Appearance of a Quasi-Quadrennial Variation in Baiu Precipitation in Southern Kyushu, Japan, after the Beginning of This Century

Abstract

This study investigated a recent tendency of interannual precipitation variations during the Baiu season (June–July) in southern Kyushu, Japan. Long-term satellite precipitation observations revealed a significant amplification of the interannual variability of Baiu precipitation after the beginning of this century and the appearance of a quasi-quadrennial variation (QQV). Composite analyses with respect to the unstable regime of Baiu activity when the QQV prevailed suggested a possible link between the Indo-western Pacific Ocean Capacitor (IPOC) mode and the QQV. Regression analyses with an IPOC index showed the dominance of an anomalous anticyclone in the lower troposphere centered over the South China Sea and the Philippine Sea and enhanced poleward moisture transport along its western periphery. The interdecadal shift in remote IPOC influence seen around the year 2000 featured the westward (northward) extension of the low-level anomalous anticyclone toward the Bay of Bengal (southern Japan); consequently, the significant moisture flux convergence area covered southern Kyushu during the unstable Baiu regime, consistent with the QQV appearance during the same period. It is also inferred that the IPOC mode modulation may come from the increased impact of central Pacific El Niño/Southern Oscillation on the IPOC in recent decades.