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Article Dans Une Revue Journal of Geophysical Research. Oceans Année : 2019

Intraseasonal variability of surface salinity in the Eastern Tropical Pacific associated with mesoscale eddies

Résumé

Strong variability in sea surface salinity (SSS) in the Eastern Tropical Pacific (ETPac) on intraseasonal to interannual timescales was studied using data from the Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity, Soil Moisture Active Passive, and Aquarius satellite missions. A zonal wave number-frequency spectral analysis of SSS reveals a dominant timescale of 50-180days and spatial scale of 8 degrees-20 degrees of longitude with a distinct seasonal cycle and interannual variability. This intraseasonal SSS signal is detailed in the study of 19 individual ETPac eddies over 2010-2016 identified by their sea level anomalies, propagating westward at a speed of about 17cm/s. ETPac eddies trap and advect water in their core westward up to 40 degrees of longitude away from the coast. The SSS signatures of these eddies, with an average anomaly of 0.5-pss magnitude difference from ambient values, enable the study of their dynamics and the mixing of their core waters with the surroundings. Three categories of eddies were identified according to the location where they were first tracked: (1) in the Gulf of Tehuantepec, (2) in the Gulf of Papagayo, and (3) in the open ocean near 100 degrees W-12 degrees N. They all traveled westward near 10 degrees N latitude. Category 3 is of particular interest, as eddies seeded in the Gulf of Tehuantepec grew substantially in the vicinity of the Clipperton Fracture Zone rise and in a region where the mean zonal currents have anticyclonic shear. The evolution of the SSS signature associated with the eddies indicates the importance of mixing to their dissipation.
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Dates et versions

hal-02192481 , version 1 (01-09-2021)

Identifiants

Citer

Audrey Hasson, John Thomas Farrar, Jacqueline Boutin, Frederick Bingham, Tong Lee. Intraseasonal variability of surface salinity in the Eastern Tropical Pacific associated with mesoscale eddies. Journal of Geophysical Research. Oceans, 2019, 124 (4), pp.2861-2875. ⟨10.1029/2018JC014175⟩. ⟨hal-02192481⟩
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