A focus of the presentation will be on the variability observed between diurnal SST and the MJO. While recent studies continue to show the importance of atmospheric moist dynamics and convection as a driving factor in the development and propagation of MJO events, it is also known that the upper ocean mixed layer responds in concert and may itself contribute to the amplification and decay of MJO related variability. Preconditioning of the environment prior to the active phase of the MJO has been noted, but the balance of theorized mechanisms to accomplish this process remains unresolved. Further, not all developing organized convection transitions into a propagating MJO signal. This work will provide analyses of observations from a variety of satellite, reanalyses, single-column coupled ocean-atmosphere models, and in situ observations (buoys, Argo) to investigate atmospheric variability during the suppressed phase of the MJO. A particular focus of these analyses will be to characterize the systematic relationship between diurnal SST/upper-ocean variability, low-level stability, and observed cloud regimes. Additional emphasis will be placed on scrutinizing the interactions between the atmosphere and ocean boundary layers via surface heat flux exchanges of heat, moisture, and momentum.
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