Koul, V. and Schrum, C. and Düsterhus, A. and Baehr, J. (2019) Atlantic Inflow to the North Sea Modulated by the Subpolar Gyre in a Historical Simulation With MPI‐ESM. Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans, 124 (3). pp. 1807-1826. ISSN 2169-9275

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Abstract

While the influence of the subpolar gyre (SPG) on thermohaline variability in the eastern North Atlantic is well documented, the extent and timescale of the influence of the SPG on North Sea is not well understood. This is primarily because earlier investigations on the causes of variability in the North Sea water properties mostly focused on the role of atmosphere and deployed regional models. Here using a historical simulation with the Max Planck Institute Earth System Model (MPI-ESM), we investigate circulation and water mass variability in key regions, namely, the Rockall Trough and the Faroe-Scotland Channel, which link the North Atlantic to the North Sea. We find that salinity covaries with advective lags in these three regions and that the northern North Sea salinity follows the Rockall Trough with a lag of 1 year. We show that recurring and persistent excursions of salinity anomalies into the northern North Sea are related to the SPG strength and not to the local acceleration of the inflow. Furthermore, we illustrate that the SPG signal is more pronounced in salinity than in temperature and that this simulated SPG signal has a period of 30–40 years. Overall, our study suggests that, at low frequency, water mass variability originating in the North Atlantic dominates changes in the North Sea water properties over those due to local wind-driven volume transport.

Item Type:	Article
Additional Information:	Cite as:Koul, V., Schrum, C., Düsterhus, A., & Baehr, J. (2019). Atlantic inflow to the North sea modulated by the subpolar gyre in a historical simulation with MPI-ESM. Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans, 124, 1807–1826. https://doi.org/10.1029/2018JC014738
Keywords:	subpolar gyre signal; Atlantic inflow; global coupled model;
Academic Unit:	Faculty of Social Sciences > Geography Faculty of Social Sciences > Research Institutes > Irish Climate Analysis and Research Units, ICARUS
Item ID:	15896
Identification Number:	https://doi.org/10.1029/2018JC014738
Depositing User:	André Düsterhus
Date Deposited:	28 Apr 2022 11:50
Journal or Publication Title:	Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans
Publisher:	Wiley
Refereed:	Yes
URI:	Publisher
Use Licence:	This item is available under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial Share Alike Licence (CC BY-NC-SA). Details of this licence are available here

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