Unraveling the Indian monsoon’s role in fueling the unprecedented 2022 Marine Heatwave in the Western North Pacific

• DOI: 10.1038/s41612-024-00645-x
• Publication Date: 2024-04-16T15:21:39Z
• Authors: Qianghua Song; Chunzai Wang; Yulong Yao; Hanjie Fan
• Keywords: Teleconnection; Shortwave radiation; Atmospheric models; Shortwave; Subtropical ridge

Abstract An unprecedented marine heatwave (MHW) event occurred in the middle-high latitudes of western North Pacific during summer 2022. We demonstrate that excessive precipitation thousands kilometers away fuels this extreme MHW July In upper atmosphere, a persistent atmospheric blocking system, forming over region, reduces cloud cover and increases shortwave radiation at ocean surface, leading to high sea surface temperatures. Atmospheric perturbations induced by latent heat release from Indian monsoon region enhance through propagation quasi-stationary Rossby waves. Our hypothesis is verified using numerical model forced with observed anomalous diabatic heating. This study sheds light on how subtropical can fuel another an teleconnection.