Northern Hemispheric Interannual Teleconnection Patterns and Their Changes Due to the Greenhouse Effect

Abstract

Observed and general circulation climate model (GCM) simulated interannual teleconnection patterns in the Northern Hemisphere are compared on a monthly basis. The study was based on 1946?1991 observations and two separate 100-year simulations corresponding to the present climate and a greenhouse warming climate. The teleconnection patterns are characterized by action centers and composite extreme anomaly (CEA) distributions. The definition and comparison of observed and simulated patterns include examination of time persistence, spatial coherence as well as consistent signatures between 500-mb height, sea level pressure, and surface air temperature. For the present climate simulation, the GCM reproduces observed spatial and temporal variations of the action centers of four principal teleconnection patterns: the North Atlantic oscillation, the North Pacific oscillation, the Pacific/North American pattern, and the Eurasian pattern. Substantial model biases exist in the magnitude, regional structure as well as monthly transition of anomalies. The CEA regional characteristics are better simulated over land than over the oceans. For example, the model most accurately simulates the Eurasian pattern, which has its dominant action centers over Eurasia. In addition, all three climate variables exhibit substantial anomalies for each land-based action center. In contrast, over the oceans, the model systematically underestimates sea level pressure and 500-mb height CEAs, while it produces small surface temperature responses. It is suggested that atmospheric dynamics associated with flow instability is likely to be the dominant mechanism that generates these teleconnections, while the lack of interactive ocean dynamics may be responsible for small responses over the oceans. In the greenhouse warming climate, the GCM continues to simulate the four interannual teleconnection patterns. Systematic changes, however, are found for the Pacific/North American and Eurasian patterns in winter, where the action centers shift to the east and the CEAs weaken over land. These results must be considered to be exploratory because of the use of a mixed layer ocean that does not include oceanic dynamics.