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1.
The intermediate and deep waters of the Labrador Sea are dominated by recently ventilated water masses (ventilation ages <20 yr). Atmospheric gases such as CO2 and chlorofluorocarbons are incorporated into these water masses at the time of formation and subsequently transported via boundary currents into the North Atlantic interior. Recent measurements of total carbonate were used in tandem with total alkalinity and oxygen to estimate the levels of anthropogenic carbon dioxide in the Labrador Sea region. Upper water column anthropogenic CO2 estimated in this manner showed good agreement with levels calculated from CO2 increase in the atmosphere. In spring 1997, anthropogenic contributions to total carbonate (CTant) were 40±3 μmol/kg in water penetrated by deep convection the previous winter and slightly lower (37±2 μmol/kg) in the deeper convective layer formed in the winters of 1992–1994. Consistent with the concurrent profiles of CFC-11, levels decrease into the older NEADW (North East Atlantic Deep Water) with levels of 30±3 μmol/kg and then increase near bottom within the layer of DSOW (Denmark Strait Overflow Water). The distribution of CTant shows the flow of new LSW southwards with the western boundary current and also eastwards into the Irminger Sea. We estimate that 0.15–0.35 Gt carbon of anthropogenic origin flow through the Labrador Sea within the Western Boundary Undercurrent per year.  相似文献   

2.
The influence of changes in the rate of deep water formation in the North Atlantic subpolar gyre on the variability of the transport in the Deep Western Boundary Current is investigated in a realistic hind cast simulation of the North Atlantic during the 1953–2003 period. In the simulation, deep water formation takes place in the Irminger Sea, in the interior of the Labrador Sea and in the Labrador Current. In the Irminger Sea, deep water is formed close to the boundary currents. It is rapidly exported out of the Irminger Sea via an intensified East Greenland Current, and out of the Labrador Sea via increased southeastward transports. The newly formed deep water, which is advected to Flemish Cap in approximately one year, is preceded by fast propagating topographic waves. Deep water formed in the Labrador Sea interior tends to accumulate and recirculate within the basin, with a residence time of a few years in the Labrador Sea. Hence, it is only slowly exported northeastward to the Irminger Sea and southeastward to the subtropical North Atlantic, reaching Flemish Cap in 1–5 years. As a result, the transport in the Deep Western Boundary Current is mostly correlated with convection in the Irminger Sea. Finally, the deep water produced in the Labrador Current is lighter and is rapidly exported out of the Labrador Basin, reaching Flemish Cap in a few months. As the production of deep-water along the western periphery of the Labrador Sea is maximum when convection in the interior is minimum, there is some compensation between the deep water formed along the boundary and in the interior of the basin, which reduces the variability of its net transport. These mechanisms which have been suggested from hydrographic and tracer observations, help one to understand the variability of the transport in the Deep Western Boundary Current at the exit of the subpolar gyre.  相似文献   

3.
Labrador Sea convection was most intense and reached the greatest depths in the early 1990s, followed by weaker, shallower, and more variable convection after 1995. The Simple Ocean Data Assimilation (SODA) version 2.0.2/2.0.4 assimilation model is used to explore convective activity in the North Atlantic Ocean for the period from 1992 to 2007. Hydrographic conditions, which are relatively well observed during this period, are used to compare modeled and observed winter mixed-layer depths and water mass anomalies in relation to Deep Western Boundary Current transports and meridional overturning circulation (MOC) changes at the exit of the subpolar basin. The assimilation differs markedly from local observations in the March mixed-layer depth, which represents deep convection and water mass transformation. However, mean MOC rates at the exit of the subpolar gyre, forced by stratification in the mid-latitudes, are similar to estimates based on observations and show no significant decrease during the 1992–2007 period. SODA reproduces the deep Labrador Sea Water formation in the western North Atlantic without any clear indication of significant formation in the Irminger Sea while the lighter upper Labrador Sea Water density range is reached in the Irminger Sea in the 1990s, in agreement with existing assumptions of deep convection in the Irminger Sea and also supported by computed lag correlations with the Labrador Sea. Deep Water transformation mainly takes place in the eastern North Atlantic. The introduction of CFC-11 into the SODA model as a tracer reproduces the mean and multiyear variations of observed distributions.  相似文献   

4.
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5.
A quantitative estimate of the temperature and salinity variations in the Labrador Sea Water (LSW), the Iceland-Scotland Overflow Water (ISOW), and the Denmark Strait Overflow Water (DSOW) is given on the basis of the analysis of repeated observations over a transatlantic section along 60°N in 1997, 2002, 2004, and 2006. The changes distinguished in the research evidence strong warming and salinification in the layers of the Labrador Sea Water and deep waters at the latitude of the section. The maximum increments of the temperature (+0.35°C) and salinity (+0.05 psu) were found in the Irminger Basin in the core of the deep LSW, whose convective renewal in the Labrador Sea stopped in the mid-1990s. The long-term freshening of the ISOW, which started in the mid-1960s, changed in the mid-1990s to a period of intense stable warming and salinification of this water. By 2005, the salinity in the core of the ISOW in the Iceland Basin increased to the values (～34.99 psu) characteristic of the mid-1970s. In 2002, the warming “signal” of the ISOW reached the Irminger Basin. From 1997 to 2006, the warming and salinification of the columns of the Labrador Sea Water and deep waters became as high as 0.2°C and 0.03 psu, respectively. The character of the long-term variations in the thermohaline properties of the LSW and ISOW from the 1950s evidence that these variations were nearly in-phase and correlated with the low-frequency component of the North Atlantic Oscillation.  相似文献   

6.
Chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) inventories provide an independent method for calculating the rate of North Atlantic Deep Water (NADW) formation. From data collected between 1986 and 1992, the CFC-11 inventories for the major components of NADW are: 4.2 million moles for Upper Labrador Sea Water (ULSW), 14.7 million moles for Classical Labrador Sea Water (CLSW), 5.0 million moles for Iceland–Scotland Overflow Water (ISOW), and 5.9 million moles for Denmark Strait Overflow Water (DSOW). The inventories directly reflect the input of newly formed water into the deep Atlantic Ocean from the Greenland, Iceland and Norwegian Seas and from the surface of the subpolar North Atlantic during the time of the CFC-11 transient. Since about 90% of CFC-11 in the ocean as of 1990 entered the ocean between 1970 and 1990, the formation rates estimated by this method represent an average over this time period. Formation rates based on best estimates of source water CFC-11 saturations are: 2.2 Sv for ULSW, 7.4 Sv for CLSW, 5.2 Sv for ISOW (2.4 Sv pure ISOW, 1.8 Sv entrained CLSW, and 1.0 Sv entrained northeast Atlantic water) and 2.4 Sv for DSOW. To our knowledge, this is the first calculation for the rate of ULSW formation. The formation rate of CLSW was calculated for an assumed variable formation rate scaled to the thickness of CLSW in the central Labrador Sea with a 10 : 1 ratio of high to low rates. The best estimate of these rates are 12.5 and 1.3 Sv, which average to 7.4 Sv for the 1970–1990 time period. The average formation rate for the sum of CLSW, ISOW and DSOW is 15.0 Sv, which is similar to (within our error) previous estimates (which do not include ULSW) using other techniques. Including ULSW, the total NADW formation rate is about 17.2 Sv. Although ULSW has not been considered as part of the North Atlantic thermohaline circulation in the past, it is clearly an important component that is exported out of the North Atlantic with other NADW components.  相似文献   

7.
Water properties measured by the central mooring in the Line W mooring array southeast of Cape Cod document a large character shift during the period of November 2001 to April 2008. The observed temperature, salinity and planetary potential vorticity (PPV) anomalies manifest changes in the formation region of the water masses present at Station W, specifically upper Labrador Sea Water (uLSW), deep Labrador Sea Water (dLSW) and Overflow Water (OW). During the observation period, the minimum in the PPV anomaly field relative to the record mean PPV profile migrated from 1500 m, where it was originally found, to 700 m. Temporal changes in the vertical distribution of temperature and salinity were correlated with the PPV changes. This suggests a dLSW-dominated first half of the record versus an uLSW-dominated second half. The structure of these anomalies is consistent with observations within the Labrador Sea, and their transit time to Line W agrees well with tracer-derived times for signals spreading along the western boundary. In that context, the observed water properties at Line W in the early 2000s reflected the intense deep convection in the Labrador Sea in the mid-1990s, with less intense convection subsequently affecting lighter isopycnals. The observed velocity field is dominated by high-frequency (periods of days to months) fluctuations, however, a fraction of the velocity variability is correlated with changes in water mass properties, and indicate a gradual acceleration of the southwestward flow, with a corresponding increase in Deep Western Boundary Current transport.  相似文献   

8.
The circulation and hydrography of the north-eastern North Atlantic has been studied with an emphasis on the upper layers and the deep water types which take part in the thermohaline overturning of the Oceanic Conveyor Belt. Over 900 hydrographic stations were used for this study, mainly from the 1987–1991 period. The hydrographic properties of Subpolar Mode Water in the upper layer, which is transported towards the Norwegian Sea, showed large regional variation. The deep water mass was dominated by the cold inflow of deep water from the Norwegian Sea and by a cyclonic recirculation of Lower Deep Water with a high Antarctic Bottom Water content. At intermediate levels the dominating water type was Labrador Sea Water with only minor influence of Mediterranean Sea Water. In the permanent pycnocline traces of Antarctic Intermediate Water were found.Geostrophic transports have been estimated, and these agreed in order of magnitude with the local heat budget, with current measurements, with data from surface drifters, and with the observed water mass modification. A total of 23 Sv of surface water entered the region, of which 20 Sv originated from the North Atlantic Current, while 3 Sv entered via an eastern boundary current. Of this total, 13 Sv of surface water left the area across the Reykjanes Ridge, and 7 Sv entered the Norwegian Sea, while 3 Sv was entrained by the cold overflow across the Iceland-Scotland Ridge. Approximately 1.4 Sv of Norwegian Sea Deep Water was involved in the overflow into the Iceland Basin, which, with about 1.1 Sv of entrained water and 1.1 Sv recirculating Lower Deep Water, formed a deep northern boundary current in the Iceland Basin. At intermediate depths, where Labrador Sea Water formed the dominant water type, about 2 Sv of entrained surface water contributed to a saline water mass which was transported westwards along the south Icelandic slope.  相似文献   

9.
On the basis of the hydrographic data observed within the Canary Basin in autumn 1985, temperature-salinity properties, distributions of water masses and barocltne flow field, as well as the volume transports in this area are described more detailly. The analyses indicate that the activity in the waters of the Canary Basin is mainly attributed to the interleaving and mixing between the originated water masses (e. g. Surface Water, North Atlantic Central Water, Mediterranean Water and Deep Water) and the modified water masses (Subpolar Mode Water, Labrador Sea Water and Antarctic Intermediate Water) from the outside of the study area and the variation of themselves. The east recirculation of the Subtropic Gyre in the North Atlantic consists of Azores Current and Canary Current.Azores Current is formed with several flow branches around the Azores Island, while the main flow lies at 35?N south of the Azores Island. It begins to diverge near the 15?W. The return flow found off the Portugal coast may be its  相似文献   

10.
Cores raised during IODP Expedition 303 off southern Greenland (Eirik Ridge site 1305) and off the Labrador Coast (Orphan Knoll site 1302/1303) were analyzed to establish an isotope stratigraphy, respectively for the “inner” and “outer” basins of the Labrador Sea (LS). These isotopic data also provide information on the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), notably with regard to the intensity of the Western Boundary Under Current (WBUC), which is tightly controlled by the production of Denmark Strait Overflow Water (DSOW), and the production of Labrador Sea Water (LSW) in the inner basin through winter cooling and convection. The upper 184 m of sediment at Eirik Ridge spans marine isotope stages (MIS) 32 to 1. At this site, two distinct regimes are observed: prior to MIS 20, the isotopic record resembles that of the open North Atlantic records of the interval, whereas a more site-specific pattern is observed afterwards. This later pattern was characterized by i) high DSOW production rates and strong WBUC during interglacial stages, as indicated by sedimentation rates, ii) large amplitude δ18O-shifts from glacial stages to interglacial stages (> 2.5‰) and iii) an overall range of δ18O-values significantly more positive than before. At Orphan Knoll, the 105 m record spans approximately 800 ka and provides direct information on linkages between the northeastern sector of the Laurentide Ice Sheet and the North Atlantic. At this site, a shift towards larger amplitude glacial/interglacial ranges of δ18O-values occurred after MIS 13, although isotopic records bear a typical North Atlantic signature, particularly during MIS 5, in contradiction to those of Eirik Ridge, where substages 5a to 5c are barely recognized. Closer examination of δ18O-records in planktic and benthic foraminifera demonstrates the presence of distinct deep-water masses in the inner vs. outer LS basins during MIS 11 and more particularly MIS 5e. Data confirm that the modern AMOC, with LSW formation, seems mostly exclusive to the present interglacial, and also suggest some specificity of each interglacial with respect to the production rate of DSOW and the AMOC, in general.  相似文献   

11.
The main water transformations in the Arctic Mediterranean take place in the boundary current of Atlantic Water, which crosses the Greenland–Scotland ridge from the North Atlantic into the eastern Norwegian Sea. It enters and flows around the Arctic Ocean before it exits the Arctic Mediterranean as the East Greenland Current, primarily through Denmark Strait. On route, it experiences numerous branchings and mergings. By examining how the properties of this “circumpolar” boundary current evolve, it is possible to identify and describe the processes causing the water mass transformations in the Arctic Mediterranean. It is also possible to follow the Arctic Ocean deep waters as they spread into the Nordic Seas and eventually provide 40% of the overflow water supplying the North Atlantic Deep Water.  相似文献   

12.
The ratio of oxygen-18 to oxygen-16 (expressed as per mille deviations from Vienna Standard Mean Ocean Water, δ18O) is reported for seawater samples collected from seven full-depth CTD casts in the northern North Atlantic between 20° and 41°W, 52° and 60°N. Water masses in the study region are distinguished by their δ18O composition, as are the processes involved in their formation. The isotopically heaviest surface waters occur in the eastern region where values of δ18O and salinity (S) lie on an evaporation–precipitation line with slope of 0.6 in δ18O–S space. Surface isotopic values become progressively lighter to the west of the region due to the addition of 18O-depleted precipitation. This appears to be mainly the meteoric water outflow from the Arctic rather than local precipitation. Surface samples near the southwest of the survey area (close to the Charlie Gibbs Fracture Zone) show a deviation in δ18O–S space from the precipitation mixing line due to the influence of sea ice meltwater. We speculate that this is the effect of the sea ice meltwater efflux from the Labrador Sea. Subpolar Mode Water (SPMW) is modified en route to the Labrador Sea where it forms Labrador Sea Water (LSW). LSW lies to the right (saline) side of the precipitation mixing line, indicating that there is a positive net sea ice formation from its source waters. We estimate that a sea ice deficit of ≈250 km3 is incorporated annually into LSW. This ice forms further north from the Labrador Sea, but its effect is transferred to the Labrador Sea via, e.g. the East Greenland Current. East Greenland Current waters are relatively fresh due to dilution with a large amount of meteoric water, but also contain waters that have had a significant amount of sea ice formed from them. The Northeast Atlantic Deep Water (NEADW, δ18O=0.22‰) and Northwest Atlantic Bottom Waters (NWABW, δ18O=0.13‰) are isotopically distinct reflecting different formation and mixing processes. NEADW lies on the North Atlantic precipitation mixing line in δ18O–salinity space, whereas NWABW lies between NEADW and LSW on δ18O–salinity plots. The offset of NWABW relative to the North Atlantic precipitation mixing line is partially due to entrainment of LSW by the Denmark Strait overflow water during its overflow of the Denmark Strait sill. In the eastern basin, lower deep water (LDW, modified Antarctic bottom water) is identified as far north as 55°N. This LDW has δ18O of 0.13‰, making it quite distinct from NEADW. It is also warmer than NWABW, despite having a similar isotopic composition to this latter water mass.  相似文献   

13.
The variability of two modes of Labrador Sea Water (LSW) (upper and deep Labrador Sea Water) and their respective spreading in the interior North Atlantic Ocean are investigated by means of repeated ship surveys carried out along the zonal WOCE line A2/AR19 located at 43–48°N (1993–2007) and along the GOOS line at about 48–51°N (1997–2002). Hydrographic section data are complemented by temperature, salinity, and velocity time series recorded by two moorings. They have been deployed at the western flank of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge (MAR) in the Newfoundland Basin during 1996–2004. The analysis of hydrographic anomalies at various longitudes points to a gradual eastward propagation of LSW-related signals, which happens on time scales of 3–6 years from the formation region towards the MAR. Interactions of the North Atlantic Current (NAC) with the Deep Western Boundary Current (DWBC) close to Flemish Cap point to the NAC being the main distributor of the different types of LSW into the interior of the Newfoundland Basin. Comparisons between the ship data and the mooring records revealed that the mooring sites are located in a region affected by highly variable flow. The mooring time series demonstrate an elevated level of variability with eddy activity and variability associated with the NAC considerably influencing the LSW signals in this region. Hydrographic data taken from Argo profiles from the vicinity of the mooring sites turned out to mimic quite well the temporal evolution captured by the moorings. There is some indication of occasional southward flow in the LSW layer near the MAR. If this can be considered as a hint to an interior LSW-route, it is at least of minor importance in comparison to the DWBC. It acts as an important supplier for the interior North Atlantic, distributing older and recently formed LSW modes southward along the MAR.  相似文献   

14.
Growing interest in the dynamics and temporal variability of the deep western boundary current (DWBC) in the northern North Atlantic has led to numerous studies of the modern hydrography and palaeoceanography of this current system. The DWBC is fed by the two dense water-masses that spill over the Greenland–Iceland–Scotland Ridge; Denmark Strait Overflow Water (DSOW) and Iceland Scotland Overflow Water (ISOW). These overflows entrain ambient water masses, primarily Labrador Sea Water (LSW), as they cross the Iceland and Irminger Basins before merging in the vicinity of south-east Greenland. A number of studies have been performed around the Eirik Drift, located off the southern Greenland margin, downstream of this main merging point. However, the relationship between the DWBC and the associated sedimentation at this location has yet to be fully elucidated. New hydrographic data show that the current's main sediment load is carried by only one of its components, the DSOW. Seismic surveys and sediment cores confirm that Holocene sedimentation is limited to areas underlying the most offshore part of the current, where the hydrographic data show the highest concentration of DSOW. Active sedimentation through the Holocene therefore appears to have been controlled by proximity to the sediment-laden DSOW.Our interpretation of new and historic geostrophic transport and tracer data from transects around the southern Greenland margin also suggests that the DWBC undergoes significant growth through entrainment as it flows around the Eirik Drift. We attribute this to multiple strands of ISOW following different depth-dependent pathways between exiting the Charlie Gibbs Fracture Zone and joining the DWBC. Comparison of our new data with other modern hydrographic datasets reveals significant temporal variability in the DWBC, associated with variations in the position, structure and age since ventilation of the current in the vicinity of Eirik Drift. The complexity of the current dynamics in this area has implications for the interpretation of hydrographic and palaeoceanographic data.  相似文献   

15.
Inter-annual to inter-decadal changes of hydrographic structure and circulation in the subpolar North Atlantic are studied using a coarse resolution ocean circulation model. The study covers 1949 through 2001, inclusive. A “time-mean state nudging” method is applied to assimilate the observed hydrographic climatology into the model. The method significantly reduces model biases in the long-term mean distribution of temperature and salinity, which commonly exist in coarse-resolution ocean models. By reducing the time-mean biases we also significantly improve the model’s representation of inter-annual to inter-decadal variations. In the central Labrador Sea, the model broadly reproduces the heat and salt variations of the Labrador Sea Water (LSW) as revealed by hydrographic observations. Model sensitivity experiments confirm that the low-frequency hydrographic changes in the central Labrador Sea are closely related to changes in the intensity and depth of deep convection. Changes in surface heat flux associated with the winter North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) index play a major role in driving the changes in T–S and sea surface height (SSH). Changes in wind stress play a secondary role in driving these changes but are important in driving the changes in the depth-integrated circulation. The total changes in both SSH and depth-integrated circulation are almost a linear combination of the separate influences of variable buoyancy and momentum fluxes.  相似文献   

16.
Observations of deep ocean temperature and salinity in the Labrador and Greenland Seas indicate that there is negative correlation between the activities of deep convection in these two sites. A previous study suggests that this negative correlation is controlled by the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO). In this study, we discuss this deep convection seesaw by using a coupled atmosphere and ocean general circulation model. In this simulation, the deep convection is realistically simulated in both the Labrador and Greenland Seas and their negative correlation is also recognized. Regression of sea level pressure to wintertime mixed layer depth in the Labrador Sea reveals strong correlation between the convection and the NAO as previous studies suggest, but a significant portion of their variability is not correlated. On the other hand, the convection in the Greenland Sea is not directly related to the NAO, and its variability is in phase with changes in the freshwater budget in the GIN Seas. The deep convection seesaw found in the model is controlled by freshwater transport through the Denmark Strait. When this transport is larger, more freshwater flows to the Labrador Sea and less to the Greenland Sea. This leads to lower upper-ocean surface salinity in the Labrador Sea and higher salinity in the Greenland Sea, which produces negative correlation between these two deep convective activities. The deep convection seesaw observed in the recent decades could be interpreted as induced by the changes in the freshwater transport through the Denmark Strait, whose role has not been discussed so far.  相似文献   

17.
Multivariate statistical analysis on the kaolinite/chlorite ratios from 20 South Atlantic sediment cores allowed for the extraction of two processes controlling the fluctuations of the kaolinite/chlorite ratio during the last 130,000 yrs, (1) the relative strength of North Atlantic Deep Water (NADW) inflow into the South Atlantic Ocean and (2) the influx of aeolian sediments from the south African continent. The NADW fluctuation can be traced in the entire deep South Atlantic while the dust signal is restricted to the vicinity of South Africa. Our data indicate that NADW formation underwent significant changes in response to glacial/interglacial climate changes with enhanced export to the Southern Hemisphere during interglacials. The most pronounced phases with Enhanced South African Dust Export (ESADE) occurred during cold Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 5d and across the Late Glacial/Holocene transition from 16 ka to 4 ka (MIS 2 to 1). This particular pattern is attributed to the interaction of Antarctic Sea Ice extent, the position of the westerlies and the South African monsoon system.  相似文献   

18.
This paper presents reconstructions of ice sheet boundaries, lacustrine and marine paleobasins, as well as the connections of the Barents and Baltic seas with the North Atlantic from the Last Glacial Maximum to the Holocene. The reconstructions are based on original and published data obtained from the northern and western parts of the Barents Sea and Baltic depressions with account for the available regional schematic maps of deglaciation. The early deglaciation of the Scandinavian–Barents ice sheet culminated with the Bølling-Allerød interstadial (14.5–12.9 cal ka BP), which was characterized by a more vigorous Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC) and a corresponding increase in surface Atlantic water inflow into the Barents Sea through deep troughs. The Baltic Ice Lake (BIL) remained a dammed-up isolated basin during deglaciation from 16.0 to 11.7 cal ka BP. In the Younger Dryas (YD), the lake drained into the North Sea and was replaced by a brackish Yoldia Sea (YS) at the beginning of the Holocene (Preboreal, 11.7–10.7 cal ka BP), due to a limited connection between two basins through the Närke Strait. In the Barents Sea, the next increase in the Atlantic water influx into the deep basins corresponded to terminal YD and Preboreal events with a culmination in the Early Holocene. The Yoldia Sea became a lake again during the next stage, the Ancylus (~10.7–8.8 cal ka BP). Atlantic water inflow both into the Barents and Baltic seas varied during the Holocene, with a maximum contribution in the Early Holocene, when the Littorina Sea (LS, 8–4 cal ka BP) connection with the North Sea via the Danish Straits was formed to replace the Ancylus Lake. The recent, post-Littorina stage (PS, the last 4 cal ka) of the Baltic Sea evolution began in the Late Holocene.  相似文献   

19.
Two standard sections across the deep water channel separating the Faroese Plateau from the Scottish continental shelf have been surveyed regularly since the start of the 20th century. There have been significant changes in the characteristics of surface, intermediate and deep water masses during this period. At intermediate depths, the presence of Norwegian Sea Arctic Intermediate Water (NSAIW) was evident as a salinity minimum during the first decade of the century. During the decades 1960–1980 this salinity minimum disappeared, and only four water types were identified in the Channel. Since 1980 the salinity of the intermediate water has again decreased, due to changes in the atmospheric forcing over the Nordic Seas, and it is again evident on a θS curve as a distinct minimum. The salinity of the bottom water in the Channel has also decreased (0.01/decade) linearly since the mid-1970s, although at a slower rate than the intermediate water (0.02/decade). The decline in salinity of the bottom water cannot be accounted for by changes in the salinity of upper Norwegian Sea Deep Water (NSDW), which Faroe Shetland Channel Bottom Water (FSCBW) has traditionally been assumed to be composed of. There is evidence that the upper level of NSDW has become deeper outside the Channel owing to a reduced supply from the Greenland Sea. This has resulted in a change in the composition of FSCBW, from being approximately 60% NSDW during the period 1970–1985 to 40% NSDW since 1990. Thus, the thermohaline circulation of the Nordic Seas has lost its deep water connection. The associated freshening of FSCBW has propagated out through the Channel into the North Atlantic and has resulted in a reduction of the salinity (0.02/decade) and transport (1–7%/decade) of Iceland Scotland Overflow Water (ISOW) into the North Atlantic.  相似文献   

20.
Data from the East Greenland Current in 2002 are evaluated using optimum multiparameter analysis. The current is followed from north of Fram Strait to the Denmark Strait Sill and the contributions of different source waters, in mass fractions, are deduced. From the results it can be concluded that, at least in spring 2002, the East Greenland Current was the main source for the waters found at the Denmark Strait Sill, contributing to the overflow into the North Atlantic. The East Greenland Current carried water masses from different source regions in the Arctic Ocean, the West Spitsbergen Current and the Greenland Sea. The results agree well with the known circulation of the western Nordic Seas but also add knowledge both to the quantification and to the mixing processes, showing the importance of the locally formed Greenland Sea Arctic Intermediate Water for the East Greenland Current and the Denmark Strait.  相似文献   

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