Abstract
Diapycnal mixing in the ocean interior has diverse numerical
representations in extant global ocean models. These representations
affect the simulated transport and storage of oceanic tracers in ways
that remain little studied. Here we present the impacts of three
different tidal mixing schemes in thousand-year-long simulations with
the NEMO global ocean model at one-degree resolution. The first scheme
includes local bottom-intensified mixing at internal tide generation
sites and a constant background diffusivity. The second explicitly
includes both local and remote tidal mixing, with no background
diffusivity. The third scheme is identical to the second but has the
added contribution of bottom-trapped (subinertial) internal tides, known
to be important in polar regions. The three simulations show broadly
similar circulation and stratification but important regional
differences. Explicit representation of remote tidal mixing strengthens
the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation by up to 1.5 x 106 m3
s-1. Inclusion of bottom-trapped internal tides reduces heat reaching
Antarctica by eroding Circumpolar Deep Water at southern high latitudes,
and reduces the mean age of the global deep (> 2 km) ocean
by 10%. The results call for more observational constraints on polar
ocean mixing, and point to multi-faceted climatic repercussions of tidal
mixing representations.