A sea change in our view of overturning in the subpolar North Atlantic.

Journal Article (Journal Article)

To provide an observational basis for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change projections of a slowing Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (MOC) in the 21st century, the Overturning in the Subpolar North Atlantic Program (OSNAP) observing system was launched in the summer of 2014. The first 21-month record reveals a highly variable overturning circulation responsible for the majority of the heat and freshwater transport across the OSNAP line. In a departure from the prevailing view that changes in deep water formation in the Labrador Sea dominate MOC variability, these results suggest that the conversion of warm, salty, shallow Atlantic waters into colder, fresher, deep waters that move southward in the Irminger and Iceland basins is largely responsible for overturning and its variability in the subpolar basin.

Full Text

Duke Authors

Cited Authors

  • Lozier, MS; Li, F; Bacon, S; Bahr, F; Bower, AS; Cunningham, SA; de Jong, MF; de Steur, L; deYoung, B; Fischer, J; Gary, SF; Greenan, BJW; Holliday, NP; Houk, A; Houpert, L; Inall, ME; Johns, WE; Johnson, HL; Johnson, C; Karstensen, J; Koman, G; Le Bras, IA; Lin, X; Mackay, N; Marshall, DP; Mercier, H; Oltmanns, M; Pickart, RS; Ramsey, AL; Rayner, D; Straneo, F; Thierry, V; Torres, DJ; Williams, RG; Wilson, C; Yang, J; Yashayaev, I; Zhao, J

Published Date

  • February 2019

Published In

Volume / Issue

  • 363 / 6426

Start / End Page

  • 516 - 521

PubMed ID

  • 30705189

Electronic International Standard Serial Number (EISSN)

  • 1095-9203

International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)

  • 0036-8075

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

  • 10.1126/science.aau6592

Language

  • eng