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Slantwise Convection in the Irminger Sea.

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Title: Slantwise Convection in the Irminger Sea.
Authors: Le Bras, I. A.‐A.1 (AUTHOR) ilebras@whoi.edu, Callies, J.2 (AUTHOR), Straneo, F.3 (AUTHOR), Biló, T. C.3 (AUTHOR), Holte, J.3 (AUTHOR), Johnson, H. L.4 (AUTHOR)
Source: Journal of Geophysical Research. Oceans. Oct2022, Vol. 127 Issue 10, p1-15. 15p.
Subject Terms: *Ocean convection, *Atmosphere, Buoyancy, Oceanic mixing, Transfer (Law), Atmospheric models, Mixing height (Atmospheric chemistry)
Abstract: The subpolar North Atlantic is a site of significant carbon dioxide, oxygen, and heat exchange with the atmosphere. This exchange, which regulates transient climate change and prevents large‐scale hypoxia throughout the North Atlantic, is thought to be mediated by vertical mixing in the ocean's surface mixed layer. Here we present observational evidence that waters deeper than the conventionally defined mixed layer are affected directly by atmospheric forcing in this region. When northerly winds blow along the Irminger Sea's western boundary current, the Ekman response pushes denser water over lighter water, potentially triggering slantwise convection. We estimate that this down‐front wind forcing is four times stronger than air–sea heat flux buoyancy forcing and can mix waters to several times the conventionally defined mixed layer depth. Slantwise convection is not included in most large‐scale ocean models, which likely limits their ability to accurately represent subpolar water mass transformations and deep ocean ventilation. Plain Language Summary: The deep ocean is an important part of the climate system, as it stores carbon dioxide and heat away from the atmosphere for hundreds to thousands of years. The transfer of properties between the atmosphere and deep ocean is broadly thought to occur in mixed layers formed by cooling at high‐latitudes. Here we suggest that winds blowing in the same direction as ocean currents can trigger slantwise convection, which causes properties to be mixed to several times the conventionally defined mixed layer depth. We hypothesize that slantwise convection is active in the Irminger Sea as well as in western boundary currents across the subpolar North Atlantic region. Representing slantwise convection in ocean and climate models may be an important component of reproducing pathways into the deep ocean. Key Points: Down‐front wind buoyancy forcing is stronger than heat loss buoyancy forcing in the western Irminger SeaWe observe a subsurface ocean response to down‐front winds consistent with slantwise convectionSlantwise convection may mix waters to several times the conventionally defined mixed layer depth in this region [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Journal of Geophysical Research. Oceans is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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  Data: Slantwise Convection in the Irminger Sea.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Le+Bras%2C+I%2E+A%2E‐A%2E%22">Le Bras, I. A.‐A.</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> ilebras@whoi.edu</i><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Callies%2C+J%2E%22">Callies, J.</searchLink><relatesTo>2</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Straneo%2C+F%2E%22">Straneo, F.</searchLink><relatesTo>3</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Biló%2C+T%2E+C%2E%22">Biló, T. C.</searchLink><relatesTo>3</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Holte%2C+J%2E%22">Holte, J.</searchLink><relatesTo>3</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Johnson%2C+H%2E+L%2E%22">Johnson, H. L.</searchLink><relatesTo>4</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Journal+of+Geophysical+Research%2E+Oceans%22">Journal of Geophysical Research. Oceans</searchLink>. Oct2022, Vol. 127 Issue 10, p1-15. 15p.
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  Data: *<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Ocean+convection%22">Ocean convection</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Atmosphere%22">Atmosphere</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Buoyancy%22">Buoyancy</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Oceanic+mixing%22">Oceanic mixing</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Transfer+%28Law%29%22">Transfer (Law)</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Atmospheric+models%22">Atmospheric models</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Mixing+height+%28Atmospheric+chemistry%29%22">Mixing height (Atmospheric chemistry)</searchLink>
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  Data: The subpolar North Atlantic is a site of significant carbon dioxide, oxygen, and heat exchange with the atmosphere. This exchange, which regulates transient climate change and prevents large‐scale hypoxia throughout the North Atlantic, is thought to be mediated by vertical mixing in the ocean's surface mixed layer. Here we present observational evidence that waters deeper than the conventionally defined mixed layer are affected directly by atmospheric forcing in this region. When northerly winds blow along the Irminger Sea's western boundary current, the Ekman response pushes denser water over lighter water, potentially triggering slantwise convection. We estimate that this down‐front wind forcing is four times stronger than air–sea heat flux buoyancy forcing and can mix waters to several times the conventionally defined mixed layer depth. Slantwise convection is not included in most large‐scale ocean models, which likely limits their ability to accurately represent subpolar water mass transformations and deep ocean ventilation. Plain Language Summary: The deep ocean is an important part of the climate system, as it stores carbon dioxide and heat away from the atmosphere for hundreds to thousands of years. The transfer of properties between the atmosphere and deep ocean is broadly thought to occur in mixed layers formed by cooling at high‐latitudes. Here we suggest that winds blowing in the same direction as ocean currents can trigger slantwise convection, which causes properties to be mixed to several times the conventionally defined mixed layer depth. We hypothesize that slantwise convection is active in the Irminger Sea as well as in western boundary currents across the subpolar North Atlantic region. Representing slantwise convection in ocean and climate models may be an important component of reproducing pathways into the deep ocean. Key Points: Down‐front wind buoyancy forcing is stronger than heat loss buoyancy forcing in the western Irminger SeaWe observe a subsurface ocean response to down‐front winds consistent with slantwise convectionSlantwise convection may mix waters to several times the conventionally defined mixed layer depth in this region [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
– Name: AbstractSuppliedCopyright
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  Data: <i>Copyright of Journal of Geophysical Research. Oceans is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
PLink https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=8gh&AN=159906724
RecordInfo BibRecord:
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      – Type: doi
        Value: 10.1029/2022JC019071
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      – Code: eng
        Text: English
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        PageCount: 15
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    Subjects:
      – SubjectFull: Ocean convection
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Atmosphere
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Buoyancy
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Oceanic mixing
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Transfer (Law)
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Atmospheric models
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Mixing height (Atmospheric chemistry)
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      – TitleFull: Slantwise Convection in the Irminger Sea.
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              M: 10
              Text: Oct2022
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              Y: 2022
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