Float Data Research Articles

Upper ocean response to the passage of two sequential typhoons

Abstract. The atmospheric wind stress forcing and the oceanic response are examined for the period between 15 September 2008 and 6 October 2008, during which two typhoons – Hagupit and Jangmi – passed through the same region of the western Pacific at Saffir–Simpson intensity categories one and three, respectively. A three-dimensional oceanic mixed layer model is compared against the remote sensing observations as well as high-repetition Argo float data. Numerical model simulations suggested that magnitude of the cooling caused by the second typhoon, Jangmi, would have been significantly larger if the ocean had not already been influenced by the first typhoon, Hagupit. It is estimated that the temperature anomaly behind Jangmi would have been about 0.4 °C larger in both cold wake and left side of the track. The numerical simulations suggest that the magnitude and position of Jangmi's cold wake depends on the precursor state of the ocean as well as lag between typhoons. Based on sensitivity experiments we show that temperature anomaly difference between "single typhoon" and "two typhoons" as well as magnitude of the cooling strongly depends on the distance between them. The amount of kinetic energy and coupling with inertial oscillations are important factors for determining magnitude of the temperature anomaly behind moving typhoons. This paper indicates that studies of ocean–atmosphere tropical cyclone interaction will benefit from denser, high-repetition Argo float measurements.

Thermohaline trends in the Bay of Biscay from Argo floats over the decade 2004–2013

Thermohaline trends along the water column were analyzed by means of Argo float data in the Bay of Biscay over the period 2004–2013. Water occupying the upper 100m was considered as Surface Water (SW). Two deeper water masses were considered: Eastern North Atlantic Central Water (ENACW) and Mediterranean Water (MW). SW was observed to salinificate at a rate of 0.006y−1, while no significant trend was found for temperature. ENACW was found to warm and salinificate at a rate of 0.012°Cy−1 and 0.004y−1, respectively. MW cooling and freshening was observed at a rate of −0.011°Cy−1 and −0.005y−1, respectively. Both temperature and salinity variability were mainly due to intrinsic changes in water masses, except for temperature in the upper part of ENACW, where the vertical uplifting of isopycnals (~80dbar) balances intrinsic changes in this water mass. Comparison with previous research suggests that the observed changes are consistent with those measured along the Western coast of the Iberian Peninsula.

State analysis using the Local Ensemble Transform Kalman Filter (LETKF) and the three-layer circulation structure of the Luzon Strait and the South China Sea

A new circulation model of the western North Pacific Ocean based on the parallelized version of the Princeton Ocean Model and incorporating the Local Ensemble Transform Kalman Filter (LETKF) data assimilation scheme has been developed. The new model assimilates satellite data and is tested for the period January 1 to April 3, 2012 initialized from a 24-year simulation to estimate the ocean state focusing in the South China Sea (SCS). Model results are compared against estimates based on the optimum interpolation (OI) assimilation scheme and are validated against independent Argo float and transport data to assess model skills. LETKF provides improved estimates of the western North Pacific Ocean state including transports through various straits in the SCS. In the Luzon Strait, the model confirms, for the first time, the three-layer transport structure previously deduced in the literature from sparse observations: westward in the upper and lower layers and eastward in the middle layer. This structure is shown to be robust, and the related dynamics are analyzed using the results of a long-term (18 years) unassimilated North Pacific Ocean model. Potential vorticity and mass conservations suggest a basin-wide cyclonic circulation in the upper layer of the SCS (z > −570 m), an anticyclonic circulation in the middle layer (−570 m ≥ z > −2,000 m), and, in the abyssal basin (<−2,000 m), the circulation is cyclonic in the north and anticyclonic in the south. The cyclone–anticyclone abyssal circulation is confirmed and explained using a deep-layer reduced-gravity model as being caused by overflow over the deep sill of the Luzon Strait, coupled with intense, localized upwelling west of the strait.

Evidence of a southward eddy corridor in the South-West Indian ocean

Mesoscale eddies and meanders have been shown to be one of the dominant sources of flow variability in the world׳s ocean. One example of an isolated eddy hotspot is the South-West Indian Ridge (SWIR). Several investigations have shown that the SWIR and the corresponding planetary potential vorticity field (f/H) exert a strong influence on the location and dynamics of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC), resulting in substantial fragmentation of the jets downstream of the ridge. The easterly extension of this eddy corridor appears to be restricted to the deep channel separating the Conrad Rise from the Del Cano and Crozet Plateau. However, while the fate of eddies formed at the SWIR has been widely investigated and the frontal character of this eastward extension is well known, the zone of diminishing variability that extends southwards to approximately 60°S remains poorly sampled. Using a combination of Argo, AVISO and NCEP/NCAR datasets, the character of this eddy corridor as a conduit for warm core eddies to move across the ACC into the Antarctic zone is investigated. In this study, we track a single warm-core eddy as it moves southwards from an original position of 31°E, 50°20′S to where it dissipates 10 months later in the Enderby Basin at 56°20′S. An Argo float entrained within the eddy confirms that its water masses are consistent with water found within the Antarctic Polar Frontal Zone north of the APF. Latent and sensible heat fluxes are on average 8W/m2 and 10W/m2 greater over the eddy than directly east of this feature. It is estimated that the eddy lost an average of 5W/m2 of latent heat and 5W/m2 of sensible heat over a 1-year period, an amount capable of melting approximately 0.92m of sea ice. In addition, using an eddy tracking algorithm a total of 28 eddies are identified propagating southwards, 25 of which are anti-cyclonic in rotation. Based on the new Argo float data, combined with AVISO and NCEP/NCAR datasets, these results suggest that the southward passage of warm-core eddies act as vehicles transporting heat, salt and biota southwards across the ACC and into the eastern boundary of the Weddell gyre.

Observation of South Atlantic subtropical mode waters with Argo profiling float data

South Atlantic subtropical mode water (SASTMW) is detected using temperature and salinity profiles obtained by Argo floats. Marked by low potential vorticity within its extent, mode waters are identified by homogeneous temperature and salinity values, both horizontally and vertically. Their presence is evident in three regions: the Brazil Current recirculation gyre on the western side of the basin, the eastern side of the basin, and along the southern edge of the gyre. Formation occurs between winter and mid-spring in the regions of cumulative cooling of the ocean. We showed that Argo profilers do not preferentially sampled eddies. Yet, from the profiles that found SASTMW inside an eddy, 80% are anticyclonic. Furthermore, the mode water layer inside anticyclonic eddies is on average thicker than inside cyclonic eddies or anywhere else. We investigate the correlation between the presence of mode water with the eddy kinetic energy (EKE). The cross spectrum shows that the EKE and the layer thickness are out of phase in the annual period band. We addressed the role of negative surface heat fluxes during the SASTMW period of formation. Nearly all profiles that indicated mode water formation occurred at the time and within the region where the cumulative heat flux was negative.

The Observed North Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation: Its Meridional Coherence and Ocean Bottom Pressure

Abstract Analyses of meridional transport time series from the Rapid Climate Change–Meridional Overturning Circulation (RAPID MOC) array at 26°N and from Argo float and altimetry data at 41°N reveal that, at semiannual and longer time scales, the contribution from the western boundary dominates the variability of the North Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (MOC), defined as the transport in the upper 1000 m of the ocean. Because the variability of the western boundary contribution is associated with a geostrophic overturning, it is reflected in independent estimates of transports from gradient of ocean bottom pressure (OBP) relative to and below 1000 m on the continental slope of the western boundary at three nominal latitudes (26°, 39°, and 42.5°N). Time series of western meridional transports relative to and below 1000 m derived from the OBP gradient, or equivalently derived from the transport shear profile, exhibit approximately the same phase relationship between 26° and 39°–42.5°N as the western contribution to the geostrophic MOC time series do: the western geostrophic MOC at 41°N precedes the MOC at 26°N by approximately a quarter of an annual cycle, resulting in a zero correlation at this time scale. This study therefore demonstrates how OBP gradients on basin boundaries can be used to monitor the MOC and its meridional coherence.

Float-Derived Isopycnal Diffusivities in the DIMES Experiment

AbstractAs part of the Diapycnal and Isopycnal Mixing Experiment in the Southern Ocean (DIMES), 210 subsurface floats were deployed west of the Drake Passage on two targeted density surfaces. Absolute (single particle) diffusivities are calculated for the floats. The focus is on the meridional component, which is less affected by the mean shear. The diffusivities are estimated in several ways, including a novel method based on the probability density function of the meridional displacements. This allows the determination of the range of possible lateral diffusivities, as well as the period over which the spreading can be said to be diffusive. The method is applied to the float data and to synthetic trajectories generated with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology General Circulation Model (MITgcm). Because of ballasting problems, many of the floats did not remain on their targeted density surface. However, the float temperature records suggest that most occupied a small range of densities, so the floats were grouped together for the analysis. The latter focuses on a subset of 109 of the floats, launched near 105°W. The different methods yield a consistent estimate for the diffusivity of 800 ± 200 m2 s−1. The same calculations were made with model particles deployed on 20 different density surfaces and the result for the particles deployed on the neutral density surface γ = 27.7 surface was the same within the errors. The model was then used to map the variation of the diffusivity in the vertical, near the core of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC). The results suggest mixing is intensified at middepths, between 1500 and 2000 m, consistent with several previous studies.

Geostrophic Circulation in the Tropical North Pacific Ocean Based on Argo Profiles

Abstract Absolute geostrophic currents in the North Pacific Ocean are calculated from the newly gridded Argo profiling float data using the P-vector method for the period of 2004–11. The zonal geostrophic currents based on the Argo profile data are found to be stronger than those based on the traditional World Ocean Atlas 2009 (WOA09) data. A westward mean geostrophic flow underneath the North Equatorial Countercurrent is identified using the Argo data, which is evidenced by sporadic direct current measurements and geostrophic calculations in history. This current originates east of the date line and transports more than 4 × 106 m3 s−1 of water westward in the subsurface northwestern tropical Pacific Ocean. The authors name this current the North Equatorial Subsurface Current. The transport in the geostrophic currents is compared with the Sverdrup theory and found to differ significantly in several locations. Analyses have shown that errors of wind stress estimation cannot account for all of the differences. The largest differences are found in the area immediately north and south of the bifurcation latitude of the North Equatorial Current west of the date line and in the recirculation area of the Kuroshio and its extension, where nonlinear activities are vigorous. It is, therefore, suggested that the linear dynamics of the Sverdrup theory is deficient in explaining the geostrophic transport of the tropical northwestern Pacific Ocean.

Investigating different bio-responses of the upper ocean to Typhoon Haitang using Argo and satellite data

The responses of the upper ocean to Typhoon Haitang in July 2005 are investigated using Argo float and multiplatform satellite data. The results show decreasing sea surface temperature (SST), a deepening of the mixed layer depth (MLD), and enhanced Chlorophyll-a (Chl-a) concentration. Two extreme cool regions are identified. While the magnitude of SST cooling in the two regions is similar, the biological response (Chl-a enhancement) differs. To facilitate comparisons, the region to the northeast of Taiwan is defined as region A and the region east of Taiwan as region B. Ekman pumping and the intrusion of the Kuroshio play an important role in the enhancement of Chl-a in region A. Cold eddies provide the material source for the formation of the cold center in region B, where mixing is dominant. Because of the relatively high translation speed (5 m/s) in region B, Ekman pumping has little influence on the cooling and Chl-a enhancement processes. Moreover, the MLD is shallower than the nutricline, which means that mixing does not result in a marked increase in nutrients in the euphotic layer (where the nutrient concentration is uniformly depleted). Sea temperatures, in contrast, gradually decrease with depth below the bottom of the mixed layer. In contrast to region A, region B showed no significant enhancement of Chl-a but strong SST cooling.

Modified shelf water on the continental slope north of Mac Robertson Land, East Antarctica

AbstractWe report on under‐ice profiling float observations of cold, dense, and oxygenated bottom layers on the continental slope of Mac Robertson Land (60°–72°E) in East Antarctica. This bottom layer water mass, with potential temperature in the range −1.8°C &lt; θ &lt; −0.4°C, is identified as modified shelf water. It is a downslope variety of dense water formed on the Antarctic continental shelf in winter and plays an important role in ventilating the deep Southern Ocean. The seasonal evolution of its thickness and density follows the sea ice cycle of growth and decay, reaching a maximum in October–November. The characteristics and location of this modified shelf water are similar to Cape Darnley Bottom Water, thus suggesting the same primary source in the Cape Darnley polynya region. These float data support recent results that the continental shelf along Mac Robertson Land is a significant source of dense waters in East Antarctica.

The Ocean Temperature Reconstruction of Center Tropical Cyclone Based on Argo

There is a correlation between sea surface temperature of the upper boundary waters and the intensity of typhoon. This paper analyzes the use of Argo float data and using inverse distance weighted interpolation method to calculate its internal regional sea surface temperature, when typhoon and other data were compared and error analysis. The results showed that: the method is reliable. When you select a point closer distance calculation and spatial distribution of Argo floats as closely as possible, the weight coefficients taken 2, known buoy number is 4-6, the relative error of calculated is less than 0.4%, RMSE error is less than 1.2 in the 0-600m depth layer

Formation and Subduction of North Pacific Tropical Water and Their Interannual Variability

Abstract Formation and subduction of the North Pacific Tropical Water (NPTW), its interannual variability, and its associated mechanisms were investigated by using gridded Argo-profiling float data and various surface flux data in 2003–11. The NPTW has two formation sites in the center of the North Pacific subtropical gyre, corresponding to two regional sea surface salinity maxima. Mixed layer salinity variations in these two NPTW formation sites were found to be significantly different. While seasonal variation was prominent in the eastern formation site, interannual variation was dominant in the western site. The mixed layer salinity variation in the eastern site was controlled mainly by evaporation, precipitation, and entrainment of fresher water below the mixed layer and was closely related to the seasonal variation of the mixed layer depth. In the western site, the effect of entrainment is small due to a small vertical difference in salinity across the mixed layer base, and excess evaporation over precipitation that tended to be balanced by eddy diffusion, whose strength varied interannually in association with the Pacific decadal oscillation. After subduction, denser NPTW that formed in the eastern site dissipated quickly, while the lighter one that formed in the western site was advected westward as far as the Philippine Sea, transmitting the interannual variation of salinity away from its formation region.

Variations of heat transport in the northwestern Pacific marginal seas inferred from high-resolution reanalysis

High-resolution reanalysis of heat transport in the northwestern Pacific marginal seas was conducted for the period January 1980–December 2009 using ensemble Kalman filter. An ocean circulation model with a grid of 0.1×0.1° horizontal resolution and 20 vertical levels was used. Atmospheric forcing data from daily European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts were used in the ocean model. The assimilated data for the reanalysis were based on available observations of hydrographic profiles, including field surveys and Argo float and satellite-observed sea-surface temperature data. This study focused on mean and temporal variations in oceanic heat transport within the major straits among the marginal seas over 30years. The mean heat transport in the Korea/Tsushima Strait and onshore transport across the shelf break in the East China Sea (ECS), Taiwan Strait, Tsugaru Strait, and Soya Strait were 182, 123, 82, 100, and 34×1012W, respectively. The long-term trends in heat transport through the Korea/Tsushima Strait and Tsugaru Strait and onshore transport across the shelf break of the ECS were increasing, whereas the trend in heat transport through the Taiwan Strait was decreasing. There was little long-term change in heat transport in the Soya Strait. These long-term changes in heat transport through the Korea/Tsushima Strait, across the shelf of the ECS, and through the Taiwan Strait may be related to increased northeasterly wind stress in the ECS, which drives Ekman transport onto the shelf across the shelf break.

A climatology-based quality control procedure for profiling float oxygen data

[1] Over 450 Argo profiling floats equipped with oxygen sensors have been deployed, but no quality control (QC) protocols have been adopted by the oceanographic community for use by Argo data centers. As a consequence, the growing float oxygen data set as a whole is not readily utilized for many types of biogeochemical studies. Here we present a simple procedure that can be used to correct first-order errors (offset and drift) in profiling float oxygen data by comparing float data to a monthly climatology (World Ocean Atlas 2009). Float specific correction terms for the entire array were calculated. This QC procedure was evaluated by (1) comparing the climatology-derived correction coefficients to those derived from discrete samples for 14 floats and (2) comparing correction coefficients for seven floats that had been calibrated twice prior to deployment (once in the factory and once in-house), with the second calibration ostensibly more accurate than the first. The corrections presented here constrain most float oxygen measurements to better than 3% at the surface.

Variability of the Heat and Salt Budget in the Subtropical Southeastern Pacific Mixed Layer between 2004 and 2010: Spice Injection Mechanism

Abstract The mixed layer heat and salt budget in the southeastern subtropical Pacific are estimated using 7 years (2004–10) of Argo-profiling float data, surface fluxes, precipitation, surface velocity data, and wind observations and reanalysis. In this region, the mixed layer heat budget is characterized by a strong annual cycle mainly modulated by the shortwave radiation annual cycle. During the austral fall and winter, the shortwave radiation input minimum is overwhelmed by the heat loss mainly because of the latent heat flux. The mixed layer salt budget also presents a strong annual cycle with a minimum of salt content during the late austral winter. In contrast with the heat budget, the salt budget is mainly driven by the unresolved terms computed as the residual of the budget. Among these missing terms, the most likely candidate is the vertical turbulent mixing as a result of convection caused by the heat surface buoyancy loss and the destabilizing vertical gradient of salinity at the base of the mixed layer. This downward flux of salt at the base of the mixed layer could explain the annual spiciness injection and interannual spiciness variability in the permanent thermocline in the southeastern Pacific.

Universal structure of mesoscale eddies in the ocean

Mesoscale eddies dominate oceanic kinetic energy at sub‐initial frequencies. Their three‐dimensional structure has, however, remained obscure, hindering better understanding of eddy dynamics. Here by applying the composite analysis of satellite altimetry and Argo float data to the globe, we show that despite remarkable regional differences in amplitude, extent and polarity, etc., mesoscale eddies have a universal structure in normalized stretched coordinates. Horizontally, the associated pressure anomaly is well described by a function of the normalized radial distance from the eddy center R(rn)=(1−rn2/2)· exp(−rn2/2), whereas vertically it is sinusoidal in a stretched coordinate , where N and f are the buoyancy frequency and the Coriolis parameter.

Water Mass Transformations in the Southern Ocean Diagnosed from Observations: Contrasting Effects of Air–Sea Fluxes and Diapycnal Mixing

Abstract Transformation and formation rates of water masses in the Southern Ocean are estimated in a neutral-surface framework using air–sea fluxes of heat and freshwater together with in situ estimates of diapycnal mixing. The air–sea fluxes are taken from two different climatologies and a reanalysis dataset, while the diapycnal mixing is estimated from a mixing parameterization applied to five years of Argo float data. Air–sea fluxes lead to a large transformation directed toward lighter waters, typically from −45 to −63 Sv (1 Sv ≡ 106 m3 s−1) centered at γ = 27.2, while interior diapycnal mixing leads to two weaker peaks in transformation, directed toward denser waters, 8 Sv centered at γ = 27.8, and directed toward lighter waters, −16 Sv centered at γ = 28.3. Hence, air–sea fluxes and interior diapycnal mixing are important in transforming different water masses within the Southern Ocean. The transformation of dense to lighter waters by diapycnal mixing within the Southern Ocean is slightly larger, though comparable in magnitude, to the transformation of lighter to dense waters by air–sea fluxes in the North Atlantic. However, there are significant uncertainties in the authors' estimates with errors of at least ±5 W m−2 in air–sea fluxes, a factor 4 uncertainty in diapycnal mixing and limited coverage of air–sea fluxes in the high latitudes and Argo data in the Pacific. These water mass transformations partly relate to the circulation in density space: air–sea fluxes provide a general lightening along the core of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current and diapycnal diffusivity is enhanced at middepths along the current.

Seasonal and inter-annual variability of the sea surface temperature and mixed layer depth in the southern Bay of Bengal

Argo float data supplemented with satellite measurements was used to study the seasonal and inter-annual variation in wind speed, sea surface temperature (SST) and mixed layer depth (MLD) of the southern Bay of Bengal from 2003 through 2010. Due to persistence of wind, clear sky and high insolation an increase in SST by about 2°C is evident during summer months (March-May) and is followed by shallowed MLD with a minimum depth of 9.3 m during summer 2004. MLD reached the maximum depth during monsoon season (November-December) and often extends to post monsoon (February) owing to strong monsoon wind, cloudy sky and SST plummeted by 3°C. During the inter-monsoon period (August-October) the MLD shallowed and maintained a depth of 20–30 m all through the study period. High wind accompanied with moderate temperature (SST) due to the south west monsoon leads to decreased MLD with an average depth of 44 m in July. Analysis of wind speed, SST and MLD suggested that out of various meteorological parameters wind speed and induced mixing are highly influential in MLD formation. Reduced occurrence and amplitude of MLD deepening noticed in recent years can be attributed to the evident climate change scenarios. Large scale upper ocean variability observed from the present study has innumerable antagonistic consequences on the marine ecosystem which is evident from various events of seagrass burns and coral bleaching which have occurred in the last decade.

Annual cycles of ecological disturbance and recovery underlying the subarctic Atlantic spring plankton bloom

Satellite measurements allow global assessments of phytoplankton concentrations and, from observed temporal changes in biomass, direct access to net biomass accumulation rates (r). For the subarctic Atlantic basin, analysis of annual cycles in r reveals that initiation of the annual blooming phase does not occur in spring after stratification surpasses a critical threshold but rather occurs in early winter when growth conditions for phytoplankton are deteriorating. This finding has been confirmed with in situ profiling float data. The objective of the current study was to test whether satellite‐based annual cycles in r are reproduced by the Biogeochemical Element Cycling–Community Climate System Model and, if so, to use the additional ecosystem properties resolved by the model to better understand factors controlling phytoplankton blooms. We find that the model gives a similar early onset time for the blooming phase, that this initiation is largely due to the physical disruption of phytoplankton‐grazer interactions during mixed layer deepening, and that parallel increases in phytoplankton‐specific division and loss rates during spring maintain the subtle disruption in food web equilibrium that ultimately yields the spring bloom climax. The link between winter mixing and bloom dynamics is illustrated by contrasting annual plankton cycles between regions with deeper and shallower mixing. We show that maximum water column inventories of phytoplankton vary in proportion to maximum winter mixing depth, implying that future reductions in winter mixing may dampen plankton cycles in the subarctic Atlantic. We propose that ecosystem disturbance‐recovery sequences are a unifying property of global ocean plankton blooms.

Seasonal and inter-annual variability of the sea surface temperature and mixed layer depth in the southern Bay of Bengal

Argo float data supplemented with satellite measurements was used to study the seasonal and inter-annual variation in wind speed, sea surface temperature (SST) and mixed layer depth (MLD) of the southern Bay of Bengal from 2003 through 2010. Due to persistence of wind, clear sky and high insolation an increase in SST by about 2°C is evident during summer months (March-May) and is followed by shallowed MLD with a minimum depth of 9.3 m during summer 2004. MLD reached the maximum depth during monsoon season (November-December) and often extends to post monsoon (February) owing to strong monsoon wind, cloudy sky and SST plummeted by 3°C. During the inter-monsoon period (August-October) the MLD shallowed and maintained a depth of 20–30 m all through the study period. High wind accompanied with moderate temperature (SST) due to the south west monsoon leads to decreased MLD with an average depth of 44 m in July. Analysis of wind speed, SST and MLD suggested that out of various meteorological parameters wind speed and induced mixing are highly influential in MLD formation. Reduced occurrence and amplitude of MLD deepening noticed in recent years can be attributed to the evident climate change scenarios. Large scale upper ocean variability observed from the present study has innumerable antagonistic consequences on the marine ecosystem which is evident from various events of seagrass burns and coral bleaching which have occurred in the last decade.