Super typhoons (STYs), intense tropical cyclones of the western North Pacific, rank among the most destructive natural hazards globally. The violent winds of these storms induce deep mixing of the upper ocean, resulting in strong sea surface cooling and making STYs highly sensitive to ocean density stratification. Although a few studies examined the potential impacts of changes in ocean thermal structure on future tropical cyclones, they did not take into account changes in near-surface salinity. Here, using a combination of observations and coupled climate model simulations, we show that freshening of the upper ocean, caused by greater rainfall in places where typhoons form, tends to intensify STYs by reducing their ability to cool the upper ocean. We further demonstrate that the strengthening effect of this freshening over the period 1961-2008 is similar to 53% stronger than the suppressive effect of temperature, whereas under twenty-first century projections, the positive effect of salinity is about half of the negative effect of ocean temperature changes.

利用Argo浮标和多源卫星遥感获取的温度、盐度剖面数据和海表面温度(sea surface temperature, SST)、海表面风场等数据, 结合美国国家环境预报中心(National Centers for Environmental Prediction Ⅱ, NCEP Ⅱ)再分析资料, 研究了南海东北部混合层深度(mixed layer depth, MLD)对2014年9月中下旬相继过境的热带气旋“海鸥”(台风)和“凤凰”(热带风暴)的响应。结果表明, 受“海鸥”和“凤凰”过境时的“风泵”作用, 海-气界面向上进入大气的最大净热通量由170W·m^-2升高至400W·m^-2, 引起SST最大降温达到3.02℃。在时间尺度上, 后续的“凤凰”使“海鸥”引发的“冷迹”持续超过10天, 出现SST降温的“叠加效应”。“海鸥”过境1天后, 其“冷迹”MLD从23m加深至50m; 而“凤凰”过境8h后, 风应力驱动的离岸埃克曼输送引发了沿岸上升流, 导致台湾西南部近岸海域MLD从31m加深至91m。热带气旋过境后, 在混合层内, 剖面盐度迟于剖面温度达到充分均匀, 且盐度恢复快于温度, 揭示混合层响应的“时滞效应”。在空间分布上, MLD与SST在两个热带气旋路径右侧(沿其移动方向)的变化幅度均大于左侧, 而“冷迹”内MLD的不均匀加深, 甚至变浅, 可能揭示了下层冷水因埃克曼抽吸在上升流与下降流之间转换而被抬升到不同高度。

Utilizing the vertical profiles of temperature and salinity data obtained by Argo floats and multi-source satellite remote sensing data, including sea surface temperature (SST) and sea surface wind fields, combined with the National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) Ⅱ reanalysis data, we analyzed changes of mixed layer depth (MLD) in the northeastern South China Sea (SCS) in responses to tropical cyclones Kalmaegi (typhoon) and Fung-Wong (tropical storm), which passed the SCS in succession in mid and late September 2014. The results indicate that the maximum net heat flux (upward into the air) increased from 170 to 400 W·m^-2 at the air-sea interface, caused the maximum SST cooling of 3℃ by the “wind pump” effect after Kalmaegi and Fung-Wong passed through. The “cold wake” induced by Kalmaegi lasted for more than 10 days thanks to the following tropical storm Fung-Wong, indicating the effect of superposition in SST cooling. MLD was deepened from 23 to 50 m in the “cold wake” one day after Kalmaegi passed by. MLD was deepened from 31 to 91 m eight hours after Fung-Wong passed by, due to the coastal upwelling induced by offshore Ekman transport driven by wind stress at the southwestern of Taiwan Island. After the tropical cyclones passed by, salinity profile in the mixed layer showed uniformity later than temperature profile, and recovered earlier than temperature profile, revealing the time lag in mixed layer responses. For the spatial variation response to the two tropical cyclones, the changes of SST and MLD were larger on the right-hand side of the tropical cyclones (along the moving directions of tropical cyclones) than on the left-hand side. The uneven deepening even shallowing in MLD in the cold wake may reveal that different depths of deep cold water uplifted by the vertical current switch between upwelling and downwelling in the Ekman layer due to the change of Ekman pumping velocity.

Tropical cyclones (TCs) are natural disasters for coastal regions. TCs with maximum wind speeds higher than 32.7 m/s in the north-western Pacific are referred to as typhoons. Typhoons Sarika and Haima successively passed our moored observation array in the northern South China Sea in 2016. Based on the satellite data, the winds (clouds and rainfall) biased to the right (left) sides of the typhoon tracks. Sarika and Haima cooled the sea surface ~4 and ~2 °C and increased the salinity ~1.2 and ~0.6 psu, respectively. The maximum sea surface cooling occurred nearly one day after the two typhoons. Station 2 (S2) was on left side of Sarika’s track and right side of Haima’s track, which is studied because its data was complete. Strong near-inertial currents from the ocean surface toward the bottom were generated at S2, with a maximum mixed-layer speed of ~80 cm/s. The current spectrum also shows weak signal at twice the inertial frequency (2f). Sarika deepened the mixed layer, cooled the sea surface, but warmed the subsurface by ~1 °C. Haima subsequently pushed the subsurface warming anomaly into deeper ocean, causing a temperature increase of ~1.8 °C therein. Sarika and Haima successively increased the heat content anomaly upper than 160 m at S2 to ~50 and ~100 m°C, respectively. Model simulation of the two typhoons shows that mixing and horizontal advection caused surface ocean cooling, mixing and downwelling caused subsurface warming, while downwelling warmed the deeper ocean. It indicates that Sarika and Haima sequentially modulated warm water into deeper ocean and influenced internal ocean heat budget. Upper ocean salinity response was similar to temperature, except that rainfall refreshed sea surface and caused a successive salinity decrease of ~0.03 and ~0.1 psu during the two typhoons, changing the positive subsurface salinity anomaly to negative

基于1996—2012年西北太平洋Argo剖面浮标盐度观测资料,利用合成分析方法研究了海表面盐度对台风的响应特征。结果表明海表面盐度对台风的响应具有明显的非对称性:台风过后其路径右侧的海表面盐度显著上升;左侧的则在R₅₀内上升,R₅₀外区域普遍下降。进一步分析显示台风强度、移动速度和海洋混合层深度对海表面盐度响应特征均有较大影响。强度大或移动缓慢的台风能造成大范围的海表面盐度上升;强度小或移动快速的台风只在路径右侧造成海表面盐度上升,左侧的则普遍下降。夏季(6-9月)台风过后,海表面盐度在混合层浅的区域普遍大幅上升,在混合层深的区域则在台风路径左右两侧2R₅₀范围内小幅上升,在远离台风路径左侧区域下降。

Using multiple-satellite datasets, in situ observations, and numerical simulations, the influence of typhoon-induced precipitation on the oceanic response to Typhoon Kalmaegi has been discussed. It is found that the convective system and precipitation distribution of Kalmaegi was asymmetric, which leaded to the asymmetric rainfall at observational stations. The sea surface salinity (SSS) of the buoy to the right of storm track increased with a 0.176 practical salinity units (psu) maximal positive anomaly, while the two buoys on the left side underwent several desalination processes, with a maximum decreases of 0.145 psu and 0.278 psu. Numerical simulations with and without precipitation forcing were also performed. Model results showed that typhoon-induced precipitation can weaken sea surface cooling by approximately 0.03–0.40 °C and suppress the SSS increase by approximately 0.074–0.152 psu. The effect of precipitation can be divided into the direct effect and indirect effect. On one hand, freshwater from precipitation directly dilutes the salinity. On the other hand, when salinity decreases, the ocean stratification will be enhanced, the vertical mixing will be restrained, and then the temperature and salinity can be further affected by weakened vertical mixing.

Strong phytoplankton blooming in tropical-cyclone (TC) wakes over the oligotrophic oceans potentially contributes to long-term changes in global biogeochemical cycles. Yet blooming has traditionally been discussed using anecdotal events and its biophysical mechanics remain poorly understood. Here we identify dominant blooming patterns using 16 years of ocean-color data in the wakes of 141 typhoons in western North Pacific. We observe right-side asymmetric blooming shortly after the storms, attributed previously to sub-mesoscale re-stratification, but thereafter a left-side asymmetry which coincides with the left-side preference in rainfall due to the large-scale wind shear. Biophysical model experiments and observations demonstrate that heavier rainfall freshens the near-surface water, leading to stronger stratification, decreased turbulence and enhanced blooming. Our results suggest that rainfall plays a previously unrecognized, critical role in TC-induced blooming, with potentially important implications for global biogeochemical cycles especially in view of the recent and projected increases in TC-intensity that harbingers stronger mixing and heavier rain under the storm.

The China Meteorological Administration (CMA)’s tropical cyclone (TC) database includes not only the best-track dataset but also TC-induced wind and precipitation data. This article summarizes the characteristics and key technical details of the CMA TC database. In addition to the best-track data, other phenomena that occurred with the TCs are also recorded in the dataset, such as the subcenters, extratropical transitions, outer-range severe winds associated with TCs over the South China Sea, and coastal severe winds associated with TCs landfalling in China. These data provide additional information for researchers. The TC-induced wind and precipitation data, which map the distribution of severe wind and rainfall, are also helpful for investigating the impacts of TCs. The study also considers the changing reliability of the various data sources used since the database was created and the potential causes of temporal and spatial inhomogeneities within the datasets. Because of the greater number of observations available for analysis, the CMA TC database is likely to be more accurate and complete over the offshore and land areas of China than over the open ocean. Temporal inhomogeneities were induced primarily by changes to the nature and quality of the input data, such as the development of a weather observation network in China and the use of satellite image analysis to replace the original aircraft reconnaissance data. Furthermore, technical and factitious changes, such as to the wind–pressure relationship and the satellite-derived current intensity (CI) number–intensity conversion, also led to inhomogeneities within the datasets.

This paper describes the access to, and the content, characteristics, and potential applications of the tropical cyclone (TC) database that is maintained and actively developed by the China Meteorological Administration, with the aim of facilitating its use in scientific research and operational services. This database records data relating to all TCs that have passed through the western North Pacific (WNP) and South China Sea (SCS) since 1949. TC data collection has expanded over recent decades via continuous TC monitoring using remote sensing and specialized field detection techniques, allowing collation of a multi-source TC database for the WNP and SCS that covers a long period, with wide coverage and many observational elements. This database now comprises a wide variety of information related to TCs, such as historical or real-time locations (i.e., best track and landfall), intensity, dynamic and thermal structures, wind strengths, precipitation amounts, and frequency. This database will support ongoing research into the processes and patterns associated with TC climatic activity and TC forecasting.

We introduce a novel method to accurately evaluate the satellite-observed sea surface temperature (SST) cooling induced by typhoons with complex tracks, which is widely used but only roughly calculated in previous studies. This method first records the typhoon forcing period and the SST response grid by grid, then evaluates the SST cooling in each grid by choosing the maximum decrease in SST within this time period. This grid-based flexible forcing date method can accurately evaluate typhoon-induced SST cooling and its corresponding date in each grid, as indicated by applying the method to the irregular track of Typhoon Lupit (2009) and three sequential typhoons in 2016 (Malakas, Megi, and Chaba). The method was used to accurately calculate the impact of Typhoon Megi by removing the influence of the other two typhoons. The SST cooling events induced by all typhoons in the northwest Pacific from 2004 to 2018 were extracted well using this method. Our findings provide new insights for accurately calculating the response of the ocean using multi-satellite remote sensing and simulation data, including the sea surface salinity, sea surface height, mixed layer depth, and the heat content of the upper levels of the ocean.

Using dropsondes from 27 aircraft flights, in situ observations, and satellite data acquired during Tropical Cyclone Earl (category 4 hurricane), bulk air–sea fluxes of enthalpy and momentum are investigated in relation to intensity change and underlying upper-ocean thermal structure. During Earl’s rapid intensification (RI) period, ocean heat content (OHC) variability relative to the 26°C isotherm exceeded 90 kJ cm−2, and sea surface cooling was less than 0.5°C. Enthalpy fluxes of ~1.1 kW m−2 were estimated for Earl’s peak intensity. Daily sea surface heat losses of,, and kJ cm−2 were estimated for RI, mature, and weakening stages, respectively. A ratio of the exchange coefficients of enthalpy (CK) and momentum (CD) between 0.54 and 0.7 produced reliable estimates for the fluxes relative to OHC changes, even during RI; a ratio overestimated the fluxes.

1409号台风威马逊是自1973年以来登陆华南地区的最强台风,其在登陆前,临岸急剧增强。每年初夏,尽管南海的海洋环境有利于台风的增长,但是由于西太平洋副热带高压(以下简称副高)的引导作用,大部分台风路径会偏离南海。本文分析结果表明,在2014年初夏,副高的位置相对过去几十年的平均位置更偏向西南方,因此,台风威马逊在副高的引导下穿过菲律宾进入南海海域。南海的高温海水为其强度陡增提供了有利条件,威马逊在短短26 h内急剧增长为超强台风。前人研究结果显示,近些年来副高的位置明显向西延伸,如果这种西向延伸的趋势一直保持或者继续,那么在初夏可能会有更多的热带风暴进入南海并且得以加强,华南地区或将面临更多灾难性台风的袭击。

Typhoon Rammasun was the strongest typhoon that hit the South China in the past 41 years since 1973. It increased rapidly over the South China Sea (SCS) before the landfall. In early summer, the SCS is warm enough to support the increase of a typhoon in every year. However, the Western Pacific Subtropical High (WPSH) which steers the trajectories of tropical storms in the western Pacific deviates most tropical storms from the SCS. But, recently, the WPSH experiences a westward extension. Analysis shows that WPSH in early summer of 2014 took a more southward and more westward position than it did in the past several decades. As a result, Typhoon Rammasun was guided into the SCS through Philippine, which was an uncommon tropical storm track in July. In the SCS, Typhoon Rammasun was nourished by the warm ocean and became a super typhoon within only 26 hours. As the implication of this study, if the westward extension of WPSH remains and continues, it is reasonable to expect that more tropical storms enter the warm SCS and get intensified in early summer. Consequently, the South China is likely to be more vulnerable to devastating typhoons.