A western boundary current east of New Caledonia: Observed characteristics
International audience Waters from the South Equatorial Current (SEC), the northern branch of the South Pacific subtropical gyre, are a major supply of heat to the equatorial warm pool, and have an important contribution to climate variability and ENSO which motivated the Southwest Pacific Ocean and...
Published in: | Deep Sea Research Part I: Oceanographic Research Papers |
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Main Authors: | , , |
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Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
Language: | English |
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HAL CCSD
2011
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Online Access: | https://hal.science/hal-00798720 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsr.2011.05.007 |
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Université Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier: HAL-UPS |
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English |
topic |
[SDU.OCEAN]Sciences of the Universe [physics]/Ocean Atmosphere |
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[SDU.OCEAN]Sciences of the Universe [physics]/Ocean Atmosphere Gasparin, Florent Ganachaud, Alexandre Maes, Christophe A western boundary current east of New Caledonia: Observed characteristics |
topic_facet |
[SDU.OCEAN]Sciences of the Universe [physics]/Ocean Atmosphere |
description |
International audience Waters from the South Equatorial Current (SEC), the northern branch of the South Pacific subtropical gyre, are a major supply of heat to the equatorial warm pool, and have an important contribution to climate variability and ENSO which motivated the Southwest Pacific Ocean and Climate Experiment (SPICE, CLIVAR/WCRP). Initially a broad westward current extending from the equator to 30°S, the SEC splits upon arriving at the major islands and archipelagoes of Fiji (18°S, 180°E), Vanuatu (16°S, 168°E), and New Caledonia (22°S, 165°E), resulting in a complex system of western boundary currents and zonal jets that feed the Coral and Solomon Seas. We focus here on the formation of one specific jet feeding the Coral Sea, the North Caledonian Jet (NCJ). Using a combination of recent oceanographic cruises, we describe the ocean circulation to the northeast of New Caledonia, where the SEC forms a western boundary current that ultimately becomes the NCJ. This current, which we document for the first time and propose to refer to as the East Caledonian Current (ECC), has its core located 10-100 km off the east coast of New Caledonia, and extends vertically to at least 1000 m depth. Water mass properties show continuous westward transports through the ECC, from the SEC to the NCJ in both the South Pacific Tropical Waters in the thermocline and Antarctic Intermediate Waters near 700 m depth. The ECC extends about 100 km horizontally; its average 0-1000 m transport was estimated at 14.5±3 Sv off the north tip of the New Caledonian reef, with a maximum of 20 Sv in May 2010. South of that the upstream branch of the ECC east of the Loyalty is close to 8 Sv suggesting an important additional contribution from central Pacific waters carried by the SEC at 16°S and diverted to our region through the western boundary current system east of Vanuatu. |
author2 |
Océan du Large et Variabilité Climatique (OLVAC) Laboratoire d'études en Géophysique et océanographie spatiales (LEGOS) Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Université Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier (UT3) Université de Toulouse (UT)-Université de Toulouse (UT)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Observatoire Midi-Pyrénées (OMP) Université de Toulouse (UT)-Université de Toulouse (UT)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Centre National d'Études Spatiales Toulouse (CNES)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Météo-France-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Centre National d'Études Spatiales Toulouse (CNES)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Météo-France-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Université Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier (UT3) Université de Toulouse (UT)-Université de Toulouse (UT)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Centre National d'Études Spatiales Toulouse (CNES)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Météo-France-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Centre National d'Études Spatiales Toulouse (CNES)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Météo-France-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Gasparin, Florent Ganachaud, Alexandre Maes, Christophe |
author_facet |
Gasparin, Florent Ganachaud, Alexandre Maes, Christophe |
author_sort |
Gasparin, Florent |
title |
A western boundary current east of New Caledonia: Observed characteristics |
title_short |
A western boundary current east of New Caledonia: Observed characteristics |
title_full |
A western boundary current east of New Caledonia: Observed characteristics |
title_fullStr |
A western boundary current east of New Caledonia: Observed characteristics |
title_full_unstemmed |
A western boundary current east of New Caledonia: Observed characteristics |
title_sort |
western boundary current east of new caledonia: observed characteristics |
publisher |
HAL CCSD |
publishDate |
2011 |
url |
https://hal.science/hal-00798720 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsr.2011.05.007 |
genre |
Antarc* Antarctic |
genre_facet |
Antarc* Antarctic |
op_source |
ISSN: 0967-0637 Deep Sea Research Part I: Oceanographic Research Papers https://hal.science/hal-00798720 Deep Sea Research Part I: Oceanographic Research Papers, 2011, 58 (9), pp.956-969. ⟨10.1016/j.dsr.2011.05.007⟩ |
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info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/doi/10.1016/j.dsr.2011.05.007 hal-00798720 https://hal.science/hal-00798720 doi:10.1016/j.dsr.2011.05.007 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsr.2011.05.007 |
container_title |
Deep Sea Research Part I: Oceanographic Research Papers |
container_volume |
58 |
container_issue |
9 |
container_start_page |
956 |
op_container_end_page |
969 |
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1810493783407591424 |
spelling |
ftutoulouse3hal:oai:HAL:hal-00798720v1 2024-09-15T17:45:52+00:00 A western boundary current east of New Caledonia: Observed characteristics Gasparin, Florent Ganachaud, Alexandre Maes, Christophe Océan du Large et Variabilité Climatique (OLVAC) Laboratoire d'études en Géophysique et océanographie spatiales (LEGOS) Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Université Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier (UT3) Université de Toulouse (UT)-Université de Toulouse (UT)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Observatoire Midi-Pyrénées (OMP) Université de Toulouse (UT)-Université de Toulouse (UT)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Centre National d'Études Spatiales Toulouse (CNES)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Météo-France-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Centre National d'Études Spatiales Toulouse (CNES)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Météo-France-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Université Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier (UT3) Université de Toulouse (UT)-Université de Toulouse (UT)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Centre National d'Études Spatiales Toulouse (CNES)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Météo-France-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Centre National d'Études Spatiales Toulouse (CNES)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Météo-France-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) 2011-11 https://hal.science/hal-00798720 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsr.2011.05.007 en eng HAL CCSD Elsevier info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/doi/10.1016/j.dsr.2011.05.007 hal-00798720 https://hal.science/hal-00798720 doi:10.1016/j.dsr.2011.05.007 ISSN: 0967-0637 Deep Sea Research Part I: Oceanographic Research Papers https://hal.science/hal-00798720 Deep Sea Research Part I: Oceanographic Research Papers, 2011, 58 (9), pp.956-969. ⟨10.1016/j.dsr.2011.05.007⟩ [SDU.OCEAN]Sciences of the Universe [physics]/Ocean Atmosphere info:eu-repo/semantics/article Journal articles 2011 ftutoulouse3hal https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsr.2011.05.007 2024-06-24T23:57:51Z International audience Waters from the South Equatorial Current (SEC), the northern branch of the South Pacific subtropical gyre, are a major supply of heat to the equatorial warm pool, and have an important contribution to climate variability and ENSO which motivated the Southwest Pacific Ocean and Climate Experiment (SPICE, CLIVAR/WCRP). Initially a broad westward current extending from the equator to 30°S, the SEC splits upon arriving at the major islands and archipelagoes of Fiji (18°S, 180°E), Vanuatu (16°S, 168°E), and New Caledonia (22°S, 165°E), resulting in a complex system of western boundary currents and zonal jets that feed the Coral and Solomon Seas. We focus here on the formation of one specific jet feeding the Coral Sea, the North Caledonian Jet (NCJ). Using a combination of recent oceanographic cruises, we describe the ocean circulation to the northeast of New Caledonia, where the SEC forms a western boundary current that ultimately becomes the NCJ. This current, which we document for the first time and propose to refer to as the East Caledonian Current (ECC), has its core located 10-100 km off the east coast of New Caledonia, and extends vertically to at least 1000 m depth. Water mass properties show continuous westward transports through the ECC, from the SEC to the NCJ in both the South Pacific Tropical Waters in the thermocline and Antarctic Intermediate Waters near 700 m depth. The ECC extends about 100 km horizontally; its average 0-1000 m transport was estimated at 14.5±3 Sv off the north tip of the New Caledonian reef, with a maximum of 20 Sv in May 2010. South of that the upstream branch of the ECC east of the Loyalty is close to 8 Sv suggesting an important additional contribution from central Pacific waters carried by the SEC at 16°S and diverted to our region through the western boundary current system east of Vanuatu. Article in Journal/Newspaper Antarc* Antarctic Université Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier: HAL-UPS Deep Sea Research Part I: Oceanographic Research Papers 58 9 956 969 |