On the Role of Freshwater Budgets in the Formation of Salinity Extremes in the Ocean Interior

Abstract

We propose interpreting the vertical structure of waters not only in space but also over time, taking into account the continuous variability of the ocean and the independence of temperature and salinity parameters. This approach allows us to consider, in real conditions, the entire spectrum of short- and long-term extrema of both characteristics, either separately or together at the same depth. Vertical distributions of temperature and salinity transform separately and independently of each other under the influence of heat and freshwater budgets, which change at different time scales. Each of the parameters has its own active layers with corresponding time scales. Changes in the signs of heat and freshwater budgets and subsequent changes in the characteristics of the surface layer cause the appearance and disappearance of separate extrema of temperature and salinity in the water column. Using a salinity field as an example, we have shown that each of the extrema, in their vertical distribution from the near-surface to the intermediate depths, is a temporary phenomenon with various lifetime scales and is located at the lower boundary of the corresponding active layers. In some areas of the ocean, temperature and salinity extrema exist together at the same depth. Volumes of water with such characteristics and explicit boundaries should be considered water masses.