Analyses of 50-yr NCEP-NCAR reanalysis data reveal remarkably different interannual variability between the Indian summer monsoon (ISM) and western North Pacific summer monsoon (WNPSM) in their temporalspatial structures, relationships to El Niño, and teleconnections with midlatitude circulations. Thus, two circulation indices are necessary, which measure the variability of the ISM and WNPSM, respectively. A weak WNPSM features suppressed convection along 10Њ-20ЊN and enhanced rainfall along the mei-yu/baiu front. So the WNPSM index also provides a measure for the east Asian summer monsoon. An anomalous WNPSM exhibits a prominent meridional coupling among the Australian high, cross-equatorial flows, WNP monsoon trough, WNP subtropical high, east Asian subtropical front, and Okhotsk high. The WNP monsoon has leading spectral peaks at 50 and 16 months, whereas the Indian monsoon displays a primary peak around 30 months. The WNPSM is weak during the decay of an El Niño, whereas the ISM tends to abate when an El Niño develops. Since the late 1970s, the WNPSM has become more variable, but its relationship with El Niño remained steady; in contrast, the ISM has become less variable and its linkage with El Niño has dramatically declined. These contrasting features are in part attributed to the differing processes of monsoon-ocean interaction.Also found is a teleconnection between a suppressed WNPSM and deficient summer rainfall over the Great Plains of the United States. This boreal summer teleconnection is forced by the heat source fluctuation associated with the WNPSM and appears to be established through excitation of Rossby wave trains and perturbation of the jet stream that further excites downstream optimum unstable modes.

In this paper we present results of a numerical study using the NASA finite-volume GCM to elucidate a plausible mechanism for aerosol impact on the Asian summer monsoon involving interaction with physical processes over the Tibetan Plateau. .During the pre-monsoon season of March-April, dusts from the deserts of western China, Afghanistan/Pakistan, and the Middle East are transported into and stacked up against the northern and southern slopes of the Tibetan Plateau. The absorption of solar radiation by dust heats up the elevated surface air over the slopes. On the southern slopes, the atmospheric heating is reinforced by black carbon from local emission.The heated air rises via dry convection, creating a positive temperature anomaly in the mid-to-upper troposphere over the T ibetan Plateau relative to the region to the south. In May through early June in a manner akin to an "elevated heat pump", the rising hot air forced by the increasing heating in the upper troposphere, draws in warm and moist air over the Indian subcontinent, setting the stage for the onset of the South Asia summer monsoon. Our results suggest that increased dust loading coupled with black carbon emission from local sources in northern India during late spring may lead to an advance of the rainy periods and subsequent ly an intensification of the Indian summer monsoon.The enhanced rainfall over India is associated with the development of an aerosolinduced large -scale sea level pressure anomaly pattern, which causes the East Asia (Mei-yu) rain belt to shift northwestward, suppressing rainfall over East Asia and the adjacent oceanic regions .2

The climatology and the basic state of the summertime circulation and rainfall over South America are studied using assimilation products from the data assimilation system of Goddard Earth Observing System-1 (GEOS-1) and satellite-derived rainfall. Results indicate the existence of a regional summer monsoon circulation regime induced by strong diabatic heating over the subtropical South American highland centered at the Altiplano Plateau. Sensitivity of the results to the assimilation scheme is tested by comparing that with the National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) reanalysis and with satellite rainfall estimates. Results show general agreement between the model produced rainfall anomaly and the satellite estimates, as well as consistency between the basic circulation features in the GEOS-1 and the NCEP reanalyses. A case study of 1989-90 South American summer monsoon (SASM) reveals the following characteristics. 1) In late spring, the onset of SASM is signaled by an abrupt merging of the upper-tropospheric double westerly jets, one in the subtropics and the other in the subpolar region, into a single jet in the midlatitudes. This is followed by the establishment of a vortex to the southeast of Altiplano and occurrence of heavy precipitation over subtropical eastern Brazil. 2) During the mature phase of SASM, the heavy rainfall zone moves over the Altiplano Plateau and the southernmost Brazilian highland. The fully established SASM features are the following: (a) an enhancement of equatorial North Atlantic trade wind, which emanates from the Sahara high and crosses the equator over the South American continent; (b) a buildup of strong northwesterlies along the eastern side of the tropical Andes; and (c) development of the South Atlantic convergence zone in the southernmost position with strong convective activity. Meanwhile, the upper-tropospheric return flow emerges from an anticyclone formed over the Altiplano Plateau, crosses the equator, and sinks over northwestern Africa. 3) The withdrawal of SASM in late summer is signaled by the resplitting of the midlatitude westerly jet. At the same time, the low-level northwest monsoon flow diminishes, reducing the moisture supply and leading to the termination of heavy precipitation over the subtropical highland. Results also show that the above-mentioned characteristics of SASM are clearly linked to the tropospheric temperature changes over the central South American highland. Sensible versus latent heating over the highland are bound to play an important role in the evolution of SASM. To provide further support of presence of a monsoon climate over South America, SASM is compared and contrasted to the ''classic'' east Asian summer monsoon (EASM). Many similar features, including evolution characteristics between the two systems, have been identified. Contrasting aspects of the SASM from the EASM are also discussed. It is pointed out that a number of monsoonal characteristics of the climate of South America, such as the seasonal reversal of the low-leve...

In this paper, the application of the wavelet transform (WT) to climate time series analyses is introduced. A tutorial description of the basic concept of WT, compared with similar concepts used in music, is also provided. Using an analogy between WT representation of a time series and a music score, the authors illustrate the importance of local versus global information in the time-frequency localization of climate signals. Examples of WT applied to climate data analysis are demonstrated using analytic signals as well as real climate time series. Results of WT applied to two climate time series-that is, a proxy paleoclimate time series with a 2.5-Myr deep-sea sediment record of <5 18 0and a 140-yr monthly record of Northern Hemisphere surface temperature-are presented. The former shows the presence of a 40-kyr and a 100-kyr oscillation and an abrupt transition in the oscillation regime at 0.7 Myr before the present, consistent with previous studies. The latter possesses a myriad of oscillatory modes from interannual (2-5 yr), interdecadal (10-12 yr, 20-25 yr, and 40-60 yr), and century (-180 yr) scales at different periods of the data record. In spite of the large difference in timescales, common features in time-frequency characteristics of these two time series have been identified. These features suggest that the variations of the earth's climate are consistent with those exhibited by a nonlinear dynamical system under external forcings.

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