Sediment transport processes at the head of Halibut Canyon, Eastern Canada margin: An interplay between internal tides and dense shelf water cascading

European Geosciences Union General Assembly 2013, 7-12 April, Vienna, Austria.-- 1 pageTo investigate the processes by which sediment is transported through a submarine canyon incised in a glaciated margin, the bottom boundary layer quadrapod RALPH was deployed at 276-m depth in the West Halibut Canyon (off Newfoundland) during winter 2008–2009. Two main sediment transport processes were identified throughout the deployment. Firstly, periodic increases of near-bottom suspended-sediment concentrations (SSC) were recorded associated with the up-canyon propagation of the semidiurnal internal tidal bore along the canyon axis, carrying fine sediment particles resuspended from deeper canyon regions. The recorded SSC peaks, lasting less than 1 h, were observed sporadically and were linked to bottom intensified up-canyon flows (~ 40 cm s− 1) concomitant with sharp drops in temperature. Secondly, sediment transport was also observed during events of intensified down-canyon current velocities that occurred during periods of sustained heat loss from surface waters, but were not associated with large storm waves. High-resolution velocity profiles throughout the water column during these events revealed that the highest current speeds (~ 1 m s− 1) were centered several meters above the sea floor and corresponded to the region of maximum velocities of a gravity flow. Such flows had associated low SSC and cold water temperatures and are interpreted as dense shelf water cascading events channelized along the canyon axis. Sediment transport during these events was largely restricted to bedload and saltation, producing winnowing of sands and fine sediments around larger gravel particles. Analysis of historical hydrographic data suggests that such gravity flows are not related to the formation of coastal dense waters advected towards the outer shelf that reached the canyon head. Rather, the dense shelf waters appear to be generated around the outer shelf, where convection during winter is able to reach the sea floor and generate a pool of near-bottom dense water that cascades into the canyon during one or two tidal cycles. A similar transport mechanism is likely to occur in other submarine canyons along the eastern Canadian margin, as well in other canyoned margins where winter convection can reach the shelf-edgePeer Reviewe

Overturning in the Subpolar North Atlantic Program: A New International Ocean Observing System

For decades oceanographers have understood the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC) to be primarily driven by changes in the production of deep-water formation in the subpolar and subarctic North Atlantic. Indeed, current Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) projections of an AMOC slowdown in the twenty-first century based on climate models are attributed to the inhibition of deep convection in the North Atlantic. However, observational evidence for this linkage has been elusive: there has been no clear demonstration of AMOC variability in response to changes in deep-water formation. The motivation for understanding this linkage is compelling, since the overturning circulation has been shown to sequester heat and anthropogenic carbon in the deep ocean. Furthermore, AMOC variability is expected to impact this sequestration as well as have consequences for regional and global climates through its effect on the poleward transport of warm water. Motivated by the need for a mechanistic understanding of the AMOC, an international community has assembled an observing system, Overturning in the Subpolar North Atlantic Program (OSNAP), to provide a continuous record of the transbasin fluxes of heat, mass, and freshwater, and to link that record to convective activity and water mass transformation at high latitudes. OSNAP, in conjunction with the Rapid Climate Change–Meridional Overturning Circulation and Heatflux Array (RAPID–MOCHA) at 26°N and other observational elements, will provide a comprehensive measure of the three-dimensional AMOC and an understanding of what drives its variability. The OSNAP observing system was fully deployed in the summer of 2014, and the first OSNAP data products are expected in the fall of 2017

Layered mixing on the New England Shelf in summer

The article of record as published may be located at http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/2014JC009947The layered structure of stratification and mixing on the New England Shelf (NES) in summer is examined by analyzing a comprehensive set of observations of hydrography, currents and turbulence. A clear distinction in mixing characteristics between the midcolumn water (consisting of subsurface stratification, middepth weak stratification and lower-layer stratification) and a well-mixed bottom boundary layer (BBL) is revealed. The combination of subtidal Ekman onshore bottom transport and cross-shore density gradient created a lower-layer stratification that inhibited the upward extension of the BBL turbulence. The BBL mixing was related to strong shear generated by bottom stress, and the magnitude and periodic variation of BBL mixing was determined by both the tidal and subtidal flows. Mixing in the midcolumn water occurred under stably stratified conditions and showed correspondence with the occurrence of near-inertial and semidiurnal internal waves. Positive correlations between buoyancy frequency squared (N2) and shear variance (S2), S2 and dissipation rate (e), N2 and e are established in the midcolumn, but not in the BBL. The midcolumn e was reasonably described by a slightly modified MacKinnon-Gregg (MG) model.The field component of this program was jointly supported by the US Office of Naval Research (grants N00014-95-1-1030, N00014-95-1-0373, and N00014-96-1- 0953) and Fisheries and Oceans of Canada

Sediment transport processes at the head of Halibut Canyon, eastern Canada margin: An interplay between internal tides and dense shelf-water cascading

15 pages, 11 figures, 1 tableTo investigate the processes by which sediment is transported through a submarine canyon incised in a glaciated margin, the bottom boundary layer quadrapod RALPH was deployed at 276-m depth in the West Halibut Canyon (off Newfoundland) during winter 2008–2009. Two main sediment transport processes were identified throughout the deployment. Firstly, periodic increases of near-bottom suspended-sediment concentrations (SSC) were recorded associated with the up-canyon propagation of the semidiurnal internal tidal bore along the canyon axis, carrying fine sediment particles resuspended from deeper canyon regions. The recorded SSC peaks, lasting less than 1 h, were observed sporadically and were linked to bottom intensified up-canyon flows (~ 40 cm s− 1) concomitant with sharp drops in temperature. Secondly, sediment transport was also observed during events of intensified down-canyon current velocities that occurred during periods of sustained heat loss from surface waters, but were not associated with large storm waves. High-resolution velocity profiles throughout the water column during these events revealed that the highest current speeds (~ 1 m s− 1) were centered several meters above the sea floor and corresponded to the region of maximum velocities of a gravity flow. Such flows had associated low SSC and cold water temperatures and are interpreted as dense shelf water cascading events channelized along the canyon axis. Sediment transport during these events was largely restricted to bedload and saltation, producing winnowing of sands and fine sediments around larger gravel particles. Analysis of historical hydrographic data suggests that such gravity flows are not related to the formation of coastal dense waters advected towards the outer shelf that reached the canyon head. Rather, the dense shelf waters appear to be generated around the outer shelf, where convection during winter is able to reach the sea floor and generate a pool of near-bottom dense water that cascades into the canyon during one or two tidal cycles. A similar transport mechanism is likely to occur in other submarine canyons along the eastern Canadian margin, as well in other canyoned margins where winter convection can reach the shelf-edgeThis field experiment was funded by the Earth Science Sector Offshore Geoscience Program, and the Program of Energy Research and Development (PERD) through the Nearbed Wave and Current Forcing and Sediment Dynamics project. P. Puig also benefited from a travel grant from the Spanish Ministry of Education (Ref. PR2011-0538) to conduct this study at Bedford Institute of Oceanography. T. Milligan is specially acknowledged for facilitating access to the analyzed dataset. E. King provided consultation and background geological information for the selection of the deployment site. The authors would like to thank A. Robertson, M. Scotney and R. Boyce for their assistance in preparation, deployment and recovery of the instrumentation. This is Earth Sciences Sector contribution number 20120402Peer reviewe