The Mediterranean is becoming saltier
The Mediterranean is becoming saltier
The deep waters of the western Mediterranean Sea have become saltier and warmer for at least the past 40 years at rates of about 0.015 and 0.04 °C per decade. Here we show that two processes contribute to these increases in temperature and salinity. On interannual timescales, deep water formation events in severe winters transmit increasingly salty intermediate waters into the deep water. The second process is a steady downward flux of heat and salt associated with salt finger mixing down through the halocline–thermocline that connects the Levantine Intermediate Water with the deep water. We illustrate these two processes with observations from repeat surveys of the western Mediterranean basin we have made over the past 10 years.
693-700
Borghini, M.
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Bryden, H.
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Schroeder, K.
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Sparnocchia, S.
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Vetrano, A.
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7 August 2014
Borghini, M.
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Bryden, H.
7f823946-34e8-48a3-8bd4-a72d2d749184
Schroeder, K.
3a18c5cf-33b3-40c7-8aa7-f7dcbe452259
Sparnocchia, S.
f4646ae2-f2f7-42c2-9c35-fe6c609790ef
Vetrano, A.
e856da4a-e788-49ed-8e5b-dabf696b8f41
Borghini, M., Bryden, H., Schroeder, K., Sparnocchia, S. and Vetrano, A.
(2014)
The Mediterranean is becoming saltier.
Ocean Science, 10 (4), .
(doi:10.5194/os-10-693-2014).
Abstract
The deep waters of the western Mediterranean Sea have become saltier and warmer for at least the past 40 years at rates of about 0.015 and 0.04 °C per decade. Here we show that two processes contribute to these increases in temperature and salinity. On interannual timescales, deep water formation events in severe winters transmit increasingly salty intermediate waters into the deep water. The second process is a steady downward flux of heat and salt associated with salt finger mixing down through the halocline–thermocline that connects the Levantine Intermediate Water with the deep water. We illustrate these two processes with observations from repeat surveys of the western Mediterranean basin we have made over the past 10 years.
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Published date: 7 August 2014
Organisations:
Physical Oceanography
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Local EPrints ID: 368491
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/368491
ISSN: 1812-0792
PURE UUID: 91628797-d500-48b1-92cb-ffdb6daf50d7
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Date deposited: 01 Sep 2014 09:55
Last modified: 15 Mar 2024 02:52
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Author:
M. Borghini
Author:
K. Schroeder
Author:
S. Sparnocchia
Author:
A. Vetrano
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