Decadal Response of the Kuroshio Extension Jet to Rossby Waves: Observation and Thin-Jet Theory*

Abstract

AbstractThis study examines interannual to decadal variability of the Kuroshio Extension (KE) jet using satellite altimeter observations from 1993 to 2010. The leading empirical orthogonal function (EOF) mode of sea level variability in the KE region represents the meridional shift of the KE jet, followed by its strength changes with a few month lag. This shift of the KE jet lags atmospheric fluctuations over the eastern North Pacific by about three years. Broad sea level anomalies (SLAs) emerge in the eastern North Pacific 3–4 years before the upstream KE jet shift, and propagate westward along the KE jet axis. In the course of the propagation, the meridional scale of the SLAs gradually narrows, and their amplitude increases. This westward propagation of SLAs with a speed of about 5 cm s−1 is attributed to the westward propagation of the meridional shift of the jet, consistent with the thin-jet theory, whose importance has been suggested by previous numerical studies. In addition, the westward-propagating signals tend to conserve their quasigeostrophic potential vorticity anomaly, which may explain the characteristic changes of SLAs during the propagation. After the westward-propagating signals of positive (negative) SLAs reach at the east coast of Japan, the upstream KE jet strengthens (weakens) associated with the strength changes of the northern and southern recirculation gyres. Interestingly, this strength change of the KE jet propagates eastward with a speed of about 6 cm s−1, suggesting an importance of advection by the current.