Responses of Arctic cyclones to biogeophysical feedbacks under future warming scenarios in a regional Earth system model

Bibliographic Data

ID15550231
AuthorsMirseid Akperov (0000-0001-5802-6850, A.M. Obukhov Institute of Atmospheric Physics), Wenxin Zhang (0000-0001-9477-563X, University of Copenhagen, corresponding author), Paul Miller (0000-0002-7934-8119), Paul A Miller (0000-0003-1105-2132, Lund University), И И Мохов (0000-0003-0033-8581, Lomonosov Moscow State University), В А Семенов (0000-0001-7632-7921, Institute of Geography), Heidrun Matthes (0000-0001-9913-7696, Alfred-Wegener-Institut Helmholtz-Zentrum für Polar- und Meeresforschung), Benjamin Smith (0000-0003-1215-4093, Lund University), Annette Rinke (0000-0002-6685-9219, Alfred-Wegener-Institut Helmholtz-Zentrum für Polar- und Meeresforschung)
Year2021
Volume16
Issue6
Pages064076-064076
Publication date2021-05-26
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueEnvironmental Research Letters (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1748-9326 • E-ISSN: 1748-9326
PublisherIOP Publishing (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1088/1748-9326/ac0566
OpenAlexW3163986423
LanguageEN
Citations received2
References cited46

Arctic cyclones, as a prevalent feature in the coupled dynamics of the Arctic climate system, have large impacts on the atmospheric transport of heat and moisture and deformation and drifting of sea ice. Previous studies based on historical and future simulations with climate models suggest that Arctic cyclogenesis is affected by the Arctic amplification of global warming, for instance, a growing land-sea thermal contrast. We thus hypothesize that biogeophysical feedbacks (BF) over the land, here mainly referring to the albedo-induced warming in spring and evaporative cooling in summer, may have the potential to significantly change cyclone activity in the Arctic. Based on a regional Earth system model (RCA-GUESS) which couples a dynamic vegetation model and a regional atmospheric model and an algorithm of cyclone detection and tracking, this study assesses for the first time the impacts of BF on the characteristics of Arctic cyclones under three IPCC Representative Concentration Pathways scenarios (i.e. RCP2.6, RCP4.5 and RCP8.5). Our analysis focuses on the spring- and summer time periods, since previous studies showed BF are the most pronounced in these seasons. We find that BF induced by changes in surface heat fluxes lead to changes in land-sea thermal contrast and atmospheric stability. This, in turn, noticeably changes the atmospheric baroclinicity and, thus, leads to a change of cyclone activity in the Arctic, in particular to the increase of cyclone frequency over the Arctic Ocean in spring. This study highlights the importance of accounting for BF in the prediction of Arctic cyclones and the role of circulation in the Arctic regional Earth system

Albedo (alchemy · Arctic · Arctic geoengineering · Arctic ice pack · Arctic sea ice decline · Atmospheric sciences · Baroclinity · Climate change · Climate model · Climatology · Cyclogenesis · Cyclone (programming language · Extratropical cyclone · Global warming · Sea ice · Sea ice thickness · Arctic and Antarctic ice dynamics · Climate change and permafrost · Climate variability and models · Environmental Science · Geology · Oceanography

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