Alternation of the Atmospheric Teleconnections Associated with the Northeast China Spring Rainfall during a Recent 60-Year Period

Northeast China (NEC) is China’s national grain production base, and the local precipitation is vital for agriculture during the springtime. Therefore, understanding the dynamic origins of the NEC spring rainfall (NECSR) variability is of socioeconomic importance. This study reveals an interdecadal change in the atmospheric teleconnections associated with the NECSR during a recent 60-year period (1961–2020). Before the mid-1980s, NECSR had been related to a Rossby wave train that is coupled with extratropical North Atlantic sea surface temperature (SST), whereas, since the mid-1980s, NECSR has been linked to a quite different Rossby wave train that is coupled with tropical North Atlantic SST. Both Rossby wave trains could lead to enhanced NECSR through anomalous cyclones over East Asia. The weakening of the westerly jet over North America is found to be mainly responsible for the alternation of the atmospheric teleconnections associated with NECSR during two epochs.