance, two modifications, namely an increase in cloud droplet effective radius and a decrease in cloud liquid water path, have been made to the cloud properties used in GAMIL. With the increased cloud droplet effective radius, the single scattering albedo of clouds is reduced, and thus the reflection of solar radiation into space by clouds is reduced and the net solar radiation flux at the top of the atmosphere is increased. With the reduced cloud optical depth, the net surface shortwave radiation flux is increased, causing a net warming over the land surface. This results in an increase in both sensible and latent heat fluxes over the land regions, which is largely balanced by the increased terrestrial radiation fluxes. Consequently, the energy balance at the top of atmosphere and at the surface is achieved with energy flux components consistent with available satellite observations.
The Wavenumber-Frequency Characteristics of the Tropical Waves in an Aqua-Planet GCM
WANG Zaizhi, MAO Jiangyu, WU Guoxiong
2008, 25(4): 541-554. doi: 10.1007/s00376-008-0541-3
Abstract:
Based on the aqua-planet experiments, the wavenumber-frequency characteristics of tropical waves and their influencing factors in SST distribution and the convective parameterization scheme are investigated using the spectral atmospheric general circulation model (SAMIL). Space-time spectral analysis is used to obtain the variance of convectively coupled tropical waves. In the Control experiment with maximum SST located at the equator the simulated tropical-wave behaviors are in agreement with those in observations and theoretical solutions. When the maximum SST is located at 5N, the symmetric and antisymmetric waves are much weaker than those in the control experiment, suggesting that tropical wave activities are very sensitive to the SST distributions. Importantly, the variance maximum of Madden-Julian oscillation (MJO) is found to occur around 5N, which suggests that the development of the MJO depends largely on the latitude of maximum SST. Furthermore, the seasonal variations of MJO may be mainly caused by the seasonal variations of the maximum SST. The experiment results with two different cumulus schemes---the Manabe moist convective adjustment and Zhang-McFarlane (ZM) convective scheme, were also compared to examine the impacts of convective parameterization. Weakened variances of each individual tropical wave when the ZM scheme is used suggest that the ZM scheme is not favorable for the tropical wave activities. However, the wave characteristics are different when the ZM scheme is used in different models, which may imply that the simulated basic state is important to the meridional distributions of the waves. The MJO signals suggest that the parameterization scheme may have great influence on the strength, but have less direct impact on the MJO distribution. The frequency of the tropical waves may be associated with the moisture control of convection and the large-scale condensation scheme used in the model.
Impacts of Upper Tropospheric Cooling upon the Late Spring Drought in East Asia Simulated by a Regional Climate Model
XIN Xiaoge, Zhaoxin LI, YU Rucong, ZHOU Tianjun
2008, 25(4): 555-562. doi: 10.1007/s00376-008-0555-x
Abstract:
Responses of late spring (21 April--20 May) rainfall to the upper tropospheric cooling over East Asia are investigated with a regional climate model based on Laboratoire de Meteorologie Dynamique Zoom (LMDZ4-RCM). A control experiment is performed with two runs driven by the mean ERA-40 data during 1958--1977 and 1981--2000, respectively. The model reproduces the major decadal-scale circulation changes in late spring over East Asia, including a cooling in the upper troposphere and an anomalous meridional cell. Accordingly, the precipitation decrease is also captured in the southeast of the upper-level cooling region. To quantify the role of the upper-level cooling in the drought mechanism, a sensitivity experiment is further conducted with the cooling imposed in the upper troposphere. It is demonstrated that the upper-level cooling can generate the anomalous meridional cell and consequently the drought to the southeast of the cooling center. Therefore, upper tropospheric cooling should have played a dominant role in the observed late spring drought over Southeast China in recent decades.
A Case Study on the Role of Water Vapor from Southwest China in Downstream Heavy Rainfall
PAN Yang, YU Rucong, LI Jian, XU Youping
2008, 25(4): 563-576. doi: 10.1007/s00376-008-0563-x
Abstract:
Based on the observation data analysis and numerical simulation, the development of an eastward-moving vortex generated in Southwest China during the period 25--27 June 2003 is studied. The water vapor budget analysis indicates that water vapor in the lower troposphere over Southwest China is transported downstream to the Yangtze and Huaihe River valleys by the southwesterly winds south of the vortex center. A potential vorticity (PV) budget analysis reveals that a positive feedback between latent heat release and low-level positive vorticity plays a vital role in the sudden development and eastward movement of the vortex. Numerical simulations are consistent with these results.
What Kind of Initial Errors Cause the Severest Prediction Uncertainty of El Nino in Zebiak-Cane Model
XU Hui, DUAN Wansuo
2008, 25(4): 577-584. doi: 10.1007/s00376-008-0577-4
Abstract:
With the Zebiak-Cane (ZC) model, the initial error that has the largest effect on ENSO prediction is explored by conditional nonlinear optimal perturbation (CNOP). The results demonstrate that CNOP-type errors cause the largest prediction error of ENSO in the ZC model. By analyzing the behavior of CNOP-type errors, we find that for the normal states and the relatively weak El Nino events in the ZC model, the predictions tend to yield false alarms due to the uncertainties caused by CNOP. For the relatively strong El Nino events, the ZC model largely underestimates their intensities. Also, our results suggest that the error growth of El Nino in the ZC model depends on the phases of both the annual cycle and ENSO. The condition during northern spring and summer is most favorable for the error growth. The ENSO prediction bestriding these two seasons may be the most difficult. A linear singular vector (LSV) approach is also used to estimate the error growth of ENSO, but it underestimates the prediction uncertainties of ENSO in the ZC model. This result indicates that the different initial errors cause different amplitudes of prediction errors though they have same magnitudes. CNOP yields the severest prediction uncertainty. That is to say, the prediction skill of ENSO is closely related to the types of initial error. This finding illustrates a theoretical basis of data assimilation. It is expected that a data assimilation method can filter the initial errors related to CNOP and improve the ENSO forecast skill.
Effect of Chlorophyll-a Spatial Distribution on Upper Ocean Temperature in the Central and Eastern Equatorial Pacific
LIN Pengfei, LIU Hailong, ZHANG Xuehong
2008, 25(4): 585-596. doi: 10.1007/s00376-008-0585-4
Abstract:
Effect of the spatial distributions of chlorophyll-a concentration on upper ocean temperature and currents in the equatorial Pacific is investigated through a set of numerical experiments by using an ocean general circulation model. This study indicates that enhanced meridional gradient of chlorophyll-a between the equator and off-equatorial regions can strengthen zonal circulation and lead to a decrease in equatorial sea surface temperature (SST). However, the circulation changes by themselves are not effective enough to affect SST in the equatorial cold tongue (CT) region. The comparison between the experiments indicates that the CT SST are more sensitive to chlorophyll-a distribution away from the equator. The off-equatorial chlorophyll-a traps more solar radiation in the mixed layer, therefore, the temperature in the thermocline decreases. The cold water can then be transported to the equator by the meridional circulation within the mixed layer. Furthermore, the relation among CT SST, the surface heat flux, and the equatorial upwelling are discussed. The study implies the simulation biases of temperature on the equator are not only related to the local ocean dynamics but also related to some deficiency in simulating off-equatorial processes.
Revisiting Effect of Ocean Diapycnal Mixing on Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation Recovery in a Freshwater Perturbation Simulation
YU Lei, GAO Yongqi, WANG Huijun, Helge DRANGE
2008, 25(4): 597-609. doi: 10.1007/s00376-008-0597-0
Abstract:
The effects of ocean density vertical stratification and related ocean mixing on the transient response of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC) are examined in a freshwater perturbation simulation using the Bergen Climate Model (BCM). The results presented here are based on the model outputs of a previous freshwater experiment: a 300-year control integration (CTRL), a freshwater integration (FW1) which started after 100 years of running the CTRL with an artificially and continuously threefold increase in the freshwater flux to the Greenland-Iceland-Norwegian (GIN) Seas and the Arctic Ocean throughout the following 150-year simulation. In FW1, the transient response of the AMOC exhibits an initial decreasing of about 6 Sv (1 Sv=106 m3 s-1) over the first 50-year integration and followed a gradual recovery during the last 100-year integration. Our results show that the vertical density stratification as the crucial property of the interior ocean plays an important role for the transient responses of AMOC by regulating the convective and diapycnal mixings under the enhanced freshwater input to northern high latitudes in BCM in which the ocean diapycnal mixing is stratification-dependent. The possible mechanism is also investigated in this paper.
Improving the Vegetation Dynamic Simulation in a Land Surface Model by Using a Statistical-dynamic Canopy Interception Scheme
LIANG Miaoling, XIE Zhenghui
2008, 25(4): 610-618. doi: 10.1007/s00376-008-0610-7
Abstract:
Canopy interception of incident precipitation, as a critical component of a forest's water budget, can affect the amount of water available to the soil, and ultimately vegetation distribution and function. In this paper, a statistical-dynamic approach based on leaf area index and statistical canopy interception is used to parameterize the canopy interception process. The statistical-dynamic canopy interception scheme is implemented into the Community Land Model with dynamic global vegetation model (CLM-DGVM) to improve its dynamic vegetation simulation. The simulation for continental China by the land surface model with the new canopy interception scheme shows that the new one reasonably represents the precipitation intercepted by the canopy. Moreover, the new scheme enhances the water availability in the root zone for vegetation growth, especially in the densely vegetated and semi-arid areas, and improves the model's performance of potential vegetation simulation.
An Updated Coupled Model for Land-Atmosphere Interaction. Part I: Simulations of Physical Processes
ZENG Hongling, WANG Zaizhi, JI Jinjun, WU Guoxiong
2008, 25(4): 619-631. doi: 10.1007/s00376-008-0619-y
Abstract:
A new two-way land-atmosphere interaction model (R42_AVIM) is fulfilled by coupling the spectral atmospheric model (SAMIL_R42L9) developed at the State Key Laboratory of Numerical Modeling for Atmospheric Sciences and Geophysical Fluid Dynamics, Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences (LASG/IAP/CAS) with the land surface model, Atmosphere-Vegetation-Interaction-Model (AVIM). In this coupled model, physical and biological components of AVIM are both included. Climate base state and land surface physical fluxes simulated by R42_AVIM are analyzed and compared with the results of R42_SSIB [which is coupled by SAMIL_R42L9 and Simplified Simple Biosphere (SSIB) models]. The results show the performance of the new model is closer to the observations. It can basically guarantee that the land surface energy budget is balanced, and can simulate June--July--August (JJA) and December-January-February (DJF) land surface air temperature, sensible heat flux, latent heat flux, precipitation, sea level pressure and other variables reasonably well. Compared with R42_SSIB, there are obvious improvements in the JJA simulations of surface air temperature and surface fluxes. Thus, this land-atmosphere coupled model will offer a good experiment platform for land-atmosphere interaction research.
An Updated Coupled Model for Land-Atmosphere Interaction. Part II: Simulations of Biological Processes
ZENG Hongling, JI Jinjun, WU Guoxiong
2008, 25(4): 632-640. doi: 10.1007/s00376-008-0632-1
Abstract:
In Part I, the authors succeeded in coupling the spectral atmospheric model (SAMIL\_R42L9) developed at the State Key Laboratory of Numerical Modeling for Atmospheric Sciences and Geophysical Fluid Dynamics, Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences (LASG/IAP/CAS) with the land surface model, Atmosphere-Vegetation-Interaction-Model (AVIM) and analyzed the climate basic state and land surface physical fluxes simulated by R42\_AVIM. In this Part II, we further evaluate the simulated results of the biological processes, including leaf area index (LAI), biomass and net primary productivity (NPP) etc. Results indicate that R42\_AVIM can simulate the global distribution of LAI and has good consistency with the monthly mean LAI provided by Max Planck Institute for Meteorology. The simulated biomass corresponds reasonably to the vegetation classifications. In addition, the simulated annual mean NPP has a consistent distribution with the data provided by IGBP and MODIS, and compares well with the work in literature. This land-atmosphere coupled model will offer a new experiment tool for the research on the two-way interaction between climate and biosphere, and the global terrestrial ecosystem carbon cycle.
Coupled Model Simulations of Climate Changes in the 20th Century and Beyond
YU Yongqiang, ZHI Hai, WANG Bin, WAN Hui, LI Chao, LIU Hailong, LI Wei, ZHENG Weipeng, ZHOU Tianjun
2008, 25(4): 641-654. doi: 10.1007/s00376-008-0641-0
Abstract:
Several scenario experiments of the IPCC 4th Assessment Report (AR4) are performed by version g1.0 of a Flexible coupled Ocean-Atmosphere-Land System Model (FGOALS) developed at the Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences (IAP/CAS), including the ``Climate of the 20th century experiment", ``CO2 1% increase per year to doubling experiment" and two separate IPCC greenhouse gases emission scenarios A1B and B1 experiments. To distinguish between the different impacts of natural variations and human activities on the climate change, three-member ensemble runs are performed for each scenario experiment. The coupled model simulations show: (1) from 1900 to 2000, the global mean temperature increases about 0.5C and the major increase occurs during the later half of the 20th century, which is in consistent with the observations that highlights the coupled model's ability to reproduce the climate changes since the industrial revolution; (2) the global mean surface air temperature increases about 1.6C in the CO2 doubling experiment and 1.5C and 2.4C in the A1B and B1 scenarios, respectively. The global warming is indicated by not only the changes of the surface temperature and precipitation but also the temperature increase in the deep ocean. The thermal expansion of the sea water would induce the rise of the global mean sea level. Both the control run and the 20th century climate change run are carried out again with version g1.1 of FGOALS, in which the cold biases in the high latitudes were removed. They are then compared with those from version g1.0 of FGOALS in order to distinguish the effect of the model biases on the simulation of global warming.
A Fast Version of LASG/IAP Climate System Model and Its 1000-year Control Integration
ZHOU Tianjun, WU Bo, WEN Xinyu, LI Lijuan, WANG Bin
2008, 25(4): 655-672. doi: 10.1007/s00376-008-0655-7
Abstract:
A fast version of the State Key Laboratory of Numerical Modeling for Atmospheric Sciences and Geophysical Fluid Dynamics (LASG)/Institute of Atmospheric Physics (IAP) climate system model is briefly documented. The fast coupled model employs a low resolution version of the atmospheric component Grid Atmospheric Model of IAP/LASG (GAMIL), with the other parts of the model, namely an oceanic component LASG/IAP Climate Ocean Model (LICOM), land component Common Land Model (CLM), and sea ice component from National Center for Atmospheric Research Community Climate System Model (NCAR CCSM2), as the same as in the standard version of LASG/IAP Flexible Global Ocean Atmosphere Land System model (FGOALS_g). The parameterizations of physical and dynamical processes of the atmospheric component in the fast version are identical to the standard version, although some parameter values are different. However, by virtue of reduced horizontal resolution and increased time-step of the most time-consuming atmospheric component, it runs faster by a factor of 3 and can serve as a useful tool for long-term and large-ensemble integrations. A 1000-year control simulation of the present-day climate has been completed without flux adjustments. The final 600 years of this simulation has virtually no trends in global mean sea surface temperatures and is recommended for internal variability studies. Several aspects of the control simulation's mean climate and variability are evaluated against the observational or reanalysis data. The strengths and weaknesses of the control simulation are evaluated. The mean atmospheric circulation is well simulated, except in high latitudes. The Asian-Australian monsoonal meridional cell shows realistic features, however, an artificial rainfall center is located to the eastern periphery of the Tibetan Plateau persists throughout the year. The mean bias of SST resembles that of the standard version, appearing as a ``double ITCZ" (Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone) associated with a westward extension of the equatorial eastern Pacific cold tongue. The sea ice extent is acceptable but has a higher concentration. The strength of Atlantic meridional overturning is 27.5 Sv. Evidence from the 600-year simulation suggests a modulation of internal variability on ENSO frequency, since both regular and irregular oscillations of ENSO are found during the different time periods of the long-term simulation.
The Springtime North Asia Cyclone Activity Index and the Southern Annular Mode
YUE Xu, WANG Huijun
2008, 25(4): 673-679. doi: 10.1007/s00376-008-0673-5
Abstract:
The relationship between the North Asia cyclone (NAC) activity and the Southern Annular Mode (SAM) is documented in this research. The definition of the NAC index (NACI) is based on the atmospheric relative vorticity in North Asia. The analysis yields a significant positive correlation between previous winter Southern Annular Mode index (SAMI) and spring NACI in the interannual variability, with a correlation coefficient of 0.51 during 1948--2000. Analysis of the NAC-related and SAM-related atmospheric general circulation variability demonstrates such a relationship. The study further reveals that when the winter SAM becomes strong, the springtime atmospheric convection in tropical western Pacific will intensify and the local Hadley circulation will be strengthened. As a result, the abnormal subsiding motion over South China makes the temperature gradient intensified in the low level and strengthens the jet in the high level, both of which are beneficial to the development of NAC activity.
A New Global Four-Dimensional Variational Ocean Data Assimilation System and Its Application
LIU Juan, WANG Bin, LIU Hailong, YU Yongqiang
2008, 25(4): 680-691. doi: 10.1007/s00376-008-0680-6
Abstract:
A four-dimensional variational data assimilation (4DVar) system of the LASG/IAP Climate Ocean Model, version 1.0 (LICOM1.0), named LICOM-3DVM, has been developed using the three-dimensional variational data assimilation of mapped observation (3DVM), a 4DVar method newly proposed in the past two years. Two experiments with 12-year model integrations were designed to validate it. One is the assimilation run, called ASSM, which incorporated the analyzed weekly sea surface temperature (SST) fields from Reynolds and Smith (OISST) between 1990 and 2001 once a week by the LICOM-3DVM. The other is the control run without any assimilation, named CTL. ASSM shows that the simulated temperatures of the upper ocean (above 50 meters), especially the SST of equatorial Pacific, coincide with the Tropic Atmosphere Ocean (TAO) mooring data, the World Ocean Atlas 2001 (WOA01) data and the Met Office Hadley Centre's sea ice and sea surface temperature (HadISST) data. It decreased the cold bias existing in CTL in the eastern Pacific and produced a Ni\~no index that agrees with observation well. The validation results suggest that the LICOM-3DVM is able to effectively adjust the model results of the ocean temperature, although it's hard to correct the subsurface results and it even makes them worse in some areas due to the incorporation of only surface data. Future development of the LICOM-3DVM is to include subsurface {\it in situ} observations and satellite observations to further improve model simulations.
Numerical Experiments for Typhoon Dan Incorporating AMSU-A Retrieved Data with 3DVM
ZHAO Ying, WANG Bin
2008, 25(4): 692-703. doi: 10.1007/s00376-008-0692-2
Abstract:
Two sets of assimilation experiments on a landfalling typhoon---Typhoon Dan (1999) over the western North Pacific were designed to compare the performances of two kinds of variational data assimilation schemes that are the 3-Dimensional Variational data assimilation of Mapped observation (3DVM) and the 4-dimensional variational data assimilation (4DVar). Results show that: (1) both the 3DVM and 4DVar successfully improved the simulations of typhoon intensity and track incorporating the satellite AMSU-A retrieved temperature and wind data into the initial conditions, and the 3DVM more significantly due to the flow-dependent of background error covariance matrix and observation error covariance matrix like 3-dimensional variational data assimilation (3DVar) circle; (2) inclusions of extra model integration iterations at each observation time in the 3DVM make it more consistent with prediction model; (3) the 3DVM is much more time-saving due to the exclusion of the adjoint technique in it.