Atmospheric Heat Source Research Articles

Atmospheric heat sinks over the western Tibetan Plateau associated with snow depth in late spring

AbstractThe atmospheric heat source/sink (AHS) and snow cover/depth over the Tibetan Plateau (TP) in late spring play important roles in modulating the evolution of Asian summer monsoons. However, quantitative estimation of the AHS over the TP is still a large challenge because of limited observational data. In this work, both data analyses and numerical simulations from the Weather Research and Forecasting model with an updated daily snow‐depth data set are conducted to explore the intrinsic connection between the AHS and snow depth over the TP in May. Data analyses indicate that only a weak negative relationship exists between snow depth and the AHS over the western TP. On the other hand, despite the overall consistency in the spatial pattern of the AHS between the reanalysis data sets and the Weather Research and Forecasting model, a strong cooling effect (about −14.4 W/m2) appears over the western TP (32°–40°N, 70°–78°E) and the Nyenchen Tanglha Mountains in the simulation, where the altitude is above 4,000 m with thick snow cover. This characteristic is opposite to that observed in reanalysis data sets. Further analysis indicates that the underestimated atmospheric net longwave radiative cooling effect that is associated with snow depth may exaggerate the atmospheric heat source in current reanalysis data sets. Large uncertainties in the AHS still exist in current state‐of‐the‐art reanalysis data sets, especially over the regions of the TP covered by snow.

Quasi-biweekly impact of the atmospheric heat source over the Tibetan Plateau on summer rainfall in Eastern China

We investigated the intraseasonal relationship between the atmospheric heat source over Tibetan Plateau (TP) and summer rainfall in eastern China. A quasi-biweekly oscillation (QBWO) is the common dominant periodicity over both the TP and eastern China. Crucially, the TP heat source QBWO leads rainfall QBWO over its downstream region by 2–8 days. The QBWO over the TP shows a significant eastward propagation. Phase composite further identified the specific propagation pathway: TP QBWO first propagates eastward to central China, southward to southern China, and then northeastward to the lower reaches of the Yangtze River with a zigzag propagating pathway. Mechanistically, the eastward propagation of the upper level divergence caused by the movement of the 200 hPa jet core and south Asian high contributes to the eastward propagation of the rainfall QBWO. Simultaneously, the eastward (westward) shift in the western north Pacific subtropical high causes deepening (flattening) of the monsoon trough and the occurrence of an anomalous cyclone (anticyclone) over the western north Pacific. An anomalous anticyclonic (cyclonic) circulation around the TP appears with the wet-to-dry (dry-to-wet) phase transition of the TP QBWO. Together, they play a crucial part in the southward (northeastward) movement of the QBWO. Further dynamic analysis indicates that the horizontal moisture advection acts on the whole eastward-propagating process of the QBWO, whereas the horizontal vorticity advection is only significant when QBWO is over the TP. This study shows that the fluctuations in TP heat source are important indicators in extended forecasts of summer rainfall in eastern China.

Formation of Snow Cover Anomalies Over the Tibetan Plateau in Cold Seasons

AbstractThe present study investigates relationship between interannual variations of snow cover and local surface and atmospheric variables, and the formation of interannual snow cover anomalies over the Tibetan Plateau in the cold seasons (autumn, winter, and spring). It is shown that the snow‐related surface heat flux and atmospheric heat source anomalies increase from autumn to spring, whereas precipitation anomalies are most prominent in autumn. This suggests that snow cover anomalies over the central eastern Tibetan Plateau are mainly formed in autumn and their impacts are most prominent in spring. The central eastern Tibetan Plateau snow cover anomalies have high month‐to‐month persistence during October through April, indicative of a large contribution of persistence to snow cover anomalies in winter and spring. The Tibetan Plateau snow cover anomalies in cold seasons are influenced by large‐scale atmospheric circulation anomaly pattern of different paths. In autumn, a wave pattern from the North Pacific to the Tibetan Plateau via the North Atlantic, induced by eastern North Pacific and western North Atlantic sea surface temperature anomalies, plays an important role in the formation of snow cover anomalies. In winter, a North Atlantic Oscillation related wave pattern from the North Atlantic to East Asia may contribute to snow cover anomalies. In spring, a midlatitude wave pattern originating over the western North Atlantic and propagating through the Mediterranean Sea to southern Tibetan Plateau may have a supplementary contribution to snow cover anomalies.

Damping of gravity waves by kinetic processes in Jupiter's thermosphere

We employ a linearized full-wave model to show that the rovibrational damping (hereafter, RV damping) of gravity waves is an important source of atmospheric heating, which needs to be taken into account when modeling the wave processes in the jovian thermospheres. We find that RV damping of internal gravity waves becomes strong when the wave frequencies approach the thermal collision frequency. RV damping, compared to the damping by molecular viscosity and thermal diffusivity, can effectively lower the damping altitudes for waves with large frequencies, and requires larger upward wave energy fluxes to produce prescribed wave amplitudes for these waves. Particularly, the energy deposited by RV damping, viscous and thermal dissipation of the two waves identified in measurements by the Atmospheric Structure Instrument (ASI) on the Galileo Probe can produce a maximum temperature about 40 K higher than those in previous studies. We further demonstrate RV damping effect on the mesoscale gravity wave observed during the New Horizons flyby on Jupiter. Under the influence of RV damping, this wave has the vertical wavelength and damping altitude comparable to those of wave 2 retrieved from the ASI observations. The energy dissipation of these three observed waves, if coexist, should provide sufficient heating to produce the observed mean temperature between 357 km and 700 km above 1 bar.

Summer Atmospheric Heat Sources over the Western–Central Tibetan Plateau: An Integrated Analysis of Multiple Reanalysis and Satellite Datasets

Multiple bias-corrected top-quality reanalysis datasets, gauge-based observations, and selected satellite products are synthetically employed to revisit the climatology and variability of the summer atmospheric heat sources over the Tibetan Plateau (TP). Verification-based selection and ensemble-mean methods are utilized to combine various datasets. Different from previous works, this study pays special attention to estimating the total heat source (TH) and its components over the data-void western plateau (70°–85°E), including the surface sensible heat (SH), latent heat released by precipitation (LH), and net radiation flux (RD). Consistent with previous studies, the climatology of summer SH (LH) typically increases (decreases) from southeast to northwest. Generally, LH dominates TH over most of the TP. A notable new finding is a minimum TH area over the high-altitude region of the northwestern TP, where the Karakoram mountain range is located. We find that during the period of 1984–2006, TH shows insignificant trends over the eastern and central TP, whereas it exhibits an evident increasing trend over the western TP that is attributed to the rising tendency of LH before 1996 and to that of RD after 1996. The year-to-year variation of TH over the central–eastern TP is highly correlated with that of LH, but that is not the case over the western TP. It is also worth noting that the variations of TH in each summer month are not significantly correlated with each other, and hence study of the interannual variation of the TP heat sources should consider the remarkable subseasonal variations.

The relationship between heavy precipitation in the eastern region of China and atmospheric heating anomalies over the Tibetan Plateau and its surrounding areas

The relationships among heavy precipitation in the eastern region of China, the atmospheric heat source over the Tibetan Plateau and its surrounding areas, and atmospheric circulation in East Asia were investigated using the multi-variate empirical orthogonal function (MV-EOF) method and synthetic analysis on daily meteorological data from May through August 2010, which were compared with data from 2013. The MV-EOF decomposition results revealed that the atmospheric heating over the eastern region of the Tibetan Plateau and the Bay of Bengal exhibited opposite trends when heavy precipitation events occurred in South China, West China, and the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River. These results indicated that the land–sea thermal contrast between the eastern region of the Tibetan Plateau and the Bay of Bengal was likely one of the key factors leading to the occurrence of heavy precipitation events in the eastern region of China. The results of the synthetic analysis revealed a possible physical mechanism: When the atmospheric heating was weak over the Tibetan Plateau and strong over the Bay of Bengal, there was a strong ascending motion over the Bay of Bengal and its surrounding areas, which was conducive to maintaining the South Asian high and the western Pacific subtropical high (WPSH) in southerly positions. This also resulted in weak water vapor transport in the southwest, thus forming continuous heavy precipitation in South China. After the increase in atmospheric heating over the Tibetan Plateau, the convergence and ascending motion of the lower atmosphere were strengthened, and the South Asian high moved northward to the plateau, with a strengthened eastward extension. The WPSH then lifted northward, and the airflow around it conveyed more water vapor to West China and the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, resulting in heavy precipitation in these regions.

The Rossby wave train patterns forced by shallower and deeper Tibetan Plateau atmospheric heat-source in summer in a linear baroclinic model

By using a linear baroclinic model (LBM), this study investigates the different Rossby wave train (RWT) patterns associated with the Tibetan Plateau (TP) upper-atmospheric heat source (TPUHS) that ...

Possible causes for the asymmetric evolution between the aerosol optical depth over East Asia and eastern United States during boreal spring

Observations have suggested that the 550‐nm aerosol optical depth (AOD) decreases over East Asia (EA) but increases over eastern United States (EUS) in boreal spring. Based on the NCEP CFSR reanalysis and TRMM 3A25 data set, the present work indicates that this asymmetry can be ascribed to the distinct feedback of general circulation and atmospheric heat source (AHS) between the two regions. In April and May, condensation heating becomes dominant in the AHS over EA and leads to low‐level southerly and upper‐tropospheric northerly flow in response. Subsequently, deep convection with strong ascending motion is generated, which reduces AOD over EA via the effect of vertical ventilation and rainfall‐related washout. Meanwhile, the AHS over EUS is induced by circulation originating from the Tropics and mid–high latitudes. Thus, AOD further increases over EUS due to the absence of vertical ventilation and the import of dust aerosols from EA in the upper troposphere during late spring. Also discussed is the role played by the Tibetan Plateau in this distinct AHS–circulation relationship between EA and EUS.

Decadal variability in summer precipitation over eastern China and its response to sensible heat over the Tibetan Plateau since the early 2000s

This study investigates the decadal variations in summer precipitation over eastern China (SPEC) and its response to the decadal change of sensible heat (SH) flux over the Tibetan Plateau (TP). The results show that SPEC experiences a significant decadal change in approximate 2003, demonstrating positive rainfall anomalies over central China and negative anomalies over northeast, north, and south China. Meanwhile, a noticeable increase in SH over the TP occurs in the early 2000s at the decadal time scale. Further analysis reveals that when spring SH over the TP is abnormally strong, there will be a stronger atmospheric heat source and development of deep convection over the TP in the forthcoming summer. The positive thermal forcing induces an abnormal anticyclonic circulation and airflow divergence in the upper layer and cyclonic circulation and airflow convergence in the mid‐layer over the TP. And the negative vorticity and positive geopotential height anomalies in the upper layer over the TP and south China leads to the strengthening of the South Asian High (SAH) and the northwestern Pacific subtropical high (NWPSH). As a result, cold and dry air from higher latitudes and warm and humid air from the tropics converge over central China and diverge over north and south China. In addition, there exist a strong ascending motion over central China and an anomalous descending motion over south China due to the positive diabatic heating and horizontal temperature advection anomalies over central China and negative anomalies over south China. On the other hand, the circulation conditions strengthen the East Asian summer monsoon and weaken the South China Sea summer monsoon. Ultimately, more moisture is transported into central China, but less into south China, which give rise to positive and negative rainfall amounts in the corresponding areas, respectively.

Development and eastward movement mechanisms of the Tibetan Plateau vortices moving off the Tibetan Plateau

Based on the Final operational global analysis data from the Global Forecasting System of the National Centers for Environment Prediction and the radiosonde data, the development and eastward movement mechanisms of 15 Tibetan Plateau vortices (TPVs) after they move off the plateau are investigated. The results show that the convergence to the east of the TPVs at 500 hPa, the divergence associated with the westerly jet stream at 200 hPa, as well as the corresponding ascending motion provide favorable conditions for the development and eastward movement of the TPVs. The spatial structures of the atmospheric apparent heat source (Q1) and the apparent moisture sink (Q2) are studied, showing that the heating centers of Q1 at 400 hPa mainly sourced from the condensation latent heat are beneficial to the eastward movement of the TPVs, while the horizontal distribution of Q1 at 500 hPa goes against that. The development and eastward movement mechanisms of the TPVs after they move off the plateau are further discussed through diagnosing the potential vorticity (PV) tendency equation. It is revealed that the horizontal PV flux convergence to the east of the TPVs related to the convergence at 500 hPa plays as the dominant role, exerting positive contribution to the PV tendency. Meanwhile, the heating fields induce feeble PV tendency, indicating more important effect of the dynamic factor. The development and eastward movement mechanisms of the TPVs after they move off the plateau are different from those before the TPVs move off, and the dynamic effect is vital in the former stage while the effect of Q1 is revealed as the dominant influencing factor in the latter.

Varying Rossby Wave Trains from the Developing to Decaying Period of the Upper Atmospheric Heat Source over the Tibetan Plateau in Boreal Summer

This study demonstrates the two different Rossby wave train (RWT) patterns related to the developing/decaying upper atmospheric heat source over the Tibetan Plateau (TPUHS) in boreal summer. The results show that the summer TPUHS is dominated by quasi-biweekly variability, particularly from late July to mid-August when the subtropical jet steadily stays to the north of the TP. During the developing period of TPUHS events, the intensifying TPUHS corresponds to an anomalous upper-tropospheric high over the TP, which acts as the main source of a RWT that extends northeastward, via North China, the central Pacific and Alaska, to the northeastern Pacific region. This RWT breaks up while the anomalous high is temporarily replaced by an anomalous low due to the further deepened convective heating around the TPUHS peak. However, this anomalous low, though existing for only three to four days due to the counteracting dynamical effects of the persisting upper/lower divergence/convergence over the TP, acts as a new wave source to connect to an anomalous dynamical high over the Baikal region. Whilst the anomalous low is diminishing rapidly, this Baikal high becomes the main source of a new RWT, which develops eastward over the North Pacific region till around eight days after the TPUHS peak. Nevertheless, the anomaly centers along this decaying-TPUHS-related RWT mostly appear much weaker than those along the previous RWT. Therefore, their impacts on circulation and weather differ considerably from the developing to the decaying period of TPUHS events.

Atmospheric heat source/sink dataset over the Tibetan Plateau based on satellite and routine meteorological observations

ABSTRACTThe Tibetan Plateau (TP), acting as a large elevated land surface and atmospheric heat source during spring and summer, has a substantial impact on regional and global weather and climate. To explore the multi-scale temporal variation in the thermal forcing effect of the TP, here we calculated the surface sensible heat and latent heat release based on 6-h routine observations at 80 (32) meteorological stations during the period 1979–2016 (1960–2016). Meanwhile, in situ air-column net radiation cooling during the period 1984–2015 was derived from satellite data. This new dataset provides continuous, robust, and the longest observational atmospheric heat source/sink data over the third pole, which will be helpful to better understand the spatial-temporal structure and multi-scale variation in TP diabatic heating and its influence on the earth’s climatic system.

On the relationship between the early spring Indian Ocean's sea surface temperature (SST) and the Tibetan Plateau atmospheric heat source in summer

Abstract In this study, we evaluated the effects of springtime Indian Ocean's sea surface temperature (SST) on the Tibetan Plateau's role as atmospheric heat source (AHS) in summer. The SST data of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) and the Hadley Centre Sea Ice and Sea Surface Temperature data set (HadISST) and the reanalysis data of the National Center for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) and National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) for 33 years (from 1979 to 2011) were used to analyze the relationship between the Indian Ocean SST and the Tibetan Plateau's AHS in summer, using the approaches that include correlation analysis, and lead–lag analysis. Our results show that some certain strong oceanic SSTs affect the summer plateau heat, specially finding that the early spring SSTs of the Indian Ocean significantly affect the plateau's ability to serve as a heat source in summer. Moreover, the anomalous atmospheric circulation and transport of water vapor are related to the Plateau heat variation.

Impact of the North Pacific subtropical sea surface temperature front on El Niño‐Southern Oscillation

ABSTRACTThe North Pacific subtropical front (NPSTF) of sea surface temperature (SST) is an important subtropical feature in the North Pacific. In this study, we reveal that the inter‐annual variability of the spring NPSTF has a robust correlation with the El Niño‐Southern Oscillation (ENSO) in the following winter over the period of 1961–2016. When there is a strong spring NPSTF, anomalous cyclonic and anticyclonic circulations in the low troposphere occur to its north and south, respectively. The northeasterly wind anomaly associated with the anticyclonic circulation increases the climatological northeasterly wind over the subtropical Northeast Pacific, resulting in SST decrease via the wind–evaporation–SST feedback. The SST and wind perturbations propagate southwards from the subtropical to the eastern central equatorial Pacific in summer and grow via the Bjerknes feedback from summer to winter, eventually leading to a La Niña event in winter.A strong spring NPSTF induces an anomalous anticyclonic circulation to its south through both transient eddy activity and atmospheric heat source anomaly. The enhanced air temperature gradient due to a strong NPSTF increases the atmospheric baroclinicity, favouring an enhanced transient eddy activity over the NPSTF and to the north. The enhanced transient eddy activity triggers a significant negative height anomaly to the north via high‐frequency transient eddy feedback forcing, which is conductive to an anticyclonic circulation over the subtropical North Pacific through the downstream effect of Rossby waves. On the other hand, the convergence and increased atmospheric baroclinicity related to the strong NPSTF act to enhance precipitation over the NPSTF and to the north, corresponding to the increased atmospheric heat source, which can also excite an anomalous anticyclonic circulation over the subtropical North Pacific.

The Role of Nonlinear Drying above the Boundary Layer in the Mid-Holocene African Monsoon

Abstract Paleoclimatic proxies indicate that significant summertime rainfall reached the Sahara region during the mid-Holocene, presumably in response to stronger summertime heating in the Northern Hemisphere. Climate models generally do not replicate the enhanced precipitation. As a step toward understanding the response and possible role of model errors, a series of idealized experiments were conducted with the Community Earth System Model in which local atmospheric heat sources of increasing magnitude were applied in the boundary layer over the Sahel and Sahara. In response to this local heating, the cold and moist southwesterly monsoon inflow encroaches farther northward. A source strength of roughly 1 K day−1 produces responses similar to those in a simulation with mid-Holocene orbital forcing imposed globally, while that of 1.5 K day−1 produces a precipitation response similar to that from paleoproxies. The precipitation increases nonlinearly, with a jump at heating of around 1 K day−1, even though the low-level monsoon inflow increases linearly. Competition at low-to-middle levels between drying by a shallow return flow just above the boundary layer and moistening by vertical advection within the layer affects convection and determines the northward extension of precipitation. When the heating becomes 1.5 K day−1, the boundary layer flow encroaches sufficiently northward to weaken the shallow return flow, further aiding precipitation. This novel nonlinear mechanism operates without biogeophysical feedbacks, and suggests that poor representation of the local thermodynamic processes may hamper a model’s ability to simulate dynamical feedbacks and hence the strength and poleward extension of monsoon rains under forcings like those during the mid-Holocene.

Formation and variation of the atmospheric heat source over the Tibetan Plateau and its climate effects

To cherish the memory of the late Professor Duzheng YE on what would have been his 100th birthday, and to celebrate his great accomplishment in opening a new era of Tibetan Plateau (TP) meteorology, this review paper provides an assessment of the atmospheric heat source (AHS) over the TP from different data resources, including observations from local meteorological stations, satellite remote sensing data, and various reanalysis datasets. The uncertainty and applicability of these heat source data are evaluated. Analysis regarding the formation of the AHS over the TP demonstrates that it is not only the cause of the atmospheric circulation, but is also a result of that circulation. Based on numerical experiments, the review further demonstrates that land–sea thermal contrast is only one part of the monsoon story. The thermal forcing of the Tibetan–Iranian Plateau plays a significant role in generating the Asian summer monsoon (ASM), i.e., in addition to pumping water vapor from sea to land and from the lower to the upper troposphere, it also generates a subtropical monsoon–type meridional circulation subject to the angular momentum conservation, providing an ascending-air large-scale background for the development of the ASM.

Differences in atmospheric heat source between the Tibetan Plateau–South Asia region and the southern Indian Ocean and their impacts on the Indian summer monsoon outbreak

In this paper, the NCEP–NCAR daily reanalysis data are used to investigate the characteristics of the atmospheric heat source/sink (AHSS) over South Asia (SA) and southern Indian Ocean (SIO). The thermal differences between these two regions and their influence on the outbreak of the Indian summer monsoon (ISM) are explored. Composite analysis and correlation analysis are applied. The results indicate that the intraseasonal variability of AHSS is significant in SA but insignificant in the SIO. Large inland areas in the Northern Hemisphere still behave as a heat sink in March, similar to the situation in winter. Significant differences are found in the distribution of AHSS between the ocean and land, with distinct land–ocean thermal contrast in April, and the pattern presents in the transitional period right before the ISM onset. In May, strong heat centers appear over the areas from the Indochina Peninsula to the Bay of Bengal and south of the Tibetan Plateau (TP), which is a typical pattern of AHSS distribution during the monsoon season. The timing of SA–SIO thermal difference turning positive is about 15 pentads in advance of the onset of the ISM. Then, after the thermal differences have turned positive, a pre-monsoon meridional circulation cell develops due to the near-surface heat center and the negative thermal contrast center, after which the meridional circulation of the ISM gradually establishes. In years of early (late) conversion of the SA–SIO thermal difference turning from negative to positive, the AHSS at all levels over the TP and SIO converts later (earlier) than normal and the establishment of the ascending and descending branches of the ISM’s meridional circulation is later (earlier) too. Meanwhile, the establishment of the South Asian high over the TP is later (earlier) than normal and the conversion of the Mascarene high from winter to summer mode occurs anomalously late (early). As a result, the onset of the ISM is later (earlier) than normal. However, the difference in vorticity between early and late conversion only shows in the changes of strong vorticity centers’ location in the upper and lower troposphere.

Relationship between atmospheric heat source over the Tibetan Plateau and precipitation in the Sichuan–Chongqing region during summer

NCEP–NCAR reanalysis data and a 47-yr daily precipitation dataset from a network of 42 rain gauges are used to analyze the atmospheric heat source ( ) anomaly over the Tibetan Plateau (TP) and its influence on the summer precipitation anomaly in the Sichuan–Chongqing region. Results show that the vertical advection of over the central TP is a major factor affecting summer precipitation in the Sichuan–Chongqing region. When the vertical advection of over the central TP is strengthened, the South Asian high shifts further than normal to the south and east, the western Pacific subtropical high shifts further than normal to the south and west, and the Indian low weakens. This benefits the transport of warm moist air from the low latitude oceans to the Sichuan–Chongqing region. Correspondingly, in the high latitudes, two ridges and one trough form, which lead to cool air moving southward. These two air masses converge over the Sichuan–Chongqing region, leading to significant precipitation. In contrast, when the vertical advection of over the central TP is weakened, the South Asian high moves to the north and west, the subtropical high moves eastward and northward, and the Indian low strengthens. This circulation pattern is unfavorable for warm air advection from the south to the Sichuan–Chongqing region, and the cool air further north cannot move southward because of the presence of two troughs and one ridge at high latitude. Thus, ascent over the Sichuan–Chongqing region is weakened, resulting in less precipitation.

Monitoring and Modeling the Tibetan Plateau\u2019s climate system and its impact on East Asia

The Tibetan Plateau is an important water source in Asia. As the “Third Pole” of the Earth, the Tibetan Plateau has significant dynamic and thermal effects on East Asian climate patterns, the Asian monsoon process and atmospheric circulation in the Northern Hemisphere. However, little systematic knowledge is available regarding the changing climate system of the Tibetan Plateau and the mechanisms underlying its impact on East Asia. This study was based on “water-cryosphere-atmosphere-biology” multi-sphere interactions, primarily considering global climate change in relation to the Tibetan Plateau -East Asia climate system and its mechanisms. This study also analyzed the Tibetan Plateau to clarify global climate change by considering multi-sphere energy and water processes. Additionally, the impacts of climate change in East Asia and the associated impact mechanisms were revealed, and changes in water cycle processes and water conversion mechanisms were studied. The changes in surface thermal anomalies, vegetation, local circulation and the atmospheric heat source on the Tibetan Plateau were studied, specifically, their effects on the East Asian monsoon and energy balance mechanisms. Additionally, the relationships between heating mechanisms and monsoon changes were explored.

Responses of the East Asian jet stream to the North Pacific subtropical front in spring

This study concerns atmospheric responses to the North Pacific subtropical front (NPSTF) in boreal spring over the period 1982–2014. Statistical results show that a strong NPSTF in spring can significantly enhance the East Asian jet stream (EAJS). Both transient eddy activity and the atmospheric heat source play important roles in this process. The enhanced atmospheric temperature gradient due to a strong NPSTF increases atmospheric baroclinicity, resulting in an intensification of transient eddy and convection activities. On the one hand, the enhanced transient eddy activities can excite an anomalous cyclonic circulation with a quasi-baraotropical structure in the troposphere to the north of the NPSTF. Accordingly, the related westerly wind anomalies around 30°N can intensify the component of the EAJS over the Northeast Pacific. On the other hand, an enhanced atmospheric heat source over the NPSTF, which is related to increased rainfall, acts to excite an anomalous cyclonic circulation system in the troposphere to the northwest of the NPSTF, which can explain the enhanced component of the EAJS over the Northwest Pacific. The two mechanisms may combine to enhance the EAJS.