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Title: Directly Measured Currents and Estimated Transport Pathways of Atlantic Water between 59.5oN and the Iceland-Faroes-Scotland Ridge
Using vessel-mounted acoustic Doppler current profiler data from four different routes between Scotland, Iceland and Greenland, we map out the mean flow of water in the top 400 m of the northeastern North Atlantic. The poleward transport east of the Reykjanes Ridge (RR) decreases from 8.5 to 10 Sv (1 Sverdrup 106 m3 s1) at 59.58N to 618N to 6 Sv crossing the IcelandFaroesScotland Ridge. The two longest 1200 km transport integrals have 1.40.94 Sv uncertainty, respectively. The overall decrease in transport can in large measure be accounted for by a 1.5 Sv flow across the RR into the Irminger Sea north of 59.58N and by a 0.5 Sv overflow of dense water along the IcelandFaroes Ridge. A remaining 0.5 Sv flux divergence is at the edge of detectability, but if real could be accounted for through wintertime convection to 400 m and densification of upper ocean water. The topography of the Iceland Basin and the banks west of Scotland play a fundamental role in controlling flow pathways towards and past Iceland, the Faroes and Scotland. Most water flows north unimpeded through the Iceland Basin, some in the centre of the basin along the Maury Channel, and some along Hatton Bank, turning east along the northern slopes of George Bligh Bank, Lousy Bank and Bill Bailey’s Bank, whereupon the flow splits with 3 Sv turning northwest towards the IcelandFaroes Ridge and the remainder continuing east towards and north of the Wyville-Thomson Ridge (WTR) to the Scotland slope thereby increasing the Slope Current transport from 1.5 Sv south of the WTR to 3.5 Sv in the FaroesShetland Channel  more » « less
Award ID(s):
1658364
NSF-PAR ID:
10101460
Author(s) / Creator(s):
Date Published:
Journal Name:
Tellus. Series A, Dynamic meteorology and oceanography
Volume:
67
ISSN:
1600-0870
Format(s):
Medium: X
Sponsoring Org:
National Science Foundation
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