A Hybrid Coupled Ocean-Atmosphere Model and Its Simulation of ENSO and Atmospheric Responses

• Published in: Advances in atmospheric sciences Vol. 36; no. 6; pp. 643 - 657
• Main Authors: Hu, Junya, Zhang, Rong-Hua, Gao, Chuan
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Beijing Science Press 01.06.2019; Springer Nature B.V; Center for Ocean Mega-Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 7 Nanhai Road, Qingdao 266071, China%Chinese Academy of Sciences Key Laboratory of Ocean Circulation and Waves, Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Qingdao 266071, China; Pilot National Laboratory for Marine Science and Technology, Qingdao 266237, China; Center for Ocean Mega-Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 7 Nanhai Road, Qingdao 266071, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 10029, China; Chinese Academy of Sciences Key Laboratory of Ocean Circulation and Waves, Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Qingdao 266071, China
• Subjects: Annual variations; Anomalies; Atmosphere; Atmospheric circulation; Atmospheric circulation models; Atmospheric General Circulation Models; Atmospheric models; Atmospheric Sciences; Atmospheric variability; Climate prediction; Computer simulation; Earth and Environmental Science; Earth Sciences; El Nino; El Nino phenomena; El Nino-Southern Oscillation event; Frequency dependence; General circulation models; Geophysics/Geodesy; Interannual variability; Locking; Meteorology; Ocean currents; Ocean models; Ocean-atmosphere interaction; Ocean-atmosphere system; Oceans; Original Paper; Precipitation; Sea level; Sea level pressure; Sea surface; Simulation; Southern Oscillation; Surface temperature; Tropical climate; Variability; 大气响应; atmospheric response; ENSO; ENSO simulation; IOCAS ICM; hybrid coupled model; 混合型耦合模式
• ISSN: 0256-1530; 1861-9533
• DOI: 10.1007/s00376-019-8197-8

A new hybrid coupled model (HCM) is presented in this study, which consists of an intermediate tropical Pacific Ocean model and a global atmospheric general circulation model. The ocean component is the intermediate ocean model (IOM) of the intermediate coupled model (ICM) used at the Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (IOCAS). The atmospheric component is ECHAM5, the fifth version of the Max Planck Institute for Meteorology atmospheric general circulation model. The HCM integrates its atmospheric and oceanic components by using an anomaly coupling strategy. A 100-year simulation has been made with the HCM and its simulation skills are evaluated, including the interannual variability of SST over the tropical Pacific and the ENSO-related responses of the global atmosphere. The model shows irregular occurrence of ENSO events with a spectral range between two and five years. The amplitude and lifetime of ENSO events and the annual phase-locking of SST anomalies are also reproduced realistically. Despite the slightly stronger variance of SST anomalies over the central Pacific than observed in the HCM, the patterns of atmospheric anomalies related to ENSO, such as sea level pressure, temperature and precipitation, are in broad agreement with observations. Therefore, this model can not only simulate the ENSO variability, but also reproduce the global atmospheric variability associated with ENSO, thereby providing a useful modeling tool for ENSO studies. Further model applications of ENSO modulations by ocean-atmosphere processes, and of ENSO-related climate prediction, are also discussed.