Publication Date:
2021-05-19
Description:
Global mean surface warming has stalled since the end of
the twentieth century1,2, but the net radiation imbalance
at the top of the atmosphere continues to suggest an
increasingly warming planet. This apparent contradiction has
been reconciled by an anomalous heat flux into the ocean3–8,
induced by a shift towards a La Niña-like state with cold
sea surface temperatures in the eastern tropical Pacific over
the past decade or so. A significant portion of the heat
missing fromthe atmosphere is therefore expected to be stored
in the Pacific Ocean. However, in situ hydrographic records
indicate that Pacific Ocean heat content has been decreasing9.
Here, we analyse observations along with simulations from
a global ocean–sea ice model to track the pathway of heat.
We find that the enhanced heat uptake by the Pacific
Ocean has been compensated by an increased heat transport
from the Pacific Ocean to the Indian Ocean, carried by
the Indonesian throughflow. As a result, Indian Ocean heat
content has increased abruptly, which accounts for more
than 70% of the global ocean heat gain in the upper 700m
during the past decade. We conclude that the Indian Ocean
has become increasingly important in modulating global climate variability.
Description:
PDF is Advanced Online copy 18 May 2015
Description:
Published
Keywords:
Attribution
;
Indonesian throughflow
;
ASFA_2015::H::Heat budget
;
ASFA_2015::H::Heat transport
;
ASFA_2015::V::Volume transport
;
ASFA_2015::O::Ocean-atmosphere system
Repository Name:
AquaDocs
Type:
Journal Contribution
,
Refereed
Format:
pp.445-449
Permalink
