A recount of Ross Sea waters Academic Article uri icon

abstract

  • Oceanographic observations within the Ross Sea have grown dramatically in recent years, both in number and quality. This has prompted a parallel recount of the circulation and structure of all water masses in the southwestern continental margins of the Pacific Ocean. A high-resolution set of horizontal property distributions was combined into a new climatology, which in turn is the basis of a fine volumetric -S census of all Ross Sea water masses. Inshore of the shelf break (700 m isobath) the Ross Sea volume (25104 km3) partitioning into layers of neutral density (n) is: 25% in the top layer (n<28.00 kg m-3) of Antarctic Surface Water (AASW), 22% in the middle layer (28.00 kg m-328.27 kg m-3) of Shelf Water (SW, <-1.85 C; 31%) and its modified form (MSW, >-1.85 C; 22%), precursor of the Antarctic Bottom Water (AABW) offshore. AASW flows westward along the outer shelf and southward along the eastern coast past Cape Colbeck. Oceanic thermocline waters (28.00 kg m-3

published proceedings

  • DEEP-SEA RESEARCH PART II-TOPICAL STUDIES IN OCEANOGRAPHY

altmetric score

  • 3

author list (cited authors)

  • Orsi, A. H., & Wiederwohl, C. L.

citation count

  • 209

complete list of authors

  • Orsi, Alejandro H||Wiederwohl, Christina L

publication date

  • June 2009