Gulf stream moisture fluxes impact atmospheric blocks throughout the Northern Hemisphere
Author(s)
Mathews, JP
Czaja, A
Vitart, F
Roberts, C
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
In this study, we explore the impact of oceanic moisture fluxes on atmospheric blocks using the ECMWF IFS. Artificially suppressing surface latent heat flux over the Gulf Stream (GS) region reduces atmospheric blocking frequency across the Northern Hemisphere by up to 30%. Affected blocks show a shorter lifespan (−6%), smaller spatial extent (−10%), and reduced intensity (−0.4%), with an increased number of individual blocking anticyclones (+17%). These findings are robust across various blocking detection thresholds. Analysis reveals a qualitatively consistent response across all resolutions, with Tco639 (∼18 km) showing the largest statistically significant change across all blocking characteristics, although differences between resolutions are not statistically significant. Exploring the broader Rossby wave pattern, we observe that diminished moisture fluxes favor eastward propagation and higher zonal wavenumbers, while air-sea interactions promote stationary and westward-propagating waves with zonal wavenumber 3. This study underscores the critical role of the GS in modulating atmospheric blocking.
Date Issued
2024-07-16
Date Acceptance
2024-06-20
Citation
Geophysical Research Letters, 2024, 51 (13)
ISSN
0094-8276
Publisher
American Geophysical Union (AGU)
Journal / Book Title
Geophysical Research Letters
Volume
51
Issue
13
Copyright Statement
© 2024. The Author(s).
This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
License URL
Identifier
https://doi.org/10.1029/2024gl108826
Publication Status
Published
Article Number
e2024GL108826
Date Publish Online
2024-07-04