Mesoscale Variability in the West Spitsbergen Current and Adjacent Waters in Fram Strait.

• Main Author: Weigel,Alan M.
• Other Authors: NAVAL POSTGRADUATE SCHOOL MONTEREY CA
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: 1987
• Subjects: Physical and Dynamic Oceanography; *WATER; TEMPERATURE; DISTRIBUTION; EDGES; THESES; CONTINENTAL SLOPES; ICE; SCALE; LENGTH; NORTH(DIRECTION); ATLANTIC OCEAN; SALINITY; SEA WATER; GREENLAND SEA; EAST(DIRECTION); GREENLAND; ARCTIC OCEAN; West Spitzbergen Current; Fram Strait; Arctic; Arctic Ocean; Greenland; Yermak Plateau; Arctic Basin; East Greenland; east greenland current; Greenland Sea; Spitzbergen; Yermak plateau; Spitsbergen
• Online Access: http://www.dtic.mil/docs/citations/ADA178289; http://oai.dtic.mil/oai/oai?&verb=getRecord&metadataPrefix=html&identifier=ADA178289

A dense network of conductivity-temperature-depth (CTD) measurements was carried out betwen 76 N and 81 N in order to define the distribution of temperature and salinity in Fram Strait. Although weakly baroclinic, the WSC flow was found to be strongly influenced by the 2000 m deep Kipnovich Ridge which separated the flow into several streams. In addition, filaments of warm Atlantic Water (AW) were found to spread out over the top of the Greenland Gyre. The WSC branches near approximately 20% of the baroclinic transport enters the Arctic Ocean north of Spitspbergen as the eastern branch. The other branch (80% of the barocline transport) turns westward, apparently under the influence of the Yermak Plateau, and joins with the southward flowing East Greenland Current (EGC). The intire turning takes place south of 81 N near the ice edge with baroclinic speeds of up to 0.03 m/s. The structure of the East Greenland Polar Frong (EGPF) and associated mesoscale features were also examined. The EGPF was found to leave the Greenland continental slope north of 79 N and turn northeastward across the Yermak Plateau and into the Arctic basin. A cold core mesoscale eddy having a length scale of approximately 60 km and a closed baroclinic circulation up to 0.15 m/s was found associated with the front. Also associated with the front was extensive temperature and salinity finestructure which occurred near the maximum temperature in the water column. This finestructure was often associated with strong double diffusive activity. (Author)