Impact of the Kuroshio Extension Oceanic Front on Autumn and Winter Surface Air Temperatures over North America

Mid-latitude air-sea interaction is an important topic that attracts a considerable amount of research interest. The Kuroshio Extension (KE) is one of the main western boundary currents and plays a critical role in the mid-latitude atmospheric circulation. This paper uses the NCEP/NCAR reanalysis and Hadley sea surface temperature datasets to investigate the influence of oceanic fronts in the KE region on surface air temperature in North America over the period 1949–2014. A significant correlation was found between the KE front intensity and the temperatures over North America in autumn and winter. A strong (weak) KE front anomaly in autumn is associated with an increasing (decreasing) surface temperature over western North America but a decreasing (increasing) surface temperature over eastern North America. In winter, central North America warms (cools) when the KE front is strong (weak). The response of the atmospheric circulation, including wind in the high and low troposphere, troughs, and ridges, to the strengthening (weakening) of the KE front is the main cause of these changes in surface temperature.