Meteorology
The weather and climate in the North Atlantic region is dominated by a high variability. This variability has fluctuations on many time scales ranging from days over months to many years. The latter fluctuations are called slow variability.
The research group Oceanography focuses on matter and heat transfer in ocean on a meter and kilometer scale.
Chiefly used are Newtonian mechanics and elements from thermodynamics as well as from radiation theory in combination with experiments in the laboratory as well as the field.
In recent years, the research has used satellite measurements and the development of satellite algorithms for the determination of water mass distribution and circulation, radiation into the ocean, the level of dissolved and suspended material in the ocean, such as phytoplankton and the seawater's so-called water quality, which plays a key role in the depletion of oxygen in Danish waters.
On the time scales of months to years more or less systematic changes are now focus for intense studies. The reason for the scientific interest is the close relationship between the climate in Europe and the variability and processes taking place in the North Atlantic. In addition it seems that also the global climate is influenced by the variability in the region.
The research group in Geodesy focuses on the analysis and modelling of the Earth's gravitational field based on aircraft and satellite data, but also work with the mapping movements of the ice caps and land.
The current research uses data from the Ørsted satellite and the German CHAMP satellite. In addition, the group is part of a European consortium that will be processing data from ESA's Gravity and Ocean Circulation Explorer mission. The group is also part of a Spanish project where measurements by aircraft will be used in Bolivia.
At the Niels Bohr Institute we are studying the slow variability since several years. One specific and interesting project has been the attempt to relate atmospheric variability to the content of oxygen isotopes in the ice cores drilled in the Greenland ice sheet. Potentially, this can open up for reconstructions of fex the NAO back in time to pre instrumental time.