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ISSN 2070-7401 (Print), ISSN 2411-0280 (Online)
Sovremennye problemy distantsionnogo zondirovaniya Zemli iz kosmosa
CURRENT PROBLEMS IN REMOTE SENSING OF THE EARTH FROM SPACE

  

Sovremennye problemy distantsionnogo zondirovaniya Zemli iz kosmosa, 2026, V. 23, No. 4, pp. 9-26

Interannual variability of ocean levels in the North Atlantic and its impact on climate characteristics in the Barents Sea

Ya.I. Angudovich 1 , V.N. Malinin 1 
1 Russian State Hydrometeorological University, Saint Petersburg, Russia
Accepted: 16.02.2026
DOI: 10.21046/2070-7401-2026-23-4-9-26
Building upon the authors’ previous research and based on a comprehensive analysis of long-term satellite data (altimetry, passive microwave remote sensing, atmospheric reanalysis) and in situ observations, this study investigates the relationship between the interannual variability of sea level in the North Atlantic and climate characteristics in the region and the Western Arctic. A new integral circulation index (ΔKW P) is proposed, representing the sea level gradient between continuous long-term records from the tide gauge stations in Key West (Florida) and Portland (Gulf of Maine). It is shown that the ΔKW P index effectively captures the dynamics of the interaction between the subtropical (STG) and subpolar (SPG) gyral systems. The ΔKW P index exhibits a high correlation (correlation coefficient r = 0.74 for annual means) with the integral index of North Atlantic circulation, previously calculated from satellite altimetry data, confirming its representativeness. Robust and statistically significant linkages are identified between ΔKW P and major climate indices, including the Arctic Oscillation (AO) (r = 0.81…0.64), the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) (r = 0.87…0.77 for winter), and the Gulf Stream North Wall (GSNW) index (r = 0.62…0.67). Using stepwise multiple regression analysis, it is proven that ΔKW P is a key predictor of climatic parameters in the Barents Sea, contributing significantly to explaining the variance of near-surface air temperature (43.7 %), Murmansk Current water temperature (37.3 %), and sea ice area (~11 %). The results underscore that long-term coastal sea level records contain valuable information on the dynamics of the North Atlantic climate system. The proposed ΔKW P index, based on data covering the period from 1948 to 2023, provides a robust tool for analyzing long-term climate and circulation changes, offering crucial insights into the processes of “Atlantification” in the Arctic.
Keywords: North Atlantic, satellite data, sea level, water circulation, Barents Sea, climate indices
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