{"id":132,"date":"2017-12-13T15:56:50","date_gmt":"2017-12-13T19:56:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www2.whoi.edu\/staff\/mspall\/?page_id=132"},"modified":"2020-11-07T12:27:57","modified_gmt":"2020-11-07T16:27:57","slug":"watermass-transformation-in-marginal-seas","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www2.whoi.edu\/staff\/mspall\/projects\/watermass-transformation-in-marginal-seas\/","title":{"rendered":"Watermass Transformation in Marginal Seas"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\t

Watermass Transformation in Marginal Seas<\/h2>\n

Waters formed at high latitudes have distinct water mass characteristics that can be traced throughout the worlds oceans. This water mass transformation and transport is a fundamental component of the oceanic thermohaline circulation and plays an important role in the global climate system. I am interested in several aspects of how these waters are formed, where they sink, and how they are transported away from their formation regions. I am also interested in how the thermohaline circulation interacts with the wind-driven circulation, both at mid-latitudes and at high latitudes.\u00a0<\/p>\n

I have found that the dominant component of the downwelling limb of the thermohaline circulation takes place very close to lateral boundaries and steep topography. I have been using analytic models, simple scaling ideas, and general circulation modelling studies to understand and quantify the amplitude of boundary sinking and demonstrate its importance relative to large-scale interior downwelling and eddy-driven downwelling in a subpolar gyre.\u00a0<\/p>\n\t

Funding Agencies<\/h3>\n

This work has been generously supported through grants from the National Science Foundation and the Office of Naval Research:<\/p>\n

\"\"\"\"<\/p>\n\t

Publications on this subject:<\/h3>\n

Spall, M. A., 2012.\u00a0 Influences of precipitation on water mass transformation and deep convection<\/a>.\u00a0 J. Phys. Oceanogr.<\/em>, 42, 1684-1700<\/p>\n

Vage, K., R. S. Pickart, M. A. Spall, H. Valdimarsson, S. Jonsson, D. J. Torres, S. Osterhus, T. Eldevik, 2011. Significant role of the North Icelandic Jet in the formation of Denmark Strait overflow water.<\/a> Nature Geosci., <\/em>doi:10.1030\/NGEO1234<\/p>\n

Spall, M. A., 2011. On the role of eddies and surface forcing in the heat transport and overturning circulation in marginals seas<\/a>.\u00a0J. Clim.,<\/em>\u00a024, 4844-4858<\/p>\n

Spall, M. A., 2010. Dynamics of downwelling in an eddy-resolving convective basin<\/a>.\u00a0J. Phys. Oceanogr.,<\/em>\u00a040,2341-2347<\/p>\n

Spall, M. A., 2010. Non-local topographic influences on deep convection: An idealized model for the Nordic Seas.\u00a0<\/a>Ocean Model.,<\/em>\u00a032, 72-85, doi:10.1016\/j.ocemod.2009.10.009<\/p>\n

Spall, M. A., 2008.\u00a0 Buoyancy-forced downwelling in boundary currents.\u00a0<\/a>J. Phys. Oceanogr., <\/em>38, 2704-2721<\/p>\n

Spall, M. A., 2008. Low-frequency interaction between horizontal and overturning gyres in the ocean.<\/a> Geophys. Res. Lett., 35, <\/em>L18614, doi:10.1029\/2008GL035206<\/p>\n

Pickart, R. S. and M. A. Spall, 2007. Impact of Labrador Sea convection on the North Atlantic meridional overturning circulation<\/a>.\u00a0J. Phys. Oceanogr.\u00a0<\/em>37, 2207-2227.<\/p>\n

Spall, M. A., 2007. Circulation and water mass transformation in a model of the Chukchi Sea<\/a>.\u00a0J. Geophys. Res.\u00a0<\/i>., 112, C0525
<\/p>\n

Pedlosky, J. and M. A. Spall, 2005. Boundary intensification of vertical velocity in a beta-plane basin<\/a>.\u00a0J. Phys. Oceanogr.\u00a0<\/em>35, 2487-2500<\/p>\n

Spall, M.A., 2005. Buoyancy forced circulations in shallow marginal seas.<\/a> J. Mar. Res.<\/em> 63, 729-752.<\/p>\n

Spall, M. A., 2004. Boundary currents and water mass transformation in marginal seas<\/a>.\u00a0J. Phys. Oceanogr.,<\/em> 34, 1197-1213<\/p>\n

Katsman, C., M. A. Spall, and R. S. Pickart, 2004. Boundary current eddies and their role in the restratification of the Labrador Sea<\/a>. J. Phys.\u00a0 Oceanogr.<\/em>, 34, 1967-1983<\/p>\n

Pickart, R. S., M. A. Spall, M. H. Ribergaard, G. W. K. Moore, and R. F. Milliff, 2003. Deep convection in the Irminger Sea forced by the Greenland tip jet.<\/a>\u00a0Nature<\/em>, 424,152-156<\/p>\n

Spall, Michael A., R. S. Pickart, 2003. Wind-driven recirculations and exchange in the Labrador and Irminger Seas<\/a>.\u00a0J. \u00a0Phys. Oceanogr.<\/em>, 33,1829-1845<\/p>\n

Spall, Michael A., 2003. On the thermohaline circulation in flat bottom marginal seas.<\/a>\u00a0J. Mar. Res.,<\/em> 61, 1-25<\/p>\n

Spall, Michael A., 2002. Wind- and buoyancy-forced upper ocean circulation in two-strait marginal seas with application to the Japan \/ East Sea<\/a>.\u00a0J. Geophys. Res.<\/em>,\u00a0107(C1), 6.1-6.12<\/p>\n

Spall, Michael A., R. S. Pickart, 2001. Where does dense water sink? A subpolar gyre example.<\/a>\u00a0J. Phys. Oceanogr.<\/em>,\u00a031(3), 810-825<\/p>\n

Joyce, Terrence M., Clara Deser and Michael A. Spall, 2000. On the relation between decadal variability of Subtropical Mode Water and the North Atlantic Oscillation.<\/a>\u00a0J. Clim.<\/em>,\u00a013(14), 2550-2569<\/p>\n

Spall, Michael A., 1999. A simple model of the large scale circulation of Mediterranean water and Labrador Sea water<\/a>.\u00a0Deep Sea Res., II<\/em>,\u00a046, 181-204.<\/p>\n

Spall, Michael A., and James F. Price, 1998. Mesoscale variability in Denmark Strait: the PV outflow hypothesis<\/a>.\u00a0 J. Phys. Oceanogr., <\/em>28(8), 1598-1623.<\/p>\n

Pickart, Robert S., Michael A. Spall and J. R. N. Lazier, 1997. Mid-depth ventilation in the western boundary current system of the subpolar gyre.<\/a>\u00a0Deep-Sea Res., <\/em>44(6), 1025-1054<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Watermass Transformation in Marginal Seas Waters formed at high latitudes have distinct water mass characteristics that can be traced throughout the worlds oceans. This water mass transformation and transport is a fundamental component of the oceanic thermohaline circulation and plays an important role in the global climate system. I am interested in several aspects of…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":67,"featured_media":0,"parent":13,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www2.whoi.edu\/staff\/mspall\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/132"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www2.whoi.edu\/staff\/mspall\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www2.whoi.edu\/staff\/mspall\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www2.whoi.edu\/staff\/mspall\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/67"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www2.whoi.edu\/staff\/mspall\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=132"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www2.whoi.edu\/staff\/mspall\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/132\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":388,"href":"https:\/\/www2.whoi.edu\/staff\/mspall\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/132\/revisions\/388"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www2.whoi.edu\/staff\/mspall\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/13"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www2.whoi.edu\/staff\/mspall\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=132"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}