The Atlantic Climate Change Program (ACCP) is a NOAA research initiative for understanding the decadal-scale interactions of deep circulation in the Atlantic and how it influences the overlying atmosphere. The goals of ACCP are to:

• Determine any seasonal-to-decadal and multidecadal variability in the climate system due to interactions between the Atlantic Ocean, sea ice, and the global atmosphere using observed data, proxy data, and numerical models;

• Develop and utilize coupled ocean-atmosphere models to examine seasonal- to-decadal climate variability in and around the Atlantic basin, and to determine the predictability of the Atlantic climate system on seasonal-to- decadal timescales;

• Observe, describe, and model the space-time variability of the large- scale circulation of the Atlantic Ocean and determine its relation to any variability of the sea ice and sea surface temperature and salinity in the Atlantic on seasonal, decadal, and multidecadal timescales; and

• Provide the necessary scientific background to design an observing system of the large-scale Atlantic Ocean circulation pattern, and develop a suitable Atlantic Ocean model in which the appropriate data can be assimilated to help define the mechanisms responsible for any fluctuations in Atlantic Ocean circulation.

Further Reading:

• Physical Oceanography Index
• R. L. Molinari, D. Battisti, K. Bryan, and J. Walsh. The Atlantic Climate Change Program. BAMS, 75: 1191–1200, 1994.
• Atlantic Climate Change Program