How is New England Coastal Sea Level Related to the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation at 26° N?

Monthly observations are used to study the relationship between the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC) at 26 degrees N and sea level (zeta) on the New England coast (northeastern United States) over nonseasonal timescales during 2004-2017. Variability in zeta is anticorrelated with AMOC on intraseasonal and interannual timescales. This anticorrelation reflects the stronger underlying antiphase relationship between ageostrophic Ekman-related AMOC transports due to local zonal winds across 26 degrees N and zeta changes arising from local wind and pressure forcing along the coast. These distinct local atmospheric variations across 26 degrees N and along coastal New England are temporally correlated with one another on account of large-scale atmospheric teleconnection patterns. Geostrophic AM OC contributions from the Gulf Stream through the Florida Straits and upper-mid-ocean transport across the basin are together uncorrelated with zeta. This interpretation contrasts with past studies that understood zeta and AMOC as being in geostrophic balance with one another.