Regional difference of sea surface salinity variations in the western tropical pacific

Abstract

AbstractRegional difference of sea surface salinity (SSS) variations in the western tropical Pacific is investigated with Ocean Reanalysis System 5 datasets. Three robust zonal bands of SSS variations have been identified in the northwestern tropical Pacific (NWTP), the western equatorial tropical Pacific (WEqP), and the southwestern tropical Pacific (SWTP), respectively. SSS in the WEqP and the SWTP has a strong interannual variability that is related to ENSO. In the WEqP, SSS variations are mainly controlled by anomalous freshwater flux, while in the SWTP they are governed by both freshwater forcing and oceanic processes. In the NWTP, SSS variations present a low-frequency variability that is correlated with Interdecadal Pacific Oscillation (IPO), which is mostly dominated by the freshwater flux and strongly adjusted by the ocean advection and mixed layer changes. After removing interannual signals, the SSS in all three regions are highly related to IPO, indicating that IPO has a general influence on the western tropical Pacific.