d2b7074c-36ed-473b-87c4-35725403e8c9 Copernicus Marine Service product specification CMEMS servicedesk.cmems@mercator-ocean.eu http://marine.copernicus.eu/ 2025-10-22T09:35:18.963325Z ISO 19139, MyOcean profile 0.2 2 false WGS 84 (EPSG:4326) EPSG Mediterranean Meridional Overturning Circulation Index from Reanalysis OMI_CIRCULATION_MOC_MEDSEA_area_averaged_mean 2023-03-30 3.4 2025-11-25 0a5db440-d278-47a6-8885-b89aabb3f0b3 '''DEFINITION''' Time mean meridional Eulerian streamfunctions are computed using the velocity field estimate provided by the Copernicus Marine Mediterranean Sea reanalysis over the period from 1987 to the year preceding the current one [-1Y], operationally extended yearly. The Eulerian meridional streamfunction is evaluated by integrating meridional velocity daily data first in a vertical direction, then in a meridional direction, and finally averaging over the reanalysis period. The Mediterranean overturning indices are derived for the eastern and western Mediterranean Sea by computing the annual streamfunction in the two areas separated by the Strait of Sicily around 36.5°N, and then considering the associated maxima. In each case a geographical constraint focused the computation on the main region of interest. For the western index, we focused on deep-water formation regions, thus excluding both the effect of shallow physical processes and the Gibraltar net inflow. For the eastern index, we investigate the Levantine and Cretan areas corresponding to the strongest meridional overturning cell locations, thus only a zonal constraint is defined. Time series of annual mean values is provided for the Mediterranean Sea using the Mediterranean 1/24o eddy resolving reanalysis (Escudier et al., 2020, 2021). More details can be found in the Copernicus Marine Ocean State Report issue 4 (OSR4, von Schuckmann et al., 2020) Section 2.4 (Lyubartsev et al., 2020) and in the QUID. '''CONTEXT''' The western and eastern Mediterranean clockwise meridional overturning circulation is connected to deep-water formation processes. The Mediterranean Sea 1/24o eddy resolving reanalysis (MEDSEA_MULTIYEAR_PHY_006_004, Escudier et al., 2020, 2021) is used to show the interannual variability of the Meridional Overturning Index. Details on the product are delivered in the PUM and QUID of this OMI. The Mediterranean Meridional Overturning Index is defined here as the maxima of the clockwise cells in the eastern and western Mediterranean Sea and is associated with deep and intermediate water mass formation processes that occur in specific areas of the basin: Gulf of Lion, Southern Adriatic Sea, Cretan Sea and Rhodes Gyre (Pinardi et al., 2015). As in the global ocean, the overturning circulation of the western and eastern Mediterranean are paramount to determine the stratification of the basins (Cessi, 2019). In turn, the stratification and deep water formation mediate the exchange of oxygen and other tracers between the surface and the deep ocean (e.g., Johnson et al., 2009; Yoon et al., 2018). In this sense, the overturning indices are potential gauges of the ecosystem health of the Mediterranean Sea, and in particular they could instruct early warning indices for the Mediterranean Sea to support the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 13 Target 13.3. '''CMEMS KEY FINDINGS''' The western and eastern Mediterranean overturning indices (WMOI and EMOI) are synthetic indices of changes in the thermohaline properties of the Mediterranean basin related to changes in the main drivers of the basin scale circulation. The western sub-basin clockwise overturning circulation is associated with the deep-water formation area of the Gulf of Lion, while the eastern clockwise meridional overturning circulation is composed of multiple cells associated with different intermediate and deep-water sources in the Levantine, Aegean, and Adriatic Seas. On average, the EMOI shows higher values than the WMOI indicating a more vigorous overturning circulation in eastern Mediterranean. The difference is mostly related to the occurrence of the eastern Mediterranean transient (EMT) climatic event, and linked to a peak of the EMOI in 1992 (Roether et al. 1996, 2014, Gertman et al. 2006). In 1999, the difference between the two indices started to decrease because EMT water masses reached the Sicily Strait flowing into the western Mediterranean Sea (Schroeder et al., 2016). The western peak in 2006 is discussed to be linked to anomalous deep-water formation during the Western Mediterranean Transition (Smith, 2008; Schroeder et al., 2016). Thus, the WMOI and EMOI indices are a useful tool for long-term climate monitoring of overturning changes in the Mediterranean Sea. '''DOI (product):''' https://doi.org/10.48670/mds-00317 E.U. Copernicus Marine Service Information MED-CMCC-LECCE-IT P0M0D0H/P0M0D0H N/A https://documentation.marine.copernicus.eu/IMG/OMI_CIRCULATION_MOC_MEDSEA_area_averaged_mean.png Oceanographic geographical features GEMET - INSPIRE themes, version 1.0 2009-09-22 numerical-model Discipline 2023-03-16 geonetwork.thesaurus.local.discipline.myocean.discipline ocean_meridional_overturning_streamfunction Climate and Forecast Standard Names 2017-04-04 geonetwork.thesaurus.external.parameter.myocean.ocean-variables multi-year Temporal scale 2024-07-26 geonetwork.thesaurus.local.temporal-scale.myocean.temporal-scale weather-climate-and-seasonal-forecasting coastal-marine-environment marine-safety marine-resources Area of benefit 2025-07-29 geonetwork.thesaurus.local.area-of-benefit.myocean.area-of-benefit mediterranean-sea Reference Geographical Areas 2024-07-26 geonetwork.thesaurus.local.reference-geographical-area.myocean.reference-geographical-area N/A Processing level 2024-07-26 geonetwork.thesaurus.local.processing-level.myocean.processing-level In-Situ TS Profiles Sea Level Model assimilation 2016-02-03 geonetwork.thesaurus.external.theme.myocean.model-assimilation See Copernicus Marine Environment Monitoring Service Data commitments and licence at: http://marine.copernicus.eu/web/27-service-commitments-and-licence.php No limitations on public access Cessi, P. 2019. The global overturning circulation. Ann Rev Mar Sci. 11:249–270. DOI:10.1146/annurev-marine- 010318-095241. Escudier, R., Clementi, E., Cipollone, A., Pistoia, J., Drudi, M., Grandi, A., Lyubartsev, V., Lecci, R., Aydogdu, A., Delrosso, D., Omar, M., Masina, S., Coppini, G., Pinardi, N. 2021. A High Resolution Reanalysis for the Mediterranean Sea. Frontiers in Earth Science, Vol.9, pp.1060, DOI:10.3389/feart.2021.702285. 2019-05-08 Escudier, R., Clementi, E., Omar, M., Cipollone, A., Pistoia, J., Aydogdu, A., Drudi, M., Grandi, A., Lyubartsev, V., Lecci, R., Cretí, S., Masina, S., Coppini, G., & Pinardi, N. (2020). Mediterranean Sea Physical Reanalysis (CMEMS MED-Currents) (Version 1) set. Copernicus Monitoring Environment Marine Service (CMEMS). https://doi.org/10.25423/CMCC/MEDSEA_MULTIYEAR_PHY_006_004_E3R1 2019-05-08 Gertman, I., Pinardi, N., Popov, Y., Hecht, A. 2006. Aegean Sea water masses during the early stages of the eastern Mediterranean climatic Transient (1988–1990). J Phys Oceanogr. 36(9):1841–1859. DOI:10.1175/JPO2940.1. 2019-05-08 Johnson, K.S., Berelson, W.M., Boss, E.S., Chase, Z., Claustre, H., Emerson, S.R., Gruber, N., Körtzinger, A., Perry, M.J., Riser, S.C. 2009. Observing biogeochemical cycles at global scales with profiling floats and gliders: prospects for a global array. Oceanography. 22:216–225. DOI:10.5670/oceanog. 2009.81. 2019-05-08 Lyubartsev, V., Borile, F., Clementi, E., Masina, S., Drudi, M/. Coppini, G., Cessi, P., Pinardi, N. 2020. Interannual variability in the Eastern and Western Mediterranean Overturning Index. In: Copernicus Marine Service Ocean State Report, Issue 4, Journal of Operational Oceanography, 13:sup1, s88–s91; DOI: 10.1080/1755876X.2020.1785097. 2019-05-08 Pinardi, N., Cessi, P., Borile, F., Wolfe, C.L.P. 2019. The Mediterranean Sea overturning circulation. J Phys Oceanogr. 49:1699–1721. DOI:10.1175/JPO-D-18-0254.1. 2019-05-08 Pinardi, N., Zavatarelli, M., Adani, M., Coppini, G., Fratianni, C., Oddo, P., Tonani, M., Lyubartsev, V., Dobricic, S., Bonaduce, A. 2015. Mediterranean Sea large-scale, low-frequency ocean variability and water mass formation rates from 1987 to 2007: a retrospective analysis. Prog Oceanogr. 132:318–332. DOI:10.1016/j.pocean.2013.11.003. 2019-05-08 Roether, W., Klein, B., Hainbucher, D. 2014. Chap 6. The eastern Mediterranean transient. In: GL Eusebi Borzelli, M Gacic, P Lionello, P Malanotte-Rizzoli, editors. The Mediterranean Sea. American Geophysical Union (AGU); p. 75–83. DOI:10.1002/9781118847572.ch6. 2019-05-08 Roether, W., Manca, B.B., Klein, B., Bregant, D., Georgopoulos, D., Beitzel, V., Kovačević, V., Luchetta, A. 1996. Recent changes in the eastern Mediterranean deep waters. Science. 271:333–335. DOI:10.1126/science.271.5247.333. 2019-05-08 Schroeder, K., Chiggiato, J., Bryden, H., Borghini, M., Ismail, S.B. 2016. Abrupt climate shift in the western Mediterranean Sea. Sci Rep. 6:23009. DOI:10.1038/srep23009. 2019-05-08 Smith, R.O., Bryden, H.L., Stansfield, K. 2008. Observations of new western Mediterranean deep water formation using Argo floats 2004-2006. Ocean Science, 4 (2), 133-149. 2019-05-08 Von Schuckmann, K. et al. 2020. Copernicus Marine Service Ocean State Report, Issue 4, Journal of Operational Oceanography, 13:sup1, S1-S172, DOI: 10.1080/1755876X.2020.1785097. 2019-05-08 Yoon, S., Chang, K., Nam, S., Rho, T.K., Kang, D.J., Lee, T., Park, K.A., Lobanov, V., Kaplunenko, D., Tishchenko, P., Kim, K.R. 2018. Re-initiation of bottom water formation in the East Sea (Japan Sea) in a warming world. Sci Rep. 8:1576. DOI:10. 1038/s41598-018-19952-4. 2019-05-08 520aea17-655a-4b54-89bd-0953e5060cdd 0555198b-db0d-4b84-a8d9-347a744ada27 7f242aaf-ed55-4eb0-bfec-ef8a31dbbba5 eng oceans bounding box -6.00 36.00 30.00 46.00 1987-01-01 0 0.0 display priority: 50700 observation temporal resolution: annual mean vertical level number: 0 false Point series NetCDF-4 Classic model https://stac.marine.copernicus.eu/metadata/OMI_CIRCULATION_MOC_MEDSEA_area_averaged_mean/omi_circulation_moc_medsea_area_averaged_mean_202311/dataset.stac.json WWW:STAC omi_circulation_moc_medsea_area_averaged_mean For accessing native data and Analysis-ready Cloud-optimized data services, consult this STAC metadata endpoint https://wmts.marine.copernicus.eu/teroWmts/OMI_CIRCULATION_MOC_MEDSEA_area_averaged_mean/omi_circulation_moc_medsea_area_averaged_mean_202311?service=WTMS&request=GetCapabilities OGC:WMTS omi_circulation_moc_medsea_area_averaged_mean COMMISSION REGULATION (EU) No 1089/2010 of 23 November 2010 implementing Directive 2007/2/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards interoperability of spatial data sets and services 2010-12-08 See the referenced specification The myOcean products depends on other products for production or validation. The detailed list of dependencies is given in ISO19115's aggregationInfo (ISO19139 Xpath = "gmd:MD_Metadata/gmd:identificationInfo/gmd:aggregationInfo[./gmd:MD_AggregateInformation/gmd:initiativeType/gmd:DS_InitiativeTypeCode/@codeListValue='upstream-validation' or 'upstream-production']")