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The role of mindanao dome in the variability of the Pacific North equatorial current bifurcation |
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| Authors: | Jun Zhao Yuanlong Li Fan Wang |
| Institution: | 1. Key Laboratory of Ocean Circulation and Waves, Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 7 Nanhai Road, Qingdao, 266071, China 2. University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China 3. Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO, USA |
| Abstract: | The Mindanao Dome (MD) features prominent oceanic variability and is located geographically close to the bifurcation latitude Y b of the Pacific North Equatorial Current. In this study, the role of the MD in the variability of Y b is examined with 20 years of satellite altimetric sea surface height (SSH) data and a 1.5-layer linear Rossby wave model. It is shown that the seasonal variations of surface Y b are related to not only the SSH fluctuations near the bifurcation point (bifurcation box; 125°–130°E, 12°–15°N) but also those outstanding in the MD region (MD box; 127°–132°E, 6°–9°N). The impact of the MD SSH changes is significant when the bifurcation point stays at southerly latitudes during February–September, which hinders (delays) the southward leap (northward retreat) of Y b in April–May (July–August) and thus leads to the asymmetry of the mean Y b seasonal cycle (with a positive skewness of γ = +0.64). Such asymmetry also shows year-to-year variations depending on yearly mean Y b value. A southerly yearly mean Y b involves larger contribution of the MD and thus causes larger asymmetry of Y b seasonal cycle. At interannual and longer timescales, the MD acts to amplify the fluctuations of the bifurcation. It is responsible for about 20 % of the total low-frequency Y b variances and plays an important role in the 0.12° year?1 southward trend of Y b in the past two decades. The impact of the MD on Y b changes is becoming increasingly significant at various timescales such as the bifurcation point migrating southward in recent years. |
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