CLIMATIC ANOMALIES IN FAR EASTERN MARGINAL SEAS, BAIKAL LAKE BASIN AND THEIR LINKAGES

Abstract

Winter climatic anomalies of various time scales in the Japan, Okhotsk seas and Baikal Lake Basin are revealed and compared with anomalies in the Pacific, Indian and Arctic oceans. Time series of ice extent in the Japan and Okhotsk seas, ice thickness and seasonal duration of the ice cover in the Baykal Lake, as well as Hadley SST, surface heat fluxes, wind velocity, atmospheric pressure fields (SLP) and different climatic indices are analyzed. The decadal climate anomalies in the Japan and Okhotsk seas in mid winter, as compared to the Northeast Pacific and South Siberia regions, could have a reversed phase. Alternating cold/warm decadal anomalies in different longitude zones of the North Asian Pacific are accompanied by alternating meridional wind and SLP anomalies at temperate latitudes. Alternating zones of inversed anomalies in temperate latitudes of the Asian Pacific are related to teleconnections with anomalies in both Arctic and Indo-Pacific oceans. Negative SSTA in eastern/central tropical-equatorial Pacific and positive SSTA in El Nino area accompanies rise of northern wind and ice extent in the Okhotsk/Japan Seas in mid-winter. The best predictors of the high cold anomaly in February in the western subarctic Pacific and marginal seas are reduction of the SST and net heat flux from the atmosphere to the ocean in north-eastern and central North Pacific during warm period of a previous year. At the multidecadal time scale the warming/cooling in the Northeast Pacific accompany winter warming/cooling in the Baykal Lake area during all period of observation. At interdecadal time scales the significant link of winter climate oscillations in South Siberia (Baikal Lake Basin) is found with SSTA oscillations in the equatorial region of the Indian Ocean and certain areas of the Pacific Ocean. The linkages of anomalies in the Baikal Lake Basin, Okhotsk, Japan Seas with regional anomalies in some key areas of the Pacific and Indian Oceans, related to the atmospheric centers of action are more stable than that with climatic indices. After climate regime shift in late 70s warm decadal anomaly in both Lake Baykal Basin and Indian Ocean in boreal winter accompany high positive anomaly of the Arctic Oscillation. Scenarios of extreme anomalies in the Baikal Lake Basin and Subarctic Pacific marginal area are also presented.