The influence of the melting rate of the Greenland ice sheet on the sea level variation for 21st century

Li Juan; Zuo Juncheng; Tan Wei; Chen Meixiang; ZhaoXue

Article Contents

Article Navigation > Haiyang Xuebao > 2015 > 37(7): 22-32

Li Juan, Zuo Juncheng, Tan Wei, Chen Meixiang, ZhaoXue. The influence of the melting rate of the Greenland ice sheet on the sea level variation for 21st century[J]. Haiyang Xuebao, 2015, 37(7): 22-32.

Citation:

Li Juan, Zuo Juncheng, Tan Wei, Chen Meixiang, ZhaoXue. The influence of the melting rate of the Greenland ice sheet on the sea level variation for 21st century[J]. Haiyang Xuebao, 2015, 37(7): 22-32.

Citation:

PDF( 5540 KB)

The influence of the melting rate of the Greenland ice sheet on the sea level variation for 21st century

1.
South China Sea Marine Prediction Center, State Oceanic Administration, Guangzhou 510300, China;Coastal and offshore Engineering Hohai University, Nanjing 210098, China
2.
Coastal and offshore Engineering Hohai University, Nanjing 210098, China
3.
South China Sea Marine Prediction Center, State Oceanic Administration, Guangzhou 510300, China

Received Date: 2014-07-18
Rev Recd Date: 2015-03-19

Abstract

Abstract

The influence of the different melting rate of Greenland ice sheet on sea level of the global and regional ocean are studied based on POP model under the RCP4.5 scenario for the 21st century. In the 21st century,the low melting rate of Greenland ice sheet has small influence on the global and regional sea level variations,which mainly due to the meridional overturning flow doesn't weak under the low melting rate of Greenland ice sheet in the Atlantic. The high melting rate will have notably effect on the dynamic and steric sea level in the Atlantic,the Arctic and Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC). The dynamic sea level will significantly rise in the north Atlantic subpolar Ocean,tropical Atlantic Ocean,the south Atlantic subtropical and Arctic Ocean,which will rise fast in ocean of southern Greenland and along the coast of North America,that is due to notable weakened of the meridional overturning flow caused by strengthen stratification of the upper ocean and deep convection weakened because of a lot of fresh water input Greenland nearby ocean in the high rate of melting of Greenland ice sheet,namely the labrad or current will strengthen,the Gulf Stream and the north Atlantic current weakened. The thermosteric sea level will significantly decline in the Arctic ocean,the ocean of the southern Greenland and the Atlantic subtropical ocean,while which obviously rise the tropical Atlantic ocean and the Gulf Stream. Meanwhile the halosteric sea level change will be opposite to the thermosteric sea level. The steric sea level showed change due to the water is cooling and thin in the north Atlantic subpolar ocean,the weakened of the Atlantic meridional overturning flow and thermohaline circulation caused by input of lot of low temperature and low salt water in the 21st century.
- sea level variation,
- 21st century,
- Greenland ice sheet,
- RCP4.5,
- meridional overturning flow

FullText(HTML)

References(24)

References

Rignot E,Kanagaratnam P. Changes in the velocity structure of the Greenland Ice Sheet[J]. Science,2006,311(5763): 986-990.

Velicogna I. Increasing rates of ice mass loss from the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets revealed by GRACE[J]. Geophysics Research Letter,2009,36: L19503.

Rignot E I,Velicogna M R,van den Broeke,et al. Acceleration of the contribution of the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets to sea level rise [J]. Geophysics Research Letter,2011,38: L05503.

Li Juan,ZuoJuncheng,Cheng Meixiang,et al. Assessing the global averaged sea level budget over 2003-2010[J]. Acta Oceanologica Sinica,2013,32(10):16-23.

Alley R B,Clark P U,Huybrechts P,et al. Ice-sheet and sea-level changes[J]. Science,2005,310(5747): 456-460.

Katsman C A,Hazeleger W,Drijfhout S S,et al.Climate scenarios of sea level rise for the northeast Atlantic Ocean: a study including the effects of ocean dynamics and gravity changes induced by ice melt[J]. Climatic Change,2007,91(3/4): 351-374.

Pritchard H D,Arthern R J,Vaughan D G,et al. Extensive dynamic thinning on the margins of the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets[J].Nature,2009,461: 971-975.

Huybrechts P,Janssens I,Poncin C,et al. The response of the Green-land Ice Sheet to climate changes in the twenty-first century by interactive coupling of an AOGCM with a thermomechnical ice-sheet model[C]//International symposium on Ice Cores and Climate,Kangerlussuaq (Greenland).2001.

Jungclaus J H,Coauthors P. Will Greenland melting halt the thermohaline circulation？ [J]. Geophysics Research Letter,2006,33: L17708.

Vizcaíno M,Mikolajewicz U,Gröger M,et al. Long-term ice sheet-climate interactions under anthropogenic greenhouse forcing simulated with a complex Earth System Model[J]. Climate Dynamics,2008,31(6): 665-690.

Hu A,Meehl G A,Han W,et al. Effect of the potential melting of the Greenland Ice Sheet on the meridional overturning circulation and global climate in the future[J]. Deep Sea Research II,2011,58: 1914-1926.

Gregory J M,Oerlemans J. Simulated future sea-level rise due to glacier melt based on regionally and seasonally resolved temperature changes[J]. Nature,1998,391: 474-476.

Stouffer R J,Yin J,Gregpry J M,et al. Investigating the causes of the response of the thermohaline circulation to past and future climate changes[J]. Journal of Climate,2006,19(8): 1365-1387.

Stouffer R J,Seidov D,Haupt B J. Climate response to external sources of freshwater: North Atlantic versus the Southern Ocean[J].Journal of Climate,2007,20(3): 436-448

Stocker T F,Broecker W S. Observation and modeling of North Atlantic deep water formation and its variability: Introduction[J]. Journal of Geophysical Research,1994,99(12): 317.

Schmittner A,Latif M,Schneider B. Model projections of the North Atlantic thermohaline circulation for the twenty-first century assessed by observations[J]. Geophysical Research Letter,2005,32: L23710.

Meehl G A,Stocker T F. Global climate projections[R]//IPCC Fourth Assessment Report: Climate Change 2007. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press,2007: 747-845.

Hu A,Meehl G A,Han W Q,et al.Transient response of the MOC and climate to potential melting of the Greenland Ice Sheet in the twenty-first century[J].Geophysical Research Letter,2009,36(10): L10707.

Hu A,Meehl G A,Han W Q,et al. Influence of continental ice retreat on future global climate[J]. Journal of Climate,2013,26(3): 3087-3111.

Kopp R E,Mitrovica J X,Griffies S M,et al. The impact of Greenland melt on local sea levels: a partially coupled analysis of dynamic and static equilibrium effects in idealized water-hosing experiments[J]. Climatic Change,2010,103: 619-625.

Gregory J M,Church J A,Boer G J,et al. Comparison of results from several AOGCMs for global and regional sea-level change 1900-2100[J].Climate Dynamics,2001,18(3/4): 225-240.

Yin J J,Schlesinger M E,Stouffer R J. Model projections of rapid sea-level rise on the northeast coast of the United States[J]. Nature Geoscience,2009,2(2): 262-266.

Rio M H,Hernandez F. A mean dynamic topography computed over the world ocean from altimetry,in situ measurements,and a geoid model[J]. Journal of Geophysical Research,2004, 109: C12032.

Sakai K,Peltier W R. Dansgaard Oeschger Oscillation in a coupled atmosphere——Ocean climate model [J]. Journal of Climate,1997,10(2): 949-970.

Relative Articles

Supplements(0)

Cited By

Proportional views