Significance of diapycnal mixing within the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation
Diapycnal mixing shapes the distribution of climatically important tracers, such as heat and carbon, as these are carried by dense water masses in the ocean interior. Here, we analyze a suite of observation-based estimates of diapycnal mixing to assess its role within the Atlantic Meridional Overtur...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Journal article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Wiley
2023
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| _version_ | 1797109268762066944 |
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| author | Cimoli, L Mashayek, A Johnson, HL Marshall, DP Naveira Garabato, AC Whalen, CB Vic, C de Lavergne, C Alford, MH MacKinnon, JA Talley, LD |
| author_facet | Cimoli, L Mashayek, A Johnson, HL Marshall, DP Naveira Garabato, AC Whalen, CB Vic, C de Lavergne, C Alford, MH MacKinnon, JA Talley, LD |
| author_sort | Cimoli, L |
| collection | OXFORD |
| description | Diapycnal mixing shapes the distribution of climatically important tracers, such as heat and carbon, as these are carried by dense water masses in the ocean interior. Here, we analyze a suite of observation-based estimates of diapycnal mixing to assess its role within the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC). The rate of water mass transformation in the Atlantic Ocean's interior shows that there is a robust buoyancy increase in the North Atlantic Deep Water (NADW, neutral density γn ≃ 27.6–28.15), with a diapycnal circulation of 0.5–8 Sv between 48°N and 32°S in the Atlantic Ocean. Moreover, tracers within the southward-flowing NADW may undergo a substantial diapycnal transfer, equivalent to a vertical displacement of hundreds of meters in the vertical. This result, confirmed with a zonally averaged numerical model of the AMOC, indicates that mixing can alter where tracers upwell in the Southern Ocean, ultimately affecting their global pathways and ventilation timescales. These results point to the need for a realistic mixing representation in climate models in order to understand and credibly project the ongoing climate change. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-07T07:39:25Z |
| format | Journal article |
| id | oxford-uuid:767f7262-dbf3-4914-a2ec-a90c6494f2e9 |
| institution | University of Oxford |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-07T07:39:25Z |
| publishDate | 2023 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | oxford-uuid:767f7262-dbf3-4914-a2ec-a90c6494f2e92023-04-14T07:48:11ZSignificance of diapycnal mixing within the Atlantic Meridional Overturning CirculationJournal articlehttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_dcae04bcuuid:767f7262-dbf3-4914-a2ec-a90c6494f2e9EnglishSymplectic ElementsWiley2023Cimoli, LMashayek, AJohnson, HLMarshall, DPNaveira Garabato, ACWhalen, CBVic, Cde Lavergne, CAlford, MHMacKinnon, JATalley, LDDiapycnal mixing shapes the distribution of climatically important tracers, such as heat and carbon, as these are carried by dense water masses in the ocean interior. Here, we analyze a suite of observation-based estimates of diapycnal mixing to assess its role within the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC). The rate of water mass transformation in the Atlantic Ocean's interior shows that there is a robust buoyancy increase in the North Atlantic Deep Water (NADW, neutral density γn ≃ 27.6–28.15), with a diapycnal circulation of 0.5–8 Sv between 48°N and 32°S in the Atlantic Ocean. Moreover, tracers within the southward-flowing NADW may undergo a substantial diapycnal transfer, equivalent to a vertical displacement of hundreds of meters in the vertical. This result, confirmed with a zonally averaged numerical model of the AMOC, indicates that mixing can alter where tracers upwell in the Southern Ocean, ultimately affecting their global pathways and ventilation timescales. These results point to the need for a realistic mixing representation in climate models in order to understand and credibly project the ongoing climate change. |
| spellingShingle | Cimoli, L Mashayek, A Johnson, HL Marshall, DP Naveira Garabato, AC Whalen, CB Vic, C de Lavergne, C Alford, MH MacKinnon, JA Talley, LD Significance of diapycnal mixing within the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation |
| title | Significance of diapycnal mixing within the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation |
| title_full | Significance of diapycnal mixing within the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation |
| title_fullStr | Significance of diapycnal mixing within the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation |
| title_full_unstemmed | Significance of diapycnal mixing within the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation |
| title_short | Significance of diapycnal mixing within the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation |
| title_sort | significance of diapycnal mixing within the atlantic meridional overturning circulation |
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