HR: 0800h
AN: OS31B-1445    [Abstracts]
TI: Role of the Maritime Continent in a Coupled Atmosphere-Ocean-Land Surface Model
AU: * Motoi, T
EM: tmotoi@mri-jma.go.jp
AF: Meteorological Reseach Institute, 1-1 Nagamine, Tsukuba, 305-0052 Japan
AU: Kitoh, A
EM: kitoh@mri-jma.go.jp
AF: Meteorological Reseach Institute, 1-1 Nagamine, Tsukuba, 305-0052 Japan
AB: The effect of the maritime continent on the global climate is investigated through sensitivity experiments with and without the maritime continent in the western tropical Pacific Ocean by using a coupled atmosphere-ocean-land surface model. It is found that the cumulus convection is enhanced over the maritime continent and the walker circulation is intensified in the case with the maritime continent. Anomalous easterly wind in the equatorial Pacific, associated with the intensified walker circulation, causes La Nina like condition in the Pacific Ocean. The global Rossby wave trains form in the atmosphere both in the northern and southern hemispheres due to increased heating by enhanced cumulus formation over the maritime continent. The changes in Ekman transport at the sea surface by anomalous winds of the Rossby wave trains result in the changes in Sea Surface Temperatures (SSTs) in the world ocean. The precipitation increases over the maritime continent by enhanced cumulus formation and decreases over the central equatorial Pacific and subtropical North Pacific Oceans by reduced cloud formation due to lower SSTs. The changes in precipitation lead freshening in the South Indian Ocean by the Indonesian Throughflow and salinification in the central equatorial Pacific and subtropical North Pacific Oceans
DE: 1620 Climate dynamics (0429, 3309)
DE: 1626 Global climate models (3337, 4928)
DE: 3322 Land/atmosphere interactions (1218, 1631, 1843)
DE: 4504 Air/sea interactions (0312, 3339)
DE: 9604 Cenozoic
SC: Ocean Sciences [OS]
MN: Fall Meeting 2005