Science Source
The Ice‐Ocean governor: ice‐ocean stress feedback limits Beaufort Gyre spin up
- States that:
- The Beaufort Gyre, located north of Alaska and Canada, is a key circulation system of the Arctic Ocean
- Changes in its depth and circulation influence the evolution of the Arctic sea ice cover, the North Atlantic circulation and the global climate
- Describes the "ice‐ocean governor" mechanism, in which the interaction of surface currents with the ice regulates the depth of the Beaufort Gyre: the spinning up of the gyre reduces the relative speed between the ocean and the ice, and hence the fresh water accumulation
- Notes that in a warming world, reduced ice cover may render the ice‐ocean governor less effective
- Employs analytical and numerical modeling to contrast the equilibration processes in an ice‐covered versus ice‐free gyre
- Argues that as the Arctic warms, reduced sea‐ice extent and more mobile ice will result in a deeper and faster Beaufort Gyre, accumulating more freshwater that will be released by Ekman upwelling or baroclinic instability
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