QBO deepens MJO convection

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https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-023-39465-7

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https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-39465-7
 http://hdl.handle.net/11603/28831

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UMBC GESTAR II
UMBC Faculty Collection

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Author/Creator ORCID

https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4389-4393

Date

2023-07-10

Type of Work

journal articles
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Citation of Original Publication

Jin, D., Kim, D., Son, SW. et al. QBO deepens MJO convection. Nat Commun 14, 4088 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-39465-7

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This work was written as part of one of the author's official duties as an Employee of the United States Government and is therefore a work of the United States Government. In accordance with 17 U.S.C. 105, no copyright protection is available for such works under U.S. Law.
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Abstract

The underlying mechanism that couples the Quasi-Biennial Oscillation (QBO) and the Madden-Julian oscillation (MJO) has remained elusive, challenging our understanding of both phenomena. A popular hypothesis about the QBO-MJO connection is that the vertical extent of MJO convection is strongly modulated by the QBO. However, this hypothesis has not been verified observationally. Here we show that the cloud-top pressure and brightness temperature of deep convection and anvil clouds are systematically lower in the easterly QBO (EQBO) winters than in the westerly QBO (WQBO) winters, indicating that the vertical growth of deep convective systems within MJO envelopes is facilitated by the EQBO mean state. Moreover, the deeper clouds during EQBO winters are more effective at reducing longwave radiation escaping to space and thereby enhancing longwave cloud-radiative feedback within MJO envelopes. Our results provide robust observational evidence of the enhanced MJO activity during EQBO winters by mean state changes induced by the QBO.