Prosjekt
Dynamics of the North Atlantic surface and overturning circulation (DYNASOR)
The circulation of the North Atlantic Ocean is changing. One notable expression of these changes is a regional cooling that is in striking contrast to the global trend; the ‘warming hole’. While the similarity between this cooling and the fingerprint of a weakening circulation in climate models has been used to argue that the decline in circulation present in virtually all simulations of future climate is already underway, this interpretation is controversial and recent observations call the hypothesized mechanism into question.
We will analyze coupled climate models to clarify how currents and other features of the North Atlantic Ocean interact.
Status
Active
Owner
Bjerknessenteret
Project lead
Andreas Born og Anne Britt Sandø
Unravelling the mysteries of the North Atlantic circulation
DYNASOR seeks to understand the depths of a key region for the global climate system.
The North Atlantic Ocean hosts the largest heat and carbon sink in the world, and drives the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), a massive system of currents that transports heat and nutrients across the globe.
But the area is also undergoing significant changes, such as a regional cooling that contradicts the global warming trend, and a possible weakening of the AMOC that could have profound consequences for the climate and ecosystems.
To better understand these changes and their implications, a project called DYNASOR (DYnamics of the North Atlantic Surface and Overturning ciRculation) has been launched by a team of Bjerknes Centre researchers at the University of Bergen, the Institute of Marine Research, and NORCE Research Centre in Bergen, Norway.
Researchers from Bjerknessenteret
Andreas Born
Professor - Polar Climate, UiB
Anne Britt Sandø
Forsker / Researcher - Polar Climate, Havforskningsinstituttet
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