Atmospheric pathway of marine heatwaves over the Northwestern Pacific

Abstract

This study analyzes the influence of the Pacific–Japan (PJ) atmospheric teleconnection pattern and its interaction with oceanic processes on sea surface warming over the Northwestern Pacific. The PJ pattern is a thermally driven Rossby wave that originates over the tropical western Pacific through deep convection and propagates toward high latitudes. It plays a significant role in sea surface warming by inducing anticyclonic circulation and the corresponding northwestward extension of the subtropical high over the Northwestern Pacific. This study revealed that the key processes responsible for sea surface warming were an increase in insolation and a decrease in the ocean-to-atmosphere latent heat flux under the anticyclonic conditions driven by the PJ. This finding provides valuable insights into the role of atmospheric processes, we refer to it as the “atmospheric pathway”, in the development of East Asian marine heatwaves (MHWs). A detailed understanding of this process will contribute to the prediction and mitigation of MHWs in East Asian countries.