Satellite-Derived Lagrangian Transport Pathways in the Labrador Sea

被引:2
作者
Castelao, Renato M. [1 ]
Oliver, Hilde [2 ]
Medeiros, Patricia M. [1 ]
机构
[1] Univ Georgia, Dept Marine Sci, Athens, GA 30602 USA
[2] Woods Hole Oceanog Inst, Appl Ocean Phys & Engn Dept, Woods Hole, MA 02543 USA
关键词
Labrador Sea; Lagrangian trajectories; transport pathways; Greenland; GREENLAND MELTWATER; FRESH-WATER; IMPACT; CURRENTS; RENEWAL; DRIVEN; MODEL; FATE;
D O I
10.3390/rs15235545
中图分类号
X [环境科学、安全科学];
学科分类号
08 ; 0830 ;
摘要
The offshore transport of Greenland coastal waters influenced by freshwater input from ice sheet melting during summer plays an important role in ocean circulation and biological processes in the Labrador Sea. Many previous studies over the last decade have investigated shelfbreak transport processes in the region, primarily using ocean model simulations. Here, we use 27 years of surface geostrophic velocity observations from satellite altimetry, modified to include Ekman dynamics based on atmospheric reanalysis, and virtual particle releases to investigate seasonal and interannual variability in transport of coastal water in the Labrador Sea. Two sets of tracking experiments were pursued, one using geostrophic velocities only, and another using total velocities including the wind effect. Our analysis revealed substantial seasonal variability, even when only geostrophic velocities were considered. Water from coastal southwest Greenland is generally transported northward into Baffin Bay, although westward transport off the west Greenland shelf increases in fall and winter due to winds. Westward offshore transport is increased for water from southeast Greenland so that, in some years, water originating near the east Greenland coast during summer can be transported into the central Labrador Sea and the convection region. When wind forcing is considered, long-term trends suggest decreasing transport of Greenland coastal water during the melting season toward Baffin Bay, and increasing transport into the interior of the Labrador Sea for water originating from southeast Greenland during summer, where it could potentially influence water column stability. Future studies using higher-resolution velocity observations are needed to capture the role of submesoscale variability in transport pathways in the Labrador Sea.
引用
收藏
页数:19
相关论文
共 64 条
[1]  
[Anonymous], 2012, NASA
[2]   Observation and Estimation of Lagrangian, Stokes, and Eulerian Currents Induced by Wind and Waves at the Sea Surface [J].
Ardhuin, Fabrice ;
Marie, Louis ;
Rascle, Nicolas ;
Forget, Philippe ;
Roland, Aron .
JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL OCEANOGRAPHY, 2009, 39 (11) :2820-2838
[3]   Melting glaciers stimulate large summer phytoplankton blooms in southwest Greenland waters [J].
Arrigo, Kevin R. ;
van Dijken, Gert L. ;
Castelao, Renato M. ;
Luo, Hao ;
Rennermalm, Asa K. ;
Tedesco, Marco ;
Mote, Thomas L. ;
Oliver, Hilde ;
Yager, Patricia L. .
GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH LETTERS, 2017, 44 (12) :6278-6285
[4]   Land Ice Freshwater Budget of the Arctic and North Atlantic Oceans: 1. Data, Methods, and Results [J].
Bamber, J. L. ;
Tedstone, A. J. ;
King, M. D. ;
Howat, I. M. ;
Enderlin, E. M. ;
van den Broeke, M. R. ;
Noel, B. .
JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH-OCEANS, 2018, 123 (03) :1827-1837
[5]   Recent large increases in freshwater fluxes from Greenland into the North Atlantic [J].
Bamber, Jonathan ;
van den Broeke, Michiel ;
Ettema, Janneke ;
Lenaerts, Jan ;
Rignot, Eric .
GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH LETTERS, 2012, 39
[6]   Delayed upwelling alters nearshore coastal ocean ecosystems in the northern California current [J].
Barth, John A. ;
Menge, Bruce A. ;
Lubchenco, Jane ;
Chan, Francis ;
Bane, John M. ;
Kirincich, Anthony R. ;
McManus, Margaret A. ;
Nielsen, Karina J. ;
Pierce, Stephen D. ;
Washburn, Libe .
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, 2007, 104 (10) :3719-3724
[7]  
Bhatia MP, 2013, NAT GEOSCI, V6, P274, DOI [10.1038/ngeo1746, 10.1038/NGEO1746]
[8]  
Böning CW, 2016, NAT GEOSCI, V9, P523, DOI [10.1038/ngeo2740, 10.1038/NGEO2740]
[9]  
Bonjean F, 2002, J PHYS OCEANOGR, V32, P2938, DOI 10.1175/1520-0485(2002)032<2938:DMAAOT>2.0.CO
[10]  
2