Inferring the Pattern of the Oceanic Meridional Transport from the Air-Sea Density Flux
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Authors
Radko, Timour
Kamenkovich, Igor
Dare, Pierre-Yves
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Date of Issue
2008-12
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Abstract
An extension of Walin’s water mass transformation analysis is proposed that would make it possible to
assess the strength of the adiabatic along-isopycnal component of the meridional overturning circulation
(MOC). It is hypothesized that the substantial fraction of the adiabatic MOC component can be attributed
to the difference in subduction rates at the northern and southern outcrops of each density layer—the
“push–pull” mechanism. The GCM-generated data are examined and it is shown that the push–pull mode
accounts for approximately two-thirds of the isopycnal water mass transport in the global budget and
dominates the Atlantic transport. Much of the difference between the actual interhemispheric flux and the
push–pull mode can be ascribed to the influence of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current, characterized by the
elevated (at least in the GCM) values of the diapycnal transport. When the diagnostic model is applied to
observations, it is discovered that the reconstructed MOC is consistent, in terms of the magnitude and sense
of overturning, with earlier observational and modeling studies. The findings support the notion that the
dynamics of the meridional overturning are largely controlled by the adiabatic processes—time-mean and
eddy-induced advection of buoyancy.
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Article
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The article of record as published may be found at http://dx.doi.org/10.1175/2008JPO3748.1
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Oceanography
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Journal of Physical Oceanography, Volume 38, pp. 2722-2738, December 2008.
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This publication is a work of the U.S. Government as defined in Title 17, United States Code, Section 101. Copyright protection is not available for this work in the United States.