Observing and Modelling the Meridional Overturning Circulation in the South Atlantic (SAMOC)

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Overview

The meridional overturning circulation (MOC) in the Atlantic is a key element of the time-variable coupled climate system and may have played a significant role in the subsurface sequestration of heat during the recent global warming hiatus. New in the observing systems monitoring this event is the SAMOC (South Atlantic MOC) Basin Wide Array (SAMBA). 

Extending from South America to Africa, this system includes efforts to monitor zonal fluxes across the Drake Passage and the gap between Africa and Antarctica, which is very poorly sampled to the current date. The SAMOC Working Group seeks to enhance SAMOC by strengthening  the existing international partnership and attracting more participants. 

How SAMOC contributes to POGO priority areas

POGO advocates for a global coverage in the ocean observing system, which is why addressing the imbalance of available observation systems between the northern and southern hemisphere is at the heart of the POGOs Strategy. Coordinating the ongoing and near future actions related to SAMOC contributes to this aim. Working Group participants will attend scientific reunions concerning SAMOC and will hold frequent online discussions in order to design an action plan aimed at the ultimate goal of enhancing the MOC observing system in the South Atlantic.​

Status: Complete Working group

Year: 2015

Members involved

IOUSP logo

Working group Participants

Leader

  • Edmo J.D. Campos, Oceanographic Institute, University of Sao Paulo (IOUSP), Brazil

Participants

  • Olga Sato, IOUSP, Brazil
  • Regina Rodrigues, IOUSP, Brazil
  • Andrei Polejack, MCTI, Brazil
  • José Muelbert, Univ. Federal Rio Grande (FURG), Brazil
  • José Luiz Azevedo, IO-FURG, Brazil
  • Maurício M. Mata, IO-FURG, Brazil
  • Alberto Piola, Univ. de Buenos Aires and Serv. Hidgrafia Naval, Argentina
  • Maria Paz Chidichimo, National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET), Argentina
  • Daniel Valla, Univ. de Buenos Aires, Argentina
  • Silvia Garzoli, CIMAS/Univ. Miami and NOAA/AOML, USA
  • Christopher Meinen, NOAA/AOML, USA
  • Renellys Perez, CIMAS/Univ. Miami and NOAA/AOML, USA
  • Shenfu Dong, CIMAS/Univ. Miami and NOAA/AOML, USA
  • Sabrina Speich, ENS/LMD/IPSL Paris, France
  • ​Thierry Terre, LPO, Ifremer, Brest, France
  • Mike Roberts, Ocean & Coasts, South Africa
  • John Field, Univ. Cape Town, South Africa
  • Coleen Moloney, Univ. Cape Town, South Africa
  • ​Isabelle Ansorge, Univ. Cape Town, South Africa
  • Pedro Monteiro, CSIR, South Africa
  • Susan Avery, WHOI, USA
  • E. Moskness, IMR, Norway
  • David Smeed, NOC, UK

Working group links

In 2017, following recommendations from a SAMOC Working Group sponsored by POGO, a proposal to enhance the observational grid was submitted to the São Paulo State Research Foundation (FAPESP), in Brazil. This new project, named SAMBAR, was approved and started in December 2017

Related documents

SAMOC factsheet – published August 2017
Update article published in POGO Newsletter issue 37 (Aug 2019)
SAMOC Working Group Final Report
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