Coherent mesoscale eddies in the North Atlantic subtropical gyre: 3‐D structure and transport with application to the salinity maximum
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Coherent mesoscale eddies in the North Atlantic subtropical gyre: 3‐D structure and transport with application to the salinity maximum

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  • Journal Title:
    Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans
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    The mean vertical structure and transport properties of mesoscale eddies are investigated in the North Atlantic subtropical gyre by combining historical records of Argo temperature/salinity profiles and satellite sea level anomaly data in the framework of the eddy tracking technique. The study area is characterized by a low eddy kinetic energy and sea surface salinity maximum. Although eddies have a relatively weak signal at surface (amplitudes around 3–7 cm), the eddy composites reveal a clear deep signal that penetrates down to at least 1200 m depth. The analysis also reveals that the vertical structure of the eddy composites is strongly affected by the background stratification. The horizontal patterns of temperature/salinity anomalies can be reconstructed by a linear combination of a monopole, related to the elevation/depression of the isopycnals in the eddy core, and a dipole, associated with the horizontal advection of the background gradient by the eddy rotation. A common feature of all the eddy composites reconstructed is the phase coherence between the eddy temperature/salinity and velocity anomalies in the upper m layer, resulting in the transient eddy transports of heat and salt. As an application, a box model of the near‐surface layer is used to estimate the role of mesoscale eddies in maintaining a quasi‐steady state distribution of salinity in the North Atlantic subtropical salinity maximum. The results show that mesoscale eddies are able to provide between 4 and 21% of the salt flux out of the area required to compensate for the local excess of evaporation over precipitation.
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    Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans, 122(1), 23-41
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    2169-9275;2169-9291;
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