Role of Atmospheric Circulation and Westerly Jet Changes in the mid-Holocene East Asian Summer Monsoon

Abstract:

The East Asian Summer Monsoon (EASM) varies on inter-decadal to interglacial-glacial timescales. The EASM is stronger in the mid-Holocene than today, and these changes can be readily explained by orbitally-driven insolation increase during the boreal summer. However, a detailed understanding of the altered seasonal evolution of the EASM during this time is still lacking. In particular, previous work has suggested a close link between seasonal migration of the EASM and that of the mid-latitude westerlies impinging on the Tibetan Plateau.

In this study, we explore, this problem in PMIP3 climate model simulations of the mid-Holocene, focusing on the role of atmospheric circulation and in particular how the westerly jet modulates the East Asia summer climate on paleoclimate timescales. Analysis of the model simulations suggests that, compared to the preindustrial simulations, the transition from Mei-Yu to deep summer rainfall occurs earlier in the mid-Holocene. This is accompanied by an earlier weakening and northward shift of westerly jet away from the Tibetan Plateau. The variation in the strength and the 3-D structure of the westerly jet in the mid-Holocene is summarized. We find that changes to the monsoonal rainfall, westerly jet and meridional circulation covary on paleoclimate timescales. Meridional wind changes in particular are tied to an altered stationary wave pattern, resembling today’s the so-called ‘Silk Road’ teleconnection pattern, riding along the westerly jet. Diagnostic analysis also reveals changes in moist static energy and eddy energy fluxes associated with the earlier seasonal transition of the EASM. Our analyses suggest that the westerly jet is critical to the altered dynamics of the East Asian summer monsoon during the mid-Holocene.