Observations of SST, heat flux and North Atlantic Ocean‐atmosphere interaction

Geophysical Research Letters, 32 (2005) L24619; doi: 10.1029/2005GL024871.

Observations of SST, heat flux and North Atlantic Ocean‐atmosphere interaction

Na Wen and Zhengyu Liu (Center for Climatic Research, University of Wisconsin‐Madison, WI, USA), Qinyu Liu (Physical Oceanography Laboratory, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, Shandong, China) and Claude Frankignoul (Laboratoire of Oceanographie Dynamique et de Climatologie, Universite Pierre et Marie Curie, Paris, France)

Abstract

The relationship between the observed North Atlantic atmosphere and the forcing of SST and heat flux is investigated using the lagged MCA analysis. The dominant heat flux forcing to the North Atlantic Oscillation is associated with the later summer horseshoe SST forcing. The horseshoe SST is generated largely by the surface heat flux, and then forces the early winter atmosphere through the release of oceanic heat flux into the atmosphere. Independent of the horseshoe SST, there is no significant heat flux forcing on the atmosphere with a lead of longer than 1 month.

Citation: Wen, N., Z. Liu, Q. Liu, and C. Frankignoul (2005), Observations of SST, heat flux and North Atlantic Ocean‐atmosphere interaction, Geophys. Res. Lett., 32, L24619; doi: 10.1029/2005GL024871.