Northward Volume Research Articles

Volume and Heat Transports by North Brazil Current Rings

A methodology that combines a 24-year long (January 1993 to December 2016) global dataset of eddy trajectories, derived from altimetry, with vertical temperature and salinity profiles from the EN4.2.0 database, derived from XBTs/MBTs, CTDs and Argo floats, was used to reconstruct the mean vertical structure of North Brazil Current (NBC) rings, and to calculate some of their properties. The number of NBC rings formed each year varied from 2 to 8, with an annual-mean formation of 5.3 ± 1.5. During the analyzed period, 112 rings were sampled at least once, at various distances from the center of the rings, leading to a total of 1323 (604) temperature (salinity) profiles available to compute the mean NBC ring, depicting a large, surface intensified, and relatively shallow ring, with intense temperature and salinity anomalies. The meridional volume transport was estimated in 1.3 Sv (1Sv = 106 m3s-1) per ring, leading to an annualized transport of ~7 ± 2 Sv. The amount of South Atlantic Water (SAW) within the mean ring was estimated in ~40 to 60% of the ring volume. According to these estimates, NBC rings may be responsible in different years for approximately 20 to 80% of the northward volume transport associated with the upper limb of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), and approximately 15 to 55% of the meridional heat transport in the tropical Atlantic.

The Role of the Irminger Current in the Irminger Sea Northward Transport Variability

AbstractThe Irminger Current (IC) on the western flank of the Reykjanes Ridge is an important contributor to the northward transport in the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation. Here, we combine 28 years of Copernicus Marine Environment Monitoring Service (CMEMS) ocean reanalysis data with 6 years of mooring data to investigate variability in volume transport of the IC. We found a mean volume transport for the IC of 11.6 Sv between 1993 and 2020 revealing the dominance of the IC in the total Irminger Sea northward volume transport (20.3 Sv). We found a significant decrease (−3.7 Sv) in volume transport of the IC until 2011 followed by a steeper (but shorter, leading to +2.7 Sv) increase until 2020. These changes across the Irminger Sea section are dominated by the IC, which in turn are driven by changes in the density gradient across the Irminger Sea related to convection. On decadal and interannual time scales the IC volume transport is well correlated with the decrease in the sea surface height difference over the basin. In 2019, a temporary intensification of the western IC core led to an exceptionally strong volume transport of the IC with 20 Sv. This was caused by density changes within the IC boundaries due to the presence of mesoscale eddies. Thus, IC transport variability is a superposition of basin‐wide to local processes that influence the velocity field on different time scales.

Reduced Arctic sea ice extent during the mid-Pliocene Warm Period concurrent with increased Atlantic-climate regime

Quantifying the contribution of poleward oceanic heat transport to the Arctic Ocean is important for making future sea ice and climate predictions. To highlight its potential importance in a warmer world, we present a new record of water-mass exchange between the Atlantic and the Arctic Oceans using the authigenic neodymium isotopic composition of marine sediments from the Fram Strait during the past ∼3.4 to 2.6 Ma. In this study, we target the mid-Pliocene Warm Period (mPWP: 3.264–3.025 Ma) of the Pliocene epoch, the most recent geological analogue for future climate change. We complement our semi-quantitative water mass exchange reconstruction with estimates of spring sea ice concentration based on source-specific biomarkers. Our estimates of volume transport of warm waters into the Arctic Ocean suggest long-term secular changes from the lowest during the Marine Isotope Stage M2 “glacial” (3.312–3.264 Ma), to near complete “Atlantification” of the Eurasian sector of the Arctic Ocean during the mPWP. Orbital forcing is found to be the dominant controlling factor for modulating northward volume transport of Atlantic-derived water masses, with an associated reduction in Arctic spring sea ice concentration of ∼30–35%. Current generation models often produce diverging results, however, and have not yet been validated against proxy data in northern high latitude settings during the mPWP. Our new results of northward volume transport and sea ice extent therefore provide much needed input for validation of current generation models aimed at improving the robustness of future climate modeling in the Arctic.

Recent change in benthic macrofaunal community composition in relation to physical forcing in the Pacific Arctic

There is growing evidence that increased Pacific water transport into the Arctic affects the marine ecosystem. One of the theoretical predictions for a future Arctic characterized by such environmental change is that subarctic taxa will expand northward and invade the native Arctic ecosystem. This study focuses on variation in macrofaunal community composition and the influence of changing physical drivers at known benthic hotspots in the Pacific Arctic. The average number of macrofaunal family-level taxa has increased significantly south of St. Lawrence Island and in the Chirikov Basin, whereas the number of macrofaunal taxa in the southeastern Chukchi Sea showed no significant trend over the 2000–2013 time period. However, the Shannon–Weaver diversity index, based on abundance, did not mirror these regional changes in the number of macrofaunal taxa, indicating that the abundance of newly present taxa was negligible compared to the entire abundance already present. We also investigated temporal variations in meridional sea level gradient and local winds, which contribute 2/3 and 1/3 of the variation in northward volume transport at Bering Strait, respectively. There were significant increasing trends in the meridional sea level gradient and local winds, suggesting the increased northward seawater volume transports over the benthic hotspots could contribute to the expansion of subarctic taxa into these northern Arctic regions. Our data suggest an increase in macrofaunal taxa type with increasing current transport northward into the Pacific Arctic region that could have a strong influence in restructuring the benthic ecosystem in this region in the future.

Seasonal and Interannual Variability of Bering Strait Throughflow from AO-FVCOM and Observation

A high-resolution Arctic Ocean-Finite Volume Community Ocean Model (AO-FVCOM) and observational current data from 14 mooring stations in Bering Strait and surrounding regions between 1990 and 2015 were used to study the seasonal and in-terannual variability of Bering Strait throughflow (BST). AO-FVCOM represented the BST with a climatological northward flux of 1.06Sv, which was close to the observational mean of 0.94 + 0.26Sv. From the model results, the strongest volume flux was in summer, approximately 45% larger than that in winter. Interannual variability of BST was also indicated in the model results, and the maximum and minimum annual mean transports are in 2007 and 2012, respectively. AO-FVCOM showed larger differences from the observations in 2000, 2002, and 2015 than in other years, which may be related to the limitation of atmospheric forcing for the model. According to the driving mechanisms of BST, sea level difference (SLD) across the strait dominates the northward volume transport, and local wind is also important in forcing the seasonal variability of the BST and SLD patterns to change the BST indirectly.

Warming and Weakening of the Abyssal Flow through Samoan Passage

AbstractThe abyssal flow of water through the Samoan Passage accounts for the majority of the bottom water renewal in the North Pacific, thereby making it an important element of the meridional overturning circulation. Here the authors report recent measurements of the flow of dense waters of Antarctic and North Atlantic origin through the Samoan Passage. A 15-month long moored time series of velocity and temperature of the abyssal flow was recorded between 2012 and 2013. This allows for an update of the only prior volume transport time series from the Samoan Passage from WOCE moored measurements between 1992 and 1994. While highly variable on multiple time scales, the overall pattern of the abyssal flow through the Samoan Passage was remarkably steady. The time-mean northward volume transport of about 5.4 Sv (1 Sv ≡ 106 m3 s−1) in 2012/13 was reduced compared to 6.0 Sv measured between 1992 and 1994. This volume transport reduction is significant within 68% confidence limits (±0.4 Sv) but not at 95% confidence limits (±0.6 Sv). In agreement with recent studies of the abyssal Pacific, the bottom flow through the Samoan Passage warmed significantly on average by 1 × 10−3°C yr−1 over the past two decades, as observed both in moored and shipboard hydrographic observations. While the warming reflects the recently observed increasing role of the deep oceans for heat uptake, decreasing flow through Samoan Passage may indicate a future weakening of this trend for the abyssal North Pacific.

Observed features of temperature, salinity and current in central Chukchi Sea during the summer of 2012

During the summer of 2012, the fifth CHINARE Arctic Expedition was carried out, and a submersible mooring system was deployed in M5 station located at (69°30.155'N,169°00.654'W) and recovered 50d later. A set of temperature, salinity and current profile records was acquired. The characteristics of these observations are analyzed in this paper. Some main results are achieved as below. (1) Temperature generally decreases while salinity generally increases with increasing depth. The average values of all records are 2.98°C and 32.21 psu. (2) Salinity and temperature are well negatively correlated, and the correlation coefficient between them is–0.84. However, they did not always vary synchronously. Their co-variation featured different characters during different significant periods. (3) The average velocity for the whole water column is 141 mm/s with directional angle of 347.1°. The statistical distribution curve of velocity record number gets narrower with increasing depth. More than 85% of the recorded velocities are northward, and the mean magnitudes of dominated northward velocities are 100–150 mm/s. (4) Rotary spectrum analysis shows that motions with low frequency take a majority of energy in all layers. The most significant energy peaks for all layers are around 0.012 cph (about 3.5 d period), while the tidal motion in mooring area is nonsignificant. (5) Velocities in all layers feature similar and synchronous temporal variations, except for the slight decrease in magnitude and leftward twist from top to bottom. The directions of velocity correspond well to those of surface wind. The average northward volume transport per square meter is 0.1–0.2 m3/s under southerly wind, but about –0.2 m3/s during northerly wind burst.

Delayed responses of the oceanic Beaufort Gyre to winds and sea ice motions: influences on variations of sea ice cover in the Pacific sector of the Arctic Ocean

In the late 2000s, the dominant sea ice type in the Arctic Ocean changed from multi-year ice to first-year ice. In this condition, winter growth of first-year ice and resultant ice thickness at the melt onset are key preconditions on whether sea ice can survive or will disappear during the following summer. The growth rate strongly depends on upper ocean thermal conditions. In the Pacific sector of the Arctic Ocean, the warm Pacific Summer Water, which is a major heat source affecting the sea ice growth, is transported toward the basin by the oceanic Beaufort Gyre, driven by winds and sea ice motions, but the response time scale of the oceanic Beaufort Gyre to surface forcing has been unclear until now. In the present study, we examine the relationship between the ocean dynamic height near the Northwind Ridge as a proxy of the northward volume transport and curls of winds and sea ice velocities, using multiple regression models that evaluate relative contributions of past surface forcing to the current state of the oceanic Beaufort Gyre. As a result, the time scale of the delayed oceanic response in 2006–2012 was estimated to be about 3 years. Taking into account the response time scale, the multiple regression model using the satellite-derived sea ice motion data successfully reconstructed the observed variations of ocean dynamic heights within an accuracy of 0.2 dynamic cm, which corresponded to about 2 % of the amplitude of the observed variations.

An evaluation of the simulations of the Arctic Intermediate Water in climate models and reanalyses

The simulations of the Arctic Intermediate Water in four datasets of climate models and reanalyses, CCSM3, CCSM4, SODA and GLORYS, are analyzed and evaluated. The climatological core temperatures and depths in both CCSM models exhibit deviations over 0.5A degrees C and 200 m from the PHC. SODA reanalysis reproduces relatively reasonable spatial patterns of core temperature and depth, while GLORYS, another reanalysis, shows a remarkable cooling and deepening drift compared with the result at the beginning of the dataset especially in the Eurasian Basin (about 2A degrees C). The heat contents at the depth of intermediate water in the CCSM models are overestimated with large positive errors nearly twice of that in the PHC. To the contrary, the GLORYS in 2009 show a negative error with a similar magnitude, which means the characteristic of the water mass is totally lost. The circulations in the two reanalyses at the depth of intermediate water are more energetic and realistic than those in the CCSMs, which is attributed to the horizontal eddy-permitting resolution. The velocity fields and the transports in the Fram Strait are also investigated. The necessity of finer horizontal resolution is concluded again. The northward volume transports are much larger in the two reanalyses, although they are still weak comparing with mooring observations. Finally, an investigation of the impact of assimilation is done with an evidence of the heat input from assimilation. It is thought to be a reason for the good performance in the SODA, while the GLORYS drifts dramatically without assimilation data in the Arctic Ocean.

Heat budget in the North Atlantic subpolar gyre: Impacts of atmospheric weather regimes on the 1995 warming event

In the mid 1990s, the North Atlantic subpolar gyre has shown a dramatic warming event that has been thoroughly investigated from observations and numerical simulations. Some studies suggest that it was due to an interannual, wind-driven weakening and shrinking of the gyre that facilitated the penetration of warm Atlantic Water, the weakening of the gyre being attributed to changes in the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) and in the East Atlantic Pattern, which are the two dominant modes of atmospheric variability in the North Atlantic. However, other studies suggest that the warming event was due to a decadal, buoyancy-driven strengthening of the meridional overturning circulation and subsequent intensification of the poleward heat transport, in response to the positive NAO conditions of 1988–1995. To reconcile this discrepancy, the heat budget in the North Atlantic subpolar gyre is reconstructed from four ocean hindcast simulations sharing the same modelling platform but using different settings. The novelty of this work is the decomposition of the subpolar gyre into a western and an eastern subregion, which is motivated by water mass distribution around Reykjanes Ridge and by the fact that deep convection only occurs in the western subpolar gyre.In the western subpolar gyre, the 1995 warming event is the decadal, baroclinic ocean response to positive NAO conditions from 1988 to 1995. The latter induced increased surface heat loss in the Labrador Sea that intensified deep convection hence strengthened the meridional overturning circulation and the associated poleward heat transport. In the eastern subregion, a concomittant warming is induced by an interannual, barotropic adjustment of the gyre circulation to an abrupt switch from positive NAO conditions in winter 1995 to negative NAO conditions in winter 1996. Indeed, the gyre response to negative NAO conditions is a cyclonic intergyre-gyre that increases northward volume and heat transports at the southeastern limit of the subpolar gyre. Therefore, the discrepancies found in the literature about the 1995 warming event of the North Atlantic subpolar gyre are reconciled in the present work, which suggests that the atmospheric drivers, the mechanisms at stake and the associated timescales are different to the east and to the west of Reykjanes Ridge.

The annual mean sketches and climatological variability of the volume and heat transports through the inter-basin passages: A study based on 1 400-year spin up of MOM4p1

The annual mean volume and heat transport sketches through the inter-basin passages and transoceanic sections have been constructed based on 1 400-year spin up results of the MOM4p1. The spin up starts from a state of rest, driven by the monthly climatological mean force from the NOAA World Ocean Atlas (1994). The volume transport sketch reveals the northward transport throughout the Pacific and southward transport at all latitudes in the Atlantic. The annual mean strength of the Pacific-Arctic-Atlantic through flow is 0.63x10(6)m(3)/s in the Bering Strait. The majority of the northward volume transport in the southern Pacific turns into the Indonesian through flow (ITF) and joins the Indian Ocean equatorial current, which subsequently flows out southward from the Mozambique Channel, with its majority superimposed on the Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC). This anti-cyclonic circulation around Australia has a strength of 11x10(6) m(3)/s according to the model-produced result. The atmospheric fresh water transport, known as P-E+R (precipitation minus evaporation plus runoff), constructs a complement to the horizontal volume transport of the ocean. The annual mean heat transport sketch exhibits a northward heat transport in the Atlantic and poleward heat transport in the global ocean. The surface heat flux acts as a complement to the horizontal heat transport of the ocean. The climatological volume transports describe the most important features through the inter-basin passages and in the associated basins, including: the positive P-E+R in the Arctic substantially strengthening the East Greenland Current in summer; semiannual variability of the volume transport in the Drake Passage and the southern Atlantic-Indian Ocean passage; and annual transport variability of the ITF intensifying in the boreal summer. The climatological heat transports show heat storage in July and heat deficit in January in the Arctic; heat storage in January and heat deficit in July in the Antarctic circumpolar current regime (ACCR); and intensified heat transport of the ITF in July. The volume transport of the ITF is synchronous with the volume transport through the southern Indo-Pacific sections, but the year-long southward heat transport of the ITF is out of phase with the heat transport through the equatorial Pacific, which is northward before May and southward after May. This clarifies the majority of the ITF originating from the southern Pacific Ocean.

Influences of tropical–extratropical interaction on the multidecadal AMOC variability in the NCEP climate forecast system

We have examined the mechanisms of a multidecadal oscillation of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) in a 335-year simulation of the Climate Forecast System (CFS), the climate prediction model developed at the National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP). Both the mean and seasonal cycle of the AMOC in the CFS are generally consistent with observation-based estimates with a maximum northward volume transport of 16 Sv (106 m3/s) near 35°N at 1.2 km. The annual mean AMOC shows an intermittent quasi 30-year oscillation. Its dominant structure includes a deep anomalous overturning cell (referred to as the anomalous AMOC) with amplitude of 0.6 Sv near 35°N and an anomalous subtropical cell (STC) of shallow overturning spanning across the equator. The mechanism for the oscillation includes a positive feedback between the anomalous AMOC and surface wind stress anomalies in mid-latitudes and a negative feedback between the anomalous STC and AMOC. A strong AMOC is associated with warm sea surface temperature anomaly (SSTA) centered near 45°N, which generates an anticyclonic easterly surface wind anomaly. This anticyclonic wind anomaly enhances the regional downwelling and reinforces the anomalous AMOC. In the mean time, a wind-evaporation-SST (WES) feedback extends the warm SSTA to the tropics and induces a cyclonic wind stress anomaly there, which drives a tropical upwelling and weakens the STC north of the equator. The STC anomaly, in turn, drives a cold upper ocean heat content anomaly (HCA) in the northern tropical Atlantic and weakens the meridional heat transport from the tropics to the mid-latitude through an anomalous southward western boundary current. The anomalous STC transports cold HCA from the subtropics to the mid-latitudes, weakening the mid-latitude deep overturning.

Estimation of heat flux through the eastern Bering Strait

We estimated the northward heat flux through the eastern channel of the Bering Strait during the ice-free seasons between 1999 and 2008. This is likely about half of the total heat flux through the strait. The net volume transport and heat flux through the eastern channel of the strait were estimated from multiple linear regression models with in-situ/satellite remotely sensed datasets and NCEP reanalysis 10 m wind. The net volume transport was well explained by the west-east slope of sea level anomaly and NNW wind component at the strait. On the heat flux, the contributions of both barotropic and baroclinic components were taken into account. Estimated volume transport and vertical profile of temperature were used to calculate northward heat flux through the eastern channel of the strait. The magnitude of the estimated heat flux is comparable to estimates from in-situ measurements. Averaged heat flux in the eastern Bering Strait between 2004 and 2007 was about 1.9 times larger than that between 2000 and 2003. Maximum heat flux occurred in 2004, and same magnitude of heat flux was estimated from 2005 to 2007. This resulted not only from the increase in northward volume transport but also anomalous warm water intrusion from the Bering Sea. Our results suggest a candidate among the important parameters controlling heat budget, which contributes to the Arctic sea ice reduction, whereas more studies are required to confirm that this mechanism is actually responsible for the interannual and longer timescale variability.

Seasonal variations of sea ice and ocean circulation in the Bering Sea: A model‐data fusion study

A 9‐km coupled ice‐ocean model (CIOM) was implemented in the entire Bering Sea to investigate seasonal cycles of sea ice and ocean circulation under atmospheric forcing. Sea ice cover with a maximum of 0.6 × 106 km2 in February to late March was reasonably reproduced by the Bering‐CIOM and validated by Special Sensor Microwave/Imager (SSM/I) measurements. The model also captures some important spatial variability and downscaling processes such as polynyas and ridging, which the SSM/I measurements cannot reproduce because of their coarse (25 km) resolution. There are two distinct surface ocean circulation patterns in winter and summer on the Bering shelves because of the dominant winds, which are northeasterly in winter and southwesterly in summer. Summer low‐temperature, high‐salinity water mass (<3°C) on the Bering shelf is formed locally during winter because of strong vertical convection caused by salt injection when ice forms, wind, and wind‐wave mixing on the shelf. The northward volume transport across the 62.5°N line, with an annual mean of 0.8 ± 0.33 Sv (1 Sv = 106 m3 s−1) that is consistent with the measurements in the Bering Strait, has barotropic structure, which transports heat flux (with an annual mean of 7.74 TW; 1 TW = 1012 W) northward. The Anadyr Current advects warmer, saltier water northward during summer; nevertheless, it reverses its direction to southward during winter because of predominant northeasterly and northerly wind forcing. Therefore, the Anadyr Current advects cold, salty water southward. The volume transport on the broad midshelf is northward year round, advecting heat (3.3 ± 2.4 TW) and freshwater (−8 ± 10 × 104 practical salinity unit (psu) m3 s−1) northward. One important finding is that the Anadyr Current and the midshelf current are out of phase in volume and heat transports. The Alaskan Coastal Current also transports heat and freshwater northward on an annual basis. The Bering‐CIOM also captures the winter dense water formation along the Siberian coast, which is promoted by the downwelling favorable northeasterly wind, and the summer upwelling due to the basin‐scale upwelling favorable southwesterly wind, which brings up the cold, salty, and nutrient‐rich water from the subsurface to the surface within a narrow strip along the west coast. This upwelling found in the model was also confirmed by satellite measurements in this study.

The relation of meridional pressure gradients to North Atlantic deep water volume transport in an ocean general circulation model

We use a coarse resolution ocean general circulation model to study the relation between meridional pressure and density gradients in the Southern Ocean and North Atlantic and the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation. In several experiments, we artificially modify the meridional density gradients by applying different magnitudes of the Gent–McWilliams isopycnal eddy diffusion coefficients in the Southern Ocean and in the North Atlantic and investigate the response of the simulated Atlantic meridional overturning to such changes. The simulations are carried out close to the limit of no diapycnal mixing, with a very small explicit vertical diffusivity and a tracer advection scheme with very low implicit diffusivities. Our results reveal that changes in eddy diffusivities in the North Atlantic affect the maximum of the Atlantic meridional overturning, but not the outflow of North Atlantic Deep Water into the Southern Ocean. In contrast, changes in eddy diffusivities in the Southern Ocean affect both the South Atlantic outflow of North Atlantic Deep Water and the maximum of the Atlantic meridional overturning. Results from these experiments are used to investigate the relation between meridional pressure gradients and the components of the Atlantic meridional overturning. Pressure gradients and overturning are found to be linearly related. We show that, in our simulations, zonally averaged deep pressure gradients are very weak between 20°S and about 30°N and that between 30°N and 60°N the zonally averaged pressure grows approximately linearly with latitude. This pressure difference balances a westward geostrophic flow at 30–40°N that feeds the southbound deep Atlantic western boundary current. We extend our analysis to a large variety of experiments in which surface freshwater forcing, vertical mixing and winds are modified. In all experiments, the pycnocline depth, assumed to be the relevant vertical scale for the northward volume transport in the Atlantic, is found to be approximately constant, at least within the coarse vertical resolution of the model. The model behaviour hence cannot directly be related to conceptual models in which changes in the pycnocline depth determine the strength of Atlantic meridional flow, and seems conceptually closer to Stommel’s box model. In all our simulations, the Atlantic overturning seems to be mainly driven by Southern Ocean westerlies. However, the actual strength of the Atlantic meridional overturning is not determined solely by the Southern Ocean wind stress but as well by the density/pressure gradients created between the deep water formation regions in the North Atlantic and the inflow/outflow region in the South Atlantic.

Impact of the Northern annular mode on the freshwater exchange between the Arctic and the North Atlantic

The variability of the ice and freshwater transports through the main openings of the Nordic Seas is studied based on a 200-year simulation with a sea ice–ocean model forced by stochastic surface wind stress anomalies representative of Northern annular mode (NAM). The spectrum of the ice export through Fram Strait (FS), which constitutes the main contribution to the total freshwater export anomaly from the Arctic, shows no significant peak though half of the variance is concentrated at periods longer than a year. The standard deviation of the freshwater export to the subpolar gyre through Denmark Strait only amounts to 40% of the standard deviation of the total (ice+liquid) freshwater export through FS, with a comparatively larger variance in the low-frequency range, suggesting that the Greenland Sea could act as a low-pass filter. In the upper layer of the Iceland–Scotland Passage, positive phases of the NAM lead to a fast increase of the northward volume and salt transports. Within 2 years, the salt transport anomaly, however, changes sign due to advection of negative salinity anomalies which originate in the subpolar gyre and can be traced up to the Barents Sea.

北海道における対馬暖流の長期変動がコンブ生産量に及ぼす影響

Numerical simulation was performed on the relation between the interannual variation of the Tsushima warm current along the southwest coast of Hokkaido and the concentration of nitrogen, the production of a kelp Laminaria religiosa. The downward tendency of northward volume transport along the southwest coast was maintained at a rate of year 0.036SV in 1986 and afterwards. Reduction of northward flux falls the surface water temperature of the coast, and making nitrate concentration increase was suggested. According to simulation, the year yields of the kelp in the southwest coast increased about 32 times, when northward flux decreased to 60% of the present condition.

Diapycnal mixing in a conceptual model of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation

Abstract A three-box model of the Atlantic Ocean is used to examine the influence different parameterisations of the diapycnal mixing may have on the large scale dynamics of the ocean circulation. Special emphasis is given to the northward volume and heat transports. The vertical diffusivity κ is taken in the general form κ ∼ N - α , where N is the buoyancy frequency, and the parameter space 0 ⩽ α ⩽ 3 is explored. An imposed freshwater forcing of the northern high latitude box is used as a test case to investigate the behaviour of the model compared to similar types of sensitivity experiments carried out with, for instance, General Circulation Models. Four different solution states are identified, separated by three critical values of α . For small values of α , both heat and volume fluxes decrease with increasing freshwater flux. Increasing α leads first into a parameter domain where the transport of heat increases with increasing freshwater forcing, then at even higher α also the volume transport increases. Finally, a fourth state is found where strong advection of warm water leads to an increase of the northern box temperature, as opposed to cooling for small α . The behaviour of the critical values of α is discussed with respect to model dynamics and parameters. A subtle interplay between changes in the thermocline depth and the advective fluxes from the thermocline box into northern box, which both are modulated by diapycnal mixing, is found to be the key process in determining the behaviour of the model. Finally, the implications for modelling and understanding of basic features of the ocean circulation are discussed.

The West Spitsbergen Current volume and heat transport from synoptic observations in summer

This study describes the results of quasi-synoptic hydrographic observations of the West Spitsbergen Current made in summer 2003. Various sources of information and calculation methods were used to estimate the northward volume and heat transport. Ultimately, the results based on the Lowered Acoustic Doppler Current Profiled data were selected as the most reliable. The results of direct current measurements in the entire water column with relatively high horizontal resolution confirm the complicated, multi-path structure and high barotropic component of the West Spitsbergen Current. Measurements show high temporal variability of the volume transport and strong current dependence on wind conditions. The quasi-synoptic northward volume transport across section 78°50′N from 002°E to the Spitsbergen shelf is estimated at 11.6 Sv, and total heat transport at 70.6 TW.

Davis Strait volume, freshwater and heat fluxes

Volume, freshwater and heat transport through Davis Strait, the northern boundary of the Labrador Basin, are computed using a mooring array deployed for three consecutive years. The net volume, freshwater and heat transports are - 2.6 ± 1.0 Sv , - 92 ± 34 mSv , 18 ± 17 × 10 12 W . Both southward and northward volume and freshwater transports are maximum in November. The seasonal variability is dictated by the variability in the main water mass transports: Irminger Sea Water, West Greenland shelf water, surface meltwater, and a cold intermediate layer (CIL) originating from Lancaster Sound. The southward freshwater transport seasonal amplitude is dominated by the CIL transport rather than the surface meltwater layer. Sea-ice transport through Davis Strait deduced from remote sensing data is equal to 528 km 3 / year which is much smaller than equivalent estimates for Fram Strait. Using these new estimates, we attempt to close the Arctic Ocean volume and freshwater budget.