Model investigation of the Slope Water, north of the Gulf Stream

Abstract

[1] Four years of output from a high resolution (1/10°) simulation of the North Atlantic is used to investigate the maintenance of the Slope Water properties in the region between the Gulf Stream and the continental shelf. The simulation maintains a distinct slope water region that is cooler and fresher than the Gulf Stream in spite of the active eddy field and lateral mixing. A temperature budget shows that the Labrador Current and the local surface fluxes are equally important in maintaining the water mass. Two consequences of the analysis are that accurate simulation of the amount of Labrador Current water getting around the Tail of the Grand Bank is crucial to maintaining a viable slope water mass, and a systematic reduction in surface cooling due to global warming has the potential to reduce the formation of Slope Water and increase the influence of the Gulf Stream along the shelf.