Atmospheric conditions associated with oceanic convection in the south-east Labrador Sea

Sproson, David A. J., Renfrew, Ian A. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9379-8215 and Heywood, Karen J. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9859-0026 (2008) Atmospheric conditions associated with oceanic convection in the south-east Labrador Sea. Geophysical Research Letters, 35 (6). ISSN 1944-8007

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Abstract

It has been speculated that low-level reverse tip-jets, caused by the interaction of synoptic-scale atmospheric flow and Greenland, are an important mechanism for forcing open ocean convection in the south-east Labrador Sea. Here float data and meteorological reanalysis fields from the winter of 1996/1997, in combination with a simple mixed-layer ocean model, are used to show that, although relatively deep ocean convection did occur during this winter, the primary forcing mechanism was cold-air outbreaks from the Labrador coast rather than the smaller scale reverse tip-jets. During this winter, the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) was in a weak positive phase. Similar treatments of the winters of 1994/1995 (strong, positive NAO) and 1995/1996 (strong, negative NAO) suggest that the result is robust regardless of the state of the NAO.

Item Type:	Article
Faculty \ School:	Faculty of Science > School of Environmental Sciences University of East Anglia Research Groups/Centres > Theme - ClimateUEA
UEA Research Groups:	Faculty of Science > Research Groups > Centre for Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences Faculty of Science > Research Groups > Marine and Atmospheric Sciences (former - to 2017) Faculty of Science > Research Groups > Meteorology, Oceanography and Climate Dynamics (former - to 2017) Faculty of Science > Research Groups > Climate, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences (former - to 2017)
Depositing User:	Rosie Cullington
Date Deposited:	26 Feb 2011 11:36
Last Modified:	20 Mar 2023 10:34
URI:	https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/24833
DOI:	10.1029/2007GL032971

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