Possible mechanisms for persistent anomalous rainfall over the middle and lower reaches of Yangtze River in winter 2018/2019

Abstract

AbstractThe middle and lower reaches of Yangtze River (MLYR) experienced a historically high number of persistent cloudy and rainy days throughout winter 2018/2019. The persistent cold and rainy weather caused severe social impacts and economic losses. Climatic monitoring shows that a weak central Pacific (CP) El Niño event initiated in November 2018 with an increase in the sea surface temperature (SST) in the central and eastern tropical Pacific. During the mature phase of the CP El Niño, the western North Pacific Subtropical High (WNPSH) was stronger than normal and the western boundary moved westward. However, the weak CP El Niño event alone is not enough to explain the abnormally strong and northward displacement of WNPSH and associated heavy rainfall in winter of 2018/2019. This study highlights the eastward propagating Rossby wave train in the middle‐upper troposphere along with the Asian westerly jet‐induced anomalous high pressure and anticyclonic circulation over East Asia, which contributed to the intensification and northward displacement of WNPSH. The synergic influence of both the CP El Niño and Rossby wave train over Eurasia resulted in an intensified and northward shifted WNPSH, which, together with the intensification of the India Burma trough, strengthened the transport of water vapour into the MLYR basin. Accompanied by frequent outbreaks of cold air and confluence of cold and warm air over the MLYR basin, cold and rainy weather persisted in winter 2018/2019 in this region.