Articles | Volume 21, issue 5
https://doi.org/10.5194/os-21-2069-2025
© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/os-21-2069-2025
© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
19 Sep 2025
Research article |
| 19 Sep 2025
| 19 Sep 2025
Salinity trends and mass balances in the Mediterranean Sea: revisit the role of air-sea freshwater fluxes and oceanic exchange
University of Brest, CNRS, Ifremer, IRD, Laboratoire d’Océanographie Physique et Spatiale (LOPS), IUEM, Plouzané, France
Xinfeng Liang
School of Marine Science and Policy, University of Delaware, Lewes, DE, USA
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, MA, USA
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Short summary
We investigated what drives long-term changes in the Mediterranean Sea's salt and water balance. We found that shifts in freshwater input from rainfall and evaporation, along with water exchange through the Strait of Gibraltar, control these variations. Our results show that changes in freshwater fluxes, rather than water exchange, have a stronger influence on long-term trends. Understanding these processes helps predict how the Mediterranean might respond to future climate change.
We investigated what drives long-term changes in the Mediterranean Sea's salt and water balance....
