The warmer the ocean surface, the shallower the mixed layer. How much of this is true?

ABSTRACT: Ocean surface warming is commonly associated with a more stratified, less productive, and less oxygenated ocean. Such an assertion is mainly based on consistent projections of increased near-surface stratification and shallower mixed layers under global warming scenarios. However, while the observed sea surface temperature (SST) is rising at midlatitudes, the concurrent ocean record shows that stratification is not unequivocally increasing nor is MLD shoaling. We find that while SST increases at three study areas at midlatitudes, stratification both increases and decreases, and MLD deepens with enhanced deepening of winter MLDs at rates over 10 m  decade-1. These results rely on the estimation of several MLD and stratification indexes of different complexity on hydrographic profiles from l

SUBMITTER: Somavilla R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5699439 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature