Decadal variation of the North Atlantic meridional heat transport and its relation to atmospheric processes

• Published in: Geophysical Research Letters
• Main Authors: Martin, Thomas, Ruprecht, Eberhard
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: AGU (American Geophysical Union) 2007
• Subjects: Nordic Seas; North Atlantic; Siberia
• Online Access: https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/6359/; https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/6359/1/Martin_et_al-2007-Geophysical_Research_Letters.pdf; https://doi.org/10.1029/2006GL028438

The effects of the meridional heat transport in the North Atlantic Ocean (HTR) on the north hemispheric climate are studied using the results of the coupled model ECHAM5/MPI-OM. Significant correlations exist between HTR and atmospheric processes over the Nordic Seas and the Eurasian continent only for low (periods longer than 40 years) and intermediate frequency variations (periods between 25 and 40 years). A positive HTR anomaly at 30°N is highly correlated with turbulent heat fluxes around 50°N. The transport through 70°N is directly related to the fluxes over the Nordic seas. From the correlation pattern with the atmospheric surface temperature and pressure one can conclude that the heat anomalies propagate along the cyclone tracks towards northeast over the Eurasian continent. The HRT anomalies are negatively correlated with the pressure over the Nordic seas and with the winter time anticyclone intensity over Siberia.