WEDDELL SEA SHELF WATER IN THE BRANSFIELD STRAIT AND WEDDELL-SCOTIA CONFLUENCE Academic Article

abstract

• The unusual stratification of the waters in the Weddell-Scotia Confluence between the Scotia and Weddell Seas and in the Bransfield Strait is traced to the influence of shelf waters from the northwest Weddell Sea. The shelf waters span the density range encompassed by the warm, salty Circumpolar Deep Water (CDW) of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current, and the colder and slightly fresher CDW in the Weddell Sea. An isopycnal mixture of these three source waters flows eastward from the tip of the Antaractic Peninsula in to the Weddell-Scotia Confluence region, and westward north of the Peninsula, where it flows downslope to renew the deep waters of the Bransfield Strait. This mixing scheme can occur year-round, in contrast to some previous explanations of the stratification in the region, which relied on the (unobserved) winter convective overturn of the water column. 1994.

authors

• Orsi, Alejandro

published proceedings

• DEEP-SEA RESEARCH PART I-OCEANOGRAPHIC RESEARCH PAPERS

author list (cited authors)

• WHITWORTH, T., NOWLIN, W. D., ORSI, A. H., LOCARNINI, R. A., & SMITH, S. G.

citation count

• 139

complete list of authors

• WHITWORTH, T||NOWLIN, WD||ORSI, AH||LOCARNINI, RA||SMITH, SG

publication date

• January 1994

publisher

• Elsevier  Publisher

published in

• Deep-Sea Research Part I: Oceanographic Research Papers  Journal

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

• 10.1016/0967-0637(94)90046-9

start page

• 629

end page

• 641

volume

• 41

issue

• 4

URL

• http%3A%2F%2Fdx.doi.org%2F10.1016%2F0967-0637%2894%2990046-9