Natural variability in the North Atlantic spans interannual to centennial time scales and remains large enough to obscure emerging trends in observational records. Changes in the ocean circulation are nonetheless anticipated under continued warming, with consequences for the atmosphere and cryosphere, for regional sea level, and for the uptake and storage of heat and carbon. Understanding this circulation, and separating its natural variability from forced change, rests on sustained observing arrays such as OSNAP and RAPID, on satellite records, and on models spanning a wide range of complexity.

We invite contributions on:

- variability, dynamics and drivers of the Atlantic meridional overturning and gyre circulations
- water-mass transformation and the transport and storage of heat, freshwater and carbon
- ocean–atmosphere–cryosphere coupling, overflows, and exchanges between the open ocean and the marginal and shelf seas
- observed variability and its interpretation using theory, models, reanalyses and proxy records
- response to anthropogenic forcing, including detection and attribution of forced change
- predictability of North Atlantic circulation across time scales
- implications for regional climate and society, from extremes such as heatwaves, storms and floods to their consequences for infrastructure, health and livelihoods

The session brings together the observational, modelling and theoretical communities, and welcomes those working on impacts, to advance understanding of the North Atlantic from the processes governing its circulation and variability to the consequences of their change.