Transport of Antarctic bottom water through the Kane Gap, tropical NE Atlantic Ocean

• Published in: Ocean Science
• Main Authors: E. G. Morozov, R. Y. Tarakanov, H. van Haren
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Copernicus Publications 2013
• Subjects: geo; envir; Antarctic; Kane; The Antarctic; Antarc*
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.5194/os-9-825-2013; http://www.ocean-sci.net/9/825/2013/os-9-825-2013.pdf; https://doaj.org/article/e37b26874b8548229c45c2b83ec6b268

We study low-frequency properties of the Antarctic Bottom Water (AABW) flow through the Kane Gap (9° N) in the Atlantic Ocean. The measurements in the Kane Gap include five visits with CTD (Conductivity-Temperature-Depth) sections in 2009–2012 and a year-long record of currents on a mooring using three AquaDopp current meters. We found an alternating regime of flow, which changes direction several times during a year. The seasonal signal seems to dominate. The maximum daily average values of southerly velocities reach 0.20 m s−1, while the greatest north-northwesterly velocity is as high as 0.15 m s−1. The velocity and transport at the bottom are aligned along the slope of a local hill near the southwestern side of the gap. The distribution of velocity directions at the upper boundary of AABW is wider. The transport of AABW (Θ < 1.9 °C) based on the mooring and LADCP (Lowered Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler) data varies approximately within ±0.35 Sv in the northern and southern directions. The annual mean AABW transport through the Kane Gap is almost zero.