Yu Lisan

Last Name

Yu

First Name

Lisan

ORCID

0000-0003-4157-9154

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Characteristics of 3-dimensional structure and heat budget of mesoscale eddies in the South Atlantic Ocean

(American Geophysical Union, 2021-04-26) Wang, Xue ; Zhang, Shaoqing ; Lin, Xiaopei ; Qiu, Bo ; Yu, Lisan

Mesoscale eddies redistribute heat, salt, and nutrients in oceans. The South Atlantic Ocean (SA) is a basin that has active mesoscale eddies for which characteristics of the three-dimensional structure and its leading mechanism are complex but have yet been studied sufficiently. Here based on ocean reanalysis datasets we use a composite analysis approach to analyze the mixed layer anomalous heat budget and find distinct two types of spatial patterns: dipole and monopole – mainly present in the northern and southern regions of the SA, respectively. The dipole can be attributed to ocean horizontal advection, especially to the combined effect of eddy anomalous meridional current and meridional gradient of mean temperature. The monopole, on the other hand, is associated with complex contributions, for which zonal and meridional advections play opposite roles as cooling or heating around the eddies. At the eddy center, the vertical advection is non-negligible, especially the mean upwelling and vertical temperature gradient playing a vital role in the formation of a monopole. The analysis of eddy meridional heat transport shows that the stirring component is dominant, and poleward in most areas, especially at high latitudes. Such analysis on the leading mechanism of eddy-induced temperature anomaly could help improve our understanding on meso- and small-scale air-sea interactions and eddy-induced heat transport in the SA.
Satellite and in situ salinity : understanding near-surface stratification and subfootprint variability

(American Meteorological Society, 2016-08-31) Boutin, Jacqueline ; Chao, Yi ; Asher, William E. ; Delcroix, Thierry ; Drucker, Robert S. ; Drushka, Kyla ; Kolodziejczyk, Nicolas ; Lee, Tong ; Reul, Nicolas ; Reverdin, Gilles ; Schanze, Julian J. ; Soloviev, Alexander ; Yu, Lisan ; Anderson, Jessica ; Brucker, Ludovic ; Dinnat, Emmanuel ; Santos-Garcia, Andrea ; Jones, W. Linwood ; Maes, Christophe ; Meissner, Thomas ; Tang, Wenqing ; Vinogradova, Nadya ; Ward, Brian

Remote sensing of salinity using satellite-mounted microwave radiometers provides new perspectives for studying ocean dynamics and the global hydrological cycle. Calibration and validation of these measurements is challenging because satellite and in situ methods measure salinity differently. Microwave radiometers measure the salinity in the top few centimeters of the ocean, whereas most in situ observations are reported below a depth of a few meters. Additionally, satellites measure salinity as a spatial average over an area of about 100 × 100 km2. In contrast, in situ sensors provide pointwise measurements at the location of the sensor. Thus, the presence of vertical gradients in, and horizontal variability of, sea surface salinity complicates comparison of satellite and in situ measurements. This paper synthesizes present knowledge of the magnitude and the processes that contribute to the formation and evolution of vertical and horizontal variability in near-surface salinity. Rainfall, freshwater plumes, and evaporation can generate vertical gradients of salinity, and in some cases these gradients can be large enough to affect validation of satellite measurements. Similarly, mesoscale to submesoscale processes can lead to horizontal variability that can also affect comparisons of satellite data to in situ data. Comparisons between satellite and in situ salinity measurements must take into account both vertical stratification and horizontal variability.
Oceanic and terrestrial sources of continental precipitation

(American Geophysical Union, 2012-11-08) Gimeno, Luis ; Stohl, Andreas ; Trigo, Ricardo M. ; Dominguez, Francina ; Yoshimura, Kei ; Yu, Lisan ; Drumond, Anita ; Duran-Quesada, Ana Maria ; Nieto, Raquel

The most important sources of atmospheric moisture at the global scale are herein identified, both oceanic and terrestrial, and a characterization is made of how continental regions are influenced by water from different moisture source regions. The methods used to establish source-sink relationships of atmospheric water vapor are reviewed, and the advantages and caveats associated with each technique are discussed. The methods described include analytical and box models, numerical water vapor tracers, and physical water vapor tracers (isotopes). In particular, consideration is given to the wide range of recently developed Lagrangian techniques suitable both for evaluating the origin of water that falls during extreme precipitation events and for establishing climatologies of moisture source-sink relationships. As far as oceanic sources are concerned, the important role of the subtropical northern Atlantic Ocean provides moisture for precipitation to the largest continental area, extending from Mexico to parts of Eurasia, and even to the South American continent during the Northern Hemisphere winter. In contrast, the influence of the southern Indian Ocean and North Pacific Ocean sources extends only over smaller continental areas. The South Pacific and the Indian Ocean represent the principal source of moisture for both Australia and Indonesia. Some landmasses only receive moisture from the evaporation that occurs in the same hemisphere (e.g., northern Europe and eastern North America), while others receive moisture from both hemispheres with large seasonal variations (e.g., northern South America). The monsoonal regimes in India, tropical Africa, and North America are provided with moisture from a large number of regions, highlighting the complexities of the global patterns of precipitation. Some very important contributions are also seen from relatively small areas of ocean, such as the Mediterranean Basin (important for Europe and North Africa) and the Red Sea, which provides water for a large area between the Gulf of Guinea and Indochina (summer) and between the African Great Lakes and Asia (winter). The geographical regions of Eurasia, North and South America, and Africa, and also the internationally important basins of the Mississippi, Amazon, Congo, and Yangtze Rivers, are also considered, as is the importance of terrestrial sources in monsoonal regimes. The role of atmospheric rivers, and particularly their relationship with extreme events, is discussed. Droughts can be caused by the reduced supply of water vapor from oceanic moisture source regions. Some of the implications of climate change for the hydrological cycle are also reviewed, including changes in water vapor concentrations, precipitation, soil moisture, and aridity. It is important to achieve a combined diagnosis of moisture sources using all available information, including stable water isotope measurements. A summary is given of the major research questions that remain unanswered, including (1) the lack of a full understanding of how moisture sources influence precipitation isotopes; (2) the stationarity of moisture sources over long periods; (3) the way in which possible changes in intensity (where evaporation exceeds precipitation to a greater of lesser degree), and the locations of the sources, (could) affect the distribution of continental precipitation in a changing climate; and (4) the role played by the main modes of climate variability, such as the North Atlantic Oscillation or the El Niño–Southern Oscillation, in the variability of the moisture source regions, as well as a full evaluation of the moisture transported by low-level jets and atmospheric rivers.
On sea surface salinity skin effect iInduced by evaporation and implications for remote sensing of ocean salinity

(American Meteorological Society, 2010-01) Yu, Lisan

The existence of a cool and salty sea surface skin under evaporation was first proposed by Saunders in 1967, but few efforts have since been made to perceive the salt component of the skin layer. With two salinity missions scheduled to launch in the coming years, this study attempted to revisit the Saunders concept and to utilize presently available air–sea forcing datasets to analyze, understand, and interpret the effect of the salty skin and its implication for remote sensing of ocean salinity. Similar to surface cooling, the skin salinification would occur primarily at low and midlatitudes in regions that are characterized by low winds or high evaporation. On average, the skin is saltier than the interior water by 0.05–0.15 psu and cooler by 0.2°–0.5°C. The cooler and saltier skin at the top is always statically unstable, and the tendency to overturn is controlled by cooling. Once the skin layer overturns, the time to reestablish the full increase of skin salinity was reported to be on the order of 15 min, which is approximately 90 times slower than that for skin temperature. Because the radiation received from a footprint is averaged over an area to give a single pixel value, the slow recovery by the salt diffusion process might cause a slight reduction in area-averaged skin salinity and thus obscure the salty skin effect on radiometer retrievals. In the presence of many geophysical error sources in remote sensing of ocean salinity, the salt enrichment at the surface skin does not appear to be a concern.
Coherent evidence from Aquarius and Argo for the existence of a shallow low-salinity convergence zone beneath the Pacific ITCZ

(John Wiley & Sons, 2014-11-18) Yu, Lisan

Aquarius observations feature a prominent zonal sea-surface salinity (SSS) front that extends across the tropical Pacific between 2–10°N. By linking to Argo subsurface salinity observations and satellite-derived surface forcing datasets, the study discovered that the SSS front is not a stand-alone feature; it is in fact the surface manifestation of a low-salinity convergence zone (LSCZ) located within 100 m of the upper ocean. The near-surface salinity budget analysis suggested that, although the LSCZ is sourced from the rainfall in the Inter-tropical convergence zone (ITCZ), its generation and maintenance are governed by the wind-driven Ekman dynamics, not the surface evaporation-minus-precipitation flux. Three distinct features highlight the relationship between the oceanic LSCZ and the atmospheric ITCZ. First, the seasonal movement of the LSCZ is characterized by a monotonic northward displacement starting from the near-equatorial latitudes in boreal spring, unlike the ITCZ that is known for its seasonal north-south displacement. Second, the lowest SSS waters in the LSCZ are locked to the northern edge of the Ekman salt convergence throughout the year, but have no fixed relationship with the ITCZ rain band. Collocation between the LSCZ and ITCZ occurs only during August-October, the time that the ITCZ rain band coincides with the Ekman convergence zone. Lastly, the SSS front couples with the Ekman convergence zone but not the ITCZ. The evidence reinforces the findings of the study that the Ekman processes are the leading mechanism of the oceanic LSCZ and the SSS front is the surface manifestation of the LSCZ.
The global oceanic freshwater cycle : a state-of-the-art quantification

(Sears Foundation for Marine Research, 2010-05-01) Schanze, Julian J. ; Schmitt, Raymond W. ; Yu, Lisan

The current capabilities of quantifying the oceanic freshwater cycle are shown based on new observations from satellite data and re-analysis models for evaporation and precipitation over the ocean. For this purpose, we analyze the homogeneity and internal consistency of eight evaporation and seven precipitation products. Discontinuities are found around 1987 for all datasets, attributable to the launch of a microwave imaging satellite. Based on a review of comparisons with independent data and these analyses, the Global Precipitation Climatology Project (GPCP) and the Objectively Analyzed Ocean-Atmosphere Fluxes (OAFlux) evaporation product are combined with a state-of-the-art river discharge dataset to produce a new estimate of the global oceanic freshwater cycle for 1987-2006. The annual mean precipitation into the ocean averaged over 19 years is estimated at 12.2±1.2 Sv, the evaporative loss at 13.0±1.3 Sv, and the total freshwater input from land at 1.25±0.1 Sv. The oceanic budget closes within the errors estimated for each data set with an imbalance of 0.5±1.8 Sv. Based on this quantification, the global patterns of oceanic freshwater fluxes are described and a global mean is integrated to provide estimates of freshwater fluxes between basins. We find the Atlantic to be less evaporative and the Pacific less precipitative than previous in-situ estimates.
The global ocean water cycle in atmospheric reanalysis, satellite, and ocean salinity

(American Meteorological Society, 2017-05-02) Yu, Lisan ; Jin, Xiangze ; Josey, Simon A. ; Lee, Tong ; Kumar, Arun ; Wen, Caihong ; Xue, Yan

This study provides an assessment of the uncertainty in ocean surface (OS) freshwater budgets and variability using evaporation E and precipitation P from 10 atmospheric reanalyses, two combined satellite-based E − P products, and two observation-based salinity products. Three issues are examined: the uncertainty level in the OS freshwater budget in atmospheric reanalyses, the uncertainty structure and association with the global ocean wet/dry zones, and the potential of salinity in ascribing the uncertainty in E − P. The products agree on the global mean pattern but differ considerably in magnitude. The OS freshwater budgets are 129 ± 10 (8%) cm yr−1 for E, 118 ± 11 (9%) cm yr−1 for P, and 11 ± 4 (36%) cm yr−1 for E − P, where the mean and error represent the ensemble mean and one standard deviation of the ensemble spread. The E − P uncertainty exceeds the uncertainty in E and P by a factor of 4 or more. The large uncertainty is attributed to P in the tropical wet zone. Most reanalyses tend to produce a wider tropical rainband when compared to satellite products, with the exception of two recent reanalyses that implement an observation-based correction for the model-generated P over land. The disparity in the width and the extent of seasonal migrations of the tropical wet zone causes a large spread in P, implying that the tropical moist physics and the realism of tropical rainfall remain a key challenge. Satellite salinity appears feasible to evaluate the fidelity of E − P variability in three tropical areas, where the uncertainty diagnosis has a global indication.
Air-sea interaction regimes in the sub-Antarctic Southern Ocean and Antarctic marginal ice zone revealed by icebreaker measurements

(John Wiley & Sons, 2017-08-23) Yu, Lisan ; Jin, Xiangze ; Schulz, Eric W. ; Josey, Simon A.

This study analyzed shipboard air-sea measurements acquired by the icebreaker Aurora Australis during its off-winter operation in December 2010 to May 2012. Mean conditions over 7 months (October–April) were compiled from a total of 22 ship tracks. The icebreaker traversed the water between Hobart, Tasmania, and the Antarctic continent, providing valuable in situ insight into two dynamically important, yet poorly sampled, regimes: the sub-Antarctic Southern Ocean and the Antarctic marginal ice zone (MIZ) in the Indian Ocean sector. The transition from the open water to the ice-covered surface creates sharp changes in albedo, surface roughness, and air temperature, leading to consequential effects on air-sea variables and fluxes. Major effort was made to estimate the air-sea fluxes in the MIZ using the bulk flux algorithms that are tuned specifically for the sea-ice effects, while computing the fluxes over the sub-Antarctic section using the COARE3.0 algorithm. The study evidenced strong sea-ice modulations on winds, with the southerly airflow showing deceleration (convergence) in the MIZ and acceleration (divergence) when moving away from the MIZ. Marked seasonal variations in heat exchanges between the atmosphere and the ice margin were noted. The monotonic increase in turbulent latent and sensible heat fluxes after summer turned the MIZ quickly into a heat loss regime, while at the same time the sub-Antarctic surface water continued to receive heat from the atmosphere. The drastic increase in turbulent heat loss in the MIZ contrasted sharply to the nonsignificant and seasonally invariant turbulent heat loss over the sub-Antarctic open water.
Quantifying the dependence of westerly wind bursts on the large-scale tropical Pacific SST

(American Meteorological Society, 2007-06-15) Tziperman, Eli ; Yu, Lisan

The correlation between parameters characterizing observed westerly wind bursts (WWBs) in the equatorial Pacific and the large-scale SST is analyzed using singular value decomposition. The WWB parameters include the amplitude, location, scale, and probability of occurrence for a given SST distribution rather than the wind stress itself. This approach therefore allows for a nonlinear relationship between the SST and the wind signal of the WWBs. It is found that about half of the variance of the WWB parameters is explained by only two large-scale SST modes. The first mode represents a developed El Niño event, while the second mode represents the seasonal cycle. More specifically, the central longitude of WWBs, their longitudinal extent, and their probability seem to be determined to a significant degree by the ENSO-driven signal. The amplitude of the WWBs is found to be strongly influenced by the phase of the seasonal cycle. It is concluded that the WWBs, while partially stochastic, seem an inherent part of the large-scale deterministic ENSO dynamics. Implications for ENSO predictability and prediction are discussed.
The tropical Atlantic observing system

(Frontiers Media, 2019-05-10) Foltz, Gregory R. ; Brandt, Peter ; Richter, Ingo ; Rodriguez-fonseca, Belen ; Hernandez, Fabrice ; Dengler, Marcus ; Rodrigues, Regina ; Schmidt, Jörn Oliver ; Yu, Lisan ; Lefevre, Nathalie ; Cotrim Da Cunha, Leticia ; McPhaden, Michael J. ; Araujo, Moacyr ; Karstensen, Johannes ; Hahn, Johannes ; Martín-Rey, Marta ; Patricola, Christina ; Poli, Paul ; Zuidema, Paquita ; Hummels, Rebecca ; Perez, Renellys ; Hatje, Vanessa ; Luebbecke, Joke ; Polo, Irene ; Lumpkin, Rick ; Bourlès, Bernard ; Asuquo, Francis Emile ; Lehodey, Patrick ; Conchon, Anna ; Chang, Ping ; Dandin, Philippe ; Schmid, Claudia ; Sutton, Adrienne J. ; Giordani, Hervé ; Xue, Yan ; Illig, Serena ; Losada, Teresa ; Grodsky, Semyon A. ; Gasparin, Florent ; Lee, Tong ; Mohino, Elsa ; Nobre, Paulo ; Wanninkhof, Rik ; Keenlyside, Noel S. ; Garcon, Veronique Cameille ; Sanchez-Gomez, Emilia ; Nnamchi, Hyacinth ; Drevillon, Marie ; Storto, Andrea ; Remy, Elisabeth ; Lazar, Alban ; Speich, Sabrina ; Goes, Marlos Pereira ; Dorrington, Tarquin ; Johns, William E. ; Moum, James N. ; Robinson, Carol ; Perruche, Coralie ; de Souza, Ronald Buss ; Gaye, Amadou ; Lopez-Parages, Jorge ; Monerie, Paul-Arthur ; Castellanos, Paola ; Benson, Nsikak U. ; Hounkonnou, Mahouton Norbert ; Trotte Duha, Janice ; Laxenaire, Rémi ; Reul, Nicolas

he tropical Atlantic is home to multiple coupled climate variations covering a wide range of timescales and impacting societally relevant phenomena such as continental rainfall, Atlantic hurricane activity, oceanic biological productivity, and atmospheric circulation in the equatorial Pacific. The tropical Atlantic also connects the southern and northern branches of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation and receives freshwater input from some of the world’s largest rivers. To address these diverse, unique, and interconnected research challenges, a rich network of ocean observations has developed, building on the backbone of the Prediction and Research Moored Array in the Tropical Atlantic (PIRATA). This network has evolved naturally over time and out of necessity in order to address the most important outstanding scientific questions and to improve predictions of tropical Atlantic severe weather and global climate variability and change. The tropical Atlantic observing system is motivated by goals to understand and better predict phenomena such as tropical Atlantic interannual to decadal variability and climate change; multidecadal variability and its links to the meridional overturning circulation; air-sea fluxes of CO2 and their implications for the fate of anthropogenic CO2; the Amazon River plume and its interactions with biogeochemistry, vertical mixing, and hurricanes; the highly productive eastern boundary and equatorial upwelling systems; and oceanic oxygen minimum zones, their impacts on biogeochemical cycles and marine ecosystems, and their feedbacks to climate. Past success of the tropical Atlantic observing system is the result of an international commitment to sustained observations and scientific cooperation, a willingness to evolve with changing research and monitoring needs, and a desire to share data openly with the scientific community and operational centers. The observing system must continue to evolve in order to meet an expanding set of research priorities and operational challenges. This paper discusses the tropical Atlantic observing system, including emerging scientific questions that demand sustained ocean observations, the potential for further integration of the observing system, and the requirements for sustaining and enhancing the tropical Atlantic observing system.
On the relationship between synoptic wintertime atmospheric variability and path shifts in the Gulf Stream and the Kuroshio Extension

(American Meteorological Society, 2009-06-15) Joyce, Terrence M. ; Kwon, Young-Oh ; Yu, Lisan

Coherent, large-scale shifts in the paths of the Gulf Stream (GS) and the Kuroshio Extension (KE) occur on interannual to decadal time scales. Attention has usually been drawn to causes for these shifts in the overlying atmosphere, with some built-in delay of up to a few years resulting from propagation of wind-forced variability within the ocean. However, these shifts in the latitudes of separated western boundary currents can cause substantial changes in SST, which may influence the synoptic atmospheric variability with little or no time delay. Various measures of wintertime atmospheric variability in the synoptic band (2–8 days) are examined using a relatively new dataset for air–sea exchange [Objectively Analyzed Air–Sea Fluxes (OAFlux)] and subsurface temperature indices of the Gulf Stream and Kuroshio path that are insulated from direct air–sea exchange, and therefore are preferable to SST. Significant changes are found in the atmospheric variability following changes in the paths of these currents, sometimes in a local fashion such as meridional shifts in measures of local storm tracks, and sometimes in nonlocal, broad regions coincident with and downstream of the oceanic forcing. Differences between the North Pacific (KE) and North Atlantic (GS) may be partly related to the more zonal orientation of the KE and the stronger SST signals of the GS, but could also be due to differences in mean storm-track characteristics over the North Pacific and North Atlantic.
Buoy perspective of a high-resolution global ocean vector wind analysis constructed from passive radiometers and active scatterometers (1987–present)

(American Geophysical Union, 2012-11-14) Yu, Lisan ; Jin, Xiangze

The study used 126 buoy time series as a benchmark to evaluate a satellite-based daily, 0.25-degree gridded global ocean surface vector wind analysis developed by the Objectively Analyzed airs-sea Fluxes (OAFlux) project. The OAFlux winds were produced from synthesizing wind speed and direction retrievals from 12 sensors acquired during the satellite era from July 1987 onward. The 12 sensors included scatterometers (QuikSCAT and ASCAT), passive microwave radiometers (AMSRE, SSMI and SSMIS series), and the passive polarimetric microwave radiometer from WindSat. Accuracy and consistency of the OAFlux time series are the key issues examined here. A total of 168,836 daily buoy measurements were assembled from 126 buoys, including both active and archive sites deployed during 1988–2010. With 106 buoys from the tropical array network, the buoy winds are a good reference for wind speeds in low and mid-range. The buoy comparison shows that OAFlux wind speed has a mean difference of −0.13 ms−1 and an RMS difference of 0.71 ms−1, and wind direction has a mean difference of −0.55 degree and an RMS difference of 17 degrees. Vector correlation of OAFlux and buoy winds is of 0.9 and higher over almost all the sites. Influence of surface currents on the OAFlux/buoy mean difference pattern is displayed in the tropical Pacific, with higher (lower) OAFlux wind speed in regions where wind and current have the opposite (same) sign. Improved representation of daily wind variability by the OAFlux synthesis is suggested, and a decadal signal in global wind speed is evident.
Recent wind-driven variability in Atlantic water mass distribution and meridional overturning circulation

(American Meteorological Society, 2017-03-17) Evans, Dafydd Gwyn ; Toole, John M. ; Forget, Gael ; Zika, Jan D. ; Naveira Garabato, Alberto C. ; Nurser, A. J. George ; Yu, Lisan

Interannual variability in the volumetric water mass distribution within the North Atlantic Subtropical Gyre is described in relation to variability in the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation. The relative roles of diabatic and adiabatic processes in the volume and heat budgets of the subtropical gyre are investigated by projecting data into temperature coordinates as volumes of water using an Argo-based climatology and an ocean state estimate (ECCO version 4). This highlights that variations in the subtropical gyre volume budget are predominantly set by transport divergence in the gyre. A strong correlation between the volume anomaly due to transport divergence and the variability of both thermocline depth and Ekman pumping over the gyre suggests that wind-driven heave drives transport anomalies at the gyre boundaries. This wind-driven heaving contributes significantly to variations in the heat content of the gyre, as do anomalies in the air–sea fluxes. The analysis presented suggests that wind forcing plays an important role in driving interannual variability in the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation and that this variability can be unraveled from spatially distributed hydrographic observations using the framework presented here.
Global Oceans [in “State of the Climate in 2020”]

(American Meteorological Society, 2021-08-01) Johnson, Gregory C. ; Lumpkin, Rick ; Alin, Simone R. ; Amaya, Dillon J. ; Baringer, Molly O. ; Boyer, Tim ; Brandt, Peter ; Carter, Brendan ; Cetinić, Ivona ; Chambers, Don P. ; Cheng, Lijing ; Collins, Andrew U. ; Cosca, Cathy ; Domingues, Ricardo ; Dong, Shenfu ; Feely, Richard A. ; Frajka-Williams, Eleanor E. ; Franz, Bryan A. ; Gilson, John ; Goni, Gustavo J. ; Hamlington, Benjamin D. ; Herrford, Josefine ; Hu, Zeng-Zhen ; Huang, Boyin ; Ishii, Masayoshi ; Jevrejeva, Svetlana ; Kennedy, John J. ; Kersalé, Marion ; Killick, Rachel E. ; Landschützer, Peter ; Lankhorst, Matthias ; Leuliette, Eric ; Locarnini, Ricardo ; Lyman, John ; Marra, John F. ; Meinen, Christopher S. ; Merrifield, Mark ; Mitchum, Gary ; Moat, Bengamin I. ; Nerem, R. Steven ; Perez, Renellys ; Purkey, Sarah G. ; Reagan, James ; Sanchez-Franks, Alejandra ; Scannell, Hillary A. ; Schmid, Claudia ; Scott, Joel P. ; Siegel, David A. ; Smeed, David A. ; Stackhouse, Paul W. ; Sweet, William V. ; Thompson, Philip R. ; Trinanes, Joaquin ; Volkov, Denis L. ; Wanninkhof, Rik ; Weller, Robert A. ; Wen, Caihong ; Westberry, Toby K. ; Widlansky, Matthew J. ; Wilber, Anne C. ; Yu, Lisan ; Zhang, Huai-Min

This chapter details 2020 global patterns in select observed oceanic physical, chemical, and biological variables relative to long-term climatologies, their differences between 2020 and 2019, and puts 2020 observations in the context of the historical record. In this overview we address a few of the highlights, first in haiku, then paragraph form: La Niña arrives, shifts winds, rain, heat, salt, carbon: Pacific—beyond. Global ocean conditions in 2020 reflected a transition from an El Niño in 2018–19 to a La Niña in late 2020. Pacific trade winds strengthened in 2020 relative to 2019, driving anomalously westward Pacific equatorial surface currents. Sea surface temperatures (SSTs), upper ocean heat content, and sea surface height all fell in the eastern tropical Pacific and rose in the western tropical Pacific. Efflux of carbon dioxide from ocean to atmosphere was larger than average across much of the equatorial Pacific, and both chlorophyll-a and phytoplankton carbon concentrations were elevated across the tropical Pacific. Less rain fell and more water evaporated in the western equatorial Pacific, consonant with increased sea surface salinity (SSS) there. SSS may also have increased as a result of anomalously westward surface currents advecting salty water from the east. El Niño–Southern Oscillation conditions have global ramifications that reverberate throughout the report.
Characterization of sea surface temperature and air-sea heat flux anomalies associated with mesoscale eddies in the South China Sea

(American Geophysical Union, 2020-03-16) Liu, Yingjie ; Yu, Lisan ; Chen, Ge

This study is to quantify the effects of mesoscale eddies on air‐sea heat fluxes and related air‐sea variables in the South China Sea. Using satellite observations of sea surface temperature (SST) and sea surface height anomaly and a high‐resolution air‐sea heat flux product for the 16‐year period from 2000 to 2015, we conducted the composite patterns of air‐sea fluxes and variables associated with anticyclonic eddies (AEs) and cyclonic eddies (CEs). It is found that the SST‐sea surface height correlations over eddies are not always positive. Only 56% of AEs are corresponded with positive SST anomalies (SSTA), that is, SST+ AEs, and 58% of CEs with negative SSTA, that is, SST− CEs. The percentage of these eddies increases with eddy amplitude and shows slight seasonal variations, higher in winter and lower in summer. Composites of SSTA, air‐sea variables, and fluxes are constructed over all eddies, including both SST+ eddies and SST− eddies. All composites show asymmetric patterns, showing that the centers (where the extrema are located) of the fluxes and variables shift westward and poleward (equatorward) relative to the AEs (CEs) cores. Besides, composites of latent heat flux (LHF), sensible heat flux (SHF), and air temperature show monopole patterns, while composites of wind speed and specific humidity show dipole patterns. For SST+ AEs, the coupling strength is 39.6 ± 6.5 W/m2 (7.2 ± 1.7 W/m2) per degree increase of SSTA for LHF (SHF). For SST− CEs, the coupling strength is 39.0 ± 2.0 W/m2 (9.0 ± 0.96 W/m2) per degree decrease of SSTA for LHF (SHF).
Decadal to multidecadal variability of the mixed layer to the south of the Kuroshio Extension region

(American Meteorological Society, 2020-08-05) Wu, Baolan ; Lin, Xiaopei ; Yu, Lisan

The decadal to multidecadal mixed layer variability is investigated in a region south of the Kuroshio Extension (130°E–180°, 25°–35°N), an area where the North Pacific subtropical mode water forms, during 1948–2012. By analyzing the mixed layer heat budget with different observational and reanalysis data, here we show that the decadal to multidecadal variability of the mixed layer temperature and mixed layer depth is covaried with the Atlantic multidecadal oscillation (AMO), instead of the Pacific decadal oscillation (PDO). The mixed layer temperature has strong decadal to multidecadal variability, being warm before 1970 and after 1990 (AMO positive phase) and cold during 1970–90 (AMO negative phase), and so does the mixed layer depth. The dominant process for the mixed layer temperature decadal to multidecadal variability is the Ekman advection, which is controlled by the zonal wind changes related to the AMO. The net heat flux into the ocean surface Qnet acts as a damping term and it is mainly from the effect of latent heat flux and partially from sensible heat flux. While the wind as well as mixed layer temperature decadal changes related to the PDO are weak in the western Pacific Ocean. Our finding proposes the possible influence of the AMO on the northwestern Pacific Ocean mixed layer variability, and could be a potential predictor for the decadal to multidecadal climate variability in the western Pacific Ocean.
RAMA : the Research Moored Array for African–Asian–Australian Monsoon Analysis and Prediction

(American Meteorological Society, 2009-04) McPhaden, Michael J. ; Meyers, G. ; Ando, Kentaro ; Masumoto, Yukio ; Murty, V. S. N. ; Ravichandran, M. ; Syamsudin, F. ; Vialard, Jérôme ; Yu, Lisan ; Yu, W.

The Indian Ocean is unique among the three tropical ocean basins in that it is blocked at 25°N by the Asian landmass. Seasonal heating and cooling of the land sets the stage for dramatic monsoon wind reversals, strong ocean–atmosphere interactions, and intense seasonal rains over the Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia, East Africa, and Australia. Recurrence of these monsoon rains is critical to agricultural production that supports a third of the world's population. The Indian Ocean also remotely influences the evolution of El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO), the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), North American weather, and hurricane activity. Despite its importance in the regional and global climate system though, the Indian Ocean is the most poorly observed and least well understood of the three tropical oceans. This article describes the Research Moored Array for African–Asian–Australian Monsoon Analysis and Prediction (RAMA), a new observational network designed to address outstanding scientific questions related to Indian Ocean variability and the monsoons. RAMA is a multinationally supported element of the Indian Ocean Observing System (IndOOS), a combination of complementary satellite and in situ measurement platforms for climate research and forecasting. The article discusses the scientific rationale, design criteria, and implementation of the array. Initial RAMA data are presented to illustrate how they contribute to improved documentation and understanding of phenomena in the region. Applications of the data for societal benefit are also described.
Developing an Observing Air–Sea Interactions Strategy (OASIS) for the global ocean

(Oxford University Press, 2022-09-27) Cronin, Meghan F. ; Swart, Sebastiaan ; Marandino, Christa A. ; Anderson, C. ; Browne, Philip ; Chen, S. ; Joubert, W. R. ; Schuster, U. ; Venkatesan, R. ; Addey, Charles I. ; Alves, O. ; Ardhuin, F. ; Battle, S. ; Bourassa, M. A. ; Chen, Z. ; Chory, Margaret ; Clayson, Carol A. ; de Souza, R. B. ; du Plessis, Marcel ; Edmondson, M. ; Edson, J. B. ; Gille, S. T. ; Hermes, Juliet ; Hormann, Verena ; Josey, S. A. ; Kurz, M. ; Lee, T. ; Maicu, F. ; Moustahfid, E. H. ; Nicholson, Sarah-Anne ; Nyadjro, Ebenezer S. ; Palter, Jaime ; Patterson, Ruth G. ; Penny, Stephen G. ; Pezzi, L. P. ; Pinardi, N. ; Reeves Eyre, J. E. Jack ; Rome, N. ; Subramanian, A. C. ; Stienbarger, C. ; Steinhoff, T. ; Sutton, A. J. ; Tomita, Hiroyuki ; Wills, Samantha M. ; Wilson, C. ; Yu, Lisan

The Observing Air–Sea Interactions Strategy (OASIS) is a new United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development programme working to develop a practical, integrated approach for observing air–sea interactions globally for improved Earth system (including ecosystem) forecasts, CO2 uptake assessments called for by the Paris Agreement, and invaluable surface ocean information for decision makers. Our “Theory of Change” relies upon leveraged multi-disciplinary activities, partnerships, and capacity strengthening. Recommendations from >40 OceanObs’19 community papers and a series of workshops have been consolidated into three interlinked Grand Ideas for creating #1: a globally distributed network of mobile air–sea observing platforms built around an expanded array of long-term time-series stations; #2: a satellite network, with high spatial and temporal resolution, optimized for measuring air–sea fluxes; and #3: improved representation of air–sea coupling in a hierarchy of Earth system models. OASIS activities are organized across five Theme Teams: (1) Observing Network Design & Model Improvement; (2) Partnership & Capacity Strengthening; (3) UN Decade OASIS Actions; (4) Best Practices & Interoperability Experiments; and (5) Findable–Accessible–Interoperable–Reusable (FAIR) models, data, and OASIS products. Stakeholders, including researchers, are actively recruited to participate in Theme Teams to help promote a predicted, safe, clean, healthy, resilient, and productive ocean.
Emerging pattern of wind change over the Eurasian marginal seas revealed by three decades of satellite ocean-surface wind observations

(MDPI, 2021-04-28) Yu, Lisan

This study provides the first full characterization of decadal changes of surface winds over 10 marginal seas along the Eurasian continent using satellite wind observations. During the three decades (1988–2018), surface warming has occurred in all seas at a rate more pronounced in the South European marginal seas (0.4–0.6 °C per decade) than in the monsoon-influenced North Indian and East Asian marginal seas (0.1–0.2 °C per decade). However, surface winds have not strengthened everywhere. On a basin average, winds have increased over the marginal seas in the subtropical/mid-latitudes, with the rate of increase ranging from 11 to 24 cms−1 per decade. These upward trends reflect primarily the accelerated changes in the 1990s and have largely flattened since 2000. Winds have slightly weakened or remained little changed over the marginal seas in the tropical monsoonal region. Winds over the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf underwent an abrupt shift in the late 1990s that resulted in an elevation of local wind speeds. The varying relationships between wind and SST changes suggest that different marginal seas have responded differently to environmental warming and further studies are needed to gain an improved understanding of climate change on a regional scale.
Air-sea heat flux climatologies in the Mediterranean Sea : surface energy balance and its consistency with ocean heat storage Authors

(John Wiley & Sons, 2017-05-16) Song, Xiangzhou ; Yu, Lisan

This study provides an analysis of the Mediterranean Sea surface energy budget using nine surface heat flux climatologies. The ensemble mean estimation shows that the net downward shortwave radiation (192 ± 19 W m−2) is balanced by latent heat flux (−98 ± 10 W m−2), followed by net longwave radiation (−78 ± 13 W m−2) and sensible heat flux (−13 ± 4 W m−2). The resulting net heat budget (Qnet) is 2 ± 12 W m−2 into the ocean, which appears to be warm biased. The annual-mean Qnet should be −5.6 ± 1.6 W m−2 when estimated from the observed net transport through the Strait of Gibraltar. To diagnose the uncertainty in nine Qnet climatologies, we constructed Qnet from the heat budget equation by using historic hydrological observations to determine the heat content changes and advective heat flux. We also used the Qnet from a data-assimilated global ocean state estimation as an additional reference. By comparing with the two reference Qnet estimates, we found that seven products (NCEP 1, NCEP 2, CFSR, ERA-Interim, MERRA, NOCSv2.0, and OAFlux+ISCCP) overestimate Qnet, with magnitude ranging from 6 to 27 W m−2, while two products underestimate Qnet by −6 W m−2 (JRA55) and −14 W m−2 (CORE.2). Together with the previous warm pool work of Song and Yu (2013), we show that CFSR, MERRA, NOCSv2.0, and OAFlux+ISCCP are warm-biased not only in the western Pacific warm pool but also in the Mediterranean Sea, while CORE.2 is cold-biased in both regions. The NCEP 1, 2, and ERA-Interim are cold-biased over the warm pool but warm-biased in the Mediterranean Sea.

Yu Lisan

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