On the nature of temporal variability of the gulf stream path from 75º to 55ºW

Abstract

The response of the Gulf Stream (GS) system to atmospheric forcing is generally linked either to the basin-scale winds on the subtropical gyre or to the buoyancy forcing from the Labrador Sea. This study presents a multiscale synergistic perspective to describe the low-frequency response of the GS system. The authors identify dominant temporal variability in the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), in known indices of the GS path, and in the observed GS latitudes along its path derived from sea surface height (SSH) contours over the period 1993-2013. The analysis suggests that the signature of interannual variability changes along the stream’s path from 75º to 55º W. From its separation at Cape Hatteras to the west of 65ºW, the variability of the GS is mainly in the near-decadal (7-10 years) band, which is missing to the east of 60ºW, where a new interannual (4-5 years) band peaks. The latter peak (4-5 years) was missing to the west of 65ºW. The region between 65º and 60ºW seems to be a transition region. A 2-3-yr secondary peak was pervasive in all time series, including that for the NAO. This multiscale response of the GS system is supported by results from a basin-scale North Atlantic model. The near-decadal response can be attributed to similar forcing periods in the NAO signal; however, the interannual variability of 4-5 years in the eastern segment of the GS path is as yet unexplained. More numerical and observational studies are warranted to understand such causality.