ColdBlobMIP: A Multi‐Model Assessment of the Atmospheric Response to the North Atlantic Warming Hole
Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: Observations of sea surface temperature reveal a region of relative cooling in the subpolar North Atlantic commonly known as the North Atlantic warming hole (NAWH) or “cold blob.” While the origin of the NAWH has been extensively debated, its direct impact on the atmosphere has only recently garnered attention. Here, we present ColdBlobMIP, an atmospheric model intercomparison project in which 15 models from four institutions simulate the atmospheric response to the observed NAWH. The ensemble mean reveals robust and significant changes in surface wind and clouds, the latter imparting a shortwave forcing of −3.6 W/m 2 over the NAWH in summer—indicative of a positive feedback. Despite agreement on certain aspects of the response, the models exhibit diverse behavior that is diagnosed from their surface pressure response. Overall, ColdBlobMIP attributes a relatively modest response to the NAWH, highlighting the critical dependence of large‐scale midlatitude air‐sea interactions on model structure and configuration.
Source: Geophysical Research Letters
DOI: 10.1029/2025gl117784
Institutions: Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, University of Colorado Boulder, Columbia University, Chinese Academy of Sciences, South China Sea Institute Of Oceanology, State Key Laboratory of Tropical Oceanography, NOAA Physical Sciences Laboratory, NOAA Earth System Research Laboratory, Goddard Institute for Space Studies, Princeton University, High Meadows Environmental Institute, University of California, Irvine, Nanyang Technological University, Earth Observatory of Singapore
Language: English
Subfield: Global and Planetary Change
Field: Environmental Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
SDG: Climate action
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $3,190
Awards: G4781550089, G6195818568
OpenAlex ID: W4414822480