Global teleconnections in response to a shutdown of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation

The global response to a shutdown of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC) is investigated by conducting a water-hosing experiment with a coupled ocean-atmosphere general circulation model. In the model, the addition of freshwater in the subpolar North Atlantic shuts off the AMOC. The intense cooling in the extratropical North Atlantic induces a widespread response over the global ocean. In the tropical Atlantic, a sea surface temperature (SST) dipole forms, with cooling north and warming on and south of the equator. This tropical dipole is most pronounced in June-December, displacing the Atlantic intertropical convergence zone southward. In the tropical Pacific, a SST dipole forms in boreal spring in response to the intensified northeast trades across Central America and triggering the development of an El Nino-like warming that peaks on the equator in boreal fall. In the extratropical North Pacific, a basinwide cooling of similar to 1 degrees C takes place, with a general westward increase in intensity.