A first estimate of global Antarctic Bottom Water transport variability from GRACE satellite data ...
Antarctic Bottom Water (AABW) is a key component of global ocean circulation. Observations of AABW temperature and salinity suggest that AABW volumes and transport may be decreasing, which would impact global warming. There are no direct observations of AABW transport to corroborate this hypothesis....
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| Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
| Language: | English |
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The Australian National University
2022
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| Online Access: | https://dx.doi.org/10.25911/gjg4-8v13 https://openresearch-repository.anu.edu.au/handle/1885/292077 |
| Summary: | Antarctic Bottom Water (AABW) is a key component of global ocean circulation. Observations of AABW temperature and salinity suggest that AABW volumes and transport may be decreasing, which would impact global warming. There are no direct observations of AABW transport to corroborate this hypothesis. I develop a new method of reconstructing AABW transport variability using observations from the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) mission. Using two common physical approximations: hydrostatic and geostrophic balance, I theoretically relate GRACE satellite data linearly to ocean transport. I further investigate the utility of GRACE data to reconstruct AABW with an ocean general circulation model. I calculate both of these quantities in the model, and link them using a linear regression. I tweak aspects of the linear regression to optimise the reconstruction of AABW. My reconstruction from model-simulated GRACE data can capture almost all (87%) of AABW transport variance in the model. When realistic ... |
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