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Title: On the relative roles of the atmosphere and ocean in the Atlantic Multi-decadal Variability

Journal Article · · Geophysical Research Letters
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1029/2018GL078882· OSTI ID:1593317
ORCiD logo [1];  [1];  [1];  [2];  [1]
  1. BATTELLE (PACIFIC NW LAB)
  2. Ocean University of China
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The relative roles of the ocean and the atmosphere in driving the Atlantic Multi-decadal Oscillation (AMO) are investigated by isolating the AMO components forced by anomalous surface heat fluxes and ocean dynamics in a fully- and partially-coupled experiments. The impact of the ocean-dynamics-forced SST on air-sea interaction is disabled in the partially-coupled experiment in order to isolate the atmosphere-forced variability. In the partially-coupled experiment, the ocean-forced AMO component exhibits a strong multi-decadal variability (25- to 50-yr periods), while the atmosphere-forced component has weak multi-decadal variability. This ocean-forced variability is imprinted on the fully-coupled surface heat fluxes, which however, damp the ocean-forced SST variability inducing them, so that the fully-coupled AMO multi-decadal power is only slightly stronger than that forced by the atmosphere alone. Our results suggest that the multi-decadal variability of the AMO is largely driven by ocean dynamics, but its power is also determined by the strength air-sea coupling.

Research Organization:
Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE
DOE Contract Number:
AC05-76RL01830
OSTI ID:
1593317
Report Number(s):
PNNL-SA-131430
Journal Information:
Geophysical Research Letters, Vol. 45, Issue 17
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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Cited By (2)

Key Role of Internal Ocean Dynamics in Atlantic Multidecadal Variability During the Last Half Century journal December 2018
A Review of the Role of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation in Atlantic Multidecadal Variability and Associated Climate Impacts journal June 2019

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