Toggweiler, J. R., and B. Samuels, 1995: Effect of Drake Passage
on the global thermohaline circulation. Deep-Sea Research I,
42(4), 477-500.
Abstract: The Ekman divergence around Antarctica raises a large
amount of deep water to the ocean's surface. The regional Ekman transport
moves the upwelled deep water northward out of the circumpolar zone. The
divergence and northward surface drift combine, in effect, to remove deep
water from the interior of the ocean. This wind-driven removal process
is facilitated by a unique dynamic constraint operating in the latitude
band containing Drake Passage. Through a simple model sensitivity experiment
we show that the upwelling and removal of deep water in the circumpolar
belt may be quantitatively related to the formation of new deep water in
the northern North Atlantic. These results show that stronger winds in
the south can induce more deep water formation in the north and more deep
outflow through the South Atlantic. The fact that winds in the southern
hemisphere might influence the formation of deep water in the North Atlantic
brings into question long-standing notions about the forces that drive
the ocean's thermohaline circulation.