Regional circulation patterns of Mediterranean Outflow Water near the Iberian and African continental slopes

The Mediterranean Outflow Water (MOW) is a dense water mass originated in the Strait of Gibraltar. Downstream of the Gulf of Cádiz, the MOW forms a reservoir region west of the Iberian continental slopes at a buoyant depth of approximately 1000&thinsp;m. This region plays a key role as the main centre where the MOW is mixed and distributed into the North Atlantic. The seafloor in this area is characterized by the presence of a complex bathymetry with three abyssal plains separated by mountain chains. Although the topographic features do not reach the surface, they influence ocean flows at intermediate and deep ocean layers, conditioning the distribution and circulation of MOW. The Copernicus Marine Environmental Monitoring Service (CMEMS) Iberian–Biscay–Ireland (IBI) ocean reanalysis is used to provide a detailed view of the circulation and mixing processes of MOW near the Iberian and African continental slopes. This work emphasizes the relevance of the complex bathymetric features defining the circulation processes of MOW in this region. The high resolution of the IBI reanalysis allows us to make a description of the mesoscale features forced by the topography. The temperature, salinity, velocity, transport, and vorticity fields are analysed to understand the circulation patterns of MOW. The high-resolution circulation patterns reveal that Horseshoe Basin and the continental slope near Cape Ghir (a.k.a. Cap Rhir or Cabo de Aguer) are key areas controlling the mixing processes of MOW with the surrounding water masses, mainly North Atlantic Central Water (NACW) and Antarctic Intermediate Water (AAIW). The water mass variability is also analysed by means of composite analysis. Results indicate the existence of a variability in the MOW tongue which retracts and expands westwards in opposition to the movement of the underlying North Atlantic Deep Water.</p

Copernicus Marine Service Ocean State Report

This is the final version. Available from Taylor & Francis via the DOI in this record

Copernicus Marine Service ocean state report, issue 4

This is the final version. Available from Taylor & Francis via the DOI in this record. FCT/MCTE

LE PORTEFEUILLE D'INDICATEURS DE SURVEILLANCE DES OCÉANS DU CMEMS POUR LES EAUX DE L'IBERIAN BISCAY IRISH (IBI) : VARIABLES ESSENTIELLES SURVEILLÉES DE MANIÈRE OPÉRATIONNELLE ET PERSPECTIVES D'AVENIR

International audienceThe CMEMS Iberian-Biscay-Ireland Monitoring and Forecasting Center (IBI-MFC) currently provides a variety of OMIs oriented to monitor the main oceanographic processes taking place in this regional domain. Among the OMIs currently delivered by IBI-MFC, it is worth mentioning (i) the coastal upwelling index focused on the African-Iberian coast, (ii) the indicator of Mediterranean Outflow Water variability and (iii) diverse indicators of extreme events of temperature or wave height. Currently, IBIMFC efforts are concentrated on designing bloom phenology indicators derived from chlorophyll anomalies detected within IBI regional seas.The present work aims to provide a general overview of the IBI-MFC OMIs operationally provided nowadays and further insight into the routine OMI update strategy, as well as main conclusions from them. Finally, ongoing developments of novel upcoming OMIs for the IBI region are also introduced.Le centre de surveillance et de prévision CMEMS Iberian-Biscay-Ireland (IBI-MFC) fournit actuellement une variété d'OMIs orientés vers la surveillance des principaux processus océanographiques ayant lieu dans ce domaine régional. Parmi les OMIs actuellement fournis par l'IBI-MFC, il convient de mentionner (i) l'indice d'upwelling côtier centré sur la côte africaine-ibérique, (ii) l'indicateur de variabilité des eaux de sortie de la Méditerranée et (iii) divers indicateurs d'événements extrêmes de température ou de hauteur de vague. Actuellement, les efforts de l'IBIMFC se concentrent sur la conception d'indicateurs de la phénologie des fleurs d'eau dérivés des anomalies de chlorophylle détectées dans les mers régionales de l'IBI.Le présent travail vise à fournir une vue d'ensemble des OMIs IBI-MFC fournis de manière opérationnelle aujourd'hui et un aperçu de la stratégie de mise à jour de routine des OMIs, ainsi que les principales conclusions qui en découlent. Enfin, les développements en cours des nouveaux OMIs à venir pour la région IBI sont également présentés

Copernicus Marine Service Ocean State Report, Issue 3 Introduction

International audienc

Copernicus marine service ocean state report

The oceans regulate our weather and climate from global to regional scales. They absorb over 90% of accumulated heat in the climate system (IPCC Citation2013) and over a quarter of the anthropogenic carbon dioxide (Le Quéré et al. Citation2016). They provide nearly half of the world’s oxygen. Most of our rain and drinking water is ultimately regulated by the sea. The oceans provide food and energy and are an important source of the planet's biodiversity and ecosystem services. They are vital conduits for trade and transportation and many economic activities depend on them (OECD Citation2016). Our oceans are, however, under threat due to climate change and other human induced activities and it is vital to develop much better, sustainable and science-based reporting and management approaches (UN Citation2017). Better management of our oceans requires long-term, continuous and state-of-the art monitoring of the oceans from physics to ecosystems and global to local scales. The Copernicus Marine Environment Monitoring Service (CMEMS) has been set up to address these challenges at European level. Mercator Ocean was tasked in 2014 by the European Union under a delegation agreement to implement the operational phase of the service from 2015 to 2021 (CMEMS Citation2014). The CMEMS now provides regular and systematic reference information on the physical state, variability and dynamics of the ocean, ice and marine ecosystems for the global ocean and the European regional seas (Figure 0.1; CMEMS Citation2016). This capacity encompasses the description of the current situation (analysis), the prediction of the situation 10 days ahead (forecast), and the provision of consistent retrospective data records for recent years (reprocessing and reanalysis). CMEMS provides a sustainable response to European user needs in four areas of benefits: (i) maritime safety, (ii) marine resources, (iii) coastal and marine environment and (iv) weather, seasonal forecast and climate. Figure 0.1. CMEMS geographical areas on the map are for: 1 – Global Ocean; 2 – Arctic Ocean from 62°N to North Pole; 3 – Baltic Sea, which includes the whole Baltic Sea including Kattegat at 57.5°N from 10.5°E to 12.0°E; 4 – European North-West Shelf Sea, which includes part of the North East Atlantic Ocean from 48°N to 62°N and from 20°W to 13°E. The border with the Baltic Sea is situated in the Kattegat Strait at 57.5°N from 10.5°E.to 12.0°E; 5 – Iberia-Biscay-Ireland Regional Seas, which includes part of the North East Atlantic Ocean from 26 to 48°N and 20°W to the coast. The border with the Mediterranean Sea is situated in the Gibraltar Strait at 5.61°W; 6 – Mediterranean Sea, which includes the whole Mediterranean Sea until the Gibraltar Strait at 5.61°W and the Dardanelles Strait; 7 – Black Sea, which includes the whole Black Sea until the Bosporus Strait