Planetary climate under extremely high vertical diffusivity

Abstract

Planets with large moon(s) or those in the habitable zone of low-mass stars may experience much stronger tidal force and tide-induced ocean mixing than that on Earth. Thus, the vertical diffusivity (or, more precisely, diapycnal diffusivity) on such planets, which represents the strength of vertical mixing in the ocean, would be greater than that on Earth. In this study, we explore the effects of extremely high diffusivity on the ocean circulation and surface climate of Earth-like planets in one asynchronous rotation orbit. The response of planetary climate to 10 and 100 times greater vertical diffusivity than that found on Earth is investigated using a fully coupled atmosphere-ocean general circulation model. In order to perform a clear comparison with the climate of modern Earth, Earth's orbit, land-sea configuration, and present levels of greenhouse gases are included in the simulations. We find that a larger vertical diffusivity intensifies the meridional overturning circulation (MOC) in the ocean, which transports more heat to polar regions and melts sea ice there. Feedback associated with sea ice, clouds, and water vapor act to further amplify surface warming. When the vertical diffusivity is 10 (100) times the present-day value, the magnitude of MOC increases by $\approx$3 (18) times, and the global-mean surface temperature increases by $\approx$4${}^{\circ }$C (10${}^{\circ }$C). This study quantifies the climatic effect of an extremely strong vertical diffusivity and confirms an indirect link between planetary orbit, tidal mixing, ocean circulation, and surface climate. Our results suggest a moderate effect of varying vertical ocean mixing on planetary climate.

References in corpus (8)

• Tidal Locking of Habitable Exoplanets
• Asynchronous rotation of Earth-mass planets in the habitable zone of lower-mass stars
• Tidal Heating of Extra-Solar Planets
• Tidal Limits to Planetary Habitability
• Water Trapping on Tidally Locked Terrestrial Planets Requires Special Conditions
• Ocean Dynamics and the Inner Edge of the Habitable Zone for Tidally Locked Terrestrial Planets
• No Snowball on Habitable Tidally Locked Planets with a Dynamic Ocean
• Geothermal heating enhances atmospheric asymmetries on synchronously rotating planets

Cited by in corpus (2)

• Ocean Circulation on Tide-locked Lava Worlds: 3D Modeling with a Simple Boundary Iteration Method
• Thermocline Depth on Water-rich Exoplanets