Remote forcing of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current by diapycnal mixing

• Published in: Geophysical Research Letters
• Main Authors: Munday, D, Allison, L, Johnson, H, Marshall, D
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: 2016
• Subjects: Antarctic; The Antarctic; Antarc*
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1029/2011GL046849; https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:b9cdaeb6-1241-4752-851c-bda4882e6e4a

We show that diapycnal mixing can drive a significant Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC) volume transport, even when the mixing is located remotely in northern-hemisphere ocean basins. In the case of remote forcing, the globally-averaged diapycnal mixing coefficient is the important parameter. This result is anticipated from theoretical arguments and demonstrated in a global ocean circulation model. The impact of enhanced diapycnal mixing on the ACC during glacial periods is discussed. Copyright 2011 by the American Geophysical Union.