Physics – Fluid Dynamics
Scientific paper
Mar 2002
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2002gapfd..96..179s&link_type=abstract
Geophysical and Astrophysical Fluid Dynamics, vol. 96, Issue 3, p.179-199
Physics
Fluid Dynamics
1
Scientific paper
It is shown that the deep western boundary current (DWBC) in the North Atlantic may contribute to premature separation of the Gulf Stream. A simple analytical study is made based on the linear barotropic vorticity equation in which a possible effect of the DWBC is introduced as anomalous stretching of the water column in a manner consistent with certain qualitative aspects of the observed features. This additional positive vorticity may be generated by a deep downwelling associated with horizontal shears of the DWBC. It is found that separation latitudes are farther to the south as the stretching is strengthened. Vertical motion required for a southward shift of order unity (e.g., 500 km) is estimated to be of the order of 0.05 mm s-1, in reasonable agreement with the observed values. It is suggested that since the DWBC is intimately linked with the thermohaline circulation, a meridional migration of the Gulf Stream separation might reflect long-term variations in the North Atlantic.
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