Warming and lateral shift of the Gulf Stream from in situ observations since 2001

Robert E. Todd () and Alice S. Ren
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Robert E. Todd: Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
Alice S. Ren: Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

Nature Climate Change, 2023, vol. 13, issue 12, 1348-1352

Abstract: Abstract As the poleward-flowing western boundary current of the North Atlantic ocean, the Gulf Stream plays a key role in the climate system. Here we show that from 2001 to 2023, the Gulf Stream west of 68° W has experienced both surface-intensified warming due to heat uptake at a rate exceeding the global average and a bulk lateral shift towards its cooler shoreward side at a rate of about 6 ± 3 km per decade. The Gulf Stream west of 68° W now has an O(10)-m-thick surface layer of warmer (by ~ 1 °C) and lighter (by ~ 0.3 kg m−3) water, contributing to increased upper ocean stratification. Our results rely on over 25,000 temperature and salinity profiles collected by autonomous profiling floats and underwater gliders in the region, allowing robust estimation of trends and clear attribution of observed changes to both ocean heat uptake and a lateral shift of the Gulf Stream.

Date: 2023
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DOI: 10.1038/s41558-023-01835-w

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