Spatial and temporal structure of the Denmark Strait Overflow revealed by acoustic observations |
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| Authors: | Andreas Macrander Rolf H Käse Uwe Send Héðinn Valdimarsson Steingrímur Jónsson |
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| Institution: | (1) Alfred-Wegener-Institut für Polar- und Meeresforschung, Bussestr. 24, 27570 Bremerhaven, Germany;(2) IFM-GEOMAR, Kiel, Germany;(3) Institut für Meereskunde, Bundesstr. 53, 20146 Hamburg, Germany;(4) Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, Mail Code 0230, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093-0230, USA;(5) Marine Research Institute, Skúlagata 4, 121 Reykjavík, Iceland;(6) University of Akureyri, Borgir v/Noreurslóe, 600 Akureyri, Iceland;(7) MRI, Reykjavík, Iceland |
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| Abstract: | In spite of the fundamental role the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) plays for global climate stability,
no direct current measurement of the Denmark Strait Overflow, which is the densest part of the AMOC, has been available until
recently that resolve the cross-stream structure at the sill for long periods. Since 1999, an array of bottom-mounted acoustic
instruments measuring current velocity and bottom-to-surface acoustic travel times was deployed at the sill. Here, the optimization
of the array configuration based on a numerical overflow model is discussed. The simulation proves that more than 80% of the
dense water transport variability is captured by two to three acoustic current profilers (ADCPs). The results are compared
with time series from ADCPs and Inverted Echo Sounders deployed from 1999 to 2003, confirming that the dense overflow plume
can be reliably measured by bottom-mounted instruments and that the overflow is largely geostrophically balanced at the sill. |
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| Keywords: | Denmark Strait Overflow Acoustic observations ADCP PIES Geostrophy |
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