Summary Report No. 39


Decadal Variability of the Thermohaline Ocean Circulation

S. Rahmstorf (March 1998)

This paper provides a review of decadal variability of the thermohaline ocean circulation. It covers observational evidence for circulation variability as well as results from realistic and idealised models, with emphasis on the North Atlantic. The non-linear physics of the thermohaline circulation is reviewed, and different variability mechanisms are discussed.