Physical processes in the Southern Ocean are
known to profoundly impact the global carbon cycle, but this region is one of
the most difficult to simulate consistently in ocean general circulation models
(OGCMs). Here we show that Southern Hemisphere winds, by altering the volume of
light, actively-ventilated ocean water as well as the relative contribution to
this volume from Ekman transport, exert strong control over both the magnitude
and distribution of anthropogenic carbon uptake in an OGCM. These results are
provocative in suggesting that climate warming, by increasing the magnitude of
the wind stress at high southern latitudes, may act as a negative feedback on
the global carbon cycle.
Author: B.K. Mignone, A. Gnanadesikan, J. L. Sarmiento, et al (bmignone at princeton dot edu)
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