Hydrographic Structure and Transport of Intermediate Water in the Kuroshio Region off the Boso Peninsula, Japan

Hydrographic structure and transport of intermediate water were observed in the Kuroshio region south of Japan, focusing on the 26.6–27.5σ_θ density in six cruises from May 1998 through September 2001. In the section off the Boso Peninsula where the Kuroshio exfoliates eastward, the intermediate water was clearly clustered into three groups meridionally composed of the coastal water, the Kuroshio water and the offshore water. Compared with the Kuroshio water characterized by warm, salty water transported by the Kuroshio, the coastal and offshore waters significantly degenerated due to mixing with cold, fresh waters originated from the subarctic region: the former was affected by alongshore spread of the coastal Oyashio and the latter by direct intrusion of the new North Pacific Intermediate Water (NPIW) into the southern side of the Kuroshio current axis. Particularly the offshore water showed higher apparent oxygen utilization (AOU) in layers deeper than 26.9σ_θ while it showed lower AOU in layers shallower than 26.9σ_θ, which indicated that colder, fresher and higher AOU water was distributed on the southeastern side of the Kuroshio in deeper layers. In May 1998, the Oyashio-Kuroshio mixing ratio was estimated to be typically 2:8 for the offshore water on the assumption of isopycnal mixing. Moreover, northeastward volume transport of the Kuroshio water was obtained from geostrophic velocity fields adjusted to lowered acoustic Doppler current profiler (LADCP) data to yield 6.1 Sv at 26.6–26.9σ_θ and 11.8 Sv at 26.9–27.5 σ_θ. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Winter Mixed Layer and Formation of Dichothermal Water in the Bering Sea

The temperature minimum layer, called “dichothermal water”, is a characteristic feature of the North Pacific subarctic gyre. In particular, dichothermal water having a density of approximately 26.6 sigma-theta (σ_θ), which corresponds to the densest water outcropping in winter in the North Pacific, is seen in the Bering Sea. In order to clarify the water properties, and the area in which and the process by which the dichothermal water is formed, a new seasonal mean gridded climatological dataset with a fine resolution for the Bering Sea and adjacent seas has been prepared using historically accumulated hydrographic data. Although the waters of the Alaskan Stream have temperature minimum layers, their temperature inversions are very weak in climatologies and the core densities of the temperature minimum layers are much lighter than 26.6σ_θ. On the other hand, in the Bering Sea one can see the robust structure of temperature minimum layers, the core density of the dichothermal water being around 26.6σ_θ. In addition, it has been found that the properties of the dichothermal water observed in the warming season are almost the same as those in the winter mixed layer. That is, the dichothermal waters are formed in the winter mixed layer in the Bering Sea. Since these waters are found in the Kamchatka Strait, i.e., the main exit of the Bering Sea waters, it can be supposed that the dichothermal waters are exported from the Bering Sea to the Pacific Ocean by the Kamchatka Current. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Formation Process of North Pacific Intermediate Water Revealed by Profiling Floats Set to Drift on 26.7 σθ Isopycnal Surface

Six newly developed floats, which were set to drift on the 26.7 σ_θ isopycnal surface and to profile temperature, salinity and pressure above 1000 dbar once a week, were deployed in the Oyashio and Kuroshio Extension (KE) in order to examine the circulation, formation site and time scale of newly formed North Pacific Intermediate Water (NPIW). The floats were deployed in February or May 2001, and the data from their deployments to December 2002 are analyzed here. Four of the six floats were deployed near the KE axis at around the first meander crest, and they moved eastward to 157°E–176°W at latitudes of 30°N–45°N. The other two floats deployed in the Oyashio water with low-potential vorticity near the south coast of Hokkaido moved southward to reach the KE front and then moved eastward to the same region as the first four floats. The temperature and salinity at 26.7 σ_θ measured by the profiling floats indicate that the source waters of NPIW, Oyashio and Kuroshio waters are drastically mixed and modified in the mixed water region west of 160°E. The floats were separated into the three paths east of 160°E between the Kuroshio Extension front and the north of Water-Mass front (nearly subarctic front). New NPIW is judged to be formed along these three paths since the vertical profiles of temperature and salinity are quite smooth, having a salinity minimum at about 26.7σ_θ along each path. Kuroshio-Oyashio isopycnal mixing ratios of the new NPIW are 7:3, 6:4 and 5:5 at 26.7σ_θ along the southern, middle and northern paths, respectively. Potential vorticity converges to about 14–15 × 10⁻¹¹ m⁻¹s⁻¹ along these paths. The time scale of new NPIW formation is estimated to be 1–1.5 years from the merger of Oyashio and Kuroshio waters to the formation of the new NPIW. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Possible Density Change of the Origin of North Pacific Intermediate Water Due to Double Diffusion in the Mixed Water Region

In this study we test Talley's hypothesis that Oyashio winter mixed-layer water (26.5–26.6σ _θ) increases its density to produce the North Pacific Intermediate Water (NPIW) salinity minimum (26.7– 26.8σ_θ) in the Mixed Water Region, assuming a combination of cabbeling and double diffusion. The possible density change of Oyashio winter mixed-layer water is discussed using an instantaneous ratio of the change of temperature and salinity along any particular intrusion (R _l ). We estimate the range of R _l ^DD required to convert Oyashio winter mixed-layer water to the NPIW salinity minimum due to double diffusion, and then assume double-diffusive intrusions as this conversion mechanism. A double-diffusive intrusion model is used to estimate R _l ^DD in a situation where salt fingering dominates vertical mixing, as well as to determine whether Oyashio winter mixed-layer water can become the NPIW salinity minimum. Possible density changes are estimated from the model R _l ^DD by assuming the amount of density change due to cabbeling. From these results, we conclude that Oyashio winter mixed-layer water contributes to a freshening of the lighter layer of the NPIW salinity minimum (around 26.70σ_θ) in the MWR.     

Intermediate Circulation in the Northwestern North Pacific Derived from Subsurface Floats

In order to examine the formation, distribution and synoptic scale circulation structure of North Pacific Intermediate Water (NPIW), 21 subsurface floats were deployed in the sea east of Japan. A Eulerian image of the intermediate layer (density range: 26.6–27.0σ_θ) circulation in the northwestern North Pacific was obtained by the combined analysis of the movements of the subsurface floats in the period from May 1998 to November 2002 and historical hydrographic observations. The intermediate flow field derived from the floats showed stronger flow speeds in general than that of geostrophic flow field calculated from historical hydrographic observations. In the intermediate layer, 8 Sv (1 Sv ≡ 10⁶ m³s⁻¹) Oyashio and Kuroshio waters are found flowing into the sea east of Japan. Three strong eastward flows are seen in the region from 150°E to 170°E, the first two flows are considered as the Subarctic Current and the Kuroshio Extension or the North Pacific Current. Both volume transports are estimated as 5.5 Sv. The third one flows along the Subarctic Boundary with a volume transport of 5 Sv. Water mass analysis indicates that the intermediate flow of the Subarctic Current consists of 4 Sv Oyashio water and 1.5 Sv Kuroshio water. The intermediate North Pacific Current consists of 2 Sv Oyashio water and 3.5 Sv Kuroshio water. The intermediate flow along the Subarctic Boundary contains 2 Sv Oyashio water and 3 Sv Kuroshio water. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Warming of intermediate water in the sea of Okhotsk since the 1950s

Okhotsk Sea Intermediate Water (OSIW), the source water for ventilation of North Pacific Intermediate Water, exhibits a multidecadal warming trend. Historical data show that OSIW temperatures increased by 0.28, 0.57, 0.31 and 0.10°C during 1955 to 2003 at potential densities of 26.8, 27.0, 27.2 and 27.4σ _θ , at depths of approximately 250, 500, 700 and 900 m, respectively. This rate of warming is much faster than that of the global ocean. This OSIW warming is likely linked to the reduced ventilation of cold Dense Shelf Water associated with brine rejection during sea ice formation.     

Long-term variations of surface and intermediate waters in the southern Indian Ocean along 32°S

Variations of water properties in surface and intermediate layers along 32°S in the southern Indian Ocean were examined using a 50-year (1960–2010) time series reproduced from historical hydrographic and Argo data by using optimum interpolation. Salinity in the 26.7–27.3σ_θ density layer decreased significantly over the whole section, at a maximum rate of 0.02 decade⁻¹ at 26.8–26.9σ_θ, for the 50-year average. Three deoxygenating cores were identified east of 75°E, and the increasing rate of apparent oxygen utilization in the most prominent core (26.9–27.0σ_θ) exceeded 0.05 ml l⁻¹ decade⁻¹. The pycnostad core of Subantarctic Mode Water (SAMW) and the salinity minimum of Antarctic Intermediate Water shifted slightly toward the lighter layers. Comparisons with trans-Indian Ocean survey data from 1936 suggest that the tendencies found in the time series began before 1960. Interestingly, cores of many prominent trends were located just offshore of Australia at 26.7–27.0σ_θ, which is in the SAMW density range. Spectrum analysis revealed that two oscillation components with time scales of about 40 and 10 years were dominant in the subsurface layers. Our results are fairly consistent with, and thus support, the oceanic responses in the southern Indian Ocean to anthropogenic climate change predicted by model studies.     

Regeneration of a warm anticyclonic ring by cold water masses within the western subarctic gyre of the North Pacific

Regeneration of a warm anticyclonic ring as a result of interaction with cold water masses was observed within the western subarctic gyre of the North Pacific. Satellite, profiling float, and shipboard observations revealed that a warm-core ring originated from the Kuroshio Extension, propagating northeastwards, entrained cold and fresh water masses from the coastal area of Hokkaido, which are typically recognized within the ring as water that is colder than 2.5 °C. The potential temperature and planetary contribution of potential vorticity of the cold water in the coastal area of Hokkaido were <2 °C and 15 × 10^?11 m^?1s^?1, respectively, suggesting that it originated from the Sea of Okhotsk. After the intrusion, the warm core of the ring cooled, freshened, and contracted, while the outer and lower parts became occupied by the cold and fresh water; however, even after the cooling, the positive surface elevation and downward depression of the main pycnocline, typical of an anticyclonic ring, were still evident. The ring continued to propagate northeastwards, with the main part of its structure occupied by the cold water, but changed its direction of travel from northwest to west-southwest 8 months after the cold-water event, and was finally absorbed into another warm-core ring. It is suggested that these anticyclonic rings, which transported and mixed warm and cold water masses, play important roles in the cross-gyre exchange of subtropical and subarctic waters in the North Pacific.     

Water mass exchange and diapycnal mixing at Bussol’ Strait revealed by water mass properties

Intensive CTD observations that resolve the mean and tidal components were done with a total of 129 casts in summer of 2001 at Bussol’ Strait. Based on these data and all the available historical data, we have revealed the outflow from Bussol’ Strait to the Pacific and the significant diapycnal mixing in the strait. In the range 27.0−27.3σ _θ , the water property in Bussol’ Strait is almost identical to that of the Kuril Basin Water (KBW). The KBW out of Bussol’ Strait forms a water mass front with the East Kamchatka Current Water (EKCW). This front also corresponds to the front of the Oyashio Current. In the lower part of the intermediate layer (27.3−27.6σ _θ ), part of the water in the strait is characterized by lower temperature, lower salinity, and higher dissolved oxygen than that of KBW and EKCW, which can be explained only by the diapycnal mixing. The strong diapycnal mixing in the strait can also be shown by the density inversion, occurrence frequency of which corresponds well to the amplitude distribution of the diurnal current. In the density range 26.7−26.8σ _θ , the water in Bussol’ Strait has the lowest potential vorticity, suggesting that it is a source region of the low potential vorticity water. Seasonal change of the water can reach up to a density of 26.8σ _θ around Bussol’ Strait. This leads us to propose that the combination of winter convection and local tidal mixing leads to effective ventilation of the intermediate layer.     

Roles of mode waters in the formation and maintenance of central water in the North Pacific

This study describes the three-dimensional distributions of the Turner angle (Tu) and the potential vorticity (PV) of the main pycnocline water in the subtropical North Pacific (10–50°N, 120°E–120°W) using a large in situ CTD data set taken by the Argo profiling floats during June to October of 2001–2009 to clarify the detailed distribution of the central water and the mode waters as well as the relationship between these water masses. The ventilated part of the main pycnocline water (σ _θ < 26.7 kg m⁻³) in the subtropical gyre generally displays a sharp peak in Tu value of 59° in the histogram. The Tu histograms for 10° × 10° geographical boxes mostly show that the mode for the Tu value is 59° too, but they also show some regional differences, suggesting some types of relations with the North Pacific mode waters. To further investigate this relationship, the appearance probability density function of the central water (defined as the main pycnocline water with Tu = 56°–63°) and those of the mode waters with PVs lower than the critical value on each isopycnal surface were analyzed. The distribution area of the central mode water (CMW) corresponds so well with that of the central water that a direct contribution of the CMW to the formation and maintenance of the central water is suggested. On the other hand, the distribution areas of subtropical mode water (STMW), Eastern STMW, and transition region mode water do not correspond to that of the central water. Nevertheless, indirect contributions of these mode waters to the formation and maintenance of the central water through salt finger type convection or diapycnal mixing are suggested.     

A Late Winter Hydrography in Hidaka Bay, South of Hokkaido, Japan

Hydrographic observations in Hidaka Bay, south of Hokkaido, Japan were carried out in late winter 1996 and 1997 to examine the spatial distributions and circulation features of two different water masses, i.e., Coastal Oyashio Water (COW) and Tsugaru Warm Water (TWW), and their modifications. It is known that COW is mostly composed of cold and low-salinity water of the melted drift ice coming from the Okhotsk Sea and flows into Hidaka Bay from winter to spring and TWW with high-salinity continuously supplies from the Tsugaru Strait to the North Pacific. Cold surface mixed layers (<26.2σ_θ, 0–100 m depth) were found mainly over the shelf slope, confirming that anti-clockwise flow of COW was formed. TWW was relatively high in salinity and low in potential vorticity, and had some patch-like water masses with a temperature and salinity maximum in the limited area in the further offshore at the deeper density levels of 26.6–26.8σ_θ. The fine structure of vertical temperature and salinity profiles appeared between TWW and COW is an indication of enhanced vertical mixing (double-diffusive mixing), as inferred from the estimated Turner angles. At a mouth of the Tsugaru Strait in late winter 1997, a significant thermohaline front between TWW and the modified COW was formed and a main path of TWW spreaded south along the Sanriku coast, probably as the bottom controlled flow. Hence, the patch-like TWW observed in late winter is isolated from the Tsugaru Warm Current and then rapidly modified due to a diapycnal mixing. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Effects of the Anticyclonic Eddies on Water Masses, Chemical Parameters and Chlorophyll Distributions in the Oyashio Current Region

Data from the R/V Mirai cruise (May–June 2000) have been examined to discover how mesoscale processes associated with eddy dynamics direct affect the water masses, the distributions and the vertical fluxes of the dissolved oxygen, nutrients and dissolved inorganic carbon in the western subarctic Pacific. Using maps of the temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen, nutrients, chlorophyll and sea-air pCO₂ difference we show that the boundaries of the anticyclone eddies in the study region were composed of high productivity coastal Oyashio water. The coastal waters were wrapped around the anticyclone eddies (thus creating a high productivity belt) and intruded inside of them. Using SeaWifs data we demonstrate that temporal variations in the position and the strength of anticyclone eddies advected the Kuril island coastal high productivity waters to the pelagic part, resulting in temporal variations of the chlorophyll in the Oyashio region. Computed vertical fluxes of the dissolved oxygen (DO), inorganic carbon (DIC) and silicate show that the anticylonic eddies in the Kuroshio-Oyashio Zone are characterized by enhanced vertical fluxes of the DO and DIC between the upper (σ_θ = 26.7–27.0) and lower (σ_θ = 27.1–27.5) intermediate layer, probably due to the intrusions of the Oyashio waters into the eddies. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Formation, Distribution and Volume Transport of the North Pacific Intermediate Water Studied by Repeat Hydrographic Observations

In order to examine the formation, distribution and transport of North Pacific Intermediate Water (NPIW), repeated hydrographic observations along several lines in the western North Pacific were carried out in the period from 1996 to 2001. NPIW formation can be described as follows: (1) Oyashio water extends south of the Subarctic Boundary and meets Kuroshio water in intermediate layers; (2) active mixing between Oyashio and Kuroshio waters occurs in intermediate layers; (3) the mixing of Oyashio and Kuroshio waters and salinity minimum formation around the potential density of 26.8σ_θ proceed to the east. It is found that Kuroshio water flows eastward even in the region north of 40°N across the 165°E line, showing that Kuroshio water extends north of the Subarctic Boundary. Volume transports of Oyashio and Kuroshio components (relative to 2000 dbar) integrated in the potential density range of 26.6–27.4σθ along the Kuroshio Extension across 152°E–165°E are estimated to be 7–8 Sv (10⁶ m³s⁻¹) and 9–10 Sv, respectively, which is consistent with recent work. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Intrusion of less saline shelf water into the Kuroshio subsurface layer in the East China Sea

The possible origin and cause of the less saline shelf water detected in the Kuroshio subsurface layer around the shelf edge of the East China Sea are investigated using observational results obtained in May 1998–2001 in conjunction with a dataset archived by Japan Oceanographic Data Center and a numerical model. The observations show that subsurface intrusions of less saline water are always detected in May in layers above 24.5σθ isopycnal surface, and that salinity inversions (i.e., areas in which the less saline water lies beneath the saline water) are detected around the trough of the Kuroshio frontal eddy (or wave). Analyses of the archived dataset reveal that the isopycnal surface of 24.5σθ is the deepest layer of the Kuroshio pycnocline outcropping to the sea surface on the shallow shelf in early spring. Outcropping isopycnals above 24.5σθ encounter a less saline water plume originating from the Changjiang, especially in the western East China Sea. Thereafter, the less saline water moves along isopycnal layers and reaches the Kuroshio front around the shelf edge. Numerical models demonstrate that, when the frontal wave captures the less saline water, the shelf water takes the form of a salinity inversion in the trough because isohalines in the frontal wave have a phase lag between the upper and lower layers in consequence of the baroclinic instability.     

Variation of the southward interior flow of the North Pacific subtropical gyre,as revealed by a repeat hydrographic survey

Baroclinic variations of the southward flow in the interior region of the North Pacific subtropical gyre are presented with five hydrographic sections from San Francisco to near Japan during 2004–2006. The volume transport averaged temperature of the interior flow, which varies vigorously by a maximum of 0.8°C, is negatively correlated with the transport in the layer of density 24.5–26.5σ _θ, associated with changes in the vertical current structure. Transport variation in this density layer is thus mainly responsible for the thermal impact of the interior flow on the heat transport of the subtropical gyre.     

Water masses in the Gulf of Aden

Hydrographic data collected from Gulf of Aden since 1920 have been compiled to identify and refine the definitions of water masses in the Gulf of Aden (GA) and to describe their spatio-temporal variability. Four water masses have been identified based on their θ-S characteristics. The Red Sea Water (RSW) that flows from the Red Sea is the most prominent water in the GA; this occupies about 37% of the total volume of Gulf of Aden. The Gulf of Aden Surface Water (∼3%) forms as a mixture of local water and the water from western Arabian Sea during winter and Red Sea surface water during summer. The intermediate water, identified as Gulf of Aden Intermediate Water (GAIW), occupies about 9% of the total volume of GA; a characteristic salinity minimum is associated with it at σ_θ=26.50 kg m⁻³. The northward spread of sub-tropical subsurface water from the south appears to be the major source of GAIW. The bottom water, named Gulf of Aden Bottom Water, showed the least variability. It was formed due to the mixing of Red Sea Water and water of southern origin. Mixing triangles have been used to analyze the composition of water in the GA.     

Primary productivity and solar radiation off Sanriku in May 1997

We measured the in situ primary production at four stations from the surface to 80 m off Sanriku in late May 1997. The depth-integrated daily primary production in the upper 80 m was estimated to be 391, 468, and 855 mgC m⁻²d⁻¹ in water from the Oyashio, and 336 mgC m⁻²d⁻¹ in the warm-core ring. The variation in the primary production was primarily due to the variation in phytoplankton activity (chlorophyll α-specific primary production). A combination of previous and present studies in water from the Oyashio and the warm-core ring suggested that phytoplankton activity is proportional to light intensity between 12 and 50 Ein m⁻²d⁻¹ which is close to the usual light condition (61–75 Ein m⁻²d⁻¹) off Sanriku in May and June. Light may be a limiting factor for phytoplankton off Sanriku in late spring and early summer.     

An anticyclonic eddy in the intermediate layer of the Luzon Strait in Autumn 2005

The complicated flow pattern in the intermediate layer of the Luzon Strait could directly affect the efficiency of the water and energy exchange between the South China Sea (SCS) and the North Pacific. Here we present a subsurface anticyclonic eddy in the Luzon Strait deduced using observations conducted in October 2005. On the basis of the hydrographic and current measurements, an anticyclonic eddy was found in the intermediate layer, i.e., about 26.8–27.3σ_θ, 500–900 m. It captures part of the SCS Intermediate Water outflow in the northern Luzon Strait, and carries it to flow southward and then westward back into the SCS in the southern Luzon Strait, with volume transport of about 1.9 × 10⁶ m³ s⁻¹. The simulated results from Hybrid Coordinate Ocean Model also suggest the existence of this anticyclonic eddy that develops and lingers for a month long.     

Interannual variations in low potential vorticity water and the subtropical countercurrent in an eddy-resolving OGCM

Interannual-to-decadal variations in the subtropical countercurrent (STCC) and low potential vorticity (PV) water and their relations in the North Pacific Ocean are investigated on the basis of a 60-year-long hindcast integration of an eddy-resolving ocean general circulation model. Although vertically coherent variations are dominant for STCC interannual variability, a correlation analysis shows that an intensified STCC vertical shear accompanies lower PV than usual to the north on 25.5- to 26.1-σ_θ isopycnal surfaces, and intensified meridional density gradient in subsurface layers, consistent with Kubokawa’s theory (J Phys Oceanogr 29:1314–1333, 1999). The low-PV signals appear at least 2 years before peaks of STCC, propagating southwestward from the subduction region.     

Chlorofluorocarbons in the western North Pacific in 1993 and formation of North Pacific intermediate water

Chlorofluorocarbons (CFC-11 and CFC-12) in the intermediate water having between 26.4 and 27.2 were determined at 75 stations in the western North Pacific north of 20°N and west of 175.5°E in 1993. The intermediate water of 26.4–26.6 was almost saturated with respect to the present atmospheric CFC-11 in the zone between 35 and 45°N around the subarctic front. Furthermore, the ratios of CFC-11/CFC-12 of the water were also of those formed after 1975. These suggest that the upper intermediate water (26.4–26.6) was recently formed by cooling and sinking of the surface water not by mixing with old waters. The water below the isopycnal surface of 26.8 contained less CFCs and the area containing higher CFCs around the subarctic front was greatly reduced. However, the CFC age of the lower intermediate water (26.8–27.2) in the zone around the subarctic front was not old, suggesting that the water was formed by diapycnal mixing of the water ventilated with the atmosphere with old waters not containing appreciable CFCs, probably the Pacific Deep Water. The southward spreading rate decreased with depth and it was one sixth of its eastward spreading rate of the North Pacific Intermediate Water (NPIW).