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Interdecadal Variability along 38°N in the North Atlantic

  • Author / Creator
    Lei, Ji
  • Hydrographic data, in the time range from 1908 to 2006, extracted from the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) database, are used to examine variability of water masses in the North Atlantic ocean along 38°N. All the data are interpolated in an ideal isopycnal framework, which has a longitudinal resolution of 1/3 degree and 50 isopycnal layers of variable thickness, to 38°N by using an objective analysis approach. A 5 year-running mean triad analysis is performed from 1950 to 2004 for further variability study. Extensive decadal to inter-decadal variability is observed, in both shallow and deep layers. In the deep layers, a signal of westward phase propagating is detected, coincided with the time scale of a first mode baroclinic Rossby wave transporting at this latitude. Strong negative correlations (maximum at a lag of 7 years) are seen between the variability in the DWBC and the North Atlantic Oscillation. A similar correlation at the same lag is also detected in the basin interior, suggesting the Labrador Sea Water (LSW) pathway is not only restrained to the DWBC.

  • Subjects / Keywords
  • Graduation date
    Spring 2010
  • Type of Item
    Thesis
  • Degree
    Master of Science
  • DOI
    https://doi.org/10.7939/R32W26
  • License
    This thesis is made available by the University of Alberta Libraries with permission of the copyright owner solely for non-commercial purposes. This thesis, or any portion thereof, may not otherwise be copied or reproduced without the written consent of the copyright owner, except to the extent permitted by Canadian copyright law.