Labrador Sea convection and subpolar North Atlantic Deep Water export in the SODA assimilation model

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.     

Deep convection seesaw controlled by freshwater transport through the Denmark Strait

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.     

The hydrography of the mid-latitude Northeast Atlantic Ocean: II: The intermediate water masses

The intermediate water masses in the eastern Atlantic Ocean between 31°N and 53°N were studied by analysis of the distributions of potential temperature, salinity, dissolved nutrients and oxygen. Sub-surface salinity minima are encountered everywhere in the area. At the northern and southern boundary they are connected with the presence of Sub-Arctic Intermediate Water and Antarctic Intermediate Water, respectively, but towards the European ocean margin the sub-surface salinity minima shift to shallower density levels. The sub-surface salinity minima observed west of the Iberian Peninsula represent a water mass formed by winter convection in the Porcupine Sea Bight and the northern Bay of Biscay. These minima gain salt by diapycnal mixing with the underlying Mediterranean Sea Outflow water and with the overlying permanent thermocline. The core of Antarctic Intermediate Water appears to contribute to the formation of Mediterranean Sea Outflow Water since it becomes entrained into the overflow near Gibraltar. This entrainment gives rise to an enhanced concentration of the nutrients in the Mediterranean water in the North Atlantic. The deep salinity minimum, due to the presence of Labrador Sea Water, is restricted mainly to the Porcupine Abyssal Plain. In the Bay of Biscay this water type is strongly modified by enhanced diapycnal mixing near the continental slope. At all intermediate levels the continental slope in the Bay of Biscay seems to be a focal point for water mass modification by diapycnal mixing. Below the core of the Mediterranean Sea Outflow Water the Labrador Sea Water is also strongly modified. Its salinity is strongly enhanced by diapycnal mixing with the overlying core of Mediterranean Sea Outflow Water. An analysis of the oxygen and nutrient data indicates that the large spatial concentration differences at the level of the Labrador Sea Water are caused mainly by ageing of the water. The youngest water is observed at 52°N, and, especially in the Bay of Biscay and off south-west Portugal, the water at levels of about 1700 dbar are strongly enriched in nutrients and depleted in oxygen.     

Hydrographic changes in the Labrador Sea, 1960–2005

The Labrador Sea has exhibited significant temperature and salinity variations over the past five decades. The whole basin was extremely warm and salty between the mid-1960s and early 1970s, and fresh and cold between the late 1980s and mid-1990s. The full column salinity change observed between these periods is equivalent to mixing a 6 m thick freshwater layer into the water column of the early 1970s. The freshening and cooling trends reversed in 1994 starting a new phase of heat and salt accumulation in the Labrador Sea sustained throughout the subsequent years. It took only a decade for the whole water column to lose most of its excessive freshwater, reinstate stratification and accumulate enough salt and heat to approach its record high salt and heat contents observed between the late 1960s and the early 1970s. If the recent tendencies persist, the basin’s storages of salt and heat will fairly soon, likely by 2008, exceed their historic highs.The main process responsible for the net cooling and freshening of the Labrador Sea between 1987 and 1994 was deep winter convection, which during this period progressively developed to its record depths. It was caused by the recurrence of severe winters during these years and in its turn produced the deepest, densest and most voluminous Labrador Sea Water (LSW_1987–1994) ever observed. The estimated annual production of this water during the period of 1987–1994 is equivalent to the average volume flux of about 4.5 Sv with some individual annual rates exceeding 7.0 Sv. Once winter convection had lost its strength in the winter of 1994–1995, the deep LSW_1987–1994 layer lost “communication” with the mixed layer above, consequently losing its volume, while gaining heat and salt from the intermediate waters outside the Labrador Sea.While the 1000–2000 m layer was steadily becoming warmer and saltier between 1994 and 2005, the upper 1000 m layer experienced another episode of cooling caused by an abrupt increase in the air-sea heat fluxes in the winter of 1999–2000. This change in the atmospheric forcing resulted in fairly intense convective mixing sufficient to produce a new prominent LSW class (LSW₂₀₀₀) penetrating deeper than 1300 m. This layer was steadily sinking or deepening over the years following its production and is presently overlain by even warmer and apparently less dense water mass, implying that LSW₂₀₀₀ is likely to follow the fate of its deeper precursor, LSW_1987–1994. The increasing stratification of the intermediate layer implies intensification in the baroclinic component of the boundary currents around the mid-depth perimeter of the Labrador Sea.The near-bottom waters, originating from the Denmark Strait overflow, exhibit strong interannual variability featuring distinct short-term basin-scale events or pulses of anomalously cold and fresh water, separated by warm and salty overflow modifications. Regardless of their sign these anomalies pass through the abyss of the Labrador Sea, first appearing at the Greenland side and then, about a year later, at the Labrador side and in the central Labrador Basin.The Northeast Atlantic Deep Water (2500–3200 m), originating from the Iceland–Scotland Overflow Water, reached its historically freshest state in the 2000–2001 period and has been steadily becoming saltier since then. It is argued that LSW_1987–1994 significantly contributed to the freshening, density decrease and volume loss experienced by this water mass between the late 1960s and the mid 1990s via the increased entrainment of freshening LSW, the hydrostatic adjustment to expanding LSW, or both.     

Warming and salinification of Labrador Sea Water and deep waters in the subpolar North Atlantic at 60°N in 1997–2006

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.     

Modelling hydrographic changes in the Labrador sea over the past five decades

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.     

Observations of the Labrador Sea eddy field

This paper is an observational study of small-scale coherent eddies in the Labrador Sea, a region of dense water formation thought to be of considerable importance to the North Atlantic overturning circulation. Numerical studies of deep convection emphasize coherent eddies as a mechanism for the lateral transport of heat, yet their small size has hindered observational progress. A large part of this paper is therefore devoted to developing new methods for identifying and describing coherent eddies in two observational platforms, current meter moorings and satellite altimetry. Details of the current and water mass structure of individual eddy events, as they are swept past by an advecting flow, can then be extracted from the mooring data. A transition is seen during mid-1997, with long-lived boundary current eddies dominating the central Labrador Sea year-round after this time, and convectively formed eddies similar to those seen in deep convection modeling studies apparent prior to this time. The TOPEX / Poseidon altimeter covers the Labrador Sea with a loose “net” of observations, through which coherent eddies can seem to appear and disappear. By concentrating on locating and describing anomalous events in individual altimeter tracks, a portrait of the spatial and temporal variability of the underlying eddy field can be constructed. The altimeter results reveal an annual “pulsation” of energy and of coherent eddies originating during the late fall at a particular location in the boundary current, pinpointing the time and place of the boundary current-type eddy formation. The interannual variability seen at the mooring is reproduced, but the mooring site is found to be within a localized region of greatly enhanced eddy activity. Notably lacking in both the annual cycle and interannual variability is a clear relationship between the eddies or eddy energy and the intensity of wintertime cooling. These eddy observations, as well as hydrographic evidence, suggest an active role for boundary current dynamics in shaping the energetics and water mass properties of the interior region.     

Decadal and multi-decadal variability of Labrador Sea Water in the north-western North Atlantic Ocean derived from tracer distributions: Heat budget, ventilation, and advection

Time series of profiles of potential temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen, and planetary potential vorticity at intermediate depths in the Labrador Sea, the Irminger Sea, and the Iceland Basin have been constructed by combining the hydrographic sections crossing the sub-arctic gyre of the North Atlantic Ocean from the coast of Labrador to Europe, occupied nearly annually since 1990, and historic hydrographic data from the preceding years since 1950. The temperature data of the last 60 years mainly reflect a multi-decadal variability, with a characteristic time scale of about 50 years. With the use of a highly simplified heat budget model it was shown that this long-term temperature variability in the Labrador Sea mainly reflects the long-term variation of the net heat flux to the atmosphere. However, the analysis of the data on dissolved oxygen and planetary potential vorticity show that convective ventilation events, during which successive classes of Labrador Sea Water (LSW) are formed, occurring on decadal or shorter time scales. These convective ventilation events have performed the role of vertical mixing in the heat budget model, homogenising the properties of the intermediate layers (e.g. temperature) for significant periods of time. Both the long-term and the near-decadal temperature signals at a pressure of 1500 dbar are connected with successive deep LSW classes, emphasising the leading role of Labrador Sea convection in running the variability of the intermediate depth layers of the North Atlantic. These signals are advected to the neighbouring Irminger Sea and Iceland Basin. Advection time scales, estimated from the 60 year time series, are slightly shorter or of the same order as most earlier estimates, which were mainly based on the feature tracking of the spreading of the LSW₉₄ class formed in the period 1989-1994 in the Labrador Sea.     

Formation and export of deep water in the Labrador and Irminger Seas in a GCM

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.     

Hydrography and through-flow in the north-eastern North Atlantic Ocean: the NANSEN project

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.     

Variability and propagation of Labrador Sea Water in the southern subpolar North Atlantic

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.     

Atlantic Water flow through the Barents and Kara Seas

The pathway and transformation of water from the Norwegian Sea across the Barents Sea and through the St. Anna Trough are documented from hydrographic and current measurements of the 1990s. The transport through an array of moorings in the north-eastern Barents Sea was between 0.6 Sv in summer and 2.6 Sv in winter towards the Kara Sea and between zero and 0.3 Sv towards the Barents Sea with a record mean net flow of 1.5 Sv. The westward flow originates in the Fram Strait branch of Atlantic Water at the Eurasian continental slope, while the eastward flow constitutes the Barents Sea branch, continuing from the western Barents Sea opening.About 75% of the eastward flow was colder than 0°C. The flow was strongly sheared, with the highest velocities close to the bottom. A deep layer with almost constant temperature of about −0.5°C throughout the year formed about 50% of the flow to the Kara Sea. This water was a mixture between warm saline Atlantic Water and cold, brine-enriched water generated through freezing and convection in polynyas west of Novaya Zemlya, and possibly also at the Central Bank. Its salinity is lower than that of the Atlantic Water at its entrance to the Barents Sea, because the ice formation occurs in a low salinity surface layer. The released brine increases the salinity and density of the surface layer sufficiently for it to convect, but not necessarily above the salinity of the Atlantic Water. The freshwater west of Novaya Zemlya primarily stems from continental runoff and at the Central Bank probably from ice melt. The amount of fresh water compares to about 22% of the terrestrial freshwater supply to the western Barents Sea. The deep layer continues to the Kara Sea without further change and enters the Nansen Basin at or below the core depth of the warm, saline Fram Strait branch. Because it is colder than 0°C it will not be addressed as Atlantic Water in the Arctic Ocean.In earlier decades, the Atlantic Water advected from Fram Strait was colder by almost 2 K as compared to the 1990s, while the dense Barents Sea water was colder by up to 1 K only in a thin layer at the bottom and the salinity varied significantly. However, also with the resulting higher densities, deep Eurasian Basin water properties were met only in the 1970s. The very low salinities of the Great Salinity Anomaly in 1980 were not discovered in the outflow data. We conclude that the thermal variability of inflowing Atlantic water is damped in the Barents Sea, while the salinity variation is strongly modified through the freshwater conditions and ice growth in the convective area off Novaya Zemlya.     

Hydrographic structure and circulation in the central area of the North Eastern Atlantic

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     

Cessation and partial reversal of deep water freshening in the northern North Atlantic: observation-based estimates and attribution

Recent decadal salinity changes in the Greenland-Scotland overflow-derived deep waters are quantified using CTD data from repeated hydrographic sections in the Irminger Sea. The Denmark Strait Overflow Water salinity record shows the absence of any net change over the 1980s–2000s; changes in the Iceland–Scotland Overflow Water (ISOW) and in the deep water column (σ₀ > 27.82), enclosing both overflows, show a distinct freshening reversal in the early 2000s. The observed freshening reversal is a lagged consequence of the persistent ISOW salinification that occurred upstream, in the Iceland Basin, after 1996 in response to salinification of the northeast Atlantic waters entrained into the overflow. The entrainment salinity increase is explained by the earlier documented North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO)-induced contraction of the subpolar gyre and corresponding northwestward advance of subtropical waters that followed the NAO decline in the mid-1990s and continued through the mid-2000s. Remarkably, the ISOW freshening reversal is not associated with changes in the overflow water salinity. This suggests that changes in the NAO-dependent relative contributions of subpolar and subtropical waters to the entrainment south of the Iceland–Scotland Ridge may dominate over changes in the Nordic Seas freshwater balance with respect to their effect on the ISOW salinity.     

The Formation and Circulation of the Intermediate Water in the Japan Sea

In order to clarify the formation and circulation of the Japan/East Sea Intermediate Water (JESIW) and the Upper portion of the Japan Sea Proper Water (UJSPW), numerical experiments have been carried out using a 3-D ocean circulation model. The UJSPW is formed in the region southeast off Vladivostok between 41°N and 42°N west of 136°E. Taking the coastal orography near Vladivostok into account, the formation of the UJSPW results from the deep water convection in winter which is generated by the orchestration of fresh water supplied from the Amur River and saline water from the Tsushima Warm Current under very cold conditions. The UJSPW formed is advected by the current at depth near the bottom of the convection and penetrates into the layer below the JESIW. The origin of the JESIW is the low salinity coastal water along the Russian coast originated by the fresh water from the Amur River. The coastal low salinity water is advected by the current system in the northwestern Japan Sea and penetrates into the subsurface below the Tsushima Warm Current region forming a subsurface salinity minimum layer. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

The connection between Labrador Sea buoyancy loss, deep western boundary current strength, and Gulf Stream path in an ocean circulation model

The sensitivity of the North Atlantic gyre circulation to high latitude buoyancy forcing is explored in a global, non-eddy resolving ocean general circulation model. Increased buoyancy forcing strengthens the deep western boundary current, the northern recirculation gyre, and the North Atlantic Current, which leads to a more realistic Gulf Stream path. High latitude density fluxes and surface water mass transformation are strongly dependent on the choice of sea ice and salinity restoring boundary conditions. Coupling the ocean model to a prognostic sea ice model results in much greater buoyancy loss in the Labrador Sea compared to simulations in which the ocean is forced by prescribed sea ice boundary conditions. A comparison of bulk flux forced hindcast simulations which differ only in their sea ice and salinity restoring forcings reveals the effects of a mixed thermohaline boundary condition transport feedback whereby small, positive temperature and salinity anomalies in subpolar regions are amplified when the gyre spins up as a result of increased buoyancy loss and convection. The primary buoyancy flux effects of the sea ice which cause the simulations to diverge are ice melt, which is less physical in the diagnostic sea ice model, and insulation of the ocean, which is less physical with the prognostic sea ice model. Increased salinity restoring ensures a more realistic net winter buoyancy loss in the Labrador Sea, but it is found that improvements in the Gulf Stream simulation can only be achieved with the excessive buoyancy loss associated with weak salinity restoring.     

On the renewal of Labrador Sea Water in the Irminger Basin

New evidence of Labrador Sea Water renewal as a result of deep convection in the Irminger Basin is obtained on the basis of the analysis of the data of the distribution of the dissolved oxygen concentration over six sections in the Subpolar North Atlantic in March–October of 1997.     

Inorganic carbon in the Labrador Sea: Estimation of the anthropogenic component

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.     

苏禄海的“通风”过程：历史数据分析

Based on historical observations, ventilation of the Sulu Sea （SS） is investigated and, its interbasin exchange is also partly discussed. The results suggest that near the surface the water renewal process not only occurs through the Mindoro Strait （MS） and the Sibutu Passage, but also depends on the inflows through the Surigao Strait and the Bohol Sea from the Pacific and through the Balabac Strait from the South China Sea （SCS）. Both inflows are likely persistent year round and their transports might not be negligible. Below the surface, the core layer of the Subtropical LowerWater （SLW） lies at about 200 m, which enters the SS through the Mindoro Strait not hampered by topography. Moreover, there is no indication of SLW inflow through the Sibutu Passage even though the channel is deep enough to allow its passage. The most significant ventilation process of the SS takes place in depths from 20a m to about 1200 m where intermediate convection driven by quasi-steady inflows through the Mindoro and Panay straits （MS-PS） dominates. Since the invaded water is drawn from the upper part of the North Pacific Intermediate Water （NPIW） of the SCS, it is normally not dense enough to sink to the bottom. Hence, the convective process generally can only reach some intermediate depths resulting in a layer of weak salinity minimum （about 34.45）. Below that layer, there is the Sulu Sea Deep Water （SSDW） homogeneously distributed from 1200 m down to the sea floor, of which the salinity is only a bit higher （about 34.46） above the minimum. Observational evidence shows that hydrographic conditions near the entrance of the MS in the SCS vary significantly from season to season, which make it possi- ble to provide the MS-PS overflowwith denser water of higher salinity sporadically. It is hence proposed that the SSDW is derived from intermittent deed convection resulted from DroDertv changes of the MS-PS inflow.