AOS 103 Study Guide

Lecture 1 The Ocean Basins

North
Sea

Caribbea
n
Ocean

Mediterranea
n
Sea

Atlanti
c
Ocean

Indian Ocean

Southern Ocean

Lecture 2 Temperature & Heat Budget

Global sea surface temperature:
Hottest at equator, gets colder toward the
poles

Conservation of Heat Energy

Total heat content of ocean changes in
response to heat fluxes through the surface
and ocean bed
Heat Transfer
1. Radiation
Short wave: from the sun, constant
Long wave: from Earth
2. Sensible heat
Often occurs at sea surface; increases w/ speed
Molecules excite neighboring molecules
Based on temperature difference
3. Latent heat
Based on humidity difference
Evaporation requires energy, which removes heat from liquid
4. Advection
Currents transport water with a certain T from one location to another
Upwelling, horizontal advection, convection
Does not exchange heat with atmosphere
Lecture 3 Salinity, Pressure, and Density
Salinity: quantity of dissolved salt/unit mass of seawater
Ocean surface salinity is largest at midlatitudes
- Equator: P>E = fresh at equator;
heavy precipitation due to upward
flow of warm air, resulting in
condensation; has strong surface
shortwave heating
- Poles are cold = little evaporation
- Mid latitudes = warm, low
precipitation
High salinity: middle of subtropical
(mid-latitude) gyres, Mediterranean
Sea
Low salinity: near poles because of
continental runoff and sea ice melt
Poles have salt fluxes due to sea ice
freezing/melting

Temperature (dashed line): low at poles, peak

at equator
Salinity: low at equator and poles, peaks at
mid latitudes (tropics)
@ poles (high latitudes), T is very cold and
varies little so salinity tends to increase with
depth to keep water column stable

Conservation of Salt
Total surface changes only in response to fluxes in/out of the volume; ocean exchanges
freshwater with atmosphere
Pressure
Force/unit area exerted by a fluid on itself and its surroundings due to particle collisions (N/m 2 or
kg/m/ss)
Vertical Hydrostatic Balance
Weight (gravitational force) on a parcel of sea water is balanced by net force due to
pressure
Pressure gradient = weight per unit volume
Hydrostatic Pressure: pressure at any depth = weight of the fluid above it
Geoid
The geoid is an equipotential surface of Earths gravity field. Its important to measure sea
surface elevation relative to the geoid because it discounts the dynamic effects that could alter
SSH, such as wind, ocean flows, and evaporation. The geoid itself is variable.
Sea surface elevation
Red: high SSH = high pressure
Blue: low SSH = low pressure
Max. SSH @ mid-latitudes in ocean
basics
Low SSH @ high latitudes; small min.
SSH at equator

Equation of state: density is a

thermodynamic function of
temperature, salinity, and pressure
Potential Temperature
Potential temperature is more accurate to use because it does not account for compressibility of
water in which there are changes in temperature due to pressure. It is the temperature of a

parcel if it were brought to the surface without exchanging heat with its surroundings. Therefore,
potential temperature is cooler than in situ temperature.
Potential Density
It is the density of a parcel if it were moved to the surface without exchanging heat OR SALT with
its surroundings. Potential density is lower than in situ density. Potential density should increase
with depth for a water column to be stable. If it decreases with depth, the water column is
unstable and convection will restabilize the ocean.
Lecture 4 Water Masses
1. Surface Waters
a. 0-500 m depth
b. Pacific Equatorial Water supports El
Nino/La Nina
2. Mode Waters
a. Near surface waters, often within the
thermocline
b. Weak vertical stratification
c. Associated w/ strong ocean surface
currents Gulf Stream, Sub-Antarctic
Mode Water in ACC
3. Intermediate Waters
a. 500-1500 m depth
b. 3.7 C
c. 34.2 34.4 g/kg
d. Formed by sensible heating, P, and sea ice melt in Southern Ocean
4. Deep and Bottom Waters
a. Below 1000 m depth

Mid-latitude circulation
dominated by gyres:
poleward flow on western
boundary current and
equatorward flow on
eastern boundary current

Key Ocean Currents

1. Pacific Northern/Southern Equatorial
Large net heat INPUT into oceans due to coastal upwelling off
Central America
Transport is critical to ENSO
2. Kuroshio and Gulf Stream
Strong NORTHward WESTERN boundary currents carrying HEAT
poleward
Sites of large net heat LOSS form oceans
3. Agulhas
Strong SW WESTERN boundary current carrying heat poleward;
important to MOC because it supplies surface waters from Indian to
Atlantic; Agulhas current is trapped over continental shelf of S.
Africa until it separates and joins ACC eddies shed during
separation carry warm/salty water into Atlantic
- Wave refraction: large-amplitude waves from Southern Ocean propagate against the current =
encourages formation of rogue waves
4. ACC

Barotropic: isobaric surfaces and isopycnal surfaces are parallel = density is only a function of
pressure
- Currents are constant w/ depth
- Determined by differences in SSH
- barotropic component of current is velocity at a constant reference depth (at lower depths) =
surface velocity, from SSH
Baroclinic: isobaric and isopycnal surfaces are NOT parallel (often tilt in opposite direction)
- vary w/ depth; determined by horizontal differences in IN SITU density
- baroclinic component of a current is the rest of the profile without barotropic component
Thermal Wind Equations
Horizontal density variations can produce vertical changes in geostrophic flow vertical
changes in velocity are proportional to horizontal changes in density
Lecture 6 Wind Driven Flows
Wind stress: horizontal force on ocean surface (N/m 2 )
Ekman surface wind stress and Coriolis force balance
Wind stress drive surface currents in Ekman layer, typically 50-100 m deep
Currents directly at sea surface are 45 degrees relative to wind direction

Coastal Upwelling
In NH, if winds blow with the coast to their left,
then they
generate coastal upwelling; Ekman transport is to the right (offshore) so surface water is driven
away from the coast
Coastal Downwelling
When Ekman transport is directed onshore/toward the coast.
Contributes to AABW formation in Antarctic coast
Equatorial Upwelling
NE and SE trade winds cause Ekman transport away from equator in both hemispheres.
Lecture 7 Vorticity and Gyre Circulation
Gyres are wind-driven, surface-intensified,
re-circulatory, basin-scale
Subtropical Gyres
Transport heat and biochemical
tracers from low to high latitudes
Strong surface currents are useful for
shipping
Upwelling
Accumulate floating material like
trash
All subtropical gyres (in both hemispheres) are anticyclonic with High pressure centers and
the Ekman transport is inward (converges) in both hemispheres = Ekman pumping and
downwelling at the center but gyre edges in the Ekman layer diverge = Ekman
suction/upwelling
Raised SSH at center and deepened thermocline
*surface currents flow in the same direction as geostrophic
wind!! = anticyclonic for subtropical gyres
f increases northward

Western Boundary Current

Increase in vorticity (positive) is supported by FRICTION at gyre boundary

Lecture 8 Overturning Circulation

Significance: northward heat transport in Atlantic = keeps climate in N. America and Europe mild,
deep water masses store carbon, sinking water ventilates deep ocean with oxygen, transports
biochemical and anthropogenic tracers large distances
What is an overturning circulation? Re-circulatory flow that traverses a range of depths
Can be driven by buoyancy forcing
Conservation of mass: change in parcels mass must equal the net flux of mass through the faces
Flow continuity (volume conservation): there is no net volume transport into the box
Water mass transformation
Change in properties of a water mass (potential temperature, salinity, etc.)
May be affected by surface processes (heat/freshwater fluxes) or by mixing in ocean
interior
Mixing
MOC doesnt need to traverse different depths, only different densities!
Diffusive process (buoyancy flux from high to low buoyancy)
MOC
NADW
formed in 3 regions of N. Atlantic Sea: Labrador Sea,
Irminger Sea, Greenland-Iceland-Norway Sea
*sinks in N. Atlantic and flows south to Southern Ocean
deep convection
1. pre-conditioning: development of cyclonic currents bring
isopycnals to surface, exposing deep/dense water to atm
2. violent mixing: intense latent heat loss in winter produces
cold surface waters that sink as plumes
3. sinking and spreading: horizontal stabilities form small
eddies that spread newly-formed water laterally

AABW

Formed around continental shelves of Antarctica sinks to

ocean bed and spreads to all ocean basins
* sinks around Antarctic and spreads through all the major
ocean basins
Strong, cold, offshore (katabatic) winds result in sustained
sea ice production
Wind keeps exposing surface and pushing ice off, when new
ice is formed the brine is rejected resulting in dense, high

salinity, cold water that sinks to bottom of ocean

Breaking of internal waves supplies mixing needed to
transform water masses and close MOC (transforms AABW
into other water masses)
IDW/PDW
AAIW

CYCLE

Formed from IDW/PDW drawn to surface by strong westerly

winds over the ACC
Sensible heating + freshwater input increase buoyancy of
waters and Ekman pushes them northward
*formed at surface of Southern Ocean and spreads through
most of oceans intermediate depths
AAIW NADW
deep convection
NADW AABW Antarctic dense water formation
AABW IDW/PDW
diapycnal mixing
IDW/PDW AAIW Southern Ocean forcing

Lecture 9 The Antarctic Circumpolar Current

Worlds strongest current (130 Sv)
major connectivity btwn major ocean basins
all heat transport to Antarctica must go through ACC
deep isopycnals rise to surface in ACC, allowing direct exchanges btwn atm and deep
ocean
ACC flows CCW
Has strong northward increase in SSH produces strong surface velocities and strong
eastward transport
o Buoyancy increases northward, so eastward velocity decreases with depth
Ekman transport in the ACC
Winds are stronger north than south = divergence in northward Ekman transport
upwelling in Ekman layer from below via Ekman suction

Winds draw water into surface layer and transport them

north!! leads to tilted isopycnals and sea surface,
producing a baroclinic eastward transport

ACC Fronts
Front: sharp horizontal gradient
1. Southern ACC Front
2. Polar Front
3. Sub-Antarctic Front
4. Antarctic Slope Front; it has an opposing westward flow around this continental slope
Lecture 10 Observations and Modeling
Aliasing: results when a time-series or spatial transect is under sampled
fsample > fnyquist = 2f
sampling frequency must be more than TWICE as high as frequency of the signal (Nyquist
signal)
accuracy: measured values are close to true value
precision: measured values are highly reproducible
b/c of instrumental drift, many instruments have higher precision than accuracy (needs
calibration)
Model discretization: represented on a finite # of discrete points in space and time
divide atm/ocean into many small boxes (finite volumes) and compute changes of each
box using conservation
Model Resolution
resolved if using smaller grid boxes has LITTLE impact on its behavior
any processes w. scales at or smaller than grid box size must be parameterized =
modification of the eqns of motion that attempts to replicate the effect of sub-grid scale
processes on large-scale flow features
o ex. parameterize convection and mesoscale eddies
Lecture 11 Mesoscale Eddies
Eddy: coherent vortex; horizontal, quasi-circular patch of anomalous positive/negative relative
vorticity
Mesoscale eddy: 10-500 km in diameter and 100-200 km size
turnover timescale = weeks-months to rotate once
Eddy force balance: geostrophic balance
smaller eddies (radius < 10 km) have cyclogeostrophic balance (includes centrifugal force)
Baroclinic Eddy = velocities are intensified at the surface
1. cold-core eddy: cyclonic, connect deeper isopycnals to the surface = upwelling; corld-core
eddys isopycnals are curved up toward center of eddy
2. warm-core eddy: anticyclonic, tend to trap water at the surface = downwelling; eddys
isopycnals are curved down
3. mode water eddy: isopycnals form lens shape in interior, flat sea surface height, anticyclonic

Eddies form as result of instabilities in ocean currents

stable if system will return to its original state after perturbation (i.e wind, topography, waves,
tides, pre-existing eddies)
Barotropic Instability
arises when flow has horizontal shear = speed of flow changes perpendicular to flow
direction = flow has relative vorticity
small perturbations tend to be amplified by shear flow results in flow rolling up into
eddies
shear flow wont always develop instabilities but *shear flow is necessary for barotropic
instability to occur

Baroclinic Instability
unstable to small perturbations
Turbulence
Turbulent flows are highly chaotic = any 2 adjacent fluid parcels will be separated and move far
from one another in short time
1. 3D

2. 2D

turbulence
occurs all the time at small scales; ex. in surface mixed layer
tends to stir up tracers (S, T) = create large gradients at smaller scales
downscale transfer of tracers = forward cascade smaller eddies get larger
turbulence
smaller eddies generate bigger ones = inverse energy cascade
stir up small-scale gradients of tracers
what limits size of eddies? shapes of ocean basins, shape of sea floor, curvature of Earths
surface
Eddy Diffusion
Eddies act as enhanced diffusion of tracers transport tracers from regions of high to low
concentration
- responsible for spreading tracers meridionally in ACC heat transported southward across ACC
toward Antarctica through eddy diffusion
Eddy bolus transport: oscillations of isopycnals can force water BETWEEN them
Agulhas Rings

leakage of Agulhas eddies into Atlantic supplies addl warm water to sites of NADW
formation
Eddies unsteepen isopycnals in ACC necessary to release potential energy
mass transport across ACC
balance btwn wind steepening and eddy relaxing determines baroclinicity of ACC, and thus
transport

Lecture 12 Waves
Wave: moving disturbance in physical system
propagate through physical medium, transfer energy btwn locations
oscillation of medium is supported by restoring forces
little/none of physical medium itself is transferred w/ wave; its simply the oscillation of the
medium about some mean state that allows wave to pass through
Particles undergo elliptical orbits as the wave passes
through and the orbit amplitudes decreases exponentially
w/ depth
Surface Waves
Mainly generated by wind, but can be generated by
any disturbance to surface
Small variations in wind stress excite micro ripples
(capillary-gravity waves) and as they develop, the
wind imparts momentum directly to ocean surface
via form stress
Fully developed sea: if fetch (long unobstructed distance)
is large enough and the wind is blowing for a long enough
time, EQ is reached = fully developed sea
What prevents waves from growing further after
reaching fully developed sea? wave breaking removes energy from waves at same rate
as input by wind
Swell: collection of waves generated by wind
Dispersion Relation
Relationship btwn wave frequency and wavenumber
Waves of different wavelengths/wavenumbers travel at different speeds
Shallow Waves
> 20H
All waves have same speed because no
dispersion
Cg = Cp
Deep Waves
< 2H
Longer waves travel faster
Cg = 1/2Cp
Group speed: speed of wave packet
Phase speed: speed of individual/single wave crest

Doppler Shifting
When the current, U, is parallel to the waves, the apparent frequency of waves is
modified by Doppler shifting
Subcritical flow: U < Cp
Supercritical flow: U > Cp = waves CANT propagate against the flow
Stokes Drift
Particles at the surface travel faster and further on the crest and return slightly slower in
the trough particles underego a net displacement: Stokes drift
Nonlinear effect
Has its own small velocity that isnt the same as wave velocity
Rogue Waves
Height is greater than twice the significant wave height (Global significant SSH = mean height of
largest 1/3 of waves); can be up to 120 ft and sink ships
Lecture 13 Tides
Tidal range: difference between high and low
tide = 2a
Ebb tide: high to low tide
Flood tide: low to high tide
Significance of tides: sea level variation, tidal
currents, navigation, supply nutrients to
coastal areas, result in diapycnal mixing in deep ocean = helps drive MOC
Earth orbits in same rotational sense as the moon E
and M revolve around each other
Center of revolution = center of mass beneath Earths
surface on the side toward the moon
@ Earths center of mass, the gravitational forces are
balanced by centrifugal force, but this is not true at
Earths surface
net force at the side of Earth closest to moon = toward the moon
Centrifugal force increases w. distance from the moon; gravitation force decreases with distance
from the moon Results in net tide-producing force everywhere on Earths surface
Tidal Bulge
In tidal EQ, oceans are drawn toward and away from the moon
= tidal bulges, which are actually offset

Lunar (M2) Tide - Period = 12.42 hour

Solar (S2) Tide
Results in 2 addl weaker tide bulges b/c the suns tide producing
force is weaker than the moons
- suns tide-producing force due to suns gravitational
pull
period 12 hours
Kelvin Wave
amplitude increases exponentially towards the coast
Amphidromic points = locations where lines of equal tidal period
intersect (equal tidal period and equal tidal amplitude)
Lecture 14 Internal Waves
Stably stratified: water parcels displaced slightly
upward/downward experience a buoyant restoring force toward
their original depth (p1<p1)
Unstable stratification (p1>p2) convective instabilities develop
and mix waters vertically
Internal wave propagation
generated by disturbances to isopycnal surfaces; most commonly by flow across variable
ocean bottom topography (flows may be due to tides or strong geostrophic currents like
the ACC)
restoring force is buoyancy restoring force, which is proportional to reduced gravity
longer and slower than surface waves, w/ longer periods and larger amplitudes
Deadwater: internal wave @ fresh/salt interface = decelerates ship; can even bring ships to
standstill under the right conditions
Ocean Weather submarines maintain level of neutral buoyancy so follow the isopycnals
Internal wave approaching a shelf: wave speed will decrease, wavelength will get shorter
assuming frequency is constant
Internal Wave Breaking
decreasing waves speed + wavelength steepens wave envelope = encourages breaking
how wave breaking can occur: decrease in ocean depth, decrease in stratification, Doppler
shifting by currents
highest (largest amplitude) part of envelope travels fastest results in nonlinear
steepening of the wave envelope, and eventually in breaking
wave breaking = unstable stratification
intense mixing
Lecture 15 The Coastal Ocean
Continental slope
ocean depth decreases rapidly across
narrow continental slopes
slopes are punctuated by submarine
canyons, typically formed by submarine
landslides

75% of tidal energy input is dissipated by mixing

over shallow continental shelves/slopes

Dense water overflows: dense water on continental shelves sinks across continental slope until it
reaches level of neutral buoyancy
Examples: AABW, MW
Slope Currents
Flows over continental slopes tend to follow coast to conserve potential vorticity; many major
western boundary currents also flow at least partially as slope currents
Ex. N. Atlantic Slope Current (NASC)
Transports warm, salty water into Nordic Seas, where
convection transforms them into NADW
Topographic Rossby Waves
Rossby waves result from conservation of potential vorticity
and meridional variation of Coriolis parameter
Rossby waves always propagate westward regardless of
hemisphere, unless they are carried eastward by strong
currents (i.e ACC)
- NH (f>0), topographic rossby waves propagate w/ shallow
water to the right
- can cause coastal currents to meander and form eddies
results in exchange of waters btwn the continental shelf and
deep ocean, bringing nutrients into shelf waters
for f < 0 (SH)
water displaced onshore will have positive relative
vorticity
wave propagation to the left

in SH, TRWs propagate

with shallow water to the left

f >0 (NH)
water pushed offshore
in NH, TRWs propagate

acquires positive relative vorticity

with shallow water to the right
The Continental Shelf
Depth ranges from tens to hundreds
of meters
T/density exhibit top and bottom mixed layers, w/ a
thermocline/pycnocline between them

Wave Refraction
Waves approaching the beach will turn to lie parallel to the shore
WHY? when waves approach shore, they start to feel the bottom, or when they experience
changes in current speed, they are refracted such that crests arrive parallel to the shore
surface waves propagating toward
beach/shore: if frequency is
constant, wavelength will decrease
Wave Breaking
Become too steep when they
approach shore and feel bottom
friction,
when they travel against a
current, when wind is strong
1.
spilling: gradual dissipation of
energy
2. plunging: lose a lot of energy
quickly

Longshore Currents

very

Breaking surface waves carry mass toward shore (form of Stokes drift); when the waves
approach beach at an angle it is refracted and produces longshore currents, which transport sand
= responsible for beach erosion
Rip Currents
Water transported shoreward by breaking waves must find a way back (mass conservation)
results in formation of rip currents back to ocean
Are visible at surface a foam lines of areas of different wave breaking behavior
*are most dangerous at low tide b/c ocean is shallower above sandbar, so stronger current reqd
to transport water away from shore at the
same
rate

Littoral eddies: sediment-bearing coastal eddies

Rip currents transport sediment/sand, visible in the generation of littoral eddies, from tails of rip
currents
Tsunamis
Shallow-water waves; amplitude increases as the tsunami approaches shore
Tidal Bore
At beginning of flood tide when flow is still weak, the tidal wave cant proceed against currents of
the river and the tide is arrested at river mouth as standing wave
Lecture 16 The Polar Oceans
Arctic basins: Amerasian and Eurasian, split by Lomonsov
Ridge
Mixed layer (cold and fresh) is separated from deeper water
masses by a halocline (warmer and saltier)

Double Diffusion
Molecular diffusion of heat
than molecular diffusion of
Ocean water masses
gradients of the same sign
Ex. warm salty water over

occurs 100x quicker (by conduction)

salt
overlying one another with T/S
= convectively unstable
cold, fresh water salt fingers

Thermal coefficient of
expansion
Cabbeling: since alpha is
lower at cold temperatures, the
density lines in a T/S
diagram are curved
Thermobaricity: thermal
coefficient of expansion () increases
with pressure = T changes
more important in deep ocean and
can enhance deep
convection
Sea Ice
alter heat +
momentum transfers btwn atm and
ocean: insulating
thermally, damping of surface
waves, changing T
and S structure in upper layer by
melting and freezing
highly reflective and is
important to climate (albedo)
feedback
freezing of sea water; freezing pt of sea water decreases w/ S (and P)
T of maximum density decreases, which
causes fundamental dynamical difference
btwn fresh and salt water. Ex. freshwater
lake 3C, atmosphere cools the surface
further but the water parcel remains at the
surface instead of sinking to the bottom

sea ice first forms in shallow waters near coast (reduced S due to river runoff, weak
currents, offshore winds creating open water)
freezes to ice when water loses sufficient heat
initial freezing occurs at surface, followed by thickening due to freezing at lower surface
brine rejection increase S of neighboring sea water which causes it to sink
the older ice gets, the less saline it becomes
o salt trapped when water freezes faster; with contd freezing, more ice freezes out,
leaving brine more saline (brine rejection)
o over time, brine slowly trickles out of ice = ice gets less saline over time
Properties of Sea Ice: doesnt raise sea level (like icebergs), lighter than water, less strength than
freshwater ice, breaks forms leads and refreezes
Sea Ice Transport
ice floes transported long distances and melt in different location = freshwater transport
caused by wind stress at top surface and frictional drag at bottom under the influence of
Coriolis force, and by momentum transfer due to collisions
sea ice break up caused by wave action, tidal currents, melting
Leads: small breaks between ice floes
Polynas: larger, recurrent, open water areas
1. latent heat polyna (wind-forced)
formation of AABW

katabatic winds push ice away from

coast constantly, allowing sea ice
to continuously form in the open
water area; ice forms and rejects
brine making neighboring waters
saltier and more dense = sinks
2. sensible heat polyna
heat transfers from warmer water
to ice (due to mixing) = melts ice
and prevents new ice from forming
Lecture 17 Equatorial Processes and El Nino
f=0 directly at equator so there is no Ekman
transport either.
Angular momentum is maximum at equator.
Equatorial surface currents
Westward trade winds drive strong westward
surface equatorial currents, closing the subtropical
gyre circulations
Each ocean basin has eastward equatorial
countercurrent, resulting from westward winds
being displaced slightly north of equator

Equatorial Undercurrent
All major ocean basins have this eastward subsurface current
In the Pacific, Equatorial Undercurrent supplies waters that upwell off the west coasts of N. and S.
America
Ex. Atlantic Countercurrent

Atmospheric H/L Pressure Systems

High pressure = cold T and sinking motion b/c surface air moves away from high pressure center
under influence of gravity, and draws down air from above
Low pressure = warm T and rising motion caused by warm and light air; surface air converges at
low pressure area; cloud formed and precipitation occurs
A. Normal Conditions
strong trade winds westward pile up water in Western Pacific = higher SSH, PGF that extends
down the water column drives equatorial undercurrent eastward

- equatorial upwelling (shallow thermocline and

source of nutrient-rich water)
- Western Pacific is slightly warmer than Eastern
Pacific = WEST: low pressure, rising motion, cumulus
clouds, precipitation; EAST: high pressure, sinking
motion

B. El Nino Conditions
Weak
or no trade winds
Warm water from Western Pacific sloshes
eastward
No equatorial upwelling, thermocline is
CENTRAL Pacific: surface waters warmer
usual in central and eastern Pacific; air
pressure decreases, rising motion =
increased precipitation and cumulus
over central

deep
than
clouds

Jet stream (and associated storm activity) tends to be located at about same latitude as SoCal;
southward shifted jet stream enhances vertical wind shear in Atlantic = suppress hurricane
activity
HOW? storms latent heat is focused over larger area because of high wind shear during El Nino
instead of small area during low wind shear of normal conditions

El Nino propagation
Travels as internal

Kelvin wave eastward to coast of S. America and from

there as coastal Kelvin waves northward and southward
C. La Nina Conditions
Stronger trade winds, stronger upwelling of cold water in Eastern Pacific
Jet stream is pushed far to the North of CA
Global impacts of ENSO

alter atmospheric patterns that propagate from one region to another, called
telecommunications

Lecture 18 Ocean and Climate

Greenhouse effect: Earth gets shortwave radiation from the sun. the atmosphere containing
greenhouse gases absorbs some of the Earths longwave radiation but re-emits some of it back
to Earths surface, increasing total energy the surface receives. Therefore, Earths surface
becomes warmer (natural effect).
Albedo: reflectivity
If sea ice melts away, the ocean will heat up, leading to further sea ice melt
Positive feedback: increased sea ice cover results in ocean cooling that increases ice cover;
melting results in ocean warming and more melting
Deep Ocean Heat Storage
90% of change in total heat content is absorbed by oceans
Younger Dryas
MOC shut down because of input of fresh, cold water from ice melt into the Atlantic
HOW? N. Atlantic water less dense = less likely to sink to form NADW
Usually warm water is transported from tropics to N. Atlantic but this is cold water rom ice melt
Oceanic Carbon Cycle
Dissolved CO2 and nutrients with sunlight is used by
phytoplankton. Organic C when the organisms die,
sink to deep ocean where decomposition occurs and
returns
dissolved
CO2 to
water
dissolved
CO2 returns
to surface
by slow
mixing and
upwelling