Intensification of Westerly Wind Bursts Caused by the Coupling of the Madden‐Julian Oscillation to SST During El Niño Onset and Development

The Madden-Julian Oscillation (MJO) plays an important role in El Niño dynamics connection with westerly wind bursts (WWBs) that occur the equatorial Pacific; however, our understanding of relationship between these climate phenomena remains incomplete. Here, we use a Lagrangian Atmospheric Model (LAM) to examine response MJO and resulting WWBs sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies similar those observed during onset development Niño. We find when localized SST anomaly (≤1°C) is imposed western-central Pacific December April (mimicking onset), convective envelope shifts from southern hemisphere toward equator. When (≤1.5°C) central-eastern May November development), weakens northwestern Pacific, but strengthens central Pacific. In both experiments, ensuing changes enhance activity along equator, facilitating WWBs.