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El Niño events and their evolution in different phases of the Pacific Decadal Oscillation: impacts on the Low Level Jet east of the Andes and extratropical cyclones on the South America.

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Author(s):
Gyrlene Aparecida Mendes da Silva
Total Authors: 1
Document type: Doctoral Thesis
Press: São Paulo.
Institution: Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Instituto Astronômico e Geofísico (IAG/SBD)
Defense date:
Examining board members:
Tercio Ambrizzi; Iracema Fonseca de Albuquerque Cavalcanti; Pedro Leite da Silva Dias; Anita Rodrigues de Moraes Drumond; José Antonio Marengo Orsini
Advisor: Tercio Ambrizzi
Abstract

This work investigates the impact of the El Niño (EN) events and their evolution according to the PDO phases (warm, PDO(+) and cold, PDO(-)) focusing on the moisture transport exchanges from the north to the Southeast of the South America (SESA) during the austral summer period of 1950-1999. The variability of the Low Level Jet east of the Andes (LLJ) and some properties of extratropical cyclones over the southern cone of the continent in response to the modifications in the atmosphere circulation due to above mentioned events is analyzed. It is shown that on the South America continent there are not any significant changes in precipitation distribution during the neutral years in the Equatorial Pacific for PDO(+) when compared to the years of PDO(-). However, the EN events during PDO(+) indicate some differences in the anomalous wave pattern at high levels due to the variability of the Sea Surface Temperature (SST) anomalies on the Equatorial Pacific and Atlantic oceans when compared with the events for PDO(-). This implies in positive precipitation anomalies over the SESA which is associated to the enhancement of convergent moisture flux in this region. However, the events for PDO(-) showed positive precipitation anomalies only over the southern part of the SEAS and negative to the north which is associated to the downward motion and anomalous divergence over the centraleastern Brazil. This pattern may have contributed for weakening the moisture flux transported by the trade winds towards the subtropics. Numerical experiments with the Community Atmosphere Model version 3.0 also helped on the interpretation of the observational analysis where was suggested that EN events are more important to force the climate anomalies in the summer season over the continent than the PDO mode. The frequency of LLJ cases detected with the Bonner criterion 1 during the years of EN for PDO(+) is bigger than for PDO(-). The spatial position pattern for both categories of the anomalous LLJ is from the Amazon to Southern Brazil and Northeastern Argentina. During the PDO(-) the jet is more intense, however it seems to transport less moisture towards the SEAS region when compared to the PDO(+) cases. The extratropical cyclones tracked through a numerical scheme showed higher frequency and lower central pressures on the extreme of Southern Brazil, Uruguay, Northeastern Argentina and around the Southwest Atlantic during the EN events of PDO(+) when compared to the events of PDO(-). This is in agreement with the largest flux convergence of warm and humid air from the tropics to these areas. (AU)

FAPESP's process: 05/01804-0 - Influence of the internal variability on the dynamic associated with low-level jet to the east of the Andes and cold fronts during the southern Summer and Winter
Grantee:Gyrlene Aparecida Mendes da Silva
Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate