Atlantic meridional overturning circulation observed by the RAPID-MOCHA-WBTS array at 26N from 2004 to 2015

Atlantic meridional overturning circulation observed by the RAPID-MOCHA-WBTS (RAPID-Meridional Overturning Circulation and Heatflux Array-Western Boundary Time Series) array at 26N from 2004 to 2015.

(1) National Oceanography Centre, Southampton; (2) Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science; (3) NOAA Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory

The RAPID-MOCHA-WBTS (RAPID-Meridional Overturning Circulation and Heatflux Array-Western Boundary Time Series) programme has produced a continuous time series of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) at 26N that started in April 2004. This release of the time series extends the data to October 2015. The 26N AMOC time series is derived from measurements of temperature, salinity, pressure and water velocity from an array of moored instruments that extend from the east coast of the Bahamas to the continental shelf off Africa east of the Canary Islands. The AMOC calculation also uses estimates of the transport in the Florida Strait derived from sub-sea cable measurements calibrated by regular hydrographic cruises. The component of the AMOC associated with the wind driven Ekman layer is derived from satellite scatterometer measurements. This release of the data includes a document with a brief description of the calculation of the AMOC time series and references to more detailed description in published papers. The 26N AMOC time series and the data from the moored array are curated by the British Oceanographic Data Centre (BODC). The RAPID-MOCHA-WBTS programme is a joint effort between NERC in the UK (Principle Investigator David Smeed since 2012 and Stuart Cunningham from 2004 to 2012), NOAA (PIs Chris Meinen and Molly Baringer) and NSF (PI Prof. Bill Johns, Uni. Miami) in the USA.