Impact of Atmospheric Rivers on Poleward Moisture Transport and Arctic Climate on Interannual Timescales

Abstract

The projected increase in poleward moisture transport (PMT) towards warmer climate has mainly been linked to the larger moisture holding capacity of warmer air masses. However, the future of interannual fluctuations of PMT and associated driving mechanisms are fairly uncertain. This study demonstrates the extent to which atmospheric rivers (ARs) explain the interannual variability of PMT, as well as related variables such as temperature, precipitation and sea ice. Such linkages help to clarify if extreme precipitation or melt events over Arctic regions are dominantly caused by the occurrence of ARs. A main focus is set on the impact of ARs on Arctic sea ice on interannual timescales, which so far has been poorly studied, and varies from colder to warmer climates.To robustly study these interannual linkages of ARs and Arctic Climate, we examine Arctic ARs in long climate runs of one present and two future climates (+2°C and +3°C), simulated by the global climate model EC-Earth 2.3. To enhance the significance of the results, three different moisture thresholds were used to detect ARs. Further, the use of additional thresholds relative to the 2°C and 3° warmer climates allowed a distinction between thermodynamic and dynamic processes that lead to changes of ARs from colder to warmer climates. It is found that most PMT variability is driven by ARs, and that the share of ARs which explain moisture transport increases towards warmer climates. We also discuss the role of the position and strength of the jet stream in driving AR variability and highlight the importance of ARs in generating interannual fluctuations of Arctic climate variables such as temperature and precipitation.