Contrasting characteristics between the northward and eastward propagation of the intraseasonal oscillation during the boreal summer

Abstract

This study investigates the structural and evolutionary characteristics of the eastward- and northward-propagating intraseasonal oscillation (ISO) in the Indian Ocean and western Pacific during the boreal summer. Along the equator, the near-surface moisture convergence located to the east of the deep convection region appears to result in the eastward propagation of the ISO, consistent with the frictional wave-CISK (conditional instability of the second kind) mechanism proposed in previous studies. The eastward propagation is characterized by sequentially downstream development of deep convection occuring mainly in certain regions such as 60°, 95°, 120°, and 145°E, and the date line. The northward propagation of deep convection can be attributed to the low-level moisture convergence located to the north. This convergence is a deep structure extending from the surface to the middle troposphere. Near-surface convergence appears only after the systems approach the landmass in the north. It is suggested that both the deep convergence in the lower free atmosphere and in the boundary layer contribute to the northward propagation. The lifting effect of the sloping terrain and the stronger surface frictional effect over the land in South Asia contribute to the near-surface convergence north of the deep convection. The northward propagation occurs sequentially from west to east in the following order: the Arabian Sea, the Bay of Bengal, and the South China Sea. A mechanism is proposed to explain this downstream occurrence of northward propagation. It was also found that surface sensible heating might contribute to the northward propagation, especially in the Arabian Sea, by making the lower troposphere less stable. Latent heat flux is released to the atmosphere in the region located to the southwest of the deep convection and does not directly contribute to the destablization in the lower troposphere ahead of the deep convection. In contrast, during the eastward propagation the surface heating does not seem to precondition the lower troposphere to the east of the deep convection. Frictional convergence is seemingly the dominant factor in the eastward propagation. © 2004 American Meteorological Society.