HR: 1340h
AN: OS43B-1236    [Abstracts]
TI: Variational estimate of the volume transport through the Kamchatka Strait and Aleutian passes.
AU: * Panteleev, G
EM: gleb@iarc.uaf.edu
AF: International Arctic Research Center, 930 Koyukuk Dr. P.O.BOX 757340, Fairbanks, AK 99775, United States
AU: Luchin, V
EM: gleb@iarc.uaf.edu
AF: Il'ichev Pacific Oceanological Institute,FEBRAS, Ul. Morskaya, Vladivostok, 111 222, Russian Federation
AU: Nechaev, D
EM: dnechaev@charter.net
AF: Department of Marine Science, USM, 1020 Balch Blvd., Stennis Space Center, MS 39529- 9904, United States
AU: Stabeno, P
EM: Phyllis.Stabeno@noaa.gov
AF: Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory, NOAA /R/PMEL, 7600 Sand Point Way NE, Seattle, WA 98115, United States
AU: Ikeda, M
EM: mikeda@ees.hokudai.ac.jp
AF: Graduate School of Environmental Earth Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, 10201, Japan
AB: The quasistationary climatological Bering Sea circulation is reconstructed as a variational inverse of the hydrographic (temperature/salinity) and atmospheric climatologies, transport estimates through the Bering Strait, and data from approximately 500 surface drifters. Our results provide the estimates of the mean volume transport through the Kamchatka Strait of 28-30 Sv, Near Strait transport of 12-14 Sv, and quantify the throughflow in other Aleutian passes. The obtained transport estimates are significantly higher than the geostrophic estimates based on the assumption of the level of no motion at the depth of 1000 or 1500m, which can be found in the literature. The results reveal that the transports in the Kamchatka and Near Straits experience significant seasonal variability of approximately 10 Sv and 3-4 Sv respectively. The new estimates of the volume balance of the Bering Sea are in agreement with the recent measurements of the high inflow into the Bering Sea through the Amukta Pass and velocity observation at 1000 m with ARGO drifters. We speculate, that the revealed enhanced water exchange can be very important for the export of the different biological and chemical tracers into the Bering Sea.
DE: 4255 Numerical modeling (0545, 0560)
DE: 4512 Currents
DE: 4532 General circulation (1218, 1222)
SC: Ocean Sciences [OS]
MN: 2007 Fall Meeting