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Monsoon
About: Monsoon is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 16087 publications have been published within this topic receiving 599888 citations.
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TL;DR: In this paper, the authors identify regional patterns in both δ18O and deuterium excess (D excess), defined as δD − 8δ 18O, and in particular the northward maximum extent of the southwest monsoon over the Tibetan Plateau.
Abstract: [1] In this study, individual precipitation samples, collected over 2 years at stations in different climatic regions of west China (Tibetan Plateau region, Tianshan region, and Altay) were analyzed for the stable isotopes of precipitation to improve our understanding of how vapor transport impacts the modern stable isotopic distribution. Our results identify regional patterns in both δ18O and deuterium excess (D excess, defined as δD – 8δ18O), and in particular we have identified the northward maximum extent of the southwest monsoon over the Tibetan Plateau. This demarcation is also the boundary for the fractionation effect of temperature on stable isotopes in precipitation. The patterns we have identified are as follows: (1) In the southern Tibetan Plateau, along the southern slope of the Himalayas, our results show a distinct seasonality for both δ18O and D excess as a result of the shift of summer monsoon moisture and winter westerly moisture transport. The signals of δ18O in the western Tibetan Plateau reveal that the region receives southwest monsoonal moisture. In the east of the plateau, stable isotopic variation shows alternation between monsoon intrusion and recycling of northern moisture. (2) In contrast, in Tianshan there is an apparent “temperature effect” in δ18O, with enriched values occurring in summer and depleted values occurring in winter. Seasonal D excess values, opposite to those observed in the southern Tibetan Plateau, are controlled by differing seasonal evaporation conditions. (3) In Altay, the most northern mountain region, the seasonal δ18O shows the same variation with that in Tianshan region. However, D excess shows no apparent seasonal variation.
477 citations
TL;DR: In this article, median grain size and maximum grain size (Qmax) values of monomineralic quartz isolated from the loess-paleosol section at Luochuan in the central Loess Plateau are characterized by two main intervals during the last ca. 130,000 yr when these parameters were significantly greater than 9 and 85 μm, respectively, and three main intervals when they were lower.
477 citations
TL;DR: It is demonstrated that the western Pacific Subtropical High is highly predictable and enables skillful prediction of the TS activities that the current dynamical models fail, and reveals that positive WPSH–ocean interaction can provide a source of climate predictability.
Abstract: Monsoon rainfall and tropical storms (TSs) impose great impacts on society, yet their seasonal predictions are far from successful. The western Pacific Subtropical High (WPSH) is a prime circulation system affecting East Asian summer monsoon (EASM) and western North Pacific TS activities, but the sources of its variability and predictability have not been established. Here we show that the WPSH variation faithfully represents fluctuations of EASM strength (r = –0.92), the total TS days over the subtropical western North Pacific (r = –0.81), and the total number of TSs impacting East Asian coasts (r = –0.76) during 1979–2009. Our numerical experiment results establish that the WPSH variation is primarily controlled by central Pacific cooling/warming and a positive atmosphere-ocean feedback between the WPSH and the Indo-Pacific warm pool oceans. With a physically based empirical model and the state-of-the-art dynamical models, we demonstrate that the WPSH is highly predictable; this predictability creates a promising way for prediction of monsoon and TS. The predictions using the WPSH predictability not only yields substantially improved skills in prediction of the EASM rainfall, but also enables skillful prediction of the TS activities that the current dynamical models fail. Our findings reveal that positive WPSH–ocean interaction can provide a source of climate predictability and highlight the importance of subtropical dynamics in understanding monsoon and TS predictability.
475 citations
TL;DR: The global climate during 1999 was impacted by Pacific cold episode (La Nina) conditions throughout theyear, which resulted in regional precipitation and atmospheric circulation patterns across the Pacific Ocean and theAmericas that are generally consistent with those observed during past cold episodes as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: The global climate during 1999 was impacted by Pacific cold episode (La Nina) conditions throughout theyear, which resulted in regional precipitation and atmospheric circulation patterns across the Pacific Ocean and theAmericas that are generally consistent with those observed during past cold episodes. The primary La Nina_relatedprecipitation anomalies included 1) increased rainfall across Indonesia, and a nearly complete disappearance of rainfall acrossthe east-central and eastern equatorial Pacific; 2) above-normal rains across northwestern and northern Australia; 3)increased monsoon rains across the Sahel region of western Africa; 4) above-average rains over southeastern Africa, 5)above-average rains over the Caribbean Sea and portions of Central America, and 6) below-average rains in southeastern South America. The La Nina also contributed to persistent cyclonic circulation anomalies in the subtropics of bothhemispheres, which flanked the area of suppressed convective activity over the easte...
466 citations
TL;DR: The monsoon winds for the past 1000 years using fossil Globigerina bulloides abundance in box cores from the Arabian Sea are reconstructed and found that monsoon wind strength increased during the past four centuries as the Northern Hemisphere warmed.
Abstract: Climate reconstructions reveal unprecedented warming in the past century; however, little is known about trends in aspects such as the monsoon. We reconstructed the monsoon winds for the past 1000 years using fossil Globigerina bulloides abundance in box cores from the Arabian Sea and found that monsoon wind strength increased during the past four centuries as the Northern Hemisphere warmed. We infer that the observed link between Eurasian snow cover and the southwest monsoon persists on a centennial scale. Alternatively, the forcing implicated in the warming trend (volcanic aerosols, solar output, and greenhouse gases) may directly affect the monsoon. Either interpretation is consistent with the hypothesis that the southwest monsoon strength will increase during the coming century as greenhouse gas concentrations continue to rise and northern latitudes continue to warm.
465 citations