Atlantic atmospheric rivers and the pulse of deep Mediterranean respiration

Atlantic atmospheric rivers and the pulse of deep Mediterranean respiration | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Physical Sciences - Article Atlantic atmospheric rivers and the pulse of deep Mediterranean respiration Francisco Sierro, Javier Tarruella, Francisco Jimenez-Espejo, and 1 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-5678981/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract The Mediterranean is a saline sea because it exports moisture to the atmosphere1. Over the last million years, however, the Mediterranean has experienced abrupt declines in salinity that have collapsed the deep thermohaline circulation and caused bottom water anoxia each time the Earth has approached perihelion during the northern hemisphere summer2,3. For decades, this has been attributed to freshwater discharge from the Nile or increased precipitation in the Mediterranean basin2,3. However, the impact of past changes in the atmospheric moisture balance has been little explored. In this study, we show that these low salinity episodes were triggered by a reduced net export of moisture to the atmosphere due to enhanced mid-latitude Atlantic atmospheric water transport, affecting its salinity, deep ventilation and water exchange with the Atlantic. This conclusion is supported by the observation of low surface salinity events in the westernmost Mediterranean coinciding with events of heavy winter precipitation along the Atlantic Iberian Margin, which is the main gateway of moisture into the Mediterranean. These events were triggered by equatorward shifts of the main route of atmospheric rivers during persistent negative phases of the Arctic Oscillation at times of boreal summer insolation maxima. Earth and environmental sciences/Climate sciences/Palaeoclimate Earth and environmental sciences/Climate sciences/Palaeoceanography Earth and environmental sciences/Solid Earth sciences/Sedimentology Earth and environmental sciences/Solid Earth sciences/Geology/Stratigraphy Full Text Additional Declarations There is NO Competing Interest. Supplementary Files SUPPLEMENTARYInformationSierro2025.pdf Supplementary Discussion ExtendeddataFigure5.pdf Extended data Fig. 5 Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-5678981","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Physical Sciences - Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":393046322,"identity":"c1f668db-7fc3-4dec-b4dc-ddcd0a1228a0","order_by":0,"name":"Francisco 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