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Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras (INVEMAR), Boletín de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras, SuplEsp(50), p. 41-58, 2021

DOI: 10.25268/bimc.invemar.2021.50.suplesp.934

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Submeso-scale Mixing Features in the Gerlache Strait Bays (Antarctica)

Journal article published in 2021 by Jhon Mojica ORCID, David Holland ORCID, Julio Monroy ORCID
This paper is made freely available by the publisher.
This paper is made freely available by the publisher.

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Data provided by SHERPA/RoMEO

Abstract

Measurements of turbulence in the ocean are sparse, especially in environments such as Antarctica. Here we map the spatial distribution of diapycnal diffusivities and the water column characteristics across the three main bays in the Gerlache Strait on the western side of the Antarctic Peninsula. The measurements were recorded during the Fifth Colombian Antarctic Expedition, 2018-2019, using a Vertical Microstructure Profiler in free fall for the first 400 m depth, to record fluctuations of vertical shear at dissipation scales (10-3 – 103m). Diapycnal diffusivities are higher by 1-2 orders of magnitude in the Gerlache mainstream compared with the interior bays, with values from O (log10kρ = -3 m2 s -1) to O (log10kρ = -5 m2s -1) respectively over the upper 400 m. The highest mixing values were recorded in the southern section of Gerlache Strait (Flandes Bay) compared to the northern one (Charlotte Bay), indicating better wellmixed water in the south. Observed Hot Spots of higher turbulence levels may be associated with the interaction of the entrance of the Upper Circumpolar Depth Water, the Antarctic Surface Water, and the Weddell Sea Deep Waters with resident waters and topography.