scholarly journals Mechanisms of decadal sea level variability in the eastern North Atlantic and the Mediterranean Sea

2012 ◽  
Vol 117 (C9) ◽  
pp. n/a-n/a ◽  
Author(s):  
F. M. Calafat ◽  
D. P. Chambers ◽  
M. N. Tsimplis
Keyword(s):  
Mediterranean Sea ◽  
Sea Level ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
Sea Level Variability ◽  
The Mediterranean ◽  
Eastern North Atlantic

scholarly journals Sea-level variability in the Mediterranean Sea from altimetry and tide gauges

2016 ◽  
Vol 47 (9-10) ◽  
pp. 2851-2866 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Bonaduce ◽  
N. Pinardi ◽  
P. Oddo ◽  
G. Spada ◽  
G. Larnicol
Keyword(s):  
Mediterranean Sea ◽  
Sea Level ◽  
Tide Gauges ◽  
Sea Level Variability ◽  
The Mediterranean

scholarly journals Forgotten Mediterranean calving grounds of grey and North Atlantic right whales: evidence from Roman archaeological records

2018 ◽  
Vol 285 (1882) ◽  
pp. 20180961 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ana S. L. Rodrigues ◽  
Anne Charpentier ◽  
Darío Bernal-Casasola ◽  
Armelle Gardeisen ◽  
Carlos Nores ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Roman Empire ◽  
Mediterranean Sea ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
Ecosystem Impacts ◽  
Right Whales ◽  
North Atlantic Right Whales ◽  
Commercial Whaling ◽  
Whaling Industry ◽  
The Mediterranean ◽  
Eastern North Atlantic

Right whales ( Eubalaena glacialis ) were extirpated from the eastern North Atlantic by commercial whaling. Grey whales ( Eschrichtius robustus ) disappeared from the entire North Atlantic in still-mysterious circumstances. Here, we test the hypotheses that both species previously occurred in the Mediterranean Sea, an area not currently considered part of their historical range. We used ancient DNA barcoding and collagen fingerprinting methods to taxonomically identify a rare set of 10 presumed whale bones from Roman and pre-Roman archaeological sites in the Strait of Gibraltar region, plus an additional bone from the Asturian coast. We identified three right whales, and three grey whales, demonstrating that the ranges of both of these species historically encompassed the Gibraltar region, probably including the Mediterranean Sea as calving grounds. Our results significantly extend the known range of the Atlantic grey whale, and suggest that 2000 years ago, right and grey whales were common when compared with other whale species. The disappearance of right and grey whales from the Mediterranean region is likely to have been accompanied by broader ecosystem impacts, including the disappearance of their predators (killer whales) and a reduction in marine primary productivity. The evidence that these two coastal and highly accessible species were present along the shores of the Roman Empire raises the hypothesis that they may have formed the basis of a forgotten whaling industry.

Sea-level variability and surface eddy statistics in the Mediterranean Sea from TOPEX/Poseidon and ERS-1 data

1997 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simona Zoffoli ◽  
Rosalia Santoleri ◽  
Salvatore Marullo ◽  
Daniele Iudicone
Keyword(s):  
Mediterranean Sea ◽  
Sea Level ◽  
Sea Level Variability ◽  
The Mediterranean

scholarly journals Teleconnection between the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation and Sea Level in the Mediterranean Sea

2019 ◽  
Vol 32 (3) ◽  
pp. 935-955 ◽  
Author(s):  
Denis L. Volkov ◽  
Molly Baringer ◽  
David Smeed ◽  
William Johns ◽  
Felix W. Landerer
Keyword(s):  
Mediterranean Sea ◽  
Sea Level ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation ◽  
Meridional Overturning Circulation ◽  
Strait Of Gibraltar ◽  
The North ◽  
Meridional Overturning ◽  
The North Atlantic ◽  
The Mediterranean

The Mediterranean Sea can be viewed as a “barometer” of the North Atlantic Ocean, because its sea level responds to oceanic-gyre-scale changes in atmospheric pressure and wind forcing, related to the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO). The climate of the North Atlantic is influenced by the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC) as it transports heat from the South Atlantic toward the subpolar North Atlantic. This study reports on a teleconnection between the AMOC transport measured at 26.5°N and the Mediterranean Sea level during 2004–17: a reduced/increased AMOC transport is associated with a higher/lower sea level in the Mediterranean. Processes responsible for this teleconnection are analyzed in detail using available satellite and in situ observations and an atmospheric reanalysis. First, it is shown that on monthly to interannual time scales the AMOC and sea level are both driven by similar NAO-like atmospheric circulation patterns. During a positive/negative NAO state, stronger/weaker trade winds (i) drive northward/southward anomalies of Ekman transport across 26.5°N that directly affect the AMOC and (ii) are associated with westward/eastward winds over the Strait of Gibraltar that force water to flow out of/into the Mediterranean Sea and thus change its average sea level. Second, it is demonstrated that interannual changes in the AMOC transport can lead to thermosteric sea level anomalies near the North Atlantic eastern boundary. These anomalies can (i) reach the Strait of Gibraltar and cause sea level changes in the Mediterranean Sea and (ii) represent a mechanism for negative feedback on the AMOC.

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