The interdecadal variations of the summer monsoon rainfall over South China

This paper is to promote a further understanding of the interdecadal variations of the summer monsoon rainfall over South China (SCMR). With this focus, we will specifically aim at better understanding possible mechanism responsible for such an interdecadal variation relationship between the SCMR and El Niño/Southern Oscillation (ENSO). In many of the previous studies on precipitation, the datasets used are satellite observations or gridded reanalyzed data due to the lack of long-term reliable observations over the marginal seas of the Asian continent. Such an approach could lead to possible errors in the results. In this work, several representative stations with long-term rain-gauge observations are chosen to reduce such uncertainty. The study of the interdecadal variabilities of SCMR indicates that there is a strong linkage between SCMR and ENSO on the interdecadal variations. These results agree well with those from previous studies that the Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO) and ENSO are not independent of each other, the interannual and interdecadal variations of tropical Pacific Sea Surface temperatures (SSTs) could affect the interdecadal variations of the SCMR, and the incorporating information on the PDO/ ENSO could improve the long-term prediction of the SCMR. © Springer-Verlag 2006.