Access the full text.
Sign up today, get DeepDyve free for 14 days.
References for this paper are not available at this time. We will be adding them shortly, thank you for your patience.
A low-dimensional dynamical systems model of the North Atlantic thermohaline circulation has been developed in order to better understand the mechanism underlying the so-called Dansgaard––Oeschger oscillation that is so clearly evident during the late glacial period (oxygen isotope stage 3) of the most recent ice-age cycle. The reduced system is designed to describe the evolution of the salinity distribution in this region that has previously been analyzed using both two- and three-dimensional models of the deep ocean circulation. The drastically simplified model described herein is shown to accurately represent the essence of the Dansgaard––Oeschger oscillation as this was previously revealed through detailed analyses performed with a model in which the deep circulation was described using a set of linked interacting two-dimensional (latitude––depth) basins. The authors’’ analyses with the reduced dynamical system reinforce their previous contention that the Dansgaard––Oeschger oscillation is driven by low––midlatitude salt accumulation and controlled by high-latitude freshening, as suggested in previous investigations performed with the more complex model. The dependence of the response of the reduced dynamical systems model to time-dependent external forcing is also investigated. These analyses demonstrate that the mechanism underlying the Dansgaard––Oeschger oscillation that is supported by the model is rather stable against relatively short timescale perturbations, but that the oscillation is effectively modulated by relatively long timescale perturbations such as those that Greenland ice-core data suggest to have existed on the timescale of successive Heinrich events. The dynamical systems model is thereby shown to provide a viable explanation of the Bond cycle that consists of packets of Dansgaard––Oeschger oscillations.
Journal of Climate – American Meteorological Society
Published: Nov 24, 1997
Read and print from thousands of top scholarly journals.
Already have an account? Log in
Bookmark this article. You can see your Bookmarks on your DeepDyve Library.
To save an article, log in first, or sign up for a DeepDyve account if you don’t already have one.
Copy and paste the desired citation format or use the link below to download a file formatted for EndNote
Access the full text.
Sign up today, get DeepDyve free for 14 days.
All DeepDyve websites use cookies to improve your online experience. They were placed on your computer when you launched this website. You can change your cookie settings through your browser.