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Assessing the impact of mid‐Holocene insolation on the atmosphere‐ocean system
Author(s) -
Bush Andrew B. G.
Publication year - 1999
Publication title -
geophysical research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.007
H-Index - 273
eISSN - 1944-8007
pISSN - 0094-8276
DOI - 10.1029/1998gl900261
Subject(s) - climatology , atmosphere (unit) , upwelling , forcing (mathematics) , geology , walker circulation , holocene , monsoon , sea surface temperature , gcm transcription factors , oceanography , ocean current , general circulation model , climate change , meteorology , geography
A sequence of numerical simulations was performed in order to assess the role of early‐ to mid‐Holocene orbital forcing on the coupled atmosphere‐ocean system. Results from both an atmosphere‐only general circulation model (GCM) forced by specified sea surface temperatures and a coupled atmosphere‐ocean GCM consistently suggest a stronger south Asian monsoon and a strengthened Pacific Walker circulation. The latter feature interacts dynamically with the equatorial ocean in the coupled model to produce enhanced Pacific upwelling, a more pronounced cold tongue, and an even stronger monsoon. Results suggest that the climate of the equatorial Pacific was more similar to the La Niña phase of the modern Southern Oscillation rather than the El Niño phase.