Coupling of the mid-depth and abyssal components of the global overturning circulation according to a state estimate

Abstract

> 37.07 and is further divided into subpolar (20%) and abyssal cells (48%). Particles in the abyssal cell detour into the abyssal North Pacific before upwelling in the Southern Ocean. NADW preferentially upwells north of 33°S (67%). Total diapycnal transformations are largest in the lower route but of comparable magnitudes in the upper route, challenging its previous characterization as "adiabatic." Typical transit times are 300, 700, and 3600 years for the upper route, subpolar, and abyssal cells, respectively. The AMOC imports salinity into the Atlantic, indicating its potential instability to high-latitude freshwater perturbations.

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