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Record-Breaking Precipitation in Indonesia's Capital Jakarta in January 2020 Linked to the Northerly Surge, Equatorial Waves, and MJO
  • +9
  • Sandro W. Lubis,
  • Samson Hagos,
  • Eddy Hermawan,
  • Muhamad Reyhan Respati,
  • Ainur Ridho,
  • Fadhlil R. Muhammad,
  • Jaka A. I. Paski,
  • Dian Nur Ratri,
  • Sonny Setiawan,
  • Donaldi S. Permana,
  • Risyanto Risyanto,
  • Siswanto Siswanto
Sandro W. Lubis
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (DOE), Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (DOE)

Corresponding Author:[email protected]

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Samson Hagos
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (DOE), Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (DOE)
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Eddy Hermawan
National Research and Innovation Agency, National Research and Innovation Agency
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Muhamad Reyhan Respati
School of Earth, Atmosphere and Environment, Monash University, School of Earth, Atmosphere and Environment, Monash University
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Ainur Ridho
Search Engine for Risk and Actions on Resilience, Search Engine for Risk and Actions on Resilience
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Fadhlil R. Muhammad
School of Earth Sciences, University of Melbourne, School of Earth Sciences, University of Melbourne
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Jaka A. I. Paski
Indonesia Agency for Meteorology Climatology and Geophysics, Indonesia Agency for Meteorology Climatology and Geophysics
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Dian Nur Ratri
Indonesia Agency for Meteorology Climatology and Geophysics, Indonesia Agency for Meteorology Climatology and Geophysics
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Sonny Setiawan
Department of Geophysics and Meteorology, IPB University, Department of Geophysics and Meteorology, IPB University
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Donaldi S. Permana
Indonesian Agency for Meteorology Climatology and Geophysics, Indonesian Agency for Meteorology Climatology and Geophysics
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Risyanto Risyanto
National Research and Innovation Agency
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Siswanto Siswanto
Indonesia Meteorological, Climatological, and Geophysical Agency
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Abstract

A rare record-breaking extreme rainfall event, the highest amount recorded since 1866, hit Indonesia’s capital, Jakarta, in early January 2020. The torrential rainfall was mainly caused by an active cross-equatorial northerly surge (CENS) that occurred concurrently with equatorial waves and Madden-Julian oscillation (MJO). A strong and persistent low-level northerly wind and moisture transport induced by CENS created favorable atmospheric conditions for the formation of deep convection and heavy rainfall over Jakarta. The concurrent occurrences of convectively active phases of equatorial waves (mainly Kelvin, TD-type, and eastward propagating inertia-gravity waves) and MJO during the event further supported the development of heavy rainfall by increasing low-level moisture flux convergence, whereas equatorial Rossby waves contributed indirectly to the increased moisture transport by amplifying cross-equatorial meridional flows toward Jakarta. Together, these large-scale dynamical forcing factors provided a conducive convective environment for the development of mesoscale convective systems and, hence, extreme rainfall over the region.