Variations in marine heatwaves and cold spells in the Northwest Atlantic during 1993–2023

Zhai, Li; Lu, Youyu; Wang, Haiyan; Garric, Gilles; Van Gennip, Simon

doi:https://doi.org/10.5194/sp-6-osr9-5-2025

Articles | Volume 6-osr9

https://doi.org/10.5194/sp-6-osr9-5-2025

© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Report:

9th edition of the Copernicus Ocean State Report (OSR9)

https://doi.org/10.5194/sp-6-osr9-5-2025

© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Articles | Volume 6-osr9

30 Sep 2025

| OSR9 | Chapter 2.2

| 30 Sep 2025 | OSR9 | Chapter 2.2

Variations in marine heatwaves and cold spells in the Northwest Atlantic during 1993–2023

Li Zhai, Youyu Lu, Haiyan Wang, Gilles Garric, and Simon Van Gennip

Data sets

Global Ocean Physics Reanalysis EU Copernicus Marine Service Product https://doi.org/10.48670/moi-00021

CMC 0.2 deg global sea surface temperature analysis, Ver. 2.0 Canada Meteorological Center https://doi.org/10.5067/GHCMC-4FM02

GHRSST Level 4 CMC 0.1 deg global sea surface temperature analysis, Ver. 3.0 Canada Meteorological Center https://doi.org/10.5067/GHCMC-4FM03

Short summary

Statistics of marine heatwaves and cold spells in the water column of the Northwest Atlantic during 1993–2023 are derived using a global ocean reanalysis product. On the Scotian Shelf, temperatures and parameters of extreme events present layered structures in the water column, long-term trends, and sharp increases around 2012. Quantification of extreme warm (cold) conditions in 2012 (1998) supports previous studies on the impacts of these conditions on several marine life species.