Moisture transport and water vapour budget over the Sahara Desert

Li, Zhuo; Zhou, Liming

doi:10.1002/joc.7614

Cited by 4 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 45 publications

(90 reference statements)

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“…(2012) did not examine the mechanism driving the SST‐induced Saharan temperature response. The key role of SST forcing is also evidenced in studies highlighting the strong water vapor feedback (WV) over the Sahara Desert (Evan et al., 2015; Zhou et al., 2016; Zhuo & Zhou, 2022), as most of the increased moisture over the land originates from the ocean (Trenberth et al., 2007).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Oceanic Influence and Lapse Rate Changes Dominate the Recent Amplified Saharan Warming

Zhuo,

Rose

2024

Geophysical Research Letters

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The surface air temperature (SAT) over the Sahara Desert has increased at a much faster rate than average tropical land in recent decades. This study examines the relative roles of anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) forcing and sea surface temperature (SST) change in the observed Saharan temperature increase during boreal warm season from 1979 to 2020 using atmospheric general circulation model simulations. It is found that the SST forcing dominates the observed Saharan warming. Further analysis shows that the warming ocean forces the Saharan SAT increase by moving more energy to the Sahara Desert, while the water vapor feedback plays a secondary role. The reason for the stronger Saharan warming than the average tropical land given the same SST forcing is also explored. We found that the largest contributor to the warming contrast is the lapse‐rate feedback, which is attributable to the difference in the vertical warming profile.

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