Influence of Interannual Variability of Antarctic Sea-Ice on Summer Rainfall in Eastern China

Based on the Antarctic sea-ice coverage reanalysis data from the Hadley Center and other observationaldata during the 30-year period from 1969 to 1998, it is shown that Antarctic sea-ice coverage exhibitsconsiderable interannual variability with a complex relation to El Nino and the South Oscillation (ENSO).Besides this, the ice maintains the seasonal persistence of the atmospheric circulation in high latitudesof the Southern Hemisphere. Thus it can be used as a predictor in short-term climate prediction. Bothcorrelation and time series analyses demonstrate that summer rainfall in eastern China is closely relatedto Antarctic sea-ice coverage. When it is extended during boreal spring through summer, there is morerainfall in the lower reaches of the Yellow River of North China, and in contrast, less rainfall is found in theZhujiang River basin of South China and Northeast China. A further analysis indicates that this rainfallpattern is related to the intensity of the East Asian summer monsoon caused by interannual variability ofAntarctic sea-ice coverage.