Zonal Wave-3 impact on dense water formation

We assessed the impact of the Zonal Wave-3 atmospheric mode on the Antarctic Margins. The Zonal Wave-3 mode is the first mode of meridional winds over the Southern Ocean and has been linked to important sea ice and heat flux anomalies. It is expected to become stronger in the future, but there is only very limited knowledge on its impact on the Southern Ocean beneath sea ice. We set up a range of atmospheric perturbation on the ACCESS-OM2 ocean–sea ice model to assess the regional impact of the ZW3 mode and its different phases on the subpolar Southern Ocean.