On the pattern of CO2 radiative forcing and poleward energy transport

A set of general circulation model experiments are conducted to analyze how the poleward energy transport (PET) is related to the spatial pattern of CO2 radiative forcing. The effects of forcing pattern are affirmed by comparing the conventional doubling CO2 experiment, in which the forcing pattern is inhomogeneous, to a set of forcing homogenization experiments, in which the TOA, surface, or atmospheric forcing distribution is homogenized respectively. In addition, we separate and compare the effects of CO2 forcing to various feedbacks on atmospheric and oceanic PETs, by using a set of radiative kernels that we have developed for both top-of-atmosphere (TOA) and surface radiation fluxes. The results here show that both the enhancement of atmospheric PET and weakening of oceanic PET during global warming are directly driven by the meridional gradients of the CO2 forcing. Interestingly, the overall feedback effect is to reinforce the forcing effect, mainly through the cloud feedback in the case of atmospheric PET and the albedo feedback in the case of the oceanic PET. Contrary to previous studies, we find that the water vapor feedback only has a weak effect on atmospheric PET. The Arctic warming amplification, which strongly affects atmospheric PET, is sensitive to the CO2 forcing pattern.

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