Numerical simulation of salinity anomaly propagation in the Nordic seas and the Arctic Ocean |
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Authors: | Rüdiger Gerdes Cornelia Köberle |
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Institution: | Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research, Am Handelshafen 12, D-27570 Bremerhaven, Germany. |
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Abstract: | We investigate the response of the Nordic seas-Arctic Ocean system to surface freshwater flux anomalies that we regard as typical for long-term atmospheric variability. We employ response experiments with a coupled sea ice-ocean model where we introduce a surface freshwater flux anomaly (A) over the Norwegian Sea and (B) in the Laptev Sea. Case A offers an explanation for the intermediate depth salinity changes observed in the Amundsen Basin. The signal observed there belongs to an original perturbation that, according to the model, occurred around a decade earlier. Salinity fluctuations in the Laptev Sea could play a role in changes in the near surface salinity in the Amundsen Basin. |
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