Freshwater fluxes through the Western Fram Strait

Meredith, Michael, Heywood, Karen J. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9859-0026, Dennis, Paul ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0307-4406, Goldson, Laura, White, Rowan, Fahrbach, Eberhard, Schauer, Ursula and Østerhus, Svein (2001) Freshwater fluxes through the Western Fram Strait. Geophysical Research Letters, 28 (8). p. 1615. ISSN 0094-8276

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Abstract

Two hydrographic and d18O transects across Fram Strait (Aug-Sept 1997, 1998) are used to examine freshwater contributions to the East Greenland Current (EGC). The EGC featured up to ?~ 16% meteoric water in both years, but was made comparatively more saline through the formation of up to ?~11 m of sea ice. We derive meteoric water fluxes of ?~3680 km3yr-1 in Aug-Sept 1997, and ?~2000 km3yr-1 in Aug-Sept 1998. The 1997 and 1998 data show a long-term me~m sea ice flux through Fram Strait around half the long-term mean meteoric water flux. A 1991 d18O section [Bauch et al., 1995] yielded a very similar ratio. Our 1998 section reveals fresh, 1ow-6180 water on the East Greenland shelf whose comparatively large volume constitutes a potentially significant contribution to the total freshwater flux through Fram Strait. Such fluxes are important to the regional and global thermohaline circulation; we suggest that efforts towards monitoring both the EGC and East Greenland shelf waters are thus required.

Item Type:	Article
Faculty \ School:	Faculty of Science > School of Environmental Sciences
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) Faculty of Science > Research Groups > Geosciences
Depositing User:	Rosie Cullington
Date Deposited:	26 May 2011 13:01
Last Modified:	24 Oct 2022 03:42
URI:	https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/31472
DOI:	10.1029/2000GL011992

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