Tracking the spread of a passive tracer through Southern Ocean water masses
A dynamically passive inert tracer was released in the interior South Pacific Ocean at latitudes of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current. Observational cross sections of the tracer were taken over 4 consecutive years as it drifted through Drake Passage and into the Atlantic Ocean. The tracer was releas...
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2020
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Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.5194/os-16-323-2020 https://www.ocean-sci.net/16/323/2020/os-16-323-2020.pdf https://doaj.org/article/791e144012684fe2b7dc6d261e9425aa |
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fttriple:oai:gotriple.eu:oai:doaj.org/article:791e144012684fe2b7dc6d261e9425aa 2023-05-15T13:43:50+02:00 Tracking the spread of a passive tracer through Southern Ocean water masses J. D. Zika J.-B. Sallée A. J. S. Meijers A. C. Naveira-Garabato A. J. Watson M.-J. Messias B. A. King 2020-03-01 https://doi.org/10.5194/os-16-323-2020 https://www.ocean-sci.net/16/323/2020/os-16-323-2020.pdf https://doaj.org/article/791e144012684fe2b7dc6d261e9425aa en eng Copernicus Publications doi:10.5194/os-16-323-2020 1812-0784 1812-0792 https://www.ocean-sci.net/16/323/2020/os-16-323-2020.pdf https://doaj.org/article/791e144012684fe2b7dc6d261e9425aa undefined Ocean Science, Vol 16, Pp 323-336 (2020) geo envir Journal Article https://vocabularies.coar-repositories.org/resource_types/c_6501/ 2020 fttriple https://doi.org/10.5194/os-16-323-2020 2023-01-22T18:04:02Z A dynamically passive inert tracer was released in the interior South Pacific Ocean at latitudes of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current. Observational cross sections of the tracer were taken over 4 consecutive years as it drifted through Drake Passage and into the Atlantic Ocean. The tracer was released within a region of high salinity relative to surrounding waters at the same density. In the absence of irreversible mixing a tracer remains at constant salinity and temperature on an isopycnal surface. To investigate the process of irreversible mixing we analysed the tracer in potential density-versus-salinity-anomaly coordinates. Observations of high tracer concentration tended to be collocated with isopycnal salinity anomalies. With time, an initially narrow peak in tracer concentration as a function of salinity at constant density broadened with the tracer being found at ever fresher salinities, consistent with diffusion-like behaviour in that coordinate system. The second moment of the tracer as a function of salinity suggested an initial period of slow spreading for approximately 2 years in the Pacific, followed by more rapid spreading as the tracer entered Drake Passage and the Scotia Sea. Analysis of isopycnal salinity gradients based on the Argo programme suggests that part of this apparent change can be explained by changes in background salinity gradients while part may be explained by the evolution of the tracer patch from a slowly growing phase where the tracer forms filaments to a more rapid phase where the tracer mixes at 240–550 m2 s−1. Article in Journal/Newspaper Antarc* Antarctic Drake Passage Scotia Sea Southern Ocean Unknown Antarctic Southern Ocean The Antarctic Drake Passage Scotia Sea Pacific Ocean Science 16 2 323 336 |
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language |
English |
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geo envir J. D. Zika J.-B. Sallée A. J. S. Meijers A. C. Naveira-Garabato A. J. Watson M.-J. Messias B. A. King Tracking the spread of a passive tracer through Southern Ocean water masses |
topic_facet |
geo envir |
description |
A dynamically passive inert tracer was released in the interior South Pacific Ocean at latitudes of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current. Observational cross sections of the tracer were taken over 4 consecutive years as it drifted through Drake Passage and into the Atlantic Ocean. The tracer was released within a region of high salinity relative to surrounding waters at the same density. In the absence of irreversible mixing a tracer remains at constant salinity and temperature on an isopycnal surface. To investigate the process of irreversible mixing we analysed the tracer in potential density-versus-salinity-anomaly coordinates. Observations of high tracer concentration tended to be collocated with isopycnal salinity anomalies. With time, an initially narrow peak in tracer concentration as a function of salinity at constant density broadened with the tracer being found at ever fresher salinities, consistent with diffusion-like behaviour in that coordinate system. The second moment of the tracer as a function of salinity suggested an initial period of slow spreading for approximately 2 years in the Pacific, followed by more rapid spreading as the tracer entered Drake Passage and the Scotia Sea. Analysis of isopycnal salinity gradients based on the Argo programme suggests that part of this apparent change can be explained by changes in background salinity gradients while part may be explained by the evolution of the tracer patch from a slowly growing phase where the tracer forms filaments to a more rapid phase where the tracer mixes at 240–550 m2 s−1. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
J. D. Zika J.-B. Sallée A. J. S. Meijers A. C. Naveira-Garabato A. J. Watson M.-J. Messias B. A. King |
author_facet |
J. D. Zika J.-B. Sallée A. J. S. Meijers A. C. Naveira-Garabato A. J. Watson M.-J. Messias B. A. King |
author_sort |
J. D. Zika |
title |
Tracking the spread of a passive tracer through Southern Ocean water masses |
title_short |
Tracking the spread of a passive tracer through Southern Ocean water masses |
title_full |
Tracking the spread of a passive tracer through Southern Ocean water masses |
title_fullStr |
Tracking the spread of a passive tracer through Southern Ocean water masses |
title_full_unstemmed |
Tracking the spread of a passive tracer through Southern Ocean water masses |
title_sort |
tracking the spread of a passive tracer through southern ocean water masses |
publisher |
Copernicus Publications |
publishDate |
2020 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.5194/os-16-323-2020 https://www.ocean-sci.net/16/323/2020/os-16-323-2020.pdf https://doaj.org/article/791e144012684fe2b7dc6d261e9425aa |
geographic |
Antarctic Southern Ocean The Antarctic Drake Passage Scotia Sea Pacific |
geographic_facet |
Antarctic Southern Ocean The Antarctic Drake Passage Scotia Sea Pacific |
genre |
Antarc* Antarctic Drake Passage Scotia Sea Southern Ocean |
genre_facet |
Antarc* Antarctic Drake Passage Scotia Sea Southern Ocean |
op_source |
Ocean Science, Vol 16, Pp 323-336 (2020) |
op_relation |
doi:10.5194/os-16-323-2020 1812-0784 1812-0792 https://www.ocean-sci.net/16/323/2020/os-16-323-2020.pdf https://doaj.org/article/791e144012684fe2b7dc6d261e9425aa |
op_rights |
undefined |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.5194/os-16-323-2020 |
container_title |
Ocean Science |
container_volume |
16 |
container_issue |
2 |
container_start_page |
323 |
op_container_end_page |
336 |
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1766193825332592640 |