Recirculations and Water Mass Transformation in the Labrador Sea

Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole MA

Investigators

Abstract

Spall - 0095060 A series of numerical model experiments will investigate the cause of intense recirculation gyres observed along the boundaries of the Irminger and Labrador Seas, their structure, and their influence on the formation and export of Labrador Sea Water. Labrador Sea Water is an important component of the decadal scale variability of the oceans. The MIT Circulation Model will be used in a hydrostatic configuration with partial cell resolution in the vertical. Initial, small-scale studies will use idealized topography with wind and buoyancy forcing. Grid size will be small enough to allow development of eddies. Later, regional scale modeling will allow incorporation of large-scale circulation patterns and more realistic topography. Results of these studies will be compared with field observations.