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The thermocline is the ocean layer of maximal temperature decline. It separates the upper ocean, where air-sea interactions occur, from the deep ocean, affording the two regions distinct circulations, thermodynamic properties and characteristic timescales (Knauss & Garfield, 2016). Impacts of thermocline depth on the climate system are diverse and fundamental. In particular, thermocline depth regulates ocean heat storage, ocean energy transport and, by extension, the global energy budget (Boccaletti et al., 2004;Schott et al., 2004;Vialard et al., 2001). Since thermocline depth marks the lower boundary of the ocean layer most susceptible to mechanical and radiative forcing, its representation in climate models is paramount (Burls et al.

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