Summertime increases in upper-ocean stratification and mixed-layer depth.

ABSTRACT: The surface mixed layer of the world ocean regulates global climate by controlling heat and carbon exchange between the atmosphere and the oceanic interior^1-3. The mixed layer also shapes marine ecosystems by hosting most of the ocean's primary production⁴ and providing the conduit for oxygenation of deep oceanic layers. Despite these important climatic and life-supporting roles, possible changes in the mixed layer during an era of global climate change remain uncertain. Here we use oceanographic observations to show that from 1970 to 2018 the density contrast across the base of the mixed layer increased and that the mixed layer itself became deeper. Using a physically based definition of upper-ocean stability that follows different dynamical regimes across the global

SUBMITTER: Sallee JB 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7610469 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature