Effect of Drake Passage on the global thermohaline circulation

A study on the Ekman divergence and transport, which raises deep water from the ocean's interior around Antarctica, shows that the dynamic constraint operating in Drake Passage, connecting the Atlantic and the Pacific Ocean, facilitates the removal of water from the South Atlantic. The study utilized an ocean circulation model based on the GFDL Modular Ocean Model version 1.0 and the results showed that the strong winds in the south induce the formation of large amounts of water in the north causing a deep outflow through the South Atlantic. This may explain some new deep water formations in the North Atlantic.