Different mechanisms for enhanced ocean response and feedback during sequential super typhoons

Abstract

Relative to a single typhoon, the ocean response and feedback mechanisms during sequential super typhoon process have yet to be fully understood. The upper ocean responses to super typhoons Trami and Kong-Rey that occurred sequentially in autumn 2018 over the northwestern Pacific (NWP) Ocean were investigated using multi satellite and Argo float data. As a slow-moving typhoon, the location of maximum sea surface temperature (SST) cooling induced by Trami was determined by the typhoon's translation speed and the preexisting cyclonic eddy (CE). The most significant SST cooling was observed near the abrupt turning point, where Trami nearly stalled over the ocean, rather than in the CE region, although the CE could enhance the SST cooling. For the subsequent, fast-moving typhoon Kong-Rey, the most significant SST cooling was observed in the CE region. Two different mechanisms (i.e., slow translation and cyclonic eddy) for the enhancement of SST cooling, salinity and chlorophyll-a were also compared. For salinity and chlorophyll-a concentration, slow translation speed plays a more important role than the preexisting cold eddy. Additionally, both typhoons experienced rapid weakening, suggesting that typhoon-induced negative feedback affects not only the intensification of the typhoon itself but also the subsequent typhoon. An analysis of data from Argo floats demonstrated that weak mixing and upwelling contributed to a three-layer structure in the upper ocean temperature on the left side of the typhoon track; strong upwelling played a more important role in the cooling of the whole upper ocean near the typhoon track center; and strong vertical mixing was the dominant factor for the two-layer temperature structure on the right side.