Ph.D., Meteorology, University of Hawaii Honolulu, Hawaii, 2005

"Ocean-atmosphere interaction in the seasonal to decadal variations of tropical Atlantic climate"


M.S., Ocean-Atmosphere Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan, 2000

"Ocean-atmosphere and tropical-extratropical interactions in the pan-Atlantic decadal oscillations"


B.S., Geophysics, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan, 1998

"Review of theoretical and observational studies on teleconnections associated with El Nino-Southern Oscillation"

Education

Contact

Mailing Address P.O. Box 3000, Boulder, CO 80307-3000

Street Address 1850 Table Mesa Drive, Boulder, CO 80305

Phone (303) 497-1770; Fax (303) 497-1333

E-mail yukoo (at) ucar.edu

I am a visiting scientist working with Dr. Clara Deser

in the Climate Analysis Section, within the Climate and Global Dynamics Division at NCAR.


My research interests include large-scale ocean-atmosphere interactions, climate variability on seasonal to interdecadal time scales, climate change, paleoclimate and thermohaline circulation. (CV)

  1. BulletGrodsky, S. A., J. A. Carton, S. Nigam, and Y. Okumura, 2011: Tropical Atlantic biases in CCSM4. J. Climate, submitted.

  2. BulletDeser, C., A. S. Phillips, R. A. Tomas, Y. Okumura, M. A. Alexander, A. Capotondi, J. D. Scott, Y.-O. Kwon, and M. Ohba, 2011: ENSO and Pacific decadal variability in a 1300-year control integration of Community Climate System Model Version 4. J. Climate, submitted.

  3. BulletTokinaga, H., S.-P. Xie, A. Timmermann, S. McGregor, T. Ogata, H. Kubota, and Y. M. Okumura, 2011: Regional patterns of tropical Indo-Pacific climate change: Evidence of the Walker circulation weakening. J. Climate, submitted.

  4. BulletSchneider, D. P., Y. Okumura, and C. Deser, 2011: Observed Antarctic interannual climate variability and tropical linkages, J. Climate, submitted.

  5. BulletChowdary, J. S., S.-P. Xie, H. Tokinaga, Y. M. Okumura, H. Kubota, N. C. Johnson, and X.-T. Zheng, 2011: Inter-decadal variations in ENSO teleconnection to the Indo-western Pacific for 1870-2007. J. Climate, submitted.

  6. BulletOkumura, Y. M., M. Ohba, C. Deser, and H. Ueda 2011: A proposed mechanism for asymmetric duration of El Nino and La Nina. J. Climate, in press.

  7. BulletSchneider, D. P., C. Deser, and Y. Okumura, 2011: An assessment and interpretation of the observed warming of West Antarctica in the austral spring. Climate Dynamics, DOI: 10.1007/s00382-010-0985-x.

  8. BulletOkumura, Y. M., and C. Deser, 2010: Asymmetry in the duration of El Nino and La Nina. J. Climate, 23, 5826-5843.

  9. BulletHodson, D. L. R., R. T. Sutton, C. Cassou , N. Keenlyside, Y. Okumura, and T. Zhou, 2010: Climate impacts of recent multidecadal changes in Atlantic Ocean sea surface temperature: A multimodel comparison. Climate Dynamics, 34, 1041-1058, doi:10.1007/s00382-009-0571-2.

  10. BulletTimmermann, A., L. Menviel, Y. Okumura, A. Schilla, U. Merkel, O. Timm, A. Hu, B. Otto-Bliesner, and M. Schulz, 2009: Towards a quantitative understanding of millennial-scale Antarctic warming events. Quaternary Science Reviews, in press, doi: 10.1016/j.quascirev.2009.06.021.

  11. BulletZhou, T., R. Yu, J. Zhang, H. Drange, C. Cassou, C. Deser, D. L. R. Hodson, E. SanchezGomez, J. Li, N. Keenlyside, X. Xin, and Y. Okumura, 2009: Why the western Pacific subtropical high has extended westward since the late 1970s. J. Climate, 22, 2199-2215.

  12. BulletOkumura, Y. M., C. Deser, A. Hu, A. Timmermann, and S.-P. Xie, 2009: North Pacific climate response to freshwater forcing in the subarctic North Atlantic: Oceanic and atmospheric pathways. J. Climate, 22, 1424-1445.

  13. BulletSanchezGomez E., C. Cassou, D. L. R. Hodson, N. Keenlyside, Y. Okumura, and T. Zhou 2008: North Atlantic weather regimes response to Indian-western Pacific Ocean warming: A multi-model study. Geophys. Res. Lett., 35, L15706, doi:10.1029/2008GL034345.

  14. BulletXie, S.-P., Y. Okumura, T. Miyama, and A. Timmermann, 2008: Influences of Atlantic climate change on the tropical Pacific via the Central American Isthmus. J. Climate, 21, 3914–3928.

  15. BulletTimmermann, A., Y. Okumura, S.-I. An, A. Clement, B. Dong, E. Guilyardi, A. Hu, J. H. Jungclaus, M. Renold, T. F. Stocker, R. J. Stouffer, R. Sutton, S.-P. Xie, and J. Yin, 2007: The influence of a weakening of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation on ENSO. J. Climate, 20, 4899-4919.

  16. BulletOkumura, Y., and S.-P. Xie, 2006: Some overlooked features of tropical Atlantic climate leading to a new Nino-like phenomenon. J. Climate, 19, 5859-5874.

  17. BulletOkumura, Y., and S.-P. Xie, 2004: Interaction of the Atlantic equatorial cold tongue and the African monsoon. J. Climate, 17, 3589-3602.

  18. BulletOkumura, Y., S.-P. Xie, A. Numaguti, and Y. Tanimoto, 2001: Tropical Atlantic air-sea interaction and its influence on the NAO. Geophys. Res. Lett., 28, 1507-1510.

Publications

Scientific Work Experience

Visiting Scientist, National Center for Atmospheric Research

Boulder, Colorado, September 2009-present


NOAA Climate and Global Change Postdoctoral Fellow, National Center for Atmospheric Research

Boulder, Colorado, September 2006-September 2009


Postdoctoral Fellow, International Pacific Research Center, University of Hawaii

Honolulu, Hawaii, January 2006-July 2006


Research Assistant, Department of Meteorology, University of Hawaii

Honolulu, Hawaii, January 2000-December 2005

Funded Project

My Family (Boulder, October 2009)