Transports and pathways of the tropical AMOC return flow from Argo data and shipboard velocity measurements

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Autori principali: Tuchen, Franz Philip, Brandt, Peter, Lübbecke, Joke, Hummels, Rebecca
Natura: Dataset Open Access
Lingua:en
Pubblicazione: PANGAEA 2021
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author Tuchen, Franz Philip
Brandt, Peter
Lübbecke, Joke
Hummels, Rebecca
author_facet Tuchen, Franz Philip
Brandt, Peter
Lübbecke, Joke
Hummels, Rebecca
collection Datos científicos de ciencias marinas y ambientales
contents The upper-ocean circulation of the tropical Atlantic is a complex superposition of thermohaline and wind-driven flow components. The resulting zonally- and vertically-integrated upper-ocean meridional flow is referred to as the upper branch of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) - a major component and potential tipping element of the global climate system. We investigate the tropical part of the northward AMOC branch, i.e. the return flow covering the upper 1,200 m, based on Argo data and repeated shipboard velocity measurements. The western boundary mean circulation at 11°S is realistically reproduced from high-resolution Argo data showing a remarkably good representation of the vertical structure of meridional velocity and the volume transport of water mass layers when compared to results from direct velocity measurements along a repeated ship section. Thus, we extend the analysis to the inner tropical Atlantic. Within the AMOC return flow, a diapycnal upwelling of central water into the thermocline layer of ~2 Sv is derived between 11°S and 10°N which is about half the magnitude of previous estimates, likely due to improved horizontal resolution. The mean strength of the AMOC return flow is ~16 Sv across 11°S and 10°N. At 11°S, northward transport is concentrated at the western boundary where the AMOC return flow enters the tropics at all vertical layers above 1,200 m. At 10°N, northward transport is observed both at the western boundary and in the interior predominantly in the surface and intermediate layer indicating recirculation and transformation of thermocline and central water within the tropics.
format Dataset Open Access
id pangaea_https___doi_org_10_1594_PANGAEA_937809
institution PANGAEA
language en
publishDate 2021
publisher PANGAEA
record_format pangaea
spellingShingle Transports and pathways of the tropical AMOC return flow from Argo data and shipboard velocity measurements
Tuchen, Franz Philip
Brandt, Peter
Lübbecke, Joke
Hummels, Rebecca
BANINO; Benguela Niños: Physikalische Prozesse und langperiodische Variabilität; currents; physical oceanography; TRIATLAS; Tropical and South Atlantic climate-based marine ecosystem predictions for sustainable management; tropical Atlantic
The upper-ocean circulation of the tropical Atlantic is a complex superposition of thermohaline and wind-driven flow components. The resulting zonally- and vertically-integrated upper-ocean meridional flow is referred to as the upper branch of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) - a major component and potential tipping element of the global climate system. We investigate the tropical part of the northward AMOC branch, i.e. the return flow covering the upper 1,200 m, based on Argo data and repeated shipboard velocity measurements. The western boundary mean circulation at 11°S is realistically reproduced from high-resolution Argo data showing a remarkably good representation of the vertical structure of meridional velocity and the volume transport of water mass layers when compared to results from direct velocity measurements along a repeated ship section. Thus, we extend the analysis to the inner tropical Atlantic. Within the AMOC return flow, a diapycnal upwelling of central water into the thermocline layer of ~2 Sv is derived between 11°S and 10°N which is about half the magnitude of previous estimates, likely due to improved horizontal resolution. The mean strength of the AMOC return flow is ~16 Sv across 11°S and 10°N. At 11°S, northward transport is concentrated at the western boundary where the AMOC return flow enters the tropics at all vertical layers above 1,200 m. At 10°N, northward transport is observed both at the western boundary and in the interior predominantly in the surface and intermediate layer indicating recirculation and transformation of thermocline and central water within the tropics.
title Transports and pathways of the tropical AMOC return flow from Argo data and shipboard velocity measurements
topic BANINO; Benguela Niños: Physikalische Prozesse und langperiodische Variabilität; currents; physical oceanography; TRIATLAS; Tropical and South Atlantic climate-based marine ecosystem predictions for sustainable management; tropical Atlantic
url https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.937809