Title: Interannual Variability of the Hadley Circulation Associated with Tropical Pacific SST Anomaly

Journal: Journal of Ocean University of China, 14 (4): 596-603

Authors: GONG X. -Q., Q. Wang*, and Y. -L. Liu

Abstract:The seasonal and interannual variability of zonal mean Hadley circulation are analyzed, and the important effects of sea surface temperature (SST), especially the tropical Pacific SST, on the meridional circulation are discussed. Following results are obtained: 1) the Hadley circulation presents a single clockwise (anticlockwise) cross-equator circulation in the Northern (Southern) Hemisphere winter,while it is a double-ring-shaped circulation quasi-symmetric about the equator in spring and autumn. The annual mean state just indicates the residual of the Hadley cell in winter and summer. 2) The first mode of interannual anomalies shows a single cell crossing the equator like the climatology in winter and summer but with narrower width. The second mode shows a double ring-shaped cell quasi-symmetric about the equator which is similar to the Hadley cell in spring or autumn. 3) Vertical motion of the Hadley circulation is driven by sea surface temperature (SST) through latent and sensible heat in the tropics, and the interannual anomalies are mainly driven by the SST anomaly (SSTa) in the tropical Pacific. 4) The meridional gradient of SSTa is well consistent with the lower meridional wind of Hadley circulation in the interannual part. For the spatial distribution, the meridional gradient of SSTa in the Pacific plays a major role for the first two modes while the effects of the Indian Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean can be ignored.