Synoptic perturbations and the MJO during the Cindy-Dynamo experiment

During the Cindy-Dynamo experiment (Oct. 2011-Mar. 2012), the convection is organized at the basin scale by different synoptic perturbations related in particular to Low Pressure Systems (LPS). These LPS (associated to low level cyclonic vortices) are generated near the equator and can live several days either near a fixed position (especially in southwest Indian Ocean), or following a westward beta drift, with possible deepening and cyclogenesis. We present first a technique to identify and characterize these LPS using ERA Interim re-analyses and to identify cyclogenesis from these LPS using the IBTrACS dataset for years 1979-2012. For this climatology and for the CD period, there is a clear relation between LPS genesis near the equator and the MJO over the Indian Ocean. More analyses are then presented on the interaction between the LPS and the convective organization, the conditions for cyclogenesis, and on the role of the LPS and associated vortices on moisture advection and energy budget for the different MJO phases.