Seasonal variability of convectively coupled equatorial waves (CCEWs) in recent high-top CMIP5 models

Abstract

Tropical weather system is controlled by periodic atmospheric disturbances ranging from daily to subseasonal time scales. One of the most prominent atmospheric disturbances in the tropics is convectively coupled equatorial waves (CCEWs). CCEWs are excited by latent heating due to a large-scale convective system and have a significant influence on weather system. They include atmospheric equatorial Kelvin wave, Mixed Rossby Gravity (MRG) wave, Equatorial Rossby (ER) wave and Tropical Depression (TD-type) wave. In this study, we will evaluate the seasonal variability of CCEWs activity in nine high-top CMIP5 models, including their spatial distribution in the troposphere. Our results indicate that seasonal variability of Kelvin waves is well represented in MPI-ESM-LR and MPI-ESM-MR, with maximum activity occurring during boreal spring. The seasonal variability of MRG waves is well represented in CanESM2, HadGEM2-CC, IPSL-CM5A-LR and IPSL-CM5A-MR, with maximum activity observed during boreal summer. On the other hand, ER waves are well captured by IPSL-CM5A-LR and IPSL-CM5A-MR and maximize during boreal fall; while TD-type waves, with maximum activity observed during boreal summer, are well observed in CanESM2, HadGEM2-CC, IPSL-CM5A-LR and IPSL-CM5A-MR. Our results indicate that the skill of CMIP5 models in representing seasonal variability of CCEWs highly depends on the convective parameterization and the spatial or vertical resolution used by each model.