Investigating surface buoyancy flux and Ekman transport influence on the Southern Ocean's upper ocean pycnocline stratification ...
<!--!introduction!--> In this study, we examine the factors that influence the stratification of the upper ocean pycnocline (UOP), focusing on the Southern Ocean. The UOP is a critical layer just below the mixed layer whose stratification controls the exchange of properties between the ocean a...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Conference Object |
| Language: | unknown |
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GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences
2023
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://dx.doi.org/10.57757/iugg23-2779 https://gfzpublic.gfz-potsdam.de/pubman/item/item_5019104 |
| Summary: | <!--!introduction!--> In this study, we examine the factors that influence the stratification of the upper ocean pycnocline (UOP), focusing on the Southern Ocean. The UOP is a critical layer just below the mixed layer whose stratification controls the exchange of properties between the ocean and the atmosphere. We classify the UOP regions according to the relative contributions of temperature and salinity in stabilizing the layer, resulting in three categories: alpha (temperature-stabilized), beta (salinity-stabilized), and transition (temperature- and salinity-stabilized) zones. Our analysis uses observational profiles from the EN4.2 database and calculates annual mean buoyancy fluxes by combining existing heat and freshwater flux products. Ekman transport is taken into account as an additional term in the buoyancy flux. In the Southern Ocean, the deep mixed layers are located on the southernmost flank of the alpha region, with the exception of the southeastern Pacific sector where they are located in ... : The 28th IUGG General Assembly (IUGG2023) (Berlin 2023) ... |
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