Mean circulation of the Coral Sea

Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans

Volumn 118, Issue 12, 2013, Pages 6385-6410

  Kessler, William S ^a   Cravatte, Sophie ^b,c  

^a NOAA EARTH SYSTEM RESEARCH LABORATORY   (United States)

^b INSTITUT DE RECHERCHE POUR LE DÉVELOPPEMENT   (New Caledonia)

^c UNIVERSITÉ DE TOULOUSE   (France)

Author keywords

Argo floats; Coral Sea; Island Rule; Solomon Sea; South Equatorial Current; western boundary currents

Indexed keywords

OCEAN CURRENTS; VELOCITY;

ARGO FLOAT; CORAL SEA; ISLAND RULE; SOLOMON SEA; SOUTH EQUATORIAL CURRENTS; WESTERN BOUNDARY CURRENTS;

HYDROGRAPHIC SURVEYS;

ARGO; CIRCULATION MODELING; DATA SET; GEOSTROPHIC FLOW; MARINE ATMOSPHERE; OCEANIC CIRCULATION; THERMOCLINE; UNDERCURRENT; WESTERN BOUNDARY CURRENT;

AUSTRALIA; CORAL SEA; NEW CALEDONIA [MELANESIA]; PACIFIC OCEAN; SOLOMON ISLANDS [(ISG) MELANESIA];

ANTHOZOA;

EID: 84892919875     PISSN: None     EISSN: 21699291     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1002/2013JC009117     Document Type: Article

References (85)

1. Andrews, J. C., and, S. Clegg, (1989), Coral Sea circulation and transport deduced from modal information models, Deep Sea Res., Part A, 36, 957-974.
2. Bryan, K., (1963), A numerical investigation of a nonlinear model of a wind-driven ocean, J. Atmos. Sci., 20, 594-606.
3. Burrage, D. M., (1993), Coral Sea currents, Corella, J. Aust. Bird Stud. Assoc., 17, 135-145.
4. Butt, J., and, E. Lindstrom, (1994), Currents off the east coast of New Ireland, Papua New Guinea, and their relevance to regional undercurrents in the western equatorial Pacific Ocean, J. Geophys. Res., 99 (C6), 12,503-12,514.
5. Chelton, D. B., M. G. Schlax, M. H. Freilich, and, R. F. Milliff, (2004), Satellite measurements reveal persistent small-scale features in ocean winds, Science, 303, 978-983.
6. Chen, S. M., and, B. Qiu, (2004), Seasonal variability of the South Equatorial Countercurrent, J. Geophys. Res., 108, C08003, doi: 10.1029/2003JC002243.
7. Choukroun, S., P. V. Ridd, R. Brinkman, and, L. I. W. McKinna, (2010), Surface circulation in the western Coral Sea and residence times in the Great Barrier Reef, J. Geophys. Res., 115, C06013, doi: 10.1029/2009JC005761.
8. Church, J. A., (1987), The East Australian Current adjacent to the Great Barrier Reef, Aust. J. Mar. Freshwater Res., 38, 671-683.
9. Church, J. A., and, F. M. Boland, (1983), A permanent undercurrent adjacent to the Great Barrier Reef, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 13, 1746-1749.
10. CLIVAR (2012), Naming a Western boundary current from Australia to the Solomon Sea, CLIVAR Newsletter Exchanges, 58, 28.
11. Couvelard, X., P. Marchesiello, L. Gourdeau, and, J. Lefebvre, (2008), Barotropic zonal jets induced by islands in the southwest Pacific, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 38 (10), 2185-2204.
12. Cravatte, S., A. Ganachaud, Q. Duong, W. S. Kessler, G. Eldin, and, P. Dutrieux, (2011), Observed circulation in the Solomon Sea from SADCP data, Prog. Oceanogr., 88 (1-4), 116-130.
13. Cronin, M. F., (1996), Eddy-mean flow interaction in the Gulf Stream at 68°W: Part II. Eddy forcing on the time-mean flow, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 26, 2132-2151.
14. Davis, R. E., W. S. Kessler, and, J. T. Sherman, (2012), Gliders measure western boundary current transport from the South Pacific to the equator, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 42, 2001-2013.
15. De Mey, P., and, Y. Menard, (1989), Synoptic analysis and dynamical adjustment of GEOS-3 and Seasat altimeter eddy fields in the northwest Atlantic, J. Geophys. Res., 94, 6221-6231.
16. De Szoeke, R. A., (1987), On the wind-driven circulation of the South Pacific Ocean, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 17, 613-630.
17. Delcroix, T., and, C. Henin, (1991), Seasonal and interannual variations of sea surface salinity in the tropical Pacific Ocean, J. Geophys. Res., 96 (C12), 22,135-22,150.
18. Donguy, J.-R., (1994), Surface and subsurface salinity in the tropical Pacific Ocean relations with climate, Prog. Oceanogr., 34 (1), 45-78.
19. Donguy, J.-R., and, C. Henin, (1977), On the origin of surface tropical water in the Tasman and Coral Seas, Aust. J. Mar. Freshwater Res., 28, 321-332.
20. Donguy, J.-R., C. OUdot, and, F. Rougerie, (1970), Circulation superficielle et subsuperficielle en mer du Corail et à 170°E, Cah. ORSTOM, Ser. Océanogr., 8 (1), 3-20.
21. Dunn, J. R., and, K. R. Ridgway, (2002), Mapping ocean properties in regions of complex topography, Deep-Sea Res. Part 1, 49, 591-604, doi: 10.1016/S0967-0637(01)00069-3.
22. Fine, R. A., R. Lukas, F. M. Bingham, M. J. Warner, and, R. H. Gammon, (1994), The western equatorial Pacific: A water mass crossroads, J. Geophys. Res., 99 (C12), 25,063-25,080.
23. Firing, E., B. Qiu, and, W. Miao, (1999), Time-dependent Island Rule and its application to the time-varying North Hawaiian Ridge Current, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 29, 2671-2688.
24. Ganachaud, A., et al. (2007), Southwest Pacific Ocean circulation and climate experiment (SPICE)-Part II. Implementation Plan, NOAA OAR Special Report, 36 pp., Int. CLIVAR Proj. Off., CLIVAR Publ. Ser. 133, NOAA/OAR/PMEL, Seattle, Wash.
25. Ganachaud, A., L. Gourdeau, and, W. S. Kessler, (2008), Bifurcation of the subtropical South Equatorial Current against New Caledonia in December 2004 from a hydrographic inverse box model, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 38 (9), 2072-2084.
26. Gasparin, F., A. Ganachaud, and, C. Maes, (2011), A western boundary current east of New Caledonia), Observed characteristics, Deep Sea Res., Part 1 58 (9), 956-969.
27. Gasparin, F., A. Ganachaud, C. Maes, F. Marin, and, G. Eldin, (2012), Oceanic transports through the Solomon Sea: The bend of the New Guinea Coastal Undercurrent, Geophys. Res. Lett., 39, L15608, doi: 10.1029/2012GL052575.
28. Godfrey, J. S., (1989), A Sverdrup model of the depth-integrated flow for the world ocean allowing for island circulations, Geophys. Astrophys. Fluid Dyn., 45, 89-112.
29. Godfrey, J. S., and, T. J. Golding, (1981), The Sverdrup relation in the Indian Ocean, and the effect of Pacific-Indian Ocean throughflow on Indian Ocean circulation and on the East Australia Current, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 11, 771-779.
30. Godfrey, J. S., G. R. Cresswell, T. J. Golding, A. F. Pearce, and, R. Boyd, (1980), The separation of the East Australian Current, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 10, 430-440.
31. Gourdeau, L., W. S. Kessler, R. E. Davis, J. Sherman, C. Maes, and, E. Kesternare, (2008), Zonal jets entering the Coral Sea, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 38 (3), 715-725.
32. Grenier, M., S. Cravatte, B. Blanke, C. Menkes, A. Koch-Larrouy, F. Durand, A. Melet, and, C. Jeandel, (2011), From the western boundary currents to the Pacific Equatorial Undercurrent: Modeled pathways and water mass evolutions, J. Geophys. Res., 116, C12044, doi: 10.1029/2011JC007477.
33. Grenier, M., C. Jeandel, F. Lacan, D. Vance, C. Venchiarutti, A. Cros, and, S. Cravatte, (2013), From the subtropics to the central equatorial Pacific Ocean: Neodymium isotropic composition and rare earth element concentration variations, J. Geophys. Res., 118, 592-618, doi: 10.1029/2012JC008239.
34. Hill, K. L., S. R. Rintoul, K. R. Ridgway, and, P. R. Oke, (2011), Decadal changes in the South Pacific western boundary current system revealed in observations and ocean state estimates, J. Geophys. Res., 116, C01009, doi: 10.1029/2009JC005926.
35. Hristova, H. G., and, W. S. Kessler, (2012), Surface circulation in the Solomon Sea derived from Lagrangian drifter observations, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 42 (3), 448-458.
36. Huang, R. X., and, B. Qiu, (1998), The structure of the wind-driven circulation in the subtropical Pacific Ocean, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 28, 1173-1186.
37. Kessler, W. S., (1999), Interannual variability of the subsurface high salinity tongue south of the equator at 165°E, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 29 (8), 2038-2049.
38. Kessler, W. S., and, S. Cravatte, (2013), ENSO and short-term variability of the South Equatorial Current entering the Coral Sea, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 43, 956-969, doi: 10.1175/JPO-D-12-0113.1.
39. Kessler, W. S., and, L. Gourdeau, (2007), The annual cycle of circulation in the southwest subtropical Pacific, analyzed in an ocean GCM, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 37 (6), 1610-1627.
40. Lindstrom, E., R. Lukas, R. Fine, E. Firing, S. Godfrey, G. Meyers, and, M. Tsuchiya, (1987), The western equatorial Pacific ocean climate study, Nature, 330, 533-537.
41. Lindstrom, E., J. Butt, R. Lukas, and, S. Godfrey, (1990), The flow through Vitiaz Strait and St. George's Channel, Papua New Guinea, in The Physical Oceanography of Sea Straits, edited by, L. Pratt, pp. 171-189, Kluwer Acad., Dordrecht, Netherland.
42. Luyten, J., and, H. Stommel, (1986), Gyres driven by combined wind and buoyancy flux, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 16, 1551-1560.
43. Luyten, J., Pedlosky, J., and, H. Stommel, (1983), The ventilated thermocline, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 13, 292-309.
44. Maes, C., L. Gourdeau, X. Couvelard, and, A. Ganachaud, (2007), What are the origins of the Antarctic Intermediate Waters transported by the North Caledonian Jet?, Geophys. Res. Lett., 34, L21608, doi: 10.1029/2007GL031546.
45. McCreary, J. P., and, P. Lu, (1994), Interaction between the subtropical and equatorial ocean circulations: The subtropical cell, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 24, 466-497.
46. McCreary, J. P., T. Miyama, R. Furue, T. Jensen, H.-W. Kang, B. Bang, and, T. Qu, (2007), Interactions between the Indonesian throughflow and circulations in the Indian and Pacific Oceans, Prog. Oceanogr., 75, 70-114.
47. Melet, A., L. Gourdeau, W. S. Kessler, J. Verron, and, J.-M. Molines, (2010), Thermocline circulation in the Solomon Sea: A modeling study, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 40, 1302-1319.
48. Park, J. J., K. Kim, B. A. King, and, S. C. Riser, (2005), An advanced method to estimate deep currents from profiling floats, J. Atmos. Oceanic Technol., 22, 1294-1304.
49. Pedlosky, J., (1987), Geophysical Fluid Dynamics, 2nd ed, 710 pp., Springer-Verlag, New York.
50. Pedlosky, J., L. J. Pratt, M. A. Spall, and, K. R. Helfrich, (1997), Circulation around islands and ridges, J. Mar. Res., 55, 1199-1251.
51. Qiu, B., (1999), Seasonal eddy field modulation of the North Pacific Subtropical Countercurrent: TOPEX/Poseidon observations and theory, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 29 (10), 2471-2486.
52. Qiu, B., R. B. Scott, and, S. Chen, (2008), Length scales of eddy generation and nonlinear evolution of the seasonally modulated South Pacific Subtropical Countercurrent, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 38 (7), 1515-1528.
53. Qiu, B., S. Chen, and, W. S. Kessler, (2009), Source of the 70-day mesoscale eddy variability in the Coral Sea and North Fiji Basin, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 39, 404-420.
54. Qu, T., and, E. J. Lindstrom, (2002), A climatological interpretation of the circulation in the western South Pacific, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 32 (9), 2492-2508.
55. Qu, T., and, E. J. Lindstrom, (2004), Northward intrusion of Antarctic intermediate water in the western Pacific, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 34 (9), 2104-2118.
56. Qu, T., and, R. Lukas, (2003), The bifurcation of the North Equatorial Current in the Pacific, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 33, 5-18.
57. Qu, T., S. Gao, I. Fukumori, R. A. Fine, and, E. J. Lindstrom, (2008), Subduction of South Pacific waters, Geophys. Res. Lett., 35, L02610, doi: 10.1029/2007GL032605.
58. Qu, T., S. Gao, I. Fukumori, R. A. Fine, and, E. J. Lindstrom, (2009), Origin and pathway of equatorial 13°C water in the Pacific identified by a simulated passive tracer and its adjoint, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 39 (8), 1836-1853.
59. Reid, J. L., (1961), On the geostrophic flow at the surface of the Pacific Ocean with respect to the 1,000-decibar Surface, Tellus, 13 (4), 489-502.
60. Ridgway, K. R., and, J. R. Dunn, (2003), Mesoscale structure of the mean East Australian Current System and its relationship with topography, Prog. Oceanogr., 56 (2), 188-222.
61. Ridgway, K. R., and, J. S. Godfrey, (1994), Mass and heat budgets in the East Australian Current-A direct approach, J. Geophys. Res., 99 (C 2), 3231-3248.
62. Ridgway, K. R., J. R. Dunn, and, J. L. Wilkin, (2002), Ocean interpolation by four-dimensional least squares-Application to the waters around Australasia, J. Atmos. Oceanic Technol., 19 (9), 1357-1375.
63. Rochford, D. J., (1960), The intermediate depth waters of the Tasman and Coral Seas I. The 27.20 σt surface, Aust. J. Mar. Freshwater Res., 11, 127-147.
64. Roemmich, D., and, B. Cornuelle, (1990), Observing the fluctuations of gyre-scale ocean circulation: A study of the subtropical South Pacific, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 20, 1919-1934.
65. Roemmich, D., and, B. Cornuelle, (1992), The subtropical mode waters of the South Pacific Ocean, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 22, 1178-1187.
66. Roemmich, D., and, J. Gilson, (2009), The 2004-2008 mean and annual cycle of temperature, salinity and steric height in the global ocean from the Argo program, Prog. Oceanogr., 82 (2), 81-100.
67. Roemmich, D., J. Gilson, J. Willis, P. Sutton, and, K. R. Ridgway, (2005), Closing the time-varying mass and heat budgets for large ocean areas: The Tasman Box, J. Clim., 18, 2330-2343.
68. Roemmich, D., G. C. Johnson, S. Riser, R. Davis, J. Gilson, W. B. Owens, S. L. Garzoli, C. Schmid, and, M. Ignaszewski, (2009), The Argo program observing the global ocean with profiling floats, Oceanography, 22 (2), 34-43, doi: 10.5670/oceanog.2009.36.
69. Schiller, A., K. R. Ridgway, C. R. Steinberg, and, P. R. Oke, (2009), Dynamics of three anomalous SST events in the Coral Sea, Geophys. Res. Lett., 36, L06606, doi: 10.1029/2008GL036997.
70. Scully-Power, P. D., (1973), Coral Sea flow budgets during winter, Aust. J. Mar. Freshwater Res., 24, 203-215.
71. Sokolov, S., and, S. R. Rintoul, (2000), Circulation and water masses of the southwest Pacific: WOCE section P11, Papua New Guinea to Tasmania, J. Mar. Res., 58, 223-268.
72. SPICE Community (2012), Naming a western boundary current from Australia to the Solomon Sea, CLIVAR Newsletter Exchanges, 58, 17 (1), 28.
73. Stanton, B., D. Roemmich, and, M. Kosro, (2001), A shallow zonal jet south of Fiji, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 31, 3127-3130.
74. Thompson, R., and, G. Veronis, (1980), Transport calculations in the Coral and Tasman Seas, Deep Sea Res., Part A, 27, 303-323.
75. Tilburg, C. E., H. E. Hurlburt, J. J. O'Brien, and, J. F. Shriver, (2001), The dynamics of the East Australian Current system: The Tasman Front, the East Auckland Current, and the East Cape Current, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 31 (10), 2917-2943.
76. Tomczak, M., and, D. Hao, (1989), Water masses in the thermocline of the Coral Sea, Deep Sea Res., Part A, 36 (10), 1503-1514.
77. Tsuchiya, M., (1981), The origin of the Pacific equatorial 13°C water, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 11, 794-812.
78. Tsuchiya, M., R. Lukas, R. A. Fine, E. Firing, and, E. Lindstrom, (1989), Source waters of the Pacific equatorial undercurrent, Prog. Oceanogr., 23 (2), 101-147.
79. Veronis, G., (1966), Wind-driven ocean circulation-Part 2. Numerical simulations of the non-linear problem, Deep Sea Res. Oceanogr. Abstr., 13 (1), 30-35.
80. Wajsowicz, R. C., (1993), The circulation of the depth-integrated flow around an island with application to the Indonesian Throughflow, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 23, 1470-1484.
81. Webb, D., (2000), Evidence for shallow zonal jets in the South Equatorial Current region of the southwest Pacific, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 30, 706-720.
82. Wunsch, C., (1978), Determining the general circulation of the oceans: A preliminary discussion, Science, 196, 871-875.
83. Wyrtki, K., (1960), The surface circulation in the Coral and Tasman Seas, Tech. Pap. 8, Commonwealth Sci. and Ind. Res. Organ., Div. of Fish. and Oceanogr., Cronulla, Australia.
84. Wyrtki, K., (1962a), The subsurface water masses in the western South Pacific Ocean, Aust. J. Mar. Freshwater Res., 13, 18-47.
85. Wyrtki, K., (1962b), Geopotential topographies and associated circulation in the western South Pacific Ocean, Aust. J. Mar. Freshwater Res., 13, 89-105.