Near-Surface and Deep Circulation Coupling in the Western Gulf of Mexico

The coupling between the upper (z < 1000-m depth) and deep (z > 1500 m) circulation in the western Gulf of Mexico (WGoM) driven by the arrival of Loop Current eddies (LCEs) is analyzed from moorings measuring horizontal velocity in the full water column during a 5-yr period (October 2008–October 2013). Nine LCEs crossing the mooring array are documented. A composite of these events shows that strong northward currents at depth having speeds of 0.1–0.2 m s−1 precede (~10–20 days) the strong northward near-surface currents (~0.5 m s−1) characteristic of the western rim of the LCEs. These deep northward flow intensifications are followed by southward deep flows coupled with the surface-intensified southward current of the eastern (rear) part of the LCEs crossing the array. These results are consistent with the existence of a deep anticyclone leading and a cyclone trailing the upper-layer LCEs. Objectively interpolated regional maps of velocities and vertical vorticity obtained from up to 30 moorings indicate the mean circulation at 100-m depth in the northern WGoM is mostly anticyclonic and enhanced by the arrival of the westward-propagating LCEs, while the southern part is dominated by the presence of a semipermanent cyclonic structure (Bay of Campeche cyclonic gyre). At 1500-m depth, the mean circulation follows the slope in a cyclonic sense and shows a cyclonic vorticity maximum on the abyssal plane consistent with the LCE deep flow composites. This suggests the LCEs strongly modulate not only the upper-layer circulation but also impact the deep flow.