The Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation in high-resolution models

The Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC) represents the zonally integrated stream function of meridional volume transport in the Atlantic Basin. The AMOC plays an important role in transporting heat meridionally in the climate system. Observations suggest a heat transport by the AMOC of 1.3 PW at 26 degrees N-a latitude which is close to where the Atlantic northward heat transport is thought to reach its maximum. This shapes the climate of the North Atlantic region as we know it today. In recent years there has been significant progress both in our ability to observe the AMOC in nature and to simulate it in numerical models. Most previous modeling investigations of the AMOC and its impact on climate have relied on models with horizontal resolution that does not resolve ocean mesoscale eddies and the dynamics of the Gulf Stream/North Atlantic Current system. As a result of recent increases in computing power, models are now being run that are able to represent mesoscale ocean dynamics and the circulation features that rely on them. The aim of this review is to describe new insights into the AMOC provided by high-resolution models. Furthermore, we will describe how high-resolution model simulations can help resolve outstanding challenges in our understanding of the AMOC.

To Access Resource:

Questions? Email Resource Support Contact:

  • opensky@ucar.edu
    UCAR/NCAR - Library

Resource Type publication
Temporal Range Begin N/A
Temporal Range End N/A
Temporal Resolution N/A
Bounding Box North Lat N/A
Bounding Box South Lat N/A
Bounding Box West Long N/A
Bounding Box East Long N/A
Spatial Representation N/A
Spatial Resolution N/A
Related Links N/A
Additional Information N/A
Resource Format PDF
Standardized Resource Format PDF
Asset Size N/A
Legal Constraints

Copyright author(s). This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
Access Constraints None
Software Implementation Language N/A

Resource Support Name N/A
Resource Support Email opensky@ucar.edu
Resource Support Organization UCAR/NCAR - Library
Distributor N/A
Metadata Contact Name N/A
Metadata Contact Email opensky@ucar.edu
Metadata Contact Organization UCAR/NCAR - Library

Author Hirschi, J. J.
Barnier, B.
Böning, C.
Biastoch, A.
Blaker, A. T.
Coward, A.
Danilov, S.
Drijfhout, S.
Getzlaff, K.
Griffies, S. M.
Hasumi, H.
Hewitt, H.
Iovino, D.
Kawasaki, T.
Kiss, A. E.
Koldunov, N.
Marzocchi, A.
Mecking, J. V.
Moat, B.
Molines, J.
Myers, P. G.
Penduff, T.
ROBERTS, M.
Treguier, A.
Sein, D. V.
Sidorenko, D.
Small, R. Justin
Spence, P.
Thompson, L.
Weijer, W.
Xu, X.
Publisher UCAR/NCAR - Library
Publication Date 2020-04-22T00:00:00
Digital Object Identifier (DOI) Not Assigned
Alternate Identifier N/A
Resource Version N/A
Topic Category geoscientificInformation
Progress N/A
Metadata Date 2025-07-11T19:19:49.138493
Metadata Record Identifier edu.ucar.opensky::articles:23408
Metadata Language eng; USA
Suggested Citation Hirschi, J. J., Barnier, B., Böning, C., Biastoch, A., Blaker, A. T., Coward, A., Danilov, S., Drijfhout, S., Getzlaff, K., Griffies, S. M., Hasumi, H., Hewitt, H., Iovino, D., Kawasaki, T., Kiss, A. E., Koldunov, N., Marzocchi, A., Mecking, J. V., Moat, B., Molines, J., Myers, P. G., Penduff, T., ROBERTS, M., Treguier, A., Sein, D. V., Sidorenko, D., Small, R. Justin, Spence, P., Thompson, L., Weijer, W., Xu, X.. (2020). The Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation in high-resolution models. UCAR/NCAR - Library. https://n2t.org/ark:/85065/d7qv3qrz. Accessed 12 August 2025.

Harvest Source