Spatial variability of water mass transports in the Bransfield Strait based on direct current measurements

Abstract

The Bransfield Strait connects the Bellingshausen and Weddell seas and is strongly affected by intense inflows of their water masses. In this work we analyzed Shipborne Acoustic Current Doppler Profiler (SADCP) measurements carried out in the Bransfield Strait from 2015 to 2022. The new dataset includes over 100 transects, crossing the main currents in the strait (namely, the Bransfield Current and the Transitional Weddell Water (TWW) flow). Based on these data, we studied spatial variability of water mass transports in the Bransfield Strait during austral summer season. As shown below in this research, the Bransfield Current was observed down to the 600 m depth. By considering deeper layers, we managed obtaining more precise assessments of mean water mass transports of the Bransfield Current. They were estimated at 1.4–2.1 Sv. We found that the transports of the Bransfield Current and TWW flow in the austral summer season (November–March) do not show significant variability. The water mass transport of the Bransfield Current and the TWW flow was stable within the central basin of the Bransfield Strait and differed in its western basin. We also found that in austral summer the heat transport into the Bransfield Strait varied between 0.2 and 0.4 Sv·°C and salinity transport was −0.07 to −0.06 Sv·psu, their sign reflecting a dominant northeastward flow of relatively warm and fresh water. In addition, we compared Lowered Acoustic Current Doppler Profiler (LADCP) and SADCP measurements and proved that the technical limitations of the SADCP do not significantly affect the estimates of the transports in this region.