The Transition to Double‐Celled Circulations in Mock‐Walker Simulations
Name
Geophysical Research Letters - 2024 - Lutsko - The Transition to Double‐Celled Circulations in Mock‐Walker Simulations.pdf
Description
Published version
Size
1.72 MB
Format
Adobe PDF
Checksum (MD5)
290e86d43605226815d096395bc1ef67
Author(s)
Lutsko, Nicholas J
Cronin, Timothy W
Date Issued
July 18, 2024
Journal
Geophysical Research Letters
Publisher
American Geophysical Union
Citation
Lutsko, Nicholas J and Cronin, Timothy W. 2024. "The Transition to Double‐Celled Circulations in Mock‐Walker Simulations." Geophysical Research Letters, 51 (14).
Version
Final published version
Abstract
Mock‐Walker simulations have the potential to play a key role in a tropical model hierarchy, bridging small‐scale Radiative‐Convective Equilibrium simulations and global models of tropical circulations. We demonstrate that mock‐Walker simulations transition from single‐ to double‐celled overturning circulations as mean Sea Surface Temperature (SST) is increased, with the transition occurring near 300 K. The transition is robust to domain geometry and microphysical scheme, and is favored by larger SST gradients. The transition is associated with the development of a mid‐tropospheric minimum in the radiative‐subsidence velocity over the cold pool of the simulations, and is likely reinforced by zonal moisture and temperature fluxes between the warm and cold pools. Several methods of suppressing the transition are investigated, but all set‐ups produce a double‐cell at sufficiently warm mean SSTs. The striking dynamical transition of mock‐Walker simulations dominates their response to warming, though its relevance for observed tropical climate change is unclear.
MIT Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences
Terms of Use
Creative Commons Attribution
Persistent DSpace Link
DOI of Published Version
10.1029/2024gl108945
