Interannual Variation of Annual Subduction Rate in the North Pacific Estimated from a Gridded Argo Product

Abstract

AbstractSpatiotemporal variability of the subduction rate in the North Pacific from 2005 to 2012 is examined based on the Argo observational data. The subduction rate in the subtropical North Pacific varies significantly from year to year between 25 and 50 Sverdrups (Sv; 1 Sv ≡ 106 m3 s−1), and it is well correlated with the Pacific decadal oscillation. The temporal change of the subduction rate is largely determined by that of the late winter mixed layer depth through the lateral induction term. The increase (decrease) in the subduction rate in the subtropical mode water areas accompanies densification (lightening) of the mode density class of the subducted water. The subduction rate variability in the central mode water and eastern subtropical mode water regions is anticorrelated as found in the previous study using the output from an ocean GCM. The subduction rate in the central mode water density range changes dramatically, which is very large in 2005 and 2010 but almost disappears in 2009. The subduction rate variability in the western subtropical mode water regions seems to be correlated with the Pacific decadal oscillation with a lag of a few years.