Soil Moisture Influence on Seasonality and Large-Scale Circulation in Simulations of the West African Monsoon
Advanced Search
Select up to three search categories and corresponding keywords using the fields to the right. Refer to the Help section for more detailed instructions.

Search our Collections & Repository

For very narrow results

When looking for a specific result

Best used for discovery & interchangable words

Recommended to be used in conjunction with other fields

Dates

to

Document Data
Library
People
Clear All
Clear All

For additional assistance using the Custom Query please check out our Help Page

The NOAA IR serves as an archival repository of NOAA-published products including scientific findings, journal articles, guidelines, recommendations, or other information authored or co-authored by NOAA or funded partners. As a repository, the NOAA IR retains documents in their original published format to ensure public access to scientific information.
i

Soil Moisture Influence on Seasonality and Large-Scale Circulation in Simulations of the West African Monsoon

Filetype[PDF-8.98 MB]


Select the Download button to view the document
This document is over 5mb in size and cannot be previewed
Details You May Also Like

Details:

  • Journal Title:
    Journal of Climate
  • Personal Author:
  • NOAA Program & Office:
  • Description:
    Prior studies have highlighted West Africa as a regional hotspot of land–atmosphere coupling. This study focuses on the large-scale influence of soil moisture variability on the mean circulation and precipitation in the West African monsoon. A suite of six models from the Global Land–Atmosphere Coupling Experiment (GLACE)-CMIP5 is analyzed. In this experiment, model integrations were performed with soil moisture prescribed to a specified climatological seasonal cycle throughout the simulation, which severs the two-way coupling between soil moisture and the atmosphere. Comparison with the control (interactive soil moisture) simulations indicates that mean June–September monsoon precipitation is enhanced when soil moisture is prescribed. However, contrasting behavior is evident over the seasonal cycle of the monsoon, with core monsoon precipitation enhanced with prescribed soil moisture but early-season precipitation reduced, at least in some models. These impacts stem from the enhancement of evapotranspiration at the dry poleward edge of the monsoon throughout the monsoon season, when soil moisture interactivity is suppressed. The early-season decrease in rainfall with prescribed soil moisture is associated with a delayed poleward advancement of the monsoon, which reflects the relative cooling of the continent from enhanced evapotranspiration, and thus a reduced land–ocean thermal contrast, prior to monsoon onset. On the other hand, during the core/late monsoon season, surface evaporative cooling modifies meridional temperature gradients and, through these gradients, alters the large-scale circulation: the midlevel African easterly jet is displaced poleward while the low-level westerlies are enhanced; this enhances precipitation. These results highlight the remote impacts of soil moisture variability on atmospheric circulation and precipitation in West Africa.
  • Keywords:
  • Source:
    Journal of Climate, 30(7), 2295-2317
  • DOI:
  • ISSN:
    0894-8755;1520-0442;
  • Format:
    PDF
  • Publisher:
    American Meteorological Society
  • Document Type:
    Journal Article
  • Rights Information:
    Other
  • Compliance:
    Library
  • Main Document Checksum:
  • Download URL:
  • File Type:

Supporting Files

  • No Additional Files
More +

You May Also Like

Checkout today's featured content at repository.library.noaa.gov

Version 3.27.1