The North Atlantic Ocean is in a state of reduced overturning
The North Atlantic Ocean is in a state of reduced overturning
The Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) is responsible for a variable and climatically important northward transport of heat. Using data from an array of instruments that span the Atlantic at 26°N, we show that the AMOC has been in a state of reduced overturning since 2008 as compared to 2004-2008. This change of AMOC state is concurrent with other changes in the North Atlantic such as a northward shift and broadening of the Gulf Stream, and altered patterns of heat content and sea-surface temperature. These changes resemble the response to a declining AMOC predicted by coupled climate models. Concurrent changes in air-sea fluxes close to the western boundary reveal that the changes in ocean heat transport and SST have altered the pattern of ocean-atmosphere heat exchange over the North Atlantic. These results provide strong observational evidence that the AMOC is a major factor in decadal scale variability of North Atlantic climate.
1527-1533
Smeed, D.A.
704615ce-822d-4649-b59f-07c804ead99c
Josey, S.A.
2252ab7f-5cd2-49fd-a951-aece44553d93
Beaulieu, C.
13ae2c11-ebfe-48d9-bda9-122cd013c021
Johns, W.E.
e09ba73d-f275-4ff3-a07c-dfb8f1622b21
Moat, B.I.
497dbb18-a98f-466b-b459-aa2c872ad2dc
Frajka-williams, E.
da86044e-0f68-4cc9-8f60-7fdbc4dc19cb
Rayner, D.
60eaf35c-c54e-447b-8551-efc08637d122
Meinen, C. S.
0f5f1e75-68ef-4d47-a303-a7566acbcdd7
Baringer, M.O.
05e0f722-83ee-4dc2-ac6e-2505c8b29f31
Bryden, H.L.
7f823946-34e8-48a3-8bd4-a72d2d749184
McCarthy, G.D.
fd87927d-feb3-447a-9cda-9558916df99f
16 February 2018
Smeed, D.A.
704615ce-822d-4649-b59f-07c804ead99c
Josey, S.A.
2252ab7f-5cd2-49fd-a951-aece44553d93
Beaulieu, C.
13ae2c11-ebfe-48d9-bda9-122cd013c021
Johns, W.E.
e09ba73d-f275-4ff3-a07c-dfb8f1622b21
Moat, B.I.
497dbb18-a98f-466b-b459-aa2c872ad2dc
Frajka-williams, E.
da86044e-0f68-4cc9-8f60-7fdbc4dc19cb
Rayner, D.
60eaf35c-c54e-447b-8551-efc08637d122
Meinen, C. S.
0f5f1e75-68ef-4d47-a303-a7566acbcdd7
Baringer, M.O.
05e0f722-83ee-4dc2-ac6e-2505c8b29f31
Bryden, H.L.
7f823946-34e8-48a3-8bd4-a72d2d749184
McCarthy, G.D.
fd87927d-feb3-447a-9cda-9558916df99f
Smeed, D.A., Josey, S.A., Beaulieu, C., Johns, W.E., Moat, B.I., Frajka-williams, E., Rayner, D., Meinen, C. S., Baringer, M.O., Bryden, H.L. and McCarthy, G.D.
(2018)
The North Atlantic Ocean is in a state of reduced overturning.
Geophysical Research Letters, 45 (3), .
(doi:10.1002/2017GL076350).
Abstract
The Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) is responsible for a variable and climatically important northward transport of heat. Using data from an array of instruments that span the Atlantic at 26°N, we show that the AMOC has been in a state of reduced overturning since 2008 as compared to 2004-2008. This change of AMOC state is concurrent with other changes in the North Atlantic such as a northward shift and broadening of the Gulf Stream, and altered patterns of heat content and sea-surface temperature. These changes resemble the response to a declining AMOC predicted by coupled climate models. Concurrent changes in air-sea fluxes close to the western boundary reveal that the changes in ocean heat transport and SST have altered the pattern of ocean-atmosphere heat exchange over the North Atlantic. These results provide strong observational evidence that the AMOC is a major factor in decadal scale variability of North Atlantic climate.
Text
Smeed_et_al-2018-Geophysical_Research_Letters
- Accepted Manuscript
Restricted to Repository staff only
Request a copy
More information
Accepted/In Press date: 25 January 2018
e-pub ahead of print date: 29 January 2018
Published date: 16 February 2018
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 417591
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/417591
ISSN: 0094-8276
PURE UUID: f5e72b1d-f8c4-4754-9022-0bdcb8c173cb
Catalogue record
Date deposited: 06 Feb 2018 17:30
Last modified: 16 Mar 2024 04:02
Export record
Altmetrics
Contributors
Author:
D.A. Smeed
Author:
S.A. Josey
Author:
W.E. Johns
Author:
B.I. Moat
Author:
E. Frajka-williams
Author:
D. Rayner
Author:
C. S. Meinen
Author:
M.O. Baringer
Author:
G.D. McCarthy
Download statistics
Downloads from ePrints over the past year. Other digital versions may also be available to download e.g. from the publisher's website.
View more statistics