THE HIGH RESOLUTION THERMAL STRUCTURE OF THE POLAR FRONT REGION IN THE DRAKE PASSAGE DURING ANTARCTIC OPERATIONS 22 AND 23 (SOUTHERN SUMMER 2003 AND 2004)

In Brazil several studies are being dedicated to many aspects of Antarctic oceanography and the Southern Ocean. Using Expandable Bathy-Thermographs (XBTs) data collected in the Drake Passage region, this study analyses the thermal structure of the Polar Front (PF) during the years of 2003 and 2004....

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Rabelo, Leila Baganha, Souza, Ronald Buss de, Mata, Mauricio Magalhaes, Santini, Marcelo Freitas
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:Portuguese
Published: Universidade Federal do Rio Grande 2012
Subjects:
Frente Polar
temperatura da água do mar
Oceano Austral
batitermógrafo descartável
Alta
Antarctic
Austral
Drake Passage
Southern Ocean
Antarc*
Antártica
Online Access:https://periodicos.furg.br/atlantica/article/view/1701
Description
Summary:In Brazil several studies are being dedicated to many aspects of Antarctic oceanography and the Southern Ocean. Using Expandable Bathy-Thermographs (XBTs) data collected in the Drake Passage region, this study analyses the thermal structure of the Polar Front (PF) during the years of 2003 and 2004. The mean temperature of the water at the sea surface was 4,1 °C in the Subantarctic Zone (SAZ – North of the PF) and -0,4 °C in Antarctic Zone (AZ – South of the PF). Based in the methodology proposed by Kara et al. (2000) for computing the maximum temperature horizontal gradient it was determined that the PF was situated close to 58 °S in the period of this study. At depths higher than 200 m the AZ presents waters colder than 2 °C and about 2,5 ºC warmer than surface waters. At depths higher than 200 m the SAZ presents waters with temperature ranging from 2,5 to 3 °C and about 1 to 1,5 ºC colder than the surface waters. The AZ presents a more stable mixture layer down to 100 m depth where the top of the thermocline is located. The SAZ presents a thermocline spreading itself from surface to 200 m depth. Através do Programa Antártico Brasileiro (PROANTAR), muitos estudos tem se dedicado a vários aspectos da oceanografia antártica e aos processos de tele conexão entre o oceano Austral e o oceano Atlântico Sul. Valendo-se de dados de batitermógrafos descartáveis (XBTs), coletados em alta resolução durante a derrota do Navio de Apoio Oceanográfico (NApOc) Ary Rongel na região da Passagem de Drake, esse trabalho analisa a estrutura termal da Frente Polar (FP) durante o mês de novembro dos anos de 2003 e 2004. A temperatura média da água na superfície do mar foi de 4,1°C na Zona Subantártica (ZSA - região norte da FP) e -0,4°C na Zona Antártica (ZA - região sul da FP), valores que indicam o alto contraste térmico superficial entre as massas d’água que se encontram ao longo da FP. Com base na metodologia proposta por Kara et al. (2000), determinou-se através do máximo gradiente horizontal de temperatura que a FP estava ...

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