PRINCIPAL MODES OF THE SOUTH PACIFIC SSTA IN JUNE, JULY AND AUGUST AND THEIR RELATIONS TO ENSO AND SAM

The relationships of variations of sea surface temperature anomalies (SSTA) in the South Pacific with ENSO and Southern Hemisphere Annular Mode (SAM) are examined in the present article by employing the NCEP-NCAR reanalysis from 1951 to 2006. Two principal modes of South Pacific SSTA are obtained using the EOF (Empirical Orthogonal Function) analysis for austral winter (June, July and August). Our results suggest that EOF1 is closely related with ENSO and EOF2 links to SAM. The EOF1 varies largely on an interannual and EOF2 on a decadal scale. The time series of coefficients of EOF1 is highly correlated simultaneously with Nino3 index. However, the time series of coefficients of EOF2 is significantly correlated with the March-April-May mean SAM index. Both the EOF1 and EOF2 are found in significant correlation to summer precipitation over China. With higher-than-normal SSTs in the eastern South Pacific and simultaneously lower SSTs in the western South Pacific in June-July-August, the summertime rainfall is found to be less than normal in northern China. As displayed in EOF2 of SSTA, in years with lower-than-normal SSTs in mid-latitude southern and equatorial eastern Pacific and higher-than-normal SSTs in the equatorial middle Pacific in March-April-May, the summer precipitation in August tends to be more than normal in regions south of Yangtze River.