Role of ocean biology-induced climate feedback in the modulation of El Nino-Southern Oscillation

E1 Nino-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) properties can be modulated by many factors; most previous studies have focused on physical aspects of the climate system in the tropical Pacific. Ocean biology-induced feedback (OBF) onto physics and bio-climate coupling have been the subject of much recent interest, revealing striking model dependence and even conflicting results. Current satellite data are able to resolve the space-time structure of oceanic signals both in biology and physics, providing an opportunity for quantifying their relationships. Here we use the biological signature from satellite ocean color data to estimate interannual variability of the attenuation depth of solar radiation (Hp), a field linking ocean biology and physics. We then apply a singular value decomposition (SVD) analysis to interannual Hp and sea surface temperature (SST) anomaly fields to derive an empirical Hp model which is incorporated in a hybrid coupled ocean-atmosphere model of the tropical Pacific to represent the OBF. It is shown that the OBF can have significant effects on ENSO behaviors, including its amplitude, oscillation periods and seasonal phase locking. Citation: Zhang, R.-H., A. J. Busalacchi, X. Wang, J. Ballabrera-Poy, R. G. Murtugudde, E. C. Hackert, and D. Chen (2009), Role of ocean biology-induced climate feedback in the modulation of El Nino-Southern Oscillation, Geophys. Res. Lett., 36, L03608, doi: 10.1029/2008GL036568.

厄尔尼诺 - 南方涛动（ENSO）特性可受多种因素调节；以往大多数研究聚焦于热带太平洋气候系统的物理方面。海洋生物对物理过程的反馈（OBF）以及生物 - 气候耦合是近期备受关注的主题，揭示出显著的模型依赖性，甚至相互矛盾的结果。当前的卫星数据能够解析海洋生物和物理信号的时空结构，为量化它们之间的关系提供了机会。在此，我们利用卫星海洋水色数据中的生物特征来估算太阳辐射衰减深度（Hp）的年际变化，Hp是一个将海洋生物与物理联系起来的场。然后，我们对年际Hp和海表温度（SST）异常场进行奇异值分解（SVD）分析，以推导出一个经验性的Hp模型，该模型被纳入热带太平洋的海 - 气混合耦合模型中以表示OBF。结果表明，OBF可对ENSO行为产生显著影响，包括其振幅、振荡周期和季节锁相。引用：张荣华，A. J. 布萨拉奇，王鑫，J. 巴拉布雷拉 - 波伊，R. G. 穆图古德，E. C. 哈克特，陈大可（2009年），海洋生物引起的气候反馈在厄尔尼诺 - 南方涛动调节中的作用，《地球物理学研究快报》，36卷，L03608，doi:10.1029/2008GL036568