An active role of extratropical sea surface temperature anomalies in determining anomalous turbulent heat flux

Abstract

Temporal and spatial structures of turbulent latent and sensible heat flux anomalies are examined in relation to dominant patterns of sea surface temperature anomalies (SSTA) observed over the North Pacific. Relative importance among observed anomalies in SST, surface air temperature, and wind speed in determining the anomalous turbulent heat fluxes is assessed through linearizing the observed flux anomalies. Over the central basin of the North Pacific, changes in the atmospheric variables, including air temperature and wind speed, are primarily responsible for the generation of local SST variations by changing turbulent heat flux, which supports a conventional view of extratropical air‐sea interaction. In the region where ocean dynamics is very important in forming SSTAs, in contrast, SSTAs that have been formed in early winter play the primary role in determining mid‐ and late‐winter turbulent heat flux anomalies, indicative of the SST forcing upon the overlying atmosphere. Specifically, both decadal scale SSTAs in the western Pacific subarctic frontal zone and El Niño related SSTAs south of Japan are found to be engaged actively in such forcing on the atmosphere. The atmospheric response to this forcing appears to include the anomalous storm track activity. The observed atmospheric anomalies, which may be, in part, forced by the preexisting SSTAs in those two regions, act to force SSTAs in other portions of the basin, leading to the time evolution of SSTAs as observed in the course of the winter season.