Time and space scales of surface temperatures in the Tasman Sea, from satellite data

Abstract

Five years (1979–1984) of satellite-derived sea surface temperature data for the Tasman and Southern Coral seas (20–45°S, 150–175°E) show time scales of 80 days and space scales of 125 km in the East Australian Current area, with longer time scales off the west coast of New Zealand's South Island. The Tasman Front, hitherto not well documented, appears as a band of high sea surface temperature variance leading from the East Australian Current area eastwards to North Cape, New Zealand.