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Two sets of mooring data were collected at two sites (MA and MB) along a cross-slope section on the northeastern continental slope in the South China Sea (SCS). These data are used to investigate evolution and energy decay of low-mode semidiurnal (M2) internal tides on a subcritical slope with respect to M2. At the deep portion of the slope (~1250 m; MA), the M2 internal tides show upward energy propagation, while vertically standing M2 internal tides are often observed at shallow MB (~845 m). A two-dimensional linear internal tide model with realistic topography and stratification reproduces the observations, suggesting that low-mode M2 internal tides incident on subcritical slopes evolve into vertically propagating internal waves due to topographic scattering, propagate upward to the boundary, and reflect from the sea surface. The reflection point largely depends on the phase between the modal components of the incoming flux. In the near-surface reflection region, two kinds of nonlinear effects are observed to decay energy of the incoming internal tides. One is the resonant parametric subharmonic instability which transfers M2 internal tides to diurnal subharmonics M1 (=M2/2), but the instability is found to mainly depend on the incident waves. The other one is the nonresonant wave–wave interaction, producing two higher-harmonic M4 (=2M2) rays with opposite vertical propagation. A strong westward mean flow is observed in the interacting region, with amplitude comparable to that of the incident waves. This mean flow also appears to be generated by the nonlinear reflection of the M2 internal tides. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Lagrangian characteristics of the surface flow field arising when an idealized, anticyclonic, mesoscale, isolated deep-ocean eddy collides with continental slope and shelf topography are explored. In addition to fluid parcel trajectories, we consider the trajectories of biological organisms that are able to navigate and swim, and for which shallow water is a destination. Of particular interest is the movement of organisms initially located in the offshore eddy, the manner in which the eddy influences the ability of the organisms to reach the shelf break, and the spatial and temporal distributions of organisms that do so. For nonswimmers or very slow swimmers, the organisms arrive at the shelf break in distinct pulses, with different pulses occurring at different locations along the shelf break. This phenomenon is closely related to the episodic formation of trailing vortices that are formed after the eddy collides with the continental slope, turns, and travels parallel to the coast. Analysis based on finite-time Lyapunov exponents reveals initial locations of all successful trajectories reaching the shoreline, and provides maps of the transport pathways showing that much of the crossshelf- break transport occurs in the lee of the eddy as it moves parallel to the shore. The same analysis shows that the onshore transport is interrupted after a trailing vortex detaches. As the swimming speeds are increased, the organisms are influenced less by the eddy and tend to show up en mass and in a single pulse. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A 4-month glider mission was analyzed to assess turbulent dissipation in an anticyclonic eddy at the western boundary of the subtropical North Atlantic. The eddy (radius ≈ 60 km) had a core of low potential vorticity between 100 and 450 m, with maximum radial velocities of 0.5ms-1 and Rossby number ≈-0.1. Turbulent dissipation was inferred from vertical water velocities derived from the glider flight model. Dissipation was suppressed in the eddy core (ε ≈ 5 X 10-10W kg-1) and enhanced below it (>10-9W kg-1). Elevated dissipation was coincident with quasiperiodic structures in the vertical velocity and pressure perturbations, suggesting internal waves as the drivers of dissipation. Aheuristic ray-tracing approximation was used to investigate the wave-eddy interactions leading to turbulent dissipation. Ray-tracing simulations were consistent with two types of wave-eddy interactions that may induce dissipation: the trapping of near-inertial wave energy by the eddy's relative vorticity, or the entry of an internal tide (generated at the nearby continental slope) to a critical layer in the eddy shear. The latter scenario suggests that the intense mesoscale field characterizing the western boundaries of ocean basins might act as a "leaky wall" controlling the propagation of internal tides into the basin's interior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A recently developed tool, the multiscale window transform, along with the theory of canonical energy transfer is used to investigate the roles of multiscale interactions and instabilities in the Gulf of Mexico Loop Current (LC) eddy shedding. A three-scale energetics framework is employed, in which the LC system is reconstructed onto a background flow window, a mesoscale eddy window, and a high-frequency eddy window. The canonical energy transfer between the background flow and the mesoscale windows plays an important role in LC eddy shedding. Barotropic instability contributes to the generation/intensification of the mesoscale eddies over the eastern continental slope of the Campeche Bank. Baroclinic instability favors the growth of the mesoscale eddies that propagate downstream to the northeastern portion of the well-extended LC, eventually causing the shedding by cutting through the neck of the LC. These upper-layer mesoscale eddies lose their kinetic energy back to the background LC through inverse cascade processes in the neck region. The deep eddies obtain energy primarily from the upper layer through vertical pressure work and secondarily from baroclinic instability in the deep layer. In contrast, the canonical energy transfer between the mesoscale and the high-frequency frontal eddy windows accounts for only a small fraction in the mesoscale eddy energy balance, and this generally acts as a damping mechanism for the mesoscale eddies. A budget analysis reveals that the mesoscale eddy energy gained through the instabilities is balanced by horizontal advection, pressure work, and dissipation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On the basis of measurements from an observing mooring system, the observational evidence of parametric subharmonic instability (PSI) that transfers energy from semidiurnal internal tides (ITs) to the subharmonic waves at the East China Sea continental shelf slope is presented for the first time. Although the mooring station is very close to the energetic semidiurnal IT generation site, about 76% of the observed shear variance is contained in the near-inertial band, which is found to have comparable upward- and downward-propagating energy components. Bispectra and bicoherence estimates further confirm the occurrence of PSI transferring energy from the low-mode M2 ITs (vertical wavelength of ~1000 m) to high-mode subharmonic waves (vertical wavelength of ~200 m). The calculated energy transfer rate g reveals an averaged net value of ~5 × 10−9 W kg−1. Strong temporal variation of g is found that is not exactly in phase with the semidiurnal energy flux. After looking into the local vorticity fields, it is strongly suggested that the varying background relative vorticity associated with the evolving Kuroshio has modified the efficiency of PSI at the mooring location through changing the local effective inertial frequency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Three simulations of the circulation in the Gulf of Mexico (the "Gulf") using different numerical general circulation models are compared with results of recent large-scale observational campaigns conducted throughout the deep (>1500 m) Gulf. Analyses of these observations have provided new understanding of large-scale mean circulation features and variability throughout the deep Gulf. Important features include cyclonic flow along the continental slope, deep cyclonic circulation in the western Gulf, a counterrotating pair of cells under the Loop Current region, and a cyclonic cell to the south of this pair. These dominant circulation features are represented in each of the ocean model simulations, although with some obvious differences. A striking difference between all the models and the observations is that the simulated deep eddy kinetic energy under the Loop Current region is generally less than one-half of that computed from observations. A multidecadal integration of one of these numerical simulations is used to evaluate the uncertainty of estimates of velocity statistics in the deep Gulf computed from limited-length (4 years) observational or model records. This analysis shows that the main deep circulation features identified from the observational studies appear to be robust and are not substantially impacted by variability on time scales longer than the observational records. Differences in strengths and structures of the circulation features are identified, however, and quantified through standard error analysis of the statistical estimates using the model solutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Antarctic Slope Front (ASF) is located along much of the Antarctic continental shelf break and helps to maintain a barrier to the movement of Circumpolar Deep Water (CDW) onto the continental shelf. The stability of the ASF has a major control on cross-shelf heat transport and ocean-driven basal melting of Antarctic ice shelves. Here, the ASF dynamics are investigated for continental shelves with weak dense shelf water (DSW) formation, which are thought to have a stable ASF, common for regions in East Antarctica. Using an ocean process model, this study demonstrates how offshore bottom Ekman transport of shelf waters leads to the development of a deep bottom mixed layer at the lower continental slope, and subsequently determines an intrinsic variability of the ASF. The ASF variability is characterized by instability events that affect the entire water column and occur every 5-10 years and last for approximately half a year. During these instability events, the cross-shelf density gradient weakens and CDW moves closer to the continent. Stronger winds increase the formation rate of the bottom mixed layer, which causes a subsequent increase of instability events. If the observed freshening trend of continental shelf waters leads to weaker DSW formation, more regions might be vulnerable for the ASF variability to develop in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Variability in the heat delivery by Circumpolar Deep Water (CDW) is responsible for modulating the basal melting of the Amundsen Sea ice shelves. However, the mechanisms controlling the CDW inflow to the region's continental shelf remain little understood. Here, a high-resolution regional model is used to assess the processes governing heat delivery to the Amundsen Sea. The key mechanisms are identified by decomposing CDW temperature variability into two components associated with 1) changes in the depth of isopycnals [heave (HVE)], and 2) changes in the temperature of isopycnals [water mass property changes (WMP)]. In the Dotson--Getz trough, CDW temperature variability is primarily associated with WMP. The deeper thermocline and shallower shelf break hinder CDW access to that trough, and CDW inflow is regulated by the uplift of isopycnals at the shelf break--which is itself controlled by wind-driven variations in the speed of an undercurrent flowing eastward along the continental slope. In contrast, CDW temperature variability in the Pine Island--Thwaites trough is mainly linked to HVE. The shallower thermocline and deeper shelf break there permit CDW to persistently access the continental shelf. CDW temperature in the area responds to wind-driven modulation of the water mass on-shelf volume by changes in the rate of inflow across the shelf break and in Ekman pumping-induced vertical displacement of isopycnals within the shelf. The western and eastern Amundsen Sea thus represent distinct regimes, in which wind forcing governs CDW-mediated heat delivery via different dynamics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The North Icelandic Jet (NIJ) is an important source of dense water to the overflow plume passing through Denmark Strait. The properties, structure, and transport of the NIJ are investigated for the first time along its entire pathway following the continental slope north of Iceland, using 13 hydrographic/velocity surveys of high spatial resolution conducted between 2004 and 2018. The comprehensive dataset reveals that the current originates northeast of Iceland and increases in volume transport by roughly 0.4 Sv (1 Sv ≡ 106 m3 s−1) per 100 km until 300 km upstream of Denmark Strait, at which point the highest transport is reached. The bulk of the NIJ transport is confined to a small area in Θ–S space centered near −0.29° ± 0.16°C in Conservative Temperature and 35.075 ± 0.006 g kg−1 in Absolute Salinity. While the hydrographic properties of this transport mode are not significantly modified along the NIJ's pathway, the transport estimates vary considerably between and within the surveys. Neither a clear seasonal signal nor a consistent link to atmospheric forcing was found, but barotropic and/or baroclinic instability is likely active in the current. The NIJ displays a double-core structure in roughly 50% of the occupations, with the two cores centered at the 600- and 800-m isobaths, respectively. The transport of overflow water 300 km upstream of Denmark Strait exceeds 1.8 ± 0.3 Sv, which is substantially larger than estimates from a year-long mooring array and hydrographic/velocity surveys closer to the strait, where the NIJ merges with the separated East Greenland Current. This implies a more substantial contribution of the NIJ to the Denmark Strait overflow plume than previously envisaged. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Topographic Rossby waves (TRWs) are reported to make a significant contribution to the deep-ocean current variability. On the northern South China Sea (NSCS) continental slope, TRWs with peak spectral energy at ~14.5 days are observed over about a year at deep moorings aligned east–west around the Dongsha Islands. The TRWs with a group velocity of O(10) cm s−1 contribute more than 40% of total bottom velocity fluctuations at the two mooring stations. The energy propagation and source are further identified using a ray-tracing model. The TRW energy mainly propagates westward along the NSCS continental slope with a slight downslope component. The possible energy source is upper-ocean 10–20-day fluctuations on the east side of the Dongsha Islands, which are transferred through the first baroclinic mode (i.e., the second EOF mode). These 10–20-day fluctuations in the upper ocean are associated with mesoscale eddies. However, to the west of the Dongsha Islands, the 10–20-day fluctuations in the upper ocean are too weak to effectively generate TRWs locally. This work provides an interesting insight toward understanding the NSCS deep current variability and the linkage between the upper- and deep-ocean currents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Near-inertial waves (NIWs) are often an energetic component of the internal wave field on windy continental shelves. The effect of baroclinic geostrophic currents, which introduce both relative vorticity and baroclinicity, on NIWs is not well understood. Relative vorticity affects the resonant frequency feff, while both relative vorticity and baroclinicity modify the minimum wave frequency of freely propagating waves ωmin. On a windy and narrow shelf, we observed wind-forced oscillations that generated NIWs where feff was less than the Coriolis frequency f. If everywhere feff > f then NIWs were generated where ωmin < f and feff was smallest. The background current not only affected the location of generation, but also the NIWs' propagation direction. The estimated NIW energy fluxes show that NIWs propagated predominantly toward the equator because ωmin > f on the continental slope for the entire sample period. In addition to being laterally trapped on the shelf, we observed vertically trapped and intensified NIWs that had a frequency ω within the anomalously low-frequency band (i.e., ωmin < ω < feff), which only exists if the baroclinicity is nonzero. We observed two periods when ωmin < f on the shelf, but the relative vorticity was positive (i.e., feff > f) for one of these periods. The process of NIW propagation remained consistent with the local ωmin, and not feff, emphasizing the importance of baroclinicity on the NIW dynamics. We conclude that windy shelves with baroclinic background currents are likely to have energetic NIWs, but the current and seabed will adjust the spatial distribution and energetics of these NIWs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

All exchanges between the open ocean and the Antarctic continental shelf must cross the Antarctic Slope Current (ASC). Previous studies indicate that these exchanges are strongly influenced by mesoscale and tidal variability, yet the mechanisms responsible for setting the ASC's transport and structure have received relatively little attention. In this study the roles of winds, eddies, and tides in accelerating the ASC are investigated using a global ocean–sea ice simulation with very high resolution (1/48° grid spacing). It is found that the circulation along the continental slope is accelerated both by surface stresses, ultimately sourced from the easterly winds, and by mesoscale eddy vorticity fluxes. At the continental shelf break, the ASC exhibits a narrow (~30–50 km), swift (>0.2 m s−1) jet, consistent with in situ observations. In this jet the surface stress is substantially reduced, and may even vanish or be directed eastward, because the ocean surface speed matches or exceeds that of the sea ice. The shelfbreak jet is shown to be accelerated by tidal momentum advection, consistent with the phenomenon of tidal rectification. Consequently, the shoreward Ekman transport vanishes and thus the mean overturning circulation that steepens the Antarctic Slope Front (ASF) is primarily due to tidal acceleration. These findings imply that the circulation and mean overturning of the ASC are not only determined by near-Antarctic winds, but also depend crucially on sea ice cover, regionally-dependent mesoscale eddy activity over the continental slope, and the amplitude of tidal flows across the continental shelf break. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A 3-month-long field program conducted in winter 2012 inshore of the seaward deflection of the Gulf Stream at the Charleston Bump observed several 7-21-day periods of strong (>0.5 m s-1) equatorward along-shelf flow over the upper continental slope. In sea surface temperature images, these phenomena resemble and appear linked to warm filaments, features known to be associated with meanders of the Gulf Stream as it traverses the southeast coast of North America. However, the character of these upper-slope features differs from previous descriptions of filaments, hence we describe them as "upper-slope jets." We document the characteristics of the jets, which are approximately 30km in width, centered on the 200-m isobath, with a maximum temperature variation at depth, and reasonably long-lived. Southwestward flow within the jet extends to 200 m and is in approximate thermal wind balance below a surface mixed layer. Maximum transport is estimated to be about 2.0 Sv (1 Sv = 106 m³ s-1), driving a net equatorward along-shelf velocity over the deployment period. For this time period, at least, the jets form the equatorward flow of the shoreward flank of the Charleston Gyre. We suggest the features resemble the Pinocchio's Nose Intrusion recently described by Zhang and Gawarkiewicz. Large-amplitude meander crests with sufficiently strong curvature vorticity are a plausible source of initiation of the upper-slope jets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Internal tide generation at sloping topography is nominally determined by the local slope geometry, density stratification, and tidal forcing. Recent global ocean models have revealed that remotely generated internal tides (RITS) can also influence locally generated internal tides (LITs). Field measurements with through-the-water column moorings on the southern portion of the Australian North West Shelf (NWS) suggested that RITs led to local regions with either positive or negative barotropic to baroclinic energy conversion. Three-dimensional numerical simulations were used to examine the role of RITs on local internal tide climatology on the inner slope and shelf portion of the NWS. The model demonstrated the principle remote generation site was the western portion of the offshore Exmouth Plateau. Extending the model domain to include this offshore plateau region increased the local net energy conversion on the inner shelf by 13.5% and on the slope by 8%. Simulations using an idealized 2D model configuration aligned along the principal direction of RIT propagation demonstrated that the sign and magnitude of the local energy conversion was dependent on the distance between the remote and local generation sites, the phase difference between the local barotropic tide and the RIT, and the amplitude of both the local barotropic tide and the RIT. For RITs with a low-wave Froude number (Fr < 0.05), where Fr is the ratio of the internal wave baroclinic velocity to the linear wave speed, the conversion rates were consistent with kinematic predictions based on the phase difference only. For stronger flows with Fr > 0.05, the conversion rates showed a nonlinear dependence on Fr. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A series of laboratory experiments are performed to investigate the scattering of low-mode internal tides at a continental shelf by varying the criticality parameter and normalized topographic height independently. A wide-range synchronized particle image velocimetery (PIV) measures the velocity fields of the internal tides. Beams radiate from both the shelf break and the bottom of the slope, indicating that energy transfers from low modes to higher modes, which is verified by the modal decomposition. Energy is also transferred to higher harmonics, whose amplitude is less than a quarter of that of the first harmonic. The fraction of energy transmitted onshore and dissipated on the topography is determined by both the criticality parameter and the normalized topographic height, while the fraction of energy reflected offshore is dependent only on the criticality parameter. Mean flow with a shear structure induced by internal tides is observed along the continental slope, with horizontal velocity generally half of the amplitude of the incident waves. A net onshore transport along the slope is caused by the onshore current with larger thickness. The strength of the mean flow is dependent on both the criticality parameter and the normalized topographic height, and a linear relationship between the energy of the mean flow and the vertical shear of internal tides is revealed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The steep continental slope off the Lofoten–Vesterålen islands of northern Norway appears to be the source of the most intense mesoscale eddy field in all of the Nordic Seas. Here we use linearized two-layer shallow-water equations to study the stability of the Norwegian Atlantic Current in this region. The study extends previous works that used linearized quasigeostrophic vertical mode equations to examine the effects of bottom topography on baroclinic instability here. We find evidence of baroclinic instability in the stacked shallow-water model but also of barotropic instability that is associated with the upper-layer lateral shear. The calculations give an indication that growth rates of barotropic instability may be comparable to or larger than those of baroclinic instability over the steepest parts of the continental slope. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Eurasian Basin (EB) of the ArcticOcean is subject to substantial seasonality. We here use data collected between 2013 and 2015 from six moorings across the continental slope in the eastern EB and identify three domains, each with its own unique seasonal cycle: 1) The upper ocean (,100 m), with seasonal temperature and salinity differences of ΔΡ 5 0.16°C and ΔS= 0.17, is chiefly driven by the seasonal sea ice cycle. 2) The upperslope domain is characterized by the influence of a hydrographic front that spans the water column around the~750-m isobath. The domain features a strong temperature and moderate salinity seasonality (Δɵ 5 1.4°C; ΔS= 0.06), which is traceable down to;600-m depth. Probable cause of this signal is a combination of along-slope advection of signals by the Arctic Circumpolar Boundary Current, local wind-driven upwelling, and a cross-slope shift of the front. 3) The lower-slope domain, located offshore of the front, with seasonality in temperature and salinity mainly confined to the halocline (Δɵ50.83°C; DS50.11;;100-200 m). This seasonal cycle can be explained by a vertical isopycnal displacement (ΔZ~36 m), arguably as a baroclinic response to sea level changes. Available long-term oceanographic records indicate a recent amplification of the seasonal cycle within the halocline layer, possibly associated with the erosion of the halocline. This reduces the halocline's ability to isolate the ocean surface layer and sea ice from the underlying Atlantic Water heat with direct implications for the evolution of Arctic sea ice cover and climate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The large-scale circulation of the abyssal ocean is enabled by small-scale diapycnal mixing, which observations suggest is strongly enhanced toward the ocean bottom, where the breaking of internal tides and lee waves is most vigorous. As discussed recently, bottom-intensified mixing induces a pattern of near-bottom up- and downwelling that is quite different from the traditionally assumed widespread upwelling. Here the consequences of bottom-intensified mixing for the horizontal circulation of the abyssal ocean are explored by considering planetary geostrophic dynamics in an idealized “bathtub geometry.” Up- and downwelling layers develop on bottom slopes as expected, and these layers are well described by boundary layer theory. The basin-scale circulation is driven by flows in and out of these boundary layers at the base of the sloping topography, which creates primarily zonal currents in the interior and a net meridional exchange along western boundaries. The rate of the net overturning is controlled by the up- and downslope transports in boundary layers on slopes and can be predicted with boundary layer theory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Low-mode internal tides, a dominant part of the internal wave spectrum, carry energy over large distances, yet the ultimate fate of this energy is unknown. Internal tides in the Tasman Sea are generated at Macquarie Ridge, south of New Zealand, and propagate northwest as a focused beam before impinging on the Tasmanian continental slope. In situ observations from the Tasman Sea capture synoptic measurements of the incident semidiurnal mode-1 internal-tide, which has an observed wavelength of 183 km and surface displacement of approximately 1 cm. Plane-wave fits to in situ and altimetric estimates of surface displacement agree to within a measurement uncertainty of 0.3 cm, which is the same order of magnitude as the nonstationary (not phase locked) mode-1 tide observed over a 40-day mooring deployment. Stationary energy flux, estimated from a plane-wave fit to the in situ observations, is directed toward Tasmania with a magnitude of 3.4 ± 1.4 kW m−1, consistent with a satellite estimate of 3.9 ± 2.2 kW m−1. Approximately 90% of the time-mean energy flux is due to the stationary tide. However, nonstationary velocity and pressure, which are typically 1/4 the amplitude of the stationary components, sometimes lead to instantaneous energy fluxes that are double or half of the stationary energy flux, overwhelming any spring–neap variability. Despite strong winds and intermittent near-inertial currents, the parameterized turbulent-kinetic-energy dissipation rate is small (i.e., 10−10 W kg−1) below the near surface and observations of mode-1 internal tide energy-flux convergence are indistinguishable from zero (i.e., the confidence intervals include zero), indicating little decay of the mode-1 internal tide within the Tasman Sea. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Along various stretches of the Antarctic margins, dense Antarctic Bottom Water (AABW) escapes its formation sites and descends the continental slope. This export necessarily raises the isopycnals associated with lighter density classes over the continental slope, resulting in density surfaces that connect the near-freezing waters of the continental shelf to the much warmer circumpolar deep water (CDW) at middepth offshore. In this article, an eddy-resolving process model is used to explore the possibility that AABW export enhances shoreward heat transport by creating a pathway for CDW to access the continental shelf without doing any work against buoyancy forces. In the absence of a net alongshore pressure gradient, the shoreward CDW transport is effected entirely by mesoscale and submesoscale eddy transfer. Eddies are generated partly by instabilities at the pycnocline, sourcing their energy from the alongshore wind stress, but primarily by instabilities at the CDW-AABW interface, sourcing their energy from buoyancy loss on the continental shelf. This combination of processes induces a vertical convergence of eddy kinetic energy and alongshore momentum into the middepth CDW layer, sustaining a local maximum in the eddy kinetic energy over the slope and balancing the Coriolis force associated with the shoreward CDW transport. The resulting slope turbulence self-organizes into a series of alternating along-slope jets with strongly asymmetrical contributions to the slope energy and momentum budgets. Cross-shore variations in the potential vorticity gradient cause the jets to drift continuously offshore, suggesting that fronts observed in regions of AABW down-slope flow may in fact be transient features. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The reflection of a low-mode internal tide on the Tasman continental slope is investigated using simulations of realistic and simplified topographies. The slope is supercritical to the internal tide, which should predict a large fraction of the energy reflected. However, the response to the slope is complicated by a number of factors: the incoming beam is confined laterally, it impacts the slope at an angle, there is a roughly cylindrical rise directly offshore of the slope, and a leaky slope-mode wave is excited. These effects are isolated in simulations that simplify the topography. To separate the incident from the reflected signal, a response without the reflector is subtracted from the total response to arrive at a reflected signal. The real slope reflects approximately 65% of the mode-1 internal tide as mode 1, less than two-dimensional linear calculations predict, because of the three-dimensional concavity of the topography. It is also less than recent glider estimates, likely as a result of along-slope inhomogeneity. The inhomogeneity of the response comes from the Tasman Rise that diffracts the incoming tidal beam into two beams: one focused along beam and one diffracted to the north. Along-slope inhomogeneity is enhanced by a partially trapped, superinertial slope wave that propagates along the continental slope, locally removing energy from the deep-water internal tide and reradiating it into the deep water farther north. This wave is present even in a simplified, straight slope topography; its character can be predicted from linear resonance theory, and it represents up to 30% of the local energy budget. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The volume transport of the Agulhas Current was measured over a 3-yr period by an array of seven current meter moorings and four current- and pressure-recording inverted echo sounders (CPIES) deployed at 34°S. CPIES extended the array farther offshore in order to capture, for the first time, the full Agulhas Current during meander events. Transports derived from CPIES are well correlated with overlapping current meter transports (0.89). The Eulerian mean current is 219 km wide and 3000 m deep, with peak surface speeds of 1.8 m s−1 and a weak northward undercurrent on the continental slope below 1200 m. A new algorithm to capture the western boundary jet transport at each time step T is defined as the poleward transport out to the first maximum of the vertically integrated velocity beyond the half-width of the mean jet. The mean transport of the Agulhas Current jet, so defined, is −84 Sverdrups (Sv; 1 Sv ≡ 106 m3 s−1) with a standard error of 2 Sv. Sampling and instrumental errors are explicitly estimated and amount to an additional 9 Sv. A more traditional estimate, based on net transport integrated to a fixed distance offshore Tbox, gives a mean transport of −77 ± 5 Sv. This transport is 10 Sv greater than an equivalent transport at 32°S, corresponding to a latitudinal increase equal to that predicted by Sverdrup dynamics. The time series of T and Tbox show important differences during solitary meander events and at longer time scales. In terms of an annual cycle, the Agulhas Current appears strongest during austral summer, a similar phase to the Gulf Stream and Kuroshio. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The California Undercurrent (CUC) flows poleward mostly along the continental slope. It develops a narrow strip of large negative vertical vorticity through the turbulent boundary layer and bottom stress. In several downstream locations, the current separates, aided by topographic curvature and flow inertia, in particular near Point Sur Ridge, south of Monterey Bay. When this happens the high-vorticity strip undergoes rapid instability that appears to be mesoscale in 'eddy-resolving' simulations but is substantially submesoscale with a finer computational grid. The negative relative vorticity in the CUC is larger than the background rotation f, and Ertel potential vorticity is negative. This instigates ageostrophic centrifugal instability. The submesoscale turbulence is partly unbalanced, has elevated local dissipation and mixing, and leads to dilution of the extreme vorticity values. Farther downstream, the submesoscale activity abates, and the remaining eddy motions exhibit an upscale organization into the mesoscale, resulting in long-lived coherent anticyclones in the depth range of 100-500 m (previously called Cuddies) that move into the gyre interior in a generally southwestward direction. In addition to the energy and mixing effects of the postseparation instability, there is are significant local topographic form stress and bottom torque that retard the CUC and steer the mean current pathway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Five years of continuous mooring data combined with conductivity-temperature-depth (CTD)/lowered acoustic Doppler current profiler (LADCP) measurements from five cruises are used to investigate the influence of the deep western boundary current (DWBC) on the internal wave field and associated vertical mixing at the continental slope at 16°N in the western Atlantic. The mooring data include 2-hourly rotor current-meter measurements and temperature/conductivity time series with a high temporal resolution of 5-20 min. Thus, the data resolve time scales ranging from the low-frequency variability of the large-scale DWBC that generates internal waves due to interactions with the topography to frequencies greater than that of internal waves that are associated with vertical mixing. Estimates of the vertical mixing induced by the breaking of the observed internal waves show elevated diapycnal diffusivities of up to 10−3 ± 0.4 × 10−3 m2 s−1 in the bottommost 1500 m during times of a strong DWBC (maximum velocities at the mooring site up to 50 cm s−1) whereas vertical mixing rates are about an order of magnitude lower (1.6 × 10−4 ± 0.6 × 10−4 m2 s−1) during weak flow. During periods of a strong DWBC, spectra of horizontal velocity and internal wave available potential energy change substantially at depths below 1200 m and show a strong increase in variance particularly in the near-inertial frequency band. Low-frequency, near-inertial waves generated by topography/DWBC interaction on the slope to the west of the moorings can potentially cause this observed wave intensification; ray paths estimated for these waves agree well with the observed spectral changes at different depths. Variability in the high-frequency range, considered as a proxy for turbulent mixing, is significantly correlated with the DWBC strength above the continental slope. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Analyses of meridional transport time series from the Rapid Climate Change-Meridional Overturning Circulation (RAPID MOC) array at 26°N and from Argo float and altimetry data at 41°N reveal that, at semiannual and longer time scales, the contribution from the western boundary dominates the variability of the North Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (MOC), defined as the transport in the upper 1000 m of the ocean. Because the variability of the western boundary contribution is associated with a geostrophic overturning, it is reflected in independent estimates of transports from gradient of ocean bottom pressure (OBP) relative to and below 1000 m on the continental slope of the western boundary at three nominal latitudes (26°, 39°, and 42.5°N). Time series of western meridional transports relative to and below 1000 m derived from the OBP gradient, or equivalently derived from the transport shear profile, exhibit approximately the same phase relationship between 26° and 39°-42.5°N as the western contribution to the geostrophic MOC time series do: the western geostrophic MOC at 41°N precedes the MOC at 26°N by approximately a quarter of an annual cycle, resulting in a zero correlation at this time scale. This study therefore demonstrates how OBP gradients on basin boundaries can be used to monitor the MOC and its meridional coherence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Observations of hydrography, currents, and microstructure are presented together with sea surface height (SSH) patterns from concurrent satellite tracks to describe the subinertial oscillations in the region downstream of the Faroe Bank Channel overflow. Energetic oscillations with a dominant 3-5-day period have previously been observed in the dense bottom layer and found to be consistent with topographic Rossby waves. Here, the authors present evidence that the oscillations extend over the whole water column and are connected to a wave-like pattern in SSH along the continental slope. The waves are observed in two satellite tracks running parallel to the slope and indicate a wavelength of 50-75 km, an amplitude of about 5 cm, and a phase speed of 15-20cm s-1. The pattern extends at least 450km along the slope. Repeat occupations of a section through a 4-day period show a barotropic velocity anomaly that is associated with an increase in plume transport [from 0.5 to 2.5 Sv (1Sv = 106m3s-1)] and interface height (from 100 to 200 m) as well as changes in dissipation rates and mixing. Estimates of entrainment velocity wE vary with a factor of 102 over the oscillation period, and there is an inverse relation between wE and plume thickness, that is, mixing is most intense when the dense bottom layer is thin. High values of wE coincide with a large percentage of critical Richardson numbers in the interfacial layer. The rotational motion, or the horizontal "stirring," is observed to bring water from the south, traceable because of its low oxygen concentrations, into the plume. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Observations of breaking internal tides on the Oregon continental slope during a 40-day deployment of 5 moorings along 43°12′N are presented. Remotely generated internal tides shoal onto the slope, steepen, break, and form turbulent bores that propagate upslope independently of the internal tide. A high-resolution snapshot of a single bore is captured from lowered acoustic Doppler current profilers (LADCP)/CTD profiles in a 25-h time series at 1200 m. The bore is cold, salty, over 100 m tall, and has a turbulent head where instantaneous dissipation rates are enhanced ( ε > 10−6 W kg−1) and sediment is resuspended. At the two deepest slope moorings (1452 and 1780 m), similar borelike phenomena are observed in near-bottom high-resolution temperature time series. Mean dissipation rates and diapycnal diffusivities increase by a factor of 2 when bores are present ( W kg−1 and m s−1) and observed internal tides are energetic enough to drive these enhanced dissipation rates. Globally, the authors estimate an average of 1.3 kW m−1 of internal tide energy flux is directed onto continental slopes. On the Oregon slope, internal tide fluxes are smaller, suggesting that it is a relatively weak internal tide sink. Mixing associated with the breaking of internal tides is therefore likely to be larger on other continental slopes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The linear transfer of tidal energy from large to small scales is quantified for small tidal excursion over a near-critical continental slope. A theoretical framework for low-wavenumber energy transfer is derived from "flat bottom" vertical modes and evaluated with observations from the Oregon continental slope. To better understand the observations, local tidal dynamics are modeled with a superposition of two idealized numerical simulations, one forced by local surface-tide velocities and the other by an obliquely incident internal tide generated at the Mendocino Escarpment 315 km southwest of the study site. The simulations reproduce many aspects of the observed internal tide and verify the modal-energy balances. Observed transfer of tidal energy into high-mode internal tides is quantitatively consistent with observed turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) dissipation. Locally generated and incident simulated internal tides are superposed with varying phase shifts to mimic the effects of the temporally varying mesoscale. Altering the phase of the incident internal tide alters (i) internal-tide energy flux, (ii) internal-tide generation, and (iii) energy con-version to high modes, suggesting that tidally driven TKE dissipation may vary between 0 and 500 watts per meter of coastline on 3-5-day time scales. Comparison of observed in situ internal-tide generation and satellite-derived estimates of surface-tide energy loss is inconclusive. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When steady flow in a stratified ocean passes between the continental slope and open ocean, its ability to cross isobaths is potentially limited by buoyancy arrest. If the bottom Ekman transport vanishes and there are no interior stresses, then steady linear flow on an f plane must be geostrophic and follow isobaths exactly. The influence of arrest on cross-shelf transport is investigated here to establish 1) whether there are substantial penetration asymmetries between cases with upwelling and downwelling in the bottom boundary layer; 2) over what spatial scales, hence in what parameter regime, buoyancy arrest is important; and 3) the effects of depth-dependent interior flow. The problem is approached using scalings and idealized numerical models. The results show that there is little or no asymmetry introduced by bottom boundary layer behavior. Further, if the stratification is weak or moderate, as measured by a slope Burger number s == αN/ f (where α is the bottom slope, N is buoyancy frequency, and f is the Coriolis parameter), buoyancy arrest does not exert a strong constraint on cross-isobath exchange. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Large-amplitude (100-200 m) nonlinear internal waves (NLIWs) were observed on the continental slope in the northern South China Sea nearly diurnally during the spring tide. The evolution of one NLIW as it propagated up the continental slope is described. The NLIW arrived at the slope as a nearly steady-state solitary depression wave. As it propagated up the slope, the wave propagation speed C decreased dramatically from 2 to 1.3 m s−1, while the maximum along-wave current speed Umax remained constant at 2 m s−1. As Umax exceeded C, the NLIW reached its breaking limit and formed a subsurface trapped core with closed streamlines in the coordinate frame of the propagating wave. The trapped core consisted of two counter-rotating vortices feeding a jet within the core. It was highly turbulent with 10-50-m density overturnings caused by the vortices acting on the background stratification, with an estimated turbulent kinetic energy dissipation rate of O(10−4) W kg−1 and an eddy diffusivity of O(10−1) m2 s−1. The core mixed continually with the surrounding water and created a wake of mixed water, observed as an isopycnal salinity anomaly. As the trapped core formed, the NLIW became unsteady and dissipative and broke into a large primary wave and a smaller wave. Although shoaling alone can lead to wave fission, the authors hypothesize that the wave breaking and the trapped core evolution may further trigger the fission process. These processes of wave fission and dissipation continued so that the NLIW evolved from a single deep-water solitary wave as it approached the continental slope into a train of smaller waves on the Dongsha Plateau. Observed properties, including wave width, amplitude, and propagation speed, are reasonably predicted by a fully nonlinear steady-state internal wave model, with better agreement in the deeper water. The agreement of observed and modeled propagation speed is improved when a reasonable vertical profile of background current is included in the model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two year-long (2004-05 and 2005-06) records of currents from two moorings deployed at the continental slope of the Laptev Sea (78°26′N, 125°40′E) are used in order to define the properties of tidal currents in the upper ~200-m ocean layer. Harmonic and spectral analyses of currents showed that the semidiurnal tidal constituent S2 dominates over the semidiurnal M2 and diurnal constituents. This dominance of the S2 constituent in the tidal currents is due to resonant interaction of the superinertial wave with sloping bottom topography. In contrast to the tidal currents, sea level changes are dominated by the M2 constituent, as seen from a tidal model by L. Padman and S. Erofeeva, using assimilation of observational data. Strong anticorrelation (−0.73 ± 0.05) was found between the upper 50-m S2 current amplitudes and local sea ice concentration, with fourfold (from ~2.0 to 8.5 cm s−1) amplification of tidal currents under ice-free conditions. This is probably due to a change of local resonance conditions for the S2 tidal current. These findings may be important for understanding the increasing role of tides in a seasonally ice-free Arctic Ocean. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies the interaction of an Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC)-like wind-driven channel flow with a continental slope and a flat-bottomed bay-shaped shelf near the channel's southern boundary. Interaction between the model ACC and the topography in the second layer induces local changes of the potential vorticity (PV) flux, which further causes the formation of a first-layer PV front near the base of the topography. Located between the ACC and the first-layer slope, the newly formed PV front is constantly perturbed by the ACC and in turn forces the first-layer slope with its own variability in an intermittent but persistent way. The volume transport of the slope water across the first-layer slope edge is mostly directly driven by eddies and meanders of the new front, and its magnitude is similar to the maximum Ekman transport in the channel. Near the bay's opening, the effect of the topographic waves, excited by offshore variability, dominates the cross-isobath exchange and induces a mean clockwise shelf circulation. The waves' propagation is only toward the west and tends to be blocked by the bay's western boundary in the narrow-shelf region. The ensuing wave-coast interaction amplifies the wave amplitude and the cross-shelf transport. Because the interaction only occurs near the western boundary, the shelf water in the west of the bay is more readily carried offshore than that in the east and the mean shelf circulation is also intensified along the bay's western boundary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A complex superposition of locally forced and shoaling remotely generated semidiurnal internal tides occurs on the Oregon continental slope. Presented here are observations from a zonal line of five profiling moorings deployed across the continental slope from 500 to 3000 m, a 24-h expendable current profiler (XCP) survey, and five 15-48-h lowered ADCP (LADCP)/CTD stations. The 40-day moored deployment spans three spring and two neap tides, during which the proportions of the locally and remotely forced internal tides vary. Baroclinic signals are strong throughout spring and neap tides, with 4-5-day-long bursts of strong cross-slope baroclinic semidiurnal velocity and vertical displacement . Energy fluxes exhibit complex spatial and temporal patterns throughout both tidal periods. During spring tides, local barotropic forcing is strongest and energy flux over the slope is predominantly offshore (westward). During neap tides, shoaling remotely generated internal tides dominate and energy flux is predominantly onshore (eastward). Shoaling internal tides do not exhibit a strong spring-neap cycle and are also observed during the first spring tide, indicating that they originate from multiple sources. The bulk of the remotely generated internal tide is hypothesized to be generated from south of the array (e.g., Mendocino Escarpment), because energy fluxes at the deep mooring 100 km offshore are always directed northward. However, fluxes on the slope suggest that the northbound internal tide is turned onshore, most likely by reflection from large-scale bathymetry. This is verified with a simple three-dimensional model of mode-1 internal tides propagating obliquely onto a near-critical slope, whose output conforms fairly well to observations, in spite of its simplicity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A strong internal tide is generated in the Luzon Strait that radiates westward to impact the continental shelf of the South China Sea. Mooring data in 1500-m depth on the continental slope show a fortnightly averaged incoming tidal flux of 12 kW m−−1, and a mooring on a broad plateau on the slope finds a similar flux as an upper bound. Of this, 5.5 kW m−−1 is in the diurnal tide and 3.5 kW m−−1 is in the semidiurnal tide, with the remainder in higher-frequency motions. Turbulence dissipation may be as high as 3 kW m−−1. Local generation is estimated from a linear model to be less than 1 kW m−−1. The continental slope is supercritical with respect to the diurnal tide, implying that there may be significant back reflection into the basin. Comparing the low-mode energy of a horizontal standing wave at the mooring to the energy flux indicates that perhaps one-third of the incoming diurnal tidal energy is reflected. Conversely, the slope is subcritical with respect to the semidiurnal tide, and the observed reflection is very weak. A surprising observation is that, despite significant diurnal vertical-mode-2 incident energy flux, this energy did not reflect; most of the reflection was in mode 1. The observations are consistent with a linear scattering model for supercritical topography. Large fractions of incoming energy can reflect depending on both the geometry of the shelfbreak and the phase between the modal components of the incoming flux. If the incident mode-1 and mode-2 waves are in phase at the shelf break, there is substantial transmission onto the shelf; if they are out of phase, there is almost 100%% reflection. The observations of the diurnal tide at the site are consistent with the first case: weak reflection, with most of it in mode 1 and almost no reflection in mode 2. The sensitivity of the reflection on the phase between incident components significantly complicates the prediction of reflections from continental shelves. Finally, a somewhat incidental observation is that the shape of the continental slope has large regions that are near critical to the dominant diurnal tide. This implicates the internal tide in shaping of the continental slope. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous observations have indicated that the Kuroshio’s path in the northern Okinawa Trough of the East China Sea is destabilized and accompanied by meanders with periods of 1–3 months during the winter–spring period. The present study investigates the mechanism responsible for this recurrent seasonally fixed phenomenon. A hypothetical mechanism is constructed based on both a simple wind-driven Ekman-pumping model, acting within the Kuroshio, and a bifurcation model of the Kuroshio path states in the northern Okinawa Trough, established in the previous study. A high-resolution ocean general circulation model is used to examine the hypothetical mechanism. The numerical model reveals the following mechanism: the wintertime northerly wind prevailing over the Okinawa Trough blows against the Kuroshio, generating Ekman divergence, and hence upwelling within the inshore side of the Kuroshio from the sum of the earth’s rotation and the geostrophic current shear. A necessary condition for this upwelling is probably given by the exponential velocity structure of the surface Kuroshio on the inshore side of the current. This kind of wintertime upwelling acts to make the mean Kuroshio path separate from the continental slope in the northern Okinawa Trough, so that baroclinic instability destabilizes the Kuroshio path, as shown by the bifurcation model of Kuroshio path states. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Subsurface jets, defined as having velocity maxima >40 cm s-1 at depths between 100 and 350 m, and being surrounded by much weaker near-surface currents, have been observed over the northwestern Gulf of Mexico continental slope. The observations were from an array of 14 moorings equipped with upward-looking 75-kHz ADCPs deployed at 450–500 m. A total of 10 jet events were observed in 18 ADCP years of velocity profile data, where these events were clearly not the result of downward-propagating inertial internal waves. The jets had durations from about 1 to 8 days and were usually associated with interactions between similarly sized cyclones and anticyclones over the slope or with the interaction of an eddy with upper-slope topography. The jets are associated with potential vorticity anomalies and their inferred length scales indicate that the dynamics depart from simple geostrophic balances. Observed anomalous density gradients present during the jets seem to involve the tilting of the vertical axis of the center of rotation of one or more of the interacting eddies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article examines the accelerating dense-water flow on continental slopes. It states that water is denser on a shallow shelf than in the adjacent deep ocean. Its acceleration is affected by several factors such as gravity, density, and the component of the earth's rotation. Moreover, downslope flows can follow winter cooling of shallow shelf seas at mid to high latitudes.

An array of 40 surface drifters, drogued at 15-m depth, was deployed in February 2007 to the east of the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula as part of the Antarctic Drifter Experiment: Links to Isobaths and Ecosystems (ADELIE) project. Data obtained from these drifters and from a select number of local historical drifters provide the most detailed observations to date of the surface circulation in the northwestern Weddell Sea. The Antarctic Slope Front (ASF), characterized by a ∼20 cm s-1 current following the 1000-m isobath, is the dominant feature east of the peninsula. The slope front bifurcates when it encounters the South Scotia Ridge with the drifters following one of three paths. Drifters (i) are carried westward into Bransfield Strait; (ii) follow the 1000-m isobath to the east along the southern edge of the South Scotia Ridge; or (iii) become entrained in a large-standing eddy over the South Scotia Ridge. Drifters are strongly steered by contours of f /h (Coriolis frequency/depth) as shown by calculations of the first two moments of displacement in both geographic coordinates and coordinates locally aligned with contours of f /h. An eddy-mean decomposition of the drifter velocities indicates that shear in the mean flow makes the dominant contribution to dispersion in the along-f /h direction, but eddy processes are more important in dispersing particles across contours of f /h. The results of the ADELIE study suggest that the circulation near the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula may influence ecosystem dynamics in the Southern Ocean through Antarctic krill transport and the export of nutrients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The term “downwelling currents” refers to currents with a downslope mass flux in the bottom boundary layer. Examples are the Malvinas and Southland Currents in the Southern Hemisphere and the Oyashio in the Northern Hemisphere. Although many of these currents generate the same type of highly productive ecosystems that is associated with upwelling regimes, the mechanism that may drive such upwelling remains unclear. In this article, it is postulated that the interaction between a downwelling current and the continental slope generates shelfbreak upwelling. The proposed mechanism is relatively simple. As a downwelling current flows along the continental slope, bottom friction and lateral diffusion spread it onto the neighboring shelf, thus generating along-shelf pressure gradients and a cross-shelf circulation pattern that leads to shelfbreak upwelling. At difference with previous studies of shelfbreak dynamics (e.g., Gawarkiewicz and Chapman, Chapman and Lentz, and Pickart), the shelfbreak upwelling in the proposed model is not controlled by the downslope buoyancy flux associated with the presence of a shelf current but by the along-shelf pressure gradient associated with the presence of a slope current. As these experiments demonstrate, shelfbreak upwelling will occur in flat-bottomed domains or even in the absence of a bottom boundary layer. The shelfbreak upwelling, moreover, is not evidence of the separation of the bottom boundary layer but of the downstream divergence of the slope currents, and its magnitude is proportional to the volume transport of that current. To prove this hypothesis, the results of a series of process-oriented numerical experiments are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stratified flow over topography is studied, with oceanic applications in mind. A model is developed for a fluid with arbitrary vertical stratification and a free surface, flowing over three-dimensional topography of arbitrary size and steepness, with background rotation, in the linear hydrostatic regime. The model uses an expansion of the flow fields in terms of a set of basis functions, which efficiently capture the vertical dependence of the flow. The horizontal structure may then be found by solving a set of coupled partial differential equations in two horizontal directions and time, subject to simple boundary conditions. In some cases, these equations may be solved analytically, but, in general, simple numerical procedures are required. Using this formulation, the internal tide generated by a time-periodic barotropic tidal flow over a continental shelf and slope is calculated in various idealized configurations. The topography and fluid motion are taken to be independent of one coordinate direction and the fluid to be either two-layer or uniformly stratified. For the two-layer case, expressions for the shoreward and oceanward energy fluxes associated with the internal tide are derived. For the uniformly stratified case, it is studied numerically how the accuracy of the solutions depends upon the number of basis functions used, and it is shown that good solutions and energy flux estimates can often be obtained with only a few basis functions. In both cases, the results show that the position of the coastline, through its effect on the form of the barotropic tide, significantly influences the strength of the internal tide generation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A reduced-gravity model is used to examine the dynamics of dense water descending a continental slope. The model solves for the geostrophically adjusted state before it is subjected to significant frictional decay. For such bottom-mounted flow, it is argued that frictional torque would dominate the net vorticity balance to equalize the edge flows, resulting in double velocity cores. Constrained by the geostrophic balance, the dense water thus may settle only over a concave bottom and is sheetlike, covering typically the whole slope rise. As such, the adjustment is characterized by a spreading rather than sinking of the layer—with little descent of the upper edge but a swift downslope current propelling the lower edge. Through the mechanical energy balance, it is found in addition that a greater density anomaly would increase the total entrainment flux to more strongly dilute the original anomaly, yielding a product water that is less varied in the water-mass properties. Model predictions compare favorably with some observed dense outflows, in support of the entrainment and friction control of the geostrophic adjustment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In an attempt to understand the degree to which the stability of a shelfbreak front, characterized by continuous horizontal and vertical shear, is affected by topography, a linear stability analysis was conducted for a range of frontal jets and bottom-slope configurations. Three-dimensional perturbations superposed on a continuously stratified shelfbreak front were investigated using linearized, hydrostatic primitive equations. For all model runs in the study, the frontal instability mode, which is the fastest-growing mode for a baroclinic flow, was not influenced by the bottom: Retrograde, prograde, and flat-bottom jets all share the same stability characteristics. In contrast, weakly baroclinic jets are strongly influenced by bottom topography. The presence of a bottom slope stabilizes prograde jets and destabilizes retrograde jets, a difference attributed to the orientation of the isopycnals relative to the bottom slope. Temporal and/or downstream changes in the bottom slope and/or background stratification are shown to produce sizeable changes in the instability of a weakly baroclinic jet. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High-resolution hydrographic and velocity measurements across the East Greenland shelf break south of Denmark Strait have revealed an intense, narrow current banked against the upper continental slope. This is believed to be the result of dense water cascading over the shelf edge and entraining ambient water. The current has been named the East Greenland Spill Jet. It resides beneath the East Greenland/Irminger Current and transports roughly 2 Sverdrups of water equatorward. Strong vertical mixing occurs during the spilling, although the entrainment farther downstream is minimal. A vorticity analysis reveals that the increase in cyclonic relative vorticity within the jet is partly balanced by tilting vorticity, resulting in a sharp front in potential vorticity reminiscent of the Gulf Stream. The other components of the Irminger Sea boundary current system are described, including a presentation of absolute transports. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent measurements in a region of continental slope characterized by ridges and valleys running up and down the slope reveal interesting high mode structure in the tidal band velocity signals, with enhanced mixing above the corrugations. In order to understand these observations, numerical simulations of the internal tide generation in this region of topography were performed. Here the focus is on the response of the flow to along;chslope barotropic tidal forcing. For small-amplitude barotropic forcing, internal waves are generated over the continental slope that propagate toward the ocean surface and toward shallower water. When higher-amplitude forcing is combined with large-amplitude corrugations, the flow is locally supercritical downstream of ridges, and transient internal hydraulic jumps result. As the flow relaxes each half tidal period, these jumps are released as internal wave packets, which propagate up into the thermocline. The internal hydraulic jumps are a source of mixing in the valleys, while the small-scale shears associated with the internal waves could lead to mixing higher up the water column. Over the forcing range considered, the response is dominated by slightly higher harmonics of the tidal forcing frequency than predicted by existing analytic theories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent measurements in a region of continental slope characterized by ridges and valleys running up and down the slope reveal interesting high-mode structure in the tidal band velocity signals and enhanced mixing over the corrugations. To deduce the processes responsible for the observed phenomena, numerical simulations of the internal tide generation in this region of topography were performed, focused on the response of the flow to cross-slope barotropic tidal forcing. The flow response is characterized by an internal tide generated at the shelf break that subsequently reflects from the corrugated slope. Above the corrugated slope, a high-mode structure may be created, but only if the Coriolis force is included. It is proposed that interference between the primary internal tide and secondary internal waves forced by the Coriolis-driven along-slope component of primary wave flow field is the cause of the high-mode structure in the simulations. Under suitable conditions of forcing, topography, and stratification, the shear generated by the interference may lead to local mixing. Hence complex topography may be an important contributor to boundary mixing in the ocean. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Observations of mixing over the continental slope using a towed body reveal a great lateral extent (several kilometers) of continuously turbulent fluid within a few hundred meters of the boundary at depth 1600 m. The largest turbulent dissipation rates were observed over a 5 km horizontal region near a slope critical to the M[sub 2] internal tide. Over a submarine landslide perpendicular to the continental slope, enhanced mixing extended at least 600 m above the boundary, increasing toward the bottom. The resulting vertical divergence of the heat flux near the bottom implies that fluid there must be replenished. Intermediate nepheloid layers detected optically contained fluid with θ-S properties distinct from their surroundings. It is suggested that intermediate nepheloid layers are interior signitures of the boundary layer detachment required by the near-bottom flux divergance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Examines an analytic solution for the steady state depth-averaged western boundary current flowing over the continental slope. Combination of the Stommel, Munk and arrested topographic wave models; Description of the main vorticity balance over the slope; Dependence of the solution character on the slope α.

Explores a lee wave generation and horizontal flow separation in stratified flow along a slope with corrugations. Identification of the two evanescent regimens; Factors leading to the variation in the ridge height; Properties of the wave and evanescent solutions.