scholarly journals A Review of Ocean Dynamics in the North Atlantic: Achievements and Challenges

Climate ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 49
Author(s):  
Knut Lehre Seip
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Temperature Change ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
Ocean Dynamics ◽  
Local Climate ◽  
The North ◽  
Local Climate Change ◽  
Global Temperature Change ◽  
The North Atlantic ◽  
Over Time

I address 12 issues related to the study of ocean dynamics and its impact on global temperature change, regional and local climate change, and on the North Atlantic ecosystem. I outline the present achievements and challenges that lie ahead. I start with observations and methods to extend the observations of ocean oscillations over time and end with challenges to find connections between ocean dynamics in the North Atlantic and dynamics in other parts of the globe.

scholarly journals The seasonal cycle of δ<sup>3</sup>C<sub>DIC</sub> in the North Atlantic subpolar gyre

2014 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 1683-1692 ◽  
Author(s):  
V. Racapé ◽  
N. Metzl ◽  
C. Pierre ◽  
G. Reverdin ◽  
P. D. Quay ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
North Atlantic ◽  
Dissolved Inorganic Carbon ◽  
Ocean Dynamics ◽  
Subpolar Gyre ◽  
The North ◽  
Winter Convection ◽  
North Atlantic Subpolar Gyre ◽  
The North Atlantic ◽  
First Time ◽  
Negative Linear Relationship

Abstract. This study introduces for the first time the δ13CDIC seasonality in the North Atlantic subpolar gyre (NASPG) using δ13CDIC data obtained in 2005–2006 and 2010–2012 with dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) and nutrient observations. On the seasonal scale, the NASPG is characterized by higher δ13CDIC values during summer than during winter, with a seasonal amplitude between 0.70 ± 0.10‰ (August 2010–March 2011) and 0.77 ± 0.07‰ (2005–2006). This is mainly attributed to photosynthetic activity in summer and to a deep remineralization process during winter convection, sometimes influenced by ocean dynamics and carbonate pumps. There is also a strong and negative linear relationship between δ13CDIC and DIC during all seasons. Winter data also showed a large decrease in δ13CDIC associated with an increase in DIC between 2006 and 2011–2012, but the observed time rates (−0.04‰ yr−1and +1.7 μmol kg−1 yr−1) are much larger than the expected anthropogenic signal.

scholarly journals Contributions of Atmospheric Stochastic Forcing and Intrinsic Ocean Modes to North Atlantic Ocean Interdecadal Variability

2020 ◽  
Vol 33 (6) ◽  
pp. 2351-2370 ◽  
Author(s):  
Olivier Arzel ◽  
Thierry Huck
Keyword(s):  
Ocean Circulation ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
General Circulation ◽  
Thermal Structure ◽  
Ocean Dynamics ◽  
Dimensionless Number ◽  
Stochastic Forcing ◽  
The North ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
The North Atlantic

AbstractAtmospheric stochastic forcing associated with the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) and intrinsic ocean modes associated with the large-scale baroclinic instability of the North Atlantic Current (NAC) are recognized as two strong paradigms for the existence of the Atlantic multidecadal oscillation (AMO). The degree to which each of these factors contribute to the low-frequency variability of the North Atlantic is the central question in this paper. This issue is addressed here using an ocean general circulation model run under a wide range of background conditions extending from a supercritical regime where the oceanic variability spontaneously develops in the absence of any atmospheric noise forcing to a damped regime where the variability requires some noise to appear. The answer to the question is captured by a single dimensionless number Γ measuring the ratio between the oceanic and atmospheric contributions, as inferred from the buoyancy variance budget of the western subpolar region. Using this diagnostic, about two-thirds of the sea surface temperature (SST) variance in the damped regime is shown to originate from atmospheric stochastic forcing whereas heat content is dominated by internal ocean dynamics. Stochastic wind stress forcing is shown to substantially increase the role played by damped ocean modes in the variability. The thermal structure of the variability is shown to differ fundamentally between the supercritical and damped regimes, with abrupt modifications around the transition between the two regimes. Ocean circulation changes are further shown to be unimportant for setting the pattern of SST variability in the damped regime but are fundamental for a preferred time scale to emerge.

scholarly journals On the Interpretation of the North Atlantic Averaged Sea Surface Temperature

2020 ◽  
Vol 33 (14) ◽  
pp. 6025-6045
Author(s):  
Jing Sun ◽  
Mojib Latif ◽  
Wonsun Park ◽  
Taewook Park
Keyword(s):  
Surface Temperature ◽  
Sea Surface Temperature ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
Climate Models ◽  
Ocean Dynamics ◽  
Sea Surface ◽  
The North ◽  
Sst Variability ◽  
The North Atlantic ◽  
Different Time Scales

AbstractThe North Atlantic (NA) basin-averaged sea surface temperature (NASST) is often used as an index to study climate variability in the NA sector. However, there is still some debate on what drives it. Based on observations and climate models, an analysis of the different influences on the NASST index and its low-pass filtered version, the Atlantic multidecadal oscillation (AMO) index, is provided. In particular, the relationships of the two indices with some of its mechanistic drivers including the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC) are investigated. In observations, the NASST index accounts for significant SST variability over the tropical and subpolar NA. The NASST index is shown to lump together SST variability originating from different mechanisms operating on different time scales. The AMO index emphasizes the subpolar SST variability. In the climate models, the SST-anomaly pattern associated with the NASST index is similar. The AMO index, however, only represents pronounced SST variability over the extratropical NA, and this variability is significantly linked to the AMOC. There is a sensitivity of this linkage to the cold NA SST bias observed in many climate models. Models suffering from a large cold bias exhibit a relatively weak linkage between the AMOC and AMO and vice versa. Finally, the basin-averaged SST in its unfiltered form, which has been used to question a strong influence of ocean dynamics on NA SST variability, mixes together multiple types of variability occurring on different time scales and therefore underemphasizes the role of ocean dynamics in the multidecadal variability of NA SSTs.

scholarly journals Sensitivity of winter North Atlantic-European climate to resolved atmosphere and ocean dynamics

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Reindert J. Haarsma ◽  
Javier García-Serrano ◽  
Chloé Prodhomme ◽  
Omar Bellprat ◽  
Paolo Davini ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Atmospheric Circulation ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
Gulf Stream ◽  
Ocean Dynamics ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Western Boundary ◽  
The North ◽  
The North Atlantic ◽  
Mean Climate ◽  
Meso Scale

Abstract Northern Hemisphere western boundary currents, like the Gulf Stream, are key regions for cyclogenesis affecting large-scale atmospheric circulation. Recent observations and model simulations with high-temporal and -spatial resolution have provided evidence that the associated ocean fronts locally affect troposphere dynamics. A coherent view of how this affects the mean climate and its variability is, however, lacking. In particular the separate role of resolved ocean and atmosphere dynamics in shaping the atmospheric circulation is still largely unknown. Here we demonstrate for the first time, by using coupled seasonal forecast experiments at different resolutions, that resolving meso-scale oceanic variability in the Gulf Stream region strongly affects mid-latitude interannual atmospheric variability, including the North Atlantic Oscillation. Its impact on climatology, however, is minor. Increasing atmosphere resolution to meso-scale, on the other hand, strongly affects mean climate but moderately its variability. We also find that regional predictability relies on adequately resolving small-scale atmospheric processes, while resolving small-scale oceanic processes acts as an unpredictable source of noise, except for the North Atlantic storm-track where the forcing of the atmosphere translates into skillful predictions.

scholarly journals Ocean Warming Effect on Surface Gravity Wave Climate Change for the End of the Twenty-First Century

2013 ◽  
Vol 26 (16) ◽  
pp. 6046-6066 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yalin Fan ◽  
Isaac M. Held ◽  
Shian-Jiann Lin ◽  
Xiaolan L. Wang
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
Austral Summer ◽  
South Pacific ◽  
First Century ◽  
The South ◽  
Coupled Models ◽  
The North ◽  
The North Atlantic ◽  
Twenty First Century

Abstract Surface wind (U10) and significant wave height (Hs) response to global warming are investigated using a coupled atmosphere–wave model by perturbing the sea surface temperatures (SSTs) with anomalies generated by the Working Group on Coupled Modeling (WGCM) phase 3 of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP3) coupled models that use the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Fourth Assessment Report (IPCC AR4)/Special Report on Emissions Scenarios A1B (SRES A1B) scenario late in the twenty-first century. Several consistent changes were observed across all four realizations for the seasonal means: robust increase of U10 and Hs in the Southern Ocean for both the austral summer and winter due to the poleward shift of the jet stream; a dipole pattern of the U10 and Hs with increases in the northeast sector and decreases at the midlatitude during boreal winter in the North Atlantic due to the more frequent occurrence of the positive phases of the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO); and strong decrease of U10 and Hs in the tropical western Pacific Ocean during austral summer, which might be caused by the joint effect of the weakening of the Walker circulation and the large hurricane frequency decrease in the South Pacific. Changes of the 99th percentile U10 and Hs are twice as strong as changes in the seasonal means, and the maximum changes are mainly dominated by the changes in hurricanes. Robust strong decreases of U10 and Hs in the South Pacific are obtained because of the large hurricane frequency decrease, while the results in the Northern Hemisphere basins differ among the models. An additional sensitivity experiment suggests that the qualitative response of U10 and Hs is not affected by using SST anomalies only and maintaining the radiative forcing unchanged (using 1980 values), as in this study.

scholarly journals The role of local sea surface temperature pattern changes in shaping climate change in the North Atlantic sector

2018 ◽  
Vol 52 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 417-438 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ralf Hand ◽  
Noel S. Keenlyside ◽  
Nour-Eddine Omrani ◽  
Jürgen Bader ◽  
Richard J. Greatbatch
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Surface Temperature ◽  
Sea Surface Temperature ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
Sea Surface ◽  
Temperature Pattern ◽  
Atlantic Sector ◽  
The North ◽  
The North Atlantic

scholarly journals Impact of Anomalous Ocean Heat Transport on the North Atlantic Oscillation

2005 ◽  
Vol 18 (23) ◽  
pp. 4955-4969 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fabio D’Andrea ◽  
Arnaud Czaja ◽  
John Marshall
Keyword(s):  
North Atlantic Oscillation ◽  
Heat Transport ◽  
Time Scales ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
Ocean Dynamics ◽  
Ocean Heat Transport ◽  
The North ◽  
The North Atlantic ◽  
Wind Driven Circulation ◽  
The North Atlantic Oscillation

Abstract Coupled atmosphere–ocean dynamics in the North Atlantic is studied by means of a simple model, featuring a baroclinic three-dimensional atmosphere coupled to a slab ocean. Anomalous oceanic heat transport due to wind-driven circulation is parameterized in terms of a delayed response to the change in wind stress curl due to the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO). Climate variability for different strengths of ocean heat transport efficiency is analyzed. Two types of behavior are found depending on time scale. At interdecadal and longer time scales, a negative feedback is found that leads to a reduction in the spectral power of the NAO. By greatly increasing the efficiency of ocean heat transport, the NAO in the model can be made to completely vanish from the principal modes of variability at low frequency. This suggests that the observed NAO variability at these time scales must be due to mechanisms other than the interaction with wind-driven circulation. At decadal time scales, a coupled oscillation is found in which SST and geopotential height fields covary.

scholarly journals Dynamical Properties of the North Atlantic Atmospheric Circulation in the Past 150 Years in CMIP5 Models and the 20CRv2c Reanalysis

2018 ◽  
Vol 31 (15) ◽  
pp. 6097-6111 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Rodrigues ◽  
M. Carmen Alvarez-Castro ◽  
Gabriele Messori ◽  
Pascal Yiou ◽  
Yoann Robin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Dynamical Systems ◽  
Atmospheric Circulation ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Cmip5 Models ◽  
Historical Period ◽  
Local Dimension ◽  
The North ◽  
The North Atlantic ◽  
Over Time

It is of fundamental importance to evaluate the ability of climate models to capture the large-scale atmospheric circulation patterns and, in the context of a rapidly increasing greenhouse forcing, the robustness of the changes simulated in these patterns over time. Here we approach this problem from an innovative point of view based on dynamical systems theory. We characterize the atmospheric circulation over the North Atlantic in the CMIP5 historical simulations (1851–2000) in terms of two instantaneous metrics: local dimension of the attractor and stability of phase-space trajectories. We then use these metrics to compare the models to the Twentieth Century Reanalysis version 2c (20CRv2c) over the same historical period. The comparison suggests that (i) most models capture to some degree the median attractor properties, and models with finer grids generally perform better; (ii) in most models the extremes in the dynamical systems metrics match large-scale patterns similar to those found in the reanalysis; (iii) changes in the attractor properties observed for the ensemble-mean 20CRv2c are artifacts resulting from inhomogeneities in the standard deviation of the ensemble over time; and (iv) the long-term trends in local dimension observed among the 56 members of the 20CR ensemble have the same sign as those observed in the CMIP5 multimodel mean, although the multimodel trend is much weaker.

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