EFFECT OF WIND CHANGES DURING THE LAST GLACIAL MAXIMUM ON THE CIRCULATION IN THE SOUTHERN-OCEAN

Present-day surface wind stress climatology is manipulated to simulate wind conditions during the last glacial maximum. These estimated wind fields force a one-layer, wind-driven numerical model of the southern ocean to determine if a change in the strength of the surface wind stress can shift the location of the Antarctic Polar Front, which is part of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current. A change in the forcing by a factor of 0.5-2.0 results in a change in the speed of the flow by an identical factor with no change in position. However, if the present-day wind climatology is shifted meridionally, there is a change in both strength of the circulation and spatial pattern. A shift of the wind stress of more than 5-degrees of latitude is required to produce a shift in the location of the polar front.