The connection of the Costa Rica Coastal Current with the West Mexican Current in the Gulf of Tehuantepec

Abstract

The interconnections of some ocean currents in the Eastern Tropical Pacific are still a mystery to the scientific community. In the Mexican Pacific, the West Mexican Current (WMC) and the Costa Rica Coastal Current (CRCC) are two flows that are typically considered independent; however, some evidence of a subsurface connection when the Tehuantepec Bowl (TB) moves westward suggests otherwise. With the Hybrid Coordinated Ocean Model (HYCOM), we obtained a 19 years-run in a domain encompassing the Eastern Tropical Pacific Ocean. The numerical results were validated qualitatively and quantitatively by comparing them with remote and direct observations. We found a generally good agreement between the model results and those observations. To analyze the model results, we defined four transects perpendicularly to the coast, and surface and subsurface layers; in the long-term mean, the CRCC is disconnected from the WMC, in both layers. However, during the seasonal cycle, we found a close relationship between the general structures in thermocline topography and surface and subsurface large-scale circulation. The model results confirmed that the interconnection between the CRCC and the WMC depends on the dynamics of the TB, that on its seasonal migration moves westward, allowing the CRCC to travel along the coast further west than the Gulf of Tehuantepec (GT) and to connect with the WMC during spring at a subsurface level below the thermocline.