Sea level anomalies affect the ocean circulation at abyssal depths

• Published in: Scientific Reports
• Main Authors: Frey, D. I., Morozov, E. G., Smirnova, D. A.
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: Nature Publishing Group UK 2023
• Subjects: Article; Antarc*; Antarctic
• Online Access: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10682481/; http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/38012378; https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-48074-9

Abyssal channels are the key points controlling bottom circulation of the World Ocean. They provide meridional transport of the coldest Antarctic Bottom Water between deep-water basins influencing the meridional overturning circulation and the climate on a global scale. Here we show that the synoptic variability of deep-water flows including blocking abyssal currents between deep ocean basins is related to sea level anomalies observed over the channels. Our results demonstrate that processes at the ocean surface have a more significant connection with the bottom circulation than it was considered earlier. This study opens a discussion of the importance of mesoscale eddies and air-sea interactions on water exchange between abyssal basins, meridional heat transport in the ocean, and possible responses of the ocean to the observed sea level rise in a changing climate.