Spatial features of the near-surface and midwater circulation patterns off western and southern South Africa and their role in the life histories of various commercially fished species

Autor: J. Taunton-Clark, A. J. Boyd, G. P. J. Oberholster
Rok vydání: 1992
Předmět:
Zdroj: South African Journal of Marine Science. 12:189-206
ISSN: 0257-7615
DOI: 10.2989/02577619209504702
Popis: Currents on the South African shelf have been measured on 13 cruises since an Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP) was installed on F.R.S. Africana in 1989. Most previous descriptions of the West Coast (Benguela) system, including the baroclinic jet currents off the Cape Peninsula and Cape Columbine, the latter clearly diverging into a dominant offshore arm and a weaker inshore arm, have been confirmed. This baroclinic flow originates along the south-western margin of the Agulhas Bank. Measurements of the inshore features of the Agulhas Current have shown strong WSW – SSW flow aligned with the bathymetry, but with significant shelf-edge north-eastward return flows. The velocity differences between the surface and depth reveal barotropic dominance in all inshore areas and over the central Agulhas Bank. The West Coast outer shelf displays variable baroclinic effects, reflecting the importance of frontal features and cross-shelf flow. SSW flow on the outer eastern Agulhas Bank appears responsible for an ...
Databáze: OpenAIRE