Deeper and stronger North Atlantic Gyre during the Last Glacial Maximum.

ABSTRACT: Subtropical gyre (STG) depth and strength are controlled by wind stress curl and surface buoyancy forcing^1,2. Modern hydrographic data reveal that the STG extends to a depth of about 1 km in the Northwest Atlantic, with its maximum depth defined by the base of the subtropical thermocline. Despite the likelihood of greater wind stress curl and surface buoyancy loss during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM)³, previous work suggests minimal change in the depth of the glacial STG⁴. Here we show a sharp glacial water mass boundary between 33° N and 36° N extending down to between 2.0 and 2.5 km-approximately 1 km deeper than today. Our findings arise from benthic foraminiferal δ¹⁸O profiles from sediment cores in two depth transects at Cape Hatteras (36-3

SUBMITTER: Wharton JH 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11291279 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature