A Large-Scale Seasonal Modeling Study of the California Current System |
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| Authors: | Mary L Batteen Nicholas J Cipriano James T Monroe |
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| Institution: | (1) Department of Oceanography, Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, CA 93943, USA |
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| Abstract: | A high-resolution, multi-level, primitive equation ocean model has been used to investigate the combined role of seasonal
wind forcing, seasonal thermohaline gradients, and coastline irregularities on the formation of currents, meanders, eddies,
and filaments in the entire California Current System (CCS) region, from Baja to the Washington-Canada border. Additional
objectives are to further characterize the meandering jet south of Cape Blanco and the seasonal variability off Baja. Model
results show the following: All of the major currents of the CCS (i.e., the California Current, the California Undercurrent,
the Davidson Current, the Southern California Countercurrent, and the Southern California Eddy) as well as filaments, meanders
and eddies are generated. The results are consistent with the generation of eddies from instabilities of the southward current
and northward undercurrent via barotropic and baroclinic instability processes. The meandering southward jet, which divides
coastally-influenced water from water of offshore origin, is a continuous feature in the CCS, and covers an alongshore distance
of over 2000 km from south of Cape Blanco to Baja. Off Baja, the southward jet strengthens (weakens) during spring and summer
(fall and winter). The area off southern Baja is a highly dynamic environment for meanders, filaments, and eddies, while the
region off Point Eugenia, which represents the largest coastline perturbation along the Baja peninsula, is shown to be a persistent
cyclonic eddy generation region.
This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date. |
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| Keywords: | California Current eastern boundary currents numerical modeling ocean modeling coastal circulation mesoscale eddies |
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