Meridional Overturning Circulation

• Main Author: Zhou Tianjun
• Other Authors: The Pennsylvania State University CiteSeerX Archives
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Subjects: Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation; basin scale; local; North Atlantic
• Online Access: http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.560.9599; http://www.lasg.ac.cn/uploadfiles/file/papers/2003/2003csb_ztj_eng.pdf

Abstract The multi-spatial variability modes of the At-lantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (MOC) are iden-tified in the natural coupled simulation of two climate models, the MOC either oscillates at decadal scales with strong cross-equatorial flow or fluctuates locally at interannual scales with weaker cross-equatorial flow. Former studies mainly emphasize the paleo-environmental and paleo-climatic im-pacts of the meridional overturning states transition; this analysis indicates the existence of the multi-spatial variability modes of the MOC at interannual to decadal scales. Further analysis indicates that the conventionally used MOC index, which is defined as the maximum zonal mean meridional stream-function of the North Atlantic, cannot properly de-scribe the multi-spatial variability characteristics of the MOC.