A new estimate of the global 3D geostrophic ocean circulation based on satellite data and in-situ measurements

A new estimate of the Global Ocean 3D geostrophic circulation from the surface down to 1500 m depth (Surcouf3D) has been computed for the 1993-2008 period using an observation-based approach that combines altimetry with temperature and salinity through the thermal wind equation. The validity of this simple approach was tested using a consistent dataset from a model reanalysis. Away from the boundary layers, errors are less than 10% in most places, which indicate that the thermal wind equation is a robust approximation to reconstruct the 3D oceanic circulation in the ocean interior. The Surcouf3D current field was validated in the Atlantic Ocean against in-situ observations. We considered the ANDRO current velocities deduced at 1000 m depth from Argo float displacements as well as velocity measurements at 26.5 degrees N from the RAPID-MOCHA current meter array. The Surcouf3D currents show similar skill to the 3D velocities from the GLORYS Mercator Ocean reanalysis in reproducing the amplitude and variability of the ANDRO currents. In the upper 1000 m, high correlations are also found with in-situ velocities measured by the RAPID-MOCHA current meters. The Surcouf3D current field was then used to compute estimates of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) through the 25 degrees N section, showing good comparisons with hydrographic sections from 1998 and 2004. Monthly averaged AMOC time series are also consistent with the RAPID-MOCHA array and with the GLORYS Mercator Ocean reanalysis over the April 2004-September 2007 period. Finally a 15 years long time series of monthly estimates of the AMOC was computed. The AMOC strength has a mean value of 16 Sv with an annual (resp. monthly) standard deviation of 2.4 Sv (resp. 7.1 Sv) over the 1993-2008 period. The time series, characterized by a strong variability, shows no significant trend. (c) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.