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Role of atmospheric resonance and land-atmosphere feedbacks as a precursor to the June 2021 Pacific Northwest Heat Dome event

  • Xueke Li*
  • , Michael E. Mann*
  • , Michael F. Wehner
  • , Stefan Rahmstorf
  • , Stefan Petri
  • , Shannon Christiansen
  • , Judit Carrillo
  • *Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Journal Publications and ReviewsRGC 21 - Publication in refereed journalpeer-review

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Abstract

We demonstrate an indirect, rather than direct, role of quasi-resonant amplification of planetary waves in a summer weather extreme. We find that there was an interplay between a persistent, amplified large-scale atmospheric circulation state and soil moisture feedbacks as a precursor for the June 2021 Pacific Northwest "Heat Dome"event. An extended resonant planetary wave configuration prior to the event created an antecedent soil moisture deficit that amplified lower atmospheric warming through strong nonlinear soil moisture feedbacks, favoring this unprecedented heat event. © 2024 the Author(s).
Original languageEnglish
Article numbere2315330121
JournalProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
Volume121
Issue number4
Online published16 Jan 2024
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 23 Jan 2024
Externally publishedYes

Funding

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS. This work was supported (X.L., M.E.M., S.C., and J.C.) by funding from the School of Arts and Sciences of the University of Pennsylvania. M.F.W. was supported by the Director, Office of Science, Office of Biological and Environmental Research of the U.S. Department of Energy under Contract No. DE340AC02-05CH11231 under the Regional and Global Model Analysis program.

Research Keywords

  • atmospheric dynamics
  • climate change
  • heatwave
  • planetary waves
  • soil moisture

Publisher's Copyright Statement

  • This full text is made available under CC-BY 4.0. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

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