Relationship between Hadley circulation and sea ice extent in the Bering Sea

The linkage between Hadley circulation (HC) and sea ice extent in the Bering Sea during March-April is investigated through an analysis of observed data in this research. It is found that HC is negatively correlated to the sea ice extent in the Bering Sea, namely, strong (weak) HC is corresponding to less (more) sea ice in the Bering Sea. The present study also addresses the large-scale atmospheric general circulation changes underlying the relationship between HC and sea ice in the Bering Sea. It follows that a positive phase of HC corresponds to westward located Aleutian low, anomalous southerlies over the eastern North Pacific and higher temperature in the Bering Sea, providing unfavorable atmospheric and thermal conditions for the sea ice forming, and thus sea ice extent in the Bering Sea is decreased, and vice versa. In addition, it is further identified that East Asian-North Pacific-North America teleconnection may play an important role in linking HC and changes of atmospheric circulations as well as sea ice in the Bering Sea.