Abstract
Paleoclimcite data indicate a climate paradox. In warmer climates the equator to pole temperature gradient is typically less than that of the current climate. However, more northward heat transport is required to maintain this weaker gradient, particularly in tropical, subtropical and midlatitude regions where the ice‐albedo feedback and polar stratification of the atmosphere have little effect. Most heat transport mechanisms decrease with decreased temperature gradient. Two oceanic mechanisms that might contribute to a resolution of this paradox are examined, one relies upon salinity re‐distribution, while the other relies upon the non‐linearity of the equation of state. These are tested in a simply configured ocean general circulation model of the North Atlantic. Both are shown to increase northward heat transport without increasing the meridional temperature gradient. The nonlinearity mechanism is the more significant of the two, but neither of the mechanisms can conclusively resolve the paradox.
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