For several years, I have been trying to find time and energy to learn GFDL's Modular Ocean Model version 6 (MOM6), and Python program language. Finally, I have the time and energy to do so. However, I don't have High Performance Computing resources available to me. So, I had no choice but to work on... Continue Reading →
I was discussing with my colleagues about a recent northward shift of the Gulf Stream position and debating why that happened. So, I decided to read again one of my favorite physical oceanography papers "A two-level wind and buoyancy driven thermocline model" by the late Dr. Peter D. Killworth. This paper was published in 1985... Continue Reading →
I asked Gemini (Flash 2.5) about the signal-to-noise paradox regarding the North Atlantic Oscillation, which is one of the emerging new ideas (or concepts) in climate research. Here is the reply. Yes, I am familiar with the signal-to-noise paradox, especially as it relates to the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO). It's a significant and intriguing challenge... Continue Reading →
As the Earth warms due to anthropogenic climate change, sea- and land-based ice melts, adding buoyant freshwater to the surface of the high-latitude North Atlantic and thus decreasing salinity. This makes the surface water lighter reducing the sinking of the surface water and thus the AMOC. However, the amount of added freshwater is not enough... Continue Reading →
The current state-of-the-art climate models suggest that the human-induced weakening of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) has already begun since the mid-1980s. However, continuous direct observational records during the past two decades have shown no clear sign of a slowing down of the AMOC. To shed light on this apparent contradiction, a new study... Continue Reading →
Scientists have been monitoring the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) at around 26.5°N since April 2004 through the RAPID/Meridional Overturning Circulation and Heatflux Array/Western Boundary Time Series moored array (RAPID). The newly released RAPID dataset fully incorporated a recent geomagnetic correction of the submarine cable measurement of the Florida Current transport, a critical component of... Continue Reading →
As of 2024, there are currently 70 permanent research stations from 29 countries scattered around the continent of Antarctica conducting important scientific research to better understand the Earth system and its changes due to human activity. In the Arctic, however, there are no such permanent research stations because there is no land in the Arctic.... Continue Reading →
The Labrador Sea is one of the main regions where the surface Atlantic water loses its heat to the atmosphere (thus gets heavier) and sinks into the deep ocean, producing what's known as deep ocean convection that mainly drives the Atlantic Meridional Ocean Circulation (AMOC). It is also characterized by the Labrador Current, a strong... Continue Reading →
The Florida Current (FC) refers to the Gulf Stream across the Florida Straits between Florida and the Bahamas. Its volume transport has been measured continuously since 1982 using submarine cables across the Florida Straits at 27°N by NOAA's Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (AOML). A previous study (Piecuch and Beal, 2023) reported that the FC... Continue Reading →
A new study published in Science (Zhou and McManus, 2024) reconstructed the land ice melting (or discharge) rate during the intermittent events of ice melting in the last glacial period (i.e., Heinrich events). The study showed that the present-day Greenland Ice Sheet melting rate (since the 1980s) is comparable to that during weak-to-moderate strength Heinrich events. This... Continue Reading →
Ocean to Climate 