MJO-Induced Intraseasonal Mixed Layer Depth Variability in the Equatorial Indian Ocean and Impacts on Subsurface Water Obduction

Abstract

AbstractChange of oceanic surface mixed layer depth (MLD) is critical for vertical exchanges between the surface and subsurface oceans and modulates surface temperature variabilities on various time scales. In situ observations have documented prominent intraseasonal variability (ISV) of MLD with 30–105-day periods in the equatorial Indian Ocean (EIO) where the Madden–Julian oscillation (MJO) initiates. Simulation of Hybrid Coordinate Ocean Model (HYCOM) reveals a regional maximum of intraseasonal MLD variability in the EIO (70°–95°E, 3°S–3°N) with a standard deviation of ~14 m. Sensitivity experiments of HYCOM demonstrate that, among all of the MJO-related forcing effects, the wind-driven downwelling and mixing are primary causes for intraseasonal MLD deepening and explain 83.7% of the total ISV. The ISV of MLD gives rise to high-frequency entrainments of subsurface water, leading to an enhancement of the annual entrainment rate by 34%. However, only a small fraction of these entrainment events (<20%) can effectively contribute to the annual obduction rate of 1.36 Sv, a quantification for the amount of resurfacing thermocline water throughout a year that mainly (84.6%) occurs in the summer monsoon season (May–October). The ISV of MLD achieves the maximal intensity in April–May and greatly affects the subsequent obduction. Estimation based on our HYCOM simulations suggests that MJOs overall reduce the obduction rate in the summer monsoon season by as much as 53%. A conceptual schematic is proposed to demonstrate how springtime intraseasonal MLD deepening events caused by MJO winds narrow down the time window for effective entrainment and thereby suppress the obduction of thermocline water.