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Abstract Observations have revealed the existence of persistent slope countercurrents (SCCs) that flow southwestward beneath the Kuroshio Current at several locations over the East China Sea (ECS) continental slope. It was not clear whether these flows are localized circulation features or segments of a trough‐scale circulation system in the Okinawa Trough (OT). We demonstrate that there indeed exists a potentially continuous trough‐scale SCC along the ECS slope that is associated with an OT‐wide cyclonic circulation using high‐resolution model simulations and physical interpretations. The detailed features of the deep OT circulation are illustrated by the trajectories of the Lagrangian drifters and the time‐varying distributions of passive tracers. The SCC in the ECS is characterized by its weak yet persistent nature, typically located in narrow sloping regions at the isopycnal layer of 26.6–27.3 kg m⁻³. It exhibits a characteristic speed of approximately O‐(1) cm s⁻¹. Analyses and experiments suggest that the divergence of upwelling in the SCC layer (26.6–27.3 σ_θsurface) gives rise to lateral potential vorticity transport, ultimately driving the deep cyclonic circulation. Furthermore, the SCC also displays a substantial connection with the onshore intrusion of the Kuroshio Current, particularly to the northeast of Taiwan Island. The SCC may potentially play a crucial role in the transport of heat and nutrients, as well as in regulating sediment distributions within the deep OT. This mechanism offers fresh insights into explaining the presence of undercurrents in semi‐enclosed marginal seas. 

Abstract The monthly mean sea level along the U.S. Mid‐Atlantic Coast varies seasonally, reaching a minimum in January and a maximum in September during the 1960–2020 period. However, this seasonal cycle has changed significantly on multi‐decadal timescales. In the last two decades, the annual minimum has shifted from January to February. The amplitude of seasonal changes increased by 65% from 14.16 cm in 1980–1999 to 23.16 cm in 2000–2020. Even more concerning, the maximum sea level in September rose by 82%, from 6.81 to 12.38 cm, potentially exacerbating coastal flooding over the past 20 years. A two‐layer ocean model effectively replicates both the phase and magnitude of the observed changes and attributes these shifts to changes in wind stress near the coast, with relatively minor influence from deep ocean forcing. Both alongshore and cross‐shore wind stress changes are found to contribute to changes in the sea level's seasonal cycle. 

Abstract The storage of anthropogenic heat in oceans is geographically inhomogeneous, leading to differential warming rates among major ocean basins with notable regional climate impacts. Our analyses of observation-based datasets show that the average warming rate of 0–2000-m Atlantic Ocean since 1960 is nearly threefold stronger than that of the Indo-Pacific Oceans. This feature is robustly captured by historical simulations of phase 6 of Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP6) and is projected to persist into the future. In CMIP6 simulations, the ocean heat uptake through surface heat fluxes plays a central role in shaping the interbasin warming contrasts. In addition to the slowdown of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation as stressed in some existing studies, alterations of atmospheric conditions under greenhouse warming are also essential for the increased surface heat flux into the North Atlantic. Specifically, the reduced anthropogenic aerosol concentration in the North Atlantic since the 1980s has been favorable for the enhanced Atlantic Ocean heat uptake in CMIP6 models. Another previously overlooked factor is the geographic shape of the Atlantic Ocean which is relatively wide in midlatitudes and narrow in low latitudes, in contrast to that of the Indo-Pacific Oceans. Combined with the poleward migration of atmospheric circulations, which leads to the meridional pattern of surface heat uptake with broadly enhanced heat uptake in midlatitude oceans due to reduced surface wind speed and cloud cover, the geographic shape effect renders a higher basin-average heat uptake in the Atlantic. 

Abstract A long‐standing hypothesis is that the steady along‐shelf circulation in the Northwest Atlantic (NWA) coastal ocean is driven by buoyancy input from continental freshwater runoff. However, the forcing from the freshwater runoff has not been adequately evaluated and compared with other potential driving mechanisms. This study investigates the roles of both wind stress and freshwater runoff in driving the mean along‐shelf flow in the NWA coastal ocean and examines other potential drivers using a newly developed high‐resolution regional model with realistic forcing conditions. The results reveal that wind stress has a larger impact than freshwater runoff on the overall mean circulation and along‐shelf sea‐level gradient on the NWA shelf. While the continental freshwater input consistently contributes to the equatorward along‐shelf flow and higher sea level along the coast, wind stress is more effective for the setup of the broad‐scale circulation pattern by driving the along‐shelf flow on the Labrador Shelf and opposing the flow in the Mid‐Atlantic Bight and on the Scotian Shelf. In addition to the local wind and continental runoff, the sub‐Arctic inflow from higher latitude is an essential part of the NWA shelf circulation system. This remote driver directly contributes to the along‐shelf flow and insulates the shelf flow from the Gulf Stream on the southern shelves. 

Abstract Monthly observations are used to study the relationship between the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC) at 26° N and sea level (ζ) on the New England coast (northeastern United States) over nonseasonal timescales during 2004–2017. Variability inζis anticorrelated with AMOC on intraseasonal and interannual timescales. This anticorrelation reflects the stronger underlying antiphase relationship between ageostrophic Ekman‐related AMOC transports due to local zonal winds across 26° N andζchanges arising from local wind and pressure forcing along the coast. These distinct local atmospheric variations across 26° N and along coastal New England are temporally correlated with one another on account of large‐scale atmospheric teleconnection patterns. Geostrophic AMOC contributions from the Gulf Stream through the Florida Straits and upper‐mid‐ocean transport across the basin are together uncorrelated withζ. This interpretation contrasts with past studies that understoodζand AMOC as being in geostrophic balance with one another.