On the volume transport of the Agulhas Current

Abstract

Between 1975 and 1978, eight cruises were executed off the South African east coast to determine the volume transport of the Agulhas Current. The results at 31°S indicate that the average geostrophic transport relative to 1000 m was 30 × 10 6 m 3 s −1; by matching the geostrophic current profiles to observed currents near the surface, a volume transport of 62 × 10 6 m 3 s −1 is obtained in the upper 1000 m. Indications are that the volume transport of the current increases downstream by 6 × 10 6 m 3 s −1 per 100 km.