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Great Ocean Conveyor Belt illustration of thermohaline circulation

Geography 104 - “Physical Geography of the World’s Oceans”. Great Ocean Conveyor Belt illustration of thermohaline circulation shows link between surface and deep circulation demonstrates connectivity of the world ocean transport of energy and biogeochemical tracers

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Great Ocean Conveyor Belt illustration of thermohaline circulation

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  1. Geography 104 - “Physical Geography of the World’s Oceans” • Great Ocean Conveyor Belt • illustration of thermohaline circulation • shows link between surface and deep circulation • demonstrates connectivity of the world ocean • transport of energy and biogeochemical tracers • significant link between ocean and climate (weather)

  2. Thermohaline Circulation • processes that change temperature (thermo) or salinity (haline) and thus density driven flow • winter storms and rapid surface cooling • freezing seawater and salt rejection • sinking (vertical motion) of near-surface water

  3. Thermohaline Circulation • only very small density changes are needed • vertical velocities are small (< 1 m/day) • downward movement at one location must be compensated by upward movement (conservation of volume) • resulting horizontal velocities small (< 1 cm/s) • important for sea life • oxygen moved downward • nutrients moved upward

  4. Water masses are defined by their T-S properties

  5. Movement of seawater is along isopycnal surfaces

  6. know there are a variety of water masses in the ocean……….

  7. identifiable by their T-S properties, with the densest waters being deepest.

  8. Atlantic Deep Circulation

  9. Global Conveyor Circulation

  10. Climate differences: N. America vs. Northern Europe London Winnipeg 50º

  11. Climate differences: N. America vs. Northern Europe London Winnipeg 50º

  12. conveyor circulation drive:North Atlantic & Southern Ocean

  13. conveyor circulation drive:North Atlantic & Southern Ocean deep water formation regions

  14. vapor export from North Atlantic • - arrows show water vapor transport in Sverdrups (x106 m3 s-1) • negative values show evaporation • ~15 cm of freshwater over entire Atlantic per year from Broecker (1997)

  15. North Atlantic surface salinity

  16. North Atlantic deep water formation: North Atlantic Conveyor Drive Curry and Mauritzen (Science, 309, 1772-17742005)

  17. North Atlantic deep water formation: North Atlantic Conveyor Drive water mass sinking Curry and Mauritzen (Science, 309, 1772-17742005)

  18. North Atlantic deep circulation NADW

  19. Antarctic sea ice formation: Southern Ocean Conveyor Drive http://www-das.uwyo.edu/~geerts/cwx/notes/chap11/sea_ice.html

  20. Antarctic bottom water formation: Southern Ocean Conveyor Drive AABW

  21. Southern Ocean deep circulation AABW

  22. S3 Southern Ocean Conveyor Drive

  23. Salinity – Southern Ocean Conveyor Drive AAIW NADW AABW

  24. Pot. Temp. – Southern Ocean Conveyor Drive AAIW NADW AABW

  25. global Winds and Pressure July Westerlies

  26. Antarctic Circumpolar Current Westerlies Ekman transport

  27. Antarctic Circumpolar Current Antarctic Intermediate Water formation

  28. temperature-salinity of deep water masses

  29. mixing in the Antarctic Circumpolar Current NADW formation AABW formation AAIW formation from Broecker (1997)

  30. mixing in the Antarctic Circumpolar Current salinity at 2000 m NADW - NADW mixes rapidly in Antarctic Circumpolar Current

  31. North Pacific water formation 19% 30% 51% North Pacific Deep Water or Pacific and Indian Ocean Common Water North Pacific Deep Water flow

  32. North Pacific Deep Water Formation to Indian Ocean to Pacific Ocean salinity at 2000 m North Pacific Deep Water flow

  33. Section P18

  34. North Pacific Deep Water along 105° W North Pacific Deep Water 20° N equator 65° S

  35. Global Conveyor Circulation

  36. Global Conveyor Circulation choke points in surface return flow

  37. Indonesian Throughflow

  38. Readings (Surface and Deep Circulation): Text Chapter 9 (pgs 165 - 189) Reader pgs. 105 – 129 (Thermohaline Circulation)

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