Spencer Jones
  • Assistant Professor

Biography

Jones is a Physical Oceanographer whose research focusses on ocean dynamics, and explores how the ocean transports heat and other tracers around the globe. He uses a combination of theory, ocean models and scalable analysis tools in python. Much of Jones’ work investigates the strength, geometry and variability of the Meridional Overturning Circulation (sometimes called the “conveyor belt” circulation), which transports heat from the surface of the tropical Pacific into the Atlantic basin, where it moves heat northward.

Research Interests

Physical Oceanography: Ocean Transport, Meridional Overturning Circulation, Eddies, Isopycnal Mixing, Vertical Mixing, Last Glacial Maximum

Educational Background

  • PhD. Oceanography, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, 2018
  • MPhys. Physics, University of Oxford, 2011

Awards & Honors

  • 2018-2020 Lamont Postdoctoral Fellowship

Selected Publications

    • Qiyu Xiao., Dhruv Balwada, C.S. Jones, Mario Herrero‐González, K. Shafer Smith, and Ryan P. Abernathey. (2023). Reconstruction of Surface Kinematics from Sea Surface Height using Neural Networks. Journal of Advances in Modeling Earth Systems, 15(10), e2023MS003709, doi: 10.1029/2023MS003709
    • C. S Jones, Qiyu Xiao, Ryan P. Abernathey and K. Shafer Smith. (2023). Using Lagrangian filtering to remove waves from the ocean surface velocity field. Journal of Advances in Modeling Earth Systems, 15(4), e2022MS003220, doi: 10.1029/2022MS003220
    • C. S. Jones and R. P. Abernathey. Modeling Water-Mass Distributions in the Modern and LGM Ocean: Circulation Change and Isopycnal and Diapycnal Mixing. Journal of Physical Oceanography 51 (5),1523-1538, doi: 10.1175/JPO-D-20-0204.1
    • C. S. Jones and R. P. Abernathey. Isopycnal Mixing Controls Deep Ocean Ventilation. Geophysical Research Letters 46 (22) 13144-13151, doi: 10.1029/2019GL085208
    • C. S. Jones and P. Cessi. Components of Upper-Ocean Salt Transport by the Gyres and the Meridional Overturning Circulation. Journal of Physical Oceanography 48 (10) 2445-2456, doi: 10.1175/JPO-D-18-0005.1
    • Cessi and C. S. Jones. Warm-route versus Cold-route Interbasin Exchange in the Meridional Overturning Circulation. Journal of Physical Oceanography 47 (8) 1981-1997, doi: 10.1175/JPO-D-16-0249.1
    • C. S. Jones and P. Cessi. Another Reason Why the Atlantic Is Saltier than the Pacific. Journal of Physical Oceanography 47 (11) 2843-2859, doi: 10.1175/JPO-D-17-0075.1
    • C. S. Jones and P. Cessi. Interbasin Transport of the Meridional Overturning Circulation. Journal of Physical Oceanography 46 (4) 1157-1169, doi: 10.1175/JPO-D-15-0197.1