TY - JOUR

T1 - Tidal mixing and the Meridional Overturning Circulation from the Last Glacial Maximum.

AU - Green, J.A.

AU - Green, C.L.

AU - Bigg, G.R.

AU - Rippeth, T.P.

AU - Scourse, J.D.

AU - Uehara, K.

PY - 2009/8/16

Y1 - 2009/8/16

N2 - [1] Using a global tidal model it is shown that the supply of tidal energy to the deep ocean was larger during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM; 18,000–22,000 years BP). The results were used to modify the rate of vertical mixing in a coupled ocean-atmosphere model set up for the present and LGM oceans. The increased levels of mechanical energy during the LGM were countered by a fresher upper North Atlantic, which led to a reduced circulation and deep water formation in spite of a trebling of the implicit mixing energy. This identifies the significance of accurately representing vertical mixing in climate models to estimate the recovery time-scales and timings of rapid catastrophic paleoceanographic events. From the estimated levels of implicit energy in the vertical mixing scheme an amendment to diffusivity based mixing schemes is suggested.

AB - [1] Using a global tidal model it is shown that the supply of tidal energy to the deep ocean was larger during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM; 18,000–22,000 years BP). The results were used to modify the rate of vertical mixing in a coupled ocean-atmosphere model set up for the present and LGM oceans. The increased levels of mechanical energy during the LGM were countered by a fresher upper North Atlantic, which led to a reduced circulation and deep water formation in spite of a trebling of the implicit mixing energy. This identifies the significance of accurately representing vertical mixing in climate models to estimate the recovery time-scales and timings of rapid catastrophic paleoceanographic events. From the estimated levels of implicit energy in the vertical mixing scheme an amendment to diffusivity based mixing schemes is suggested.

KW - GEOSCIENCES

KW - MULTIDISCIPLINARY

U2 - 10.1029/2009GL039309

DO - 10.1029/2009GL039309

M3 - Article

VL - 36

JO - Geophysical Research Letters

JF - Geophysical Research Letters

SN - 0094-8276

IS - 15

ER -