Click on the map on the right to find out the
CLIVAR related PROCESS STUDIES in the Atlantic Sector. The process
studies are organized in three groups reflecting the Atlantic
principal research areas namely:
(Compiled by R. Boscolo, ICPO)
Click on the map on the right to find out the
CLIVAR related PROCESS STUDIES in the Atlantic Sector. The process
studies are organized in three groups reflecting the Atlantic
principal research areas namely:
MERIDIONAL OVERTURNING CIRCULATION
RELATED STUDIES
(last update
Initial
Implementatiion Phase Initial
Implementation phase: Announcement of opportunity
Project name
& Web site
PIs
contact
Country
Description
Status &
Timeline
ASOF
Bob
Dickson (Chair)
Multinational
project
The Arctic and
Subarctic Ocean Flux (ASOF) plans to construct a coordinated
circum-Arctic ocean flux monitoring system. The system will provide
the long-term measurements critical to understand the factors that
control the global THC and its influence on global climate.
Funded for 3
years.
Rapid Climate
Change
M.
Srokosz (Science
co-ordinator)
United
Kingdom
Rapid Climate
Change is a thematic programme of NERC UK. The programme aims to
improve our ability to quantify the probability and magnitude of
future rapid change in climate with a main focus on the role of the
Atlantic THC.
Funded for
2001-2007
NOClim
Official project
contact
Norway
The main aim of
the Norwegian Ocean Climate project is to improve our understanding
of rapid changes in the THC in the Northern Sea and maintain
timeseries for early detection of climate change in the Northern
Seas.
Funded
2000-2002
Sfb460: Dynamics
of Thermohaline Circulation Variability
C.
Boening (ocean
circulation and climate division)
Germany
The initial phase
is better understanding the process related to variation in air-sea
fluxes in the sub-polar North Atlantic and inflow boundary conditions
together with variation in the formation and circulation of deep
waters.
ONGOING
Started in 1996.
Funded till 2002, submitted proposal for continuation till
2006
MAIA
T.
McClimans
(coordinator)
EU Fp5
Monitoring the
Atlantic Inflow toward the Arctic will develop an inexpensive
reliable system based on coastal sea-level data for monitoring the
inflow of Atlantic water to the Northern Seas.
Funded for
2000-2002
Convection
P.
Wadhams
(coordinator)
EU Fp5
Greenland Sea
Convection Mechanisms and their climatic implications
ONGOING
Started in 2001
SOLAS/Slope Water
A.
Clarke
Canada
The slope water region between the Gulf Stream and the
eastern North American shelves is currently a Canadian special focus.
4 surveys will be carried out over this region investigating upper
ocean processes with the support of hydrography and full depth
CTD/tracer sections
Planned funded
2003-2004
Atlantic Zone
Monitoring Programme
J.-C. Therriaul
& A.
Clarke
Canada
Series of
sections across the Atlantic Canadian shelves nominally twice each
year (spring and fall). These sections extend out over the
continental slope to the 3000 m isobath and are sampled to full
depth. Continuing programme, sampling is full depth CTDs, nutrients
and biology.
Started 1999
OPERATIONAL
Variability in NW
Atlantic
J.
Toole
(WHOI)
USA
Measuring
programme south of New England to quantify changes in DWBC water
properties, stratifications and transport.
Proposed
MOVE
U.
Send (PI)
Germany
The Meridional
Overturning Variability Experiment aims to demonstrate the
feasibility of long-term transport monitoring using a horizontally
integrating "end point" technique, provide a timeseries of
interannual to decadal NADW transport fluctuations and trace back
these fluctuations to the forcing factors of the MOC. (MOVE web
page in german).
ONGOING
Started in 2000.
Funded till early 2005
Guyana Abyssal
Gyre Experiment
M.
McCartney (PI)
USA
The net flow
through the Guiana Abyssal Gyre to a large extent sets the amplitude
of the cold limb of the MOC, while the temperature constrast between
its opposing limbs determines the temperature transport. GAGE is a
moored current meter and temperature sensor experiment supported by
shipboard hydrography during the array deployment (2000) and recovery
(2002).
ONGOING:
Start: Jan 2000-Stop:
March 2002
Agulhas-South
Atlantic Thermohaline Transport Experiment (ASTTEX)
D.
Byrne
USA
The experiment
will provide a quantitative, multiyear Eulerian measurement of the
strength and characteristic scales of the Agulhas-S. Atlantic mass
and thermohaline fluxes. 16 moorings will monitor the transport for
24 months. The array will consist of 12 pressure inverted echo
sounders (PIES), 3 near-bottom current meters (CM) and 1 mooring with
six recording conductivity-temperature sensors (CT). ASTTEX also
includes the large-scale analysis of regional SSH anomaly fields
during the field portion of the experiment as well as a long-term (12
years) analysis of Agulhas eddies in the SSH record
(1992-2004).
ONGOING
Started: 2001 End
2005
MARE
W. de
Ruijter
(coordinator)
Netherlands
The main
objective of the MARE programme is to determine the portion of
Agulhas leakage that contributes to the northward branchof the THC,
estimate its variability at interannual to millenial timescales and
determine the impact of anomalous leakage on the strength of the
Atlantic overturning circulation.
ONGOING:
Start: 2000
Stop: 2002
NORTH ATLANTIC OSCILLATION RELATED
STUDIES
(last update
Project name
& Web site
PIs
contact
Country
Description
Status &
Timeline
Gyrospcope
Yves
Desaubies (coordinator)
EU Fp5
European
component of a global in situ observing system of ocean variability
in the North Atlantic.Deployment of 80 autonomous profiling floats as
a contribution to the international ARGO programme.
ONGOING
Start 2001 and Stop
2002
OVIDE (doc. in
french)
H.
Mercier (PI)
France
OVIDE is an
observational project aiming at monitoring the N.Atlantic subpolar
gyre in order to understand the climate variability of northern N.
Atlantic and the ocean-atmospehere interaction. The observational
phase consists mainly of repeat hydrographic sections
(Spain-Greenland) every 2 years from 2002 to 2010.
Funded for
2001-2004 and
proposed continuation till 2010.
POMME
G.
Reverdin
(coordinator)
France
POMME is a regional
and short timescale study aiming at understanding the subduction
mechanism of 11-12°C mode water in the NE Atlantic. The field
period was from fall 2000 to fall 2001. Data are being
analysed.
Funded
2000-2002
TROPICAL ATLANTIC
VARIABILITY RELATED STUDIES
(last update
Brazil USA A.
Mokssit (NEE) P.
Nobre (WE) Morocco Brazil PIRATA NEE PIRATA WE
Project name
& Web site
PIs
contact
Country
Description
Status &
Timeline
PIRATA
J.
Servain (coordinator)
France
The Pilot
Research Moored Array in the Tropical Atantic has the purpose of
studing the ocean-atmosphere interactions in the tropical Atlantic
that are relevant to regional climate variability on seasonal,
interannual and longer timescale. the original backbone consists of
12 ATLAS moorings
ONGOING
Start 1997 funded
till 2005
PIRATA
Extensions
M.
Rounault (SEE)
South
Africa
PIRATA
SSE
the project has been
funded through BCLME. Feasibility study has started.
Scientific and
operational plan has been elaborated, seeking for funds.
proposed 4 additional
moorings off-shore of Brazil. Funding should come from USProposed
NTAS
A.
Plueddemann (PI)
USA
The Northwest
Tropical Atlantic Station project for air-sea flux investigate
surface forcing and oceanographic response in a region of the
tropical Atlantic with strong SST anomalies.
ONGOING
Started spring 2001
funded till 2007
Tropical-Subtropical
Interactions in the Atlantic
F. Schott
and J. Fischer
Germany
The project aims
to study the tropica-subtropical coupling by the shallow thermohaline
circulation cell in the tropical South Atlantic, investigate the
impact of anomalies of this coupling on tropical ocean-atmosphere
interaction, determine the pathways and water mass trnsformations of
the warm water limb of the thermohaline circulation in the equatorial
belt and investigate the role of ENSO-related variability on the
intehemispheric exchage.
ONGOING
Started 2000
Rings of the
North Brazil Current
S.
Garzoli (PI)
USA
The experiment
aimed to describe the spatial and temporal evolution of the North
Brazil Current retroflection, determine the physical structure of the
rings after separation from NBC and determine the rate of
translation, decay and mixing. Four cruisestook place and a long-term
array consisting of 16 IES and 2 subsurface mooring was
deployed.
FINISHED
funded 1998-2000
EQUALANT
C.
Andrie and B. Bourles
France
The EQUALANT
objectives are: monitoring the large scale low frequency variability
of the thermohaline circulation in the tropical Atlantic; studying
the transport of water, heat and tracers between 6°S-6°N;
studying the equatorial processes upwelling, jets. The experiment
consisted of 2 cruises one in summer 1999 and another in summer
2000.
FINISHED
funded 1999-2000
EGEE
B.
Bourles
France
Component of the
AMMA project (African Monsoon Multidisciplinary
Analysis), EGEE will study the oceanic circulation and its
variability in the upper layers of the eastern Tropical Atlantic,
mainly the Gulf of Guinea. The project will perform 2 cruises per
year during 3 years and the installation of meteorological station at
Sao Tome .
Funded
2003-2005
Guyana Abyssal
Gyre Experiment
M.
McCartney (PI)
USA
The net flow
through the Guiana Abyssal Gyre to a large extent sets the amplitude
of the cold limb of the MOC, while the temperature constrast between
its opposing limbs determines the temperature transport. GAGE is a
moored current meter and temperature sensor experiment supported by
shipboard hydrography during the array deployment (2000) and recovery
(2002).
ONGOING:
Start: 2000
Stop: 2002
