Sea surface salinity response to variations in the Aleutian Low

Type Article
Date 2023-05
Language English
Author(s) Grodsky Semyon A.1, Reul NicolasORCID2, Vandemark Douglas3
Affiliation(s) 1 : Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Science, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA
2 : Laboratoire d'Océanographie Physique et Spatial (LOPS), Institut Francais pour la Recherche et l'Exploitation de la Mer, Plouzané, France
3 : University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH, USA
Source Journal Of Marine Systems (0924-7963) (Elsevier BV), 2023-05 , Vol. 240 , P. 103888 (14p.)
DOI 10.1016/j.jmarsys.2023.103888
WOS© Times Cited 1
Keyword(s) North pacific, Salinity, Wind, Aleutian low
Abstract

The strength of the atmospheric Aleutian Low pressure system varies interannually and has a distinct impact on sea surface temperature (SST), sea level, and other oceanic parameters along the North Pacific subarctic front. These impacts are caused by variable zonal winds through their effects on meridional Ekman transport and air-sea fluxes. While the SST response is well known on an interannual (ENSO) to decadal (PDO) scale, the response of sea surface salinity (SSS) is less known due to relatively sparse observations. The SSS response originates in the western Pacific and is concentrated along the North Pacific subarctic front, reaching a few tenths of psu in the upper 100 m, as demonstrated by satellite SSS, Argo salinity data, and model simulations. SSS anomalies, in contrast to SST anomalies, behave like passive tracers that are advected eastward in the North Pacific Current across the whole basin and, unexpectedly, sometimes intensify to the east. After reaching the eastern boundary, they continue predominantly southward along the California coast, remaining detectable by satellite SSS all the way to the southern tip of the California peninsula.

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