Decadal Variations of the North Pacific Subtropical Mode Water and Subtropical Countercurrent

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Other Title
  • 北太平洋亜熱帯モード水と亜熱帯反流の十年規模変動
  • キタタイヘイヨウ アネッタイ モードスイ ト アネッタイ ハン リュウ ノ ジュウネン キボ ヘンドウ

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Description

The present study examined decadal variations of the North Pacific subtropical mode water（STMW）and subtropical countercurrent（STCC）, using a monthly-mean dataset based on Argo float observations from2001to2011. The STMW exhibits distinct decadal variations, which are closely associated with the stability of the Kuroshio Extension. When the Kuroshio Extension takes a stable path, a thicker mixed layer forms in winter and is followed by the formation of lower-potential vorticity and thicker STMW. The STMW spreads rapidly to the south, reaching to the north of the STCC. The STCC also exhibits decadal variations due to changes in vertical velocity shear associated with subsurface subtropical front. The changes in the vertical velocity shear correspond well to those in the STMW, indicating that when the potential vorticity of the STMW is low, the STMW forces the upper thermocline to shoal, by which the upper thermocline is largely inclined to the north, intensifying the STCC. This result indicates that the STMW is responsible for the decadal variations of the STCC.

Journal

  • Bulletin on Coastal Oceanography

    Bulletin on Coastal Oceanography 50 (2), 119-129, 2013

    Coastal Oceanography Research Committee, the Oceanographic Society of Japan

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