This book presents the views of leading scientists on the knowledge of the global ocean circulation following the completion of the observational phase of the World Ocean Circulation Experiment. WOCE's in situ physical and chemical measurements together with satellite altimetry have produced a data set which provides for development of ocean and coupled ocean-atmosphere circulation models used for understanding ocean and climate variability and projecting climate change. This book guides the reader through the analysis, interpretation, modelling and synthesis of this data.

The book represents all the knowledge we currently have on ocean circulation. It presents an up-to-date summary of the state of the science relating to the role of the oceans in the physical climate system. The book is structured to guide the reader through the wide range of world ocean circulation experiment (WOCE) science in a consistent way. Cross-references between contributors have been added, and the book has a comprehensive index and unified reference list. The book is simple to read, at the undergraduate level. It was written by the best scientists in the world who have collaborated to carry out years of experiments to better understand ocean circulation. - Presents in situ and remote observations with worldwide coverage - Provides theoretical understanding of processes within the ocean and at its boundaries to other Earth System components - Allows for simulating ocean and climate processes in the past, present and future using a hierarchy of physical-biogeochemical models

Published by the American Geophysical Union as part of the Geophysical Monograph Series, Volume 173. The ocean's meridional overturning circulation (MOC) is a key factor in climate change. The Atlantic MOC, in particular, is believed to play an active role in the regional and global climate variability. It is associated with the recent debate on rapid climate change, the Atlantic Multi-Decadal Oscillation (AMO), global warming, and Atlantic hurricanes. This is the first book to deal with all aspects of the ocean's large-scale meridional overturning circulation, and is a coherent presentation, from a mechanistic point of view, of our current understanding of paleo, present-day, and future variability and change. It presents the current state of the science by bringing together the world's leading experts in physical, chemical, and biological oceanography, marine geology, geochemistry, paleoceanography, and climate modeling. A mix of overview and research papers makes this volume suitable not only for experts in the field, but also for students and anyone interested in climate change and the oceans.

Explores climate and oceans, providing a look at the basics of climate, a descriptive overview of the oceans, a brief introduction to dynamics, and coverage of other related topics.

A broad perspective of the ocean as a key component of the Earth System and of its role in the past, present, and future climate change is provided. The ocean is a huge reservoir of heat, mass, carbon, and many other quantities, and their estimated exchange fluxes suggest characteristic timescales of adjustment ranging from decades to many thousands of years. Surface patterns and meridional fluxes of these quantities highlight the important role of the wind-driven circulation and the deep ocean flow systems through all ocean basins. Ocean-dominated phenomena of natural variability, in particular associated with the tropical oceans, are explained. The relevance of the ocean circulation for abrupt climate change, as recorded from a variety of paleoclimate records, is discussed. This includes the bipolar seesaw concept which explains many features of interhemispheric response during the sequence of rapid warmings in the past ice age. Finally, the ocean’s role during the anthropocene, the time epoch which is dominated by the human-caused increase in greenhouse gases to levels unprecedented in the past 800,000 years, is explored. Both the warming and the increase in atmospheric transport of water polewards create conditions for the ocean that may induce large and irreversible changes in the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation.

It provides a concise introduction to the dynamics and thermodynamics of oceanic general circulation.

The issue of global warming and climate change is of continuous concern. Since the 1970s, it bas been shown that the pack-ice around the Arctic Ocean is thinning, the margin of permafrost is moving north and the vegetation in the high northern parts of the world is changing (the 'greening' of the Arctic). But are these changes the result of human activity or simply regular variations of the Earth's climate system? Over thousands of years, a continuous archive of iceberg and sea ice drift bas formed in the deep-sea sediments, revealing the place of the ice's origin and allowing a reconstruction of the surface currents and the climate of the past. However, the drift of floating ice from one place to another is not just a passive record of past ocean circulation. It actively influences and changes the surface ocean circulation, thus having a profound effect on climate change. Ice Drift, Ocean Circulation and Climate Change is the first book to focus on the interactions between ice, the ocean and the atmosphere and to describe how these three components of the climate system influence each other. It makes clear the positive contribution of paleoclimatology and paleoceanography and should be read by anyone concerned with global warming and climate change.

An innovative survey of large-scale ocean circulation that links observations, conceptual models, numerical models, and theories.

This book presents a global hydrographic description of the thermohaline circulation, an introduction to the theoretical aspects of this phenomenon, and observational evidence for the theory. The hydrographic description and the observational evidence are based on data sources available via internet, mainly from the World Oceanographic Experiment (WOCE). The book also offers an introduction to hydrographic analysis and interpretation.

Measuring Ocean Currents: Tools, Technologies, and Data covers all major aspects of ocean current measurements in view of the implications of ocean currents on changing climate, increasing pollution levels, and offshore engineering activities. Although more than 70% of the Earth is covered by ocean, there is limited information on the countless fine- to large-scale water motions taking place within them. This book fills that information gap as the first work that summarizes the state-of-the-art methods and instruments used for surface, subsurface, and abyssal ocean current measurements. Readers of this book will find a wealth of information on Lagrangian measurements, horizontal mapping, imaging, Eulerian measurements, and vertical profiling techniques. In addition, the book describes modern technologies for remote measurement of ocean currents and their signatures, including HF Doppler radar systems, satellite-borne sensors, ocean acoustic tomography, and more. Crucial aspects of ocean currents are described in detail as well, including dispersion of effluents discharged into the sea and transport of beneficial materials—as well as environmentally hazardous materials—from one region to another. The book highlights several important practical applications, showing how measurements relate to climate change and pollution levels, how they affect coastal and offshore engineering activities, and how they can aid in tsunami detection. - Coverage of measurement, mapping and profiling techniques - Descriptions of technologies for remote measurement of ocean currents and their signatures - Reviews crucial aspects of ocean currents, including special emphasis on the planet-spanning thermohaline circulation, known as the ocean's "conveyor belt," and its crucial role in climate change