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Science 17 August 2007:
Vol. 317. no. 5840, pp. 938 - 941
DOI: 10.1126/science.1141293
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Reports

Observed Flow Compensation Associated with the MOC at 26.5°N in the Atlantic

Torsten Kanzow,1* Stuart A. Cunningham,1 Darren Rayner,1 Joël J.-M. Hirschi,1 William E. Johns,2 Molly O. Baringer,3 Harry L. Bryden,1 Lisa M. Beal,2 Christopher S. Meinen,3 Jochem Marotzke4*

The Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (MOC), which provides one-quarter of the global meridional heat transport, is composed of a number of separate flow components. How changes in the strength of each of those components may affect that of the others has been unclear because of a lack of adequate data. We continuously observed the MOC at 26.5°N for 1 year using end-point measurements of density, bottom pressure, and ocean currents; cable measurements across the Straits of Florida; and wind stress. The different transport components largely compensate for each other, thus confirming the validity of our monitoring approach. The MOC varied over the period of observation by ±5.7 x 106 cubic meters per second, with density-inferred and wind-driven transports contributing equally to it. We find evidence for depth-independent compensation for the wind-driven surface flow.

1 National Oceanography Centre, Empress Dock, Southampton, SO14 3ZH, UK.
2 Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, 4600 Rickenbacker Causeway, Miami, FL 33149, USA.
3 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory, 4301 Rickenbacker Causeway, Miami, FL 33149, USA.
4 Max-Planck-Institut für Meteorologie, Bundesstraße 53, 20146 Hamburg, Germany.

* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: tok{at}noc.soton.ac.uk (T.K.); jochem.marotzke{at}zmaw.de (J.M.)

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THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
Temporal Variability of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation at 26.5{degrees}N.
S. A. Cunningham, T. Kanzow, D. Rayner, M. O. Baringer, W. E. Johns, J. Marotzke, H. R. Longworth, E. M. Grant, J. J.-M. Hirschi, L. M. Beal, et al. (2007)
Science 317, 935-938
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