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Global patterns of ENSO‐induced precipitation
Author(s) -
Dai Aiguo,
Wigley T. M. L.
Publication year - 2000
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 - 10.1029/1999gl011140
Subject(s) - climatology , precipitation , empirical orthogonal functions , hadley cell , anomaly (physics) , el niño southern oscillation , monsoon , westerlies , middle latitudes , environmental science , atmospheric circulation , rain gauge , tropics , geology , atmospheric sciences , general circulation model , climate change , meteorology , oceanography , geography , physics , condensed matter physics , fishery , biology
Although there have been many analyses of El Niño/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) induced precipitation anomalies, global patterns from these analyses remain incomplete. Here we combine recent satellite estimates of oceanic precipitation and historical rain‐gauge records to derive a global climatology of ENSO‐induced precipitation anomalies using empirical orthogonal function (EOF) analyses. The patterns suggest that the re‐arrangement of convection centers of the Walker circulation during ENSO events induces large precipitation anomalies in the tropics, while associated changes in the monsoon systems (through the Hadley cell) over the Pacific, Indian and Atlantic Oceans, and their interactions with midlatitude westerlies generate coherent anomaly patterns over the extratropics. Our results can be used to evaluate climate models and forecast ENSO‐induced precipitation anomalies.