Mixed layer variability in Northern Arabian Sea as detected by an Argo float

Seasonal evolution of surface mixed layer in the Northern Arabian Sea (NAS) between 17° N–20.5° N and 59° E-69° E was observed by using Argo float daily data for about 9 months, from April 2002 through December 2002. Results showed that during April - May mixed layer shoaled due to light winds, clear sky and intense solar insolation. Sea surface temperature (SST) rose by 2.3 °C and ocean gained an average of 99.8 Wm⁻². Mixed layer reached maximum depth of about 71 m during June - September owing to strong winds and cloudy skies. Ocean gained abnormally low ∼18 Wm⁻² and SST dropped by 3.4 °C. During the inter monsoon period, October, mixed layer shoaled and maintained a depth of 20 to 30 m. November - December was accompanied by moderate winds, dropping of SST by 1.5 °C and ocean lost an average of 52.5 Wm⁻². Mixed layer deepened gradually reaching a maximum of 62 m in December. Analysis of surface fluxes and winds suggested that winds and fluxes are the dominating factors causing deepening of mixed layer during summer and winter monsoon periods respectively. Relatively high correlation between MLD, net heat flux and wind speed revealed that short term variability of MLD coincided well with short term variability of surface forcing.     

Sea Surface Height Variability in the Indian Ocean from TOPEX/POSEIDON Altimetry and Model Simulations

Sea Surface Height (SSH) variability in the Indian Ocean during 1993-1995 is studied using TOPEX/POSEIDON (T/P) altimetry data. Strong interannual variability is seen in the surface circulation of the western Arabian Sea, especially in the Somali eddy structure. During the Southwest (SW) monsoon, a weak monsoon year is characterized by a single eddy system off Somalia, a strong or normal monsoon year by several energetic eddies. The Laccadive High (LH) and Laccadive Low (LL) systems off southwest India are observed in the altimetric SSH record. The variability of the East India Coastal Current (EICC), the western boundary current in the Bay of Bengal, is also detected. Evidence is found for the propagation of Kelvin and Rossby waves across the northern Indian Ocean; these are examined in the context of energy transfer to the western boundary currents, and associated eddies. A simple wind-driven isopycnal model having three active layers is implemented to simulate the seasonal changes of surface and subsurface circulation in the North Indian Ocean and to examine the response to different wind forcing. The wind forcing is derived from the ERS-1 scatterometer wind stress for the same period as the T/P altimeter data, enabling the model response in different (active/weak) monsoon conditions to be tested. The model output is derived in 10-day snapshots to match the time period of the T/P altimeter cycles. Complex Principal Component Analysis (CPCA) is applied to both altimetric and model SSH data. This confirms that long Rossby waves are excited by the remotely forced Kelvin waves off the southwest coast of India and contribute substantially to the variability of the seasonal circulation in the Arabian Sea.     

Sea Surface Height Variability in the Indian Ocean from TOPEX/POSEIDON Altimetry and Model Simulations

Sea Surface Height (SSH) variability in the Indian Ocean during 1993-1995 is studied using TOPEX/POSEIDON (T/P) altimetry data. Strong interannual variability is seen in the surface circulation of the western Arabian Sea, especially in the Somali eddy structure. During the Southwest (SW) monsoon, a weak monsoon year is characterized by a single eddy system off Somalia, a strong or normal monsoon year by several energetic eddies. The Laccadive High (LH) and Laccadive Low (LL) systems off southwest India are observed in the altimetric SSH record. The variability of the East India Coastal Current (EICC), the western boundary current in the Bay of Bengal, is also detected. Evidence is found for the propagation of Kelvin and Rossby waves across the northern Indian Ocean; these are examined in the context of energy transfer to the western boundary currents, and associated eddies. A simple wind-driven isopycnal model having three active layers is implemented to simulate the seasonal changes of surface and subsurface circulation in the North Indian Ocean and to examine the response to different wind forcing. The wind forcing is derived from the ERS-1 scatterometer wind stress for the same period as the T/P altimeter data, enabling the model response in different (active/weak) monsoon conditions to be tested. The model output is derived in 10-day snapshots to match the time period of the T/P altimeter cycles. Complex Principal Component Analysis (CPCA) is applied to both altimetric and model SSH data. This confirms that long Rossby waves are excited by the remotely forced Kelvin waves off the southwest coast of India and contribute substantially to the variability of the seasonal circulation in the Arabian Sea.     

Statistical characteristics and mechanisms of mesoscale eddies in the North Indian Ocean

The statistical characteristics and mechanisms of mesoscale eddies in the North Indian Ocean are investigated by adopting multi-sensor satellite data from 1993 to 2019. In the Arabian Sea(AS), seasonal variation of eddy characteristics is remarkable, while the intraseasonal variability caused by planetary waves is crucial in the Bay of Bengal(BOB). Seasonal variation of the eddy kinetic energy(EKE) is distinct along the west boundary of AS,especially in the Somali Current region. In the BOB, lar...     

Seasonal and spatial distributions of phytoplankton biomass associated with monsoon and oceanic environments in the South China Sea

Seasonal variations of phytoplankton/chlorophyll-a （Chl-a） distribution, sea surface wind, sea height anomaly, sea surface temperature and other oceanic environments for long periods are analyzed in the South China Sea （SCS）, especially in the two typical regions off the east coast of Vietnam and off the northwest coast of Luzon, using remote sensing data and other oceanographic data. The results show that seasonal and spatial distributions of phytoplankton biomass in the SCS are primarily influenced by the monsoon winds and oceanic environments. Off the east coast of Vietnam, Chl-a concentration is a peak in August, a jet shape extending into the interior SCS, which is associated with strong southwesterly monsoon winds, the coastal upwetling induced by offshore Ekman transport and the strong offshore current in the western SCS. In December, high Chl-a concentration appears in the upwelling region off the northwest coast of Luzon and spreads southwestward. Strong mixing by the strong northeasterly monsoon winds, the cyclonic circulation, southwestward coastal currents and river discharge have impacts on distribution of phytoplankton, so that the high phytoplankton biomass extends from the coastal areas over the northern SCS to the entire SCS in winter. These research activities could be important for revealing spatial and temporal patterns of phytoplankton and their interactions with physical environments in the SCS.     

Interannual variability of Kelvin wave propagation in the wave guides of the equatorial Indian Ocean,the coastal Bay of Bengal and the southeastern Arabian Sea during 1993–2006

The observed variability of the Kelvin waves and their propagation in the equatorial wave guide of the Indian Ocean and in the coastal wave guides of the Bay of Bengal (BoB) and the southeastern Arabian Sea (AS) on seasonal to interannual time scales during years 1993–2006 is examined utilizing all the available satellite and in-situ measurements. The Kelvin wave regime inferred from the satellite-derived sea surface height anomalies (SSHA) shows a distinct annual cycle composed of two pairs of alternate upwelling (first one occurring during January–March and the second one occurring during August–September) and downwelling (first one occurring during April–June and the second one occurring during October–December) Kelvin waves that propagate eastward along the equator and hit the Sumatra coast and bifurcate. The northern branches propagate counterclockwise over varied distances along the coastal wave guide of the BoB. The potential mechanisms that contribute to the mid-way termination of the first upwelling and the first downwelling Kelvin waves in the wave guide of the BoB are hypothesized. The second downwelling Kelvin wave alone reaches the southeastern AS, and it shows large interannual variability caused primarily by similar variability in the equatorial westerly winds during boreal fall. The westward propagating downwelling Rossby waves triggered by the second downwelling Kelvin wave off the eastern rim of the BoB also shows large interannual variability in the near surface thermal structure derived from SODA analysis. The strength of the equatorial westerlies driven by the east–west gradient of the heat sources in the troposphere appears to be a critical factor in determining the observed interannual variability of the second downwelling Kelvin wave in the wave guides of the equatorial Indian Ocean, the coastal BoB, and the southeastern AS.     

Spatial variability in the primary productivity in the East China Sea and its adjacent waters

Primary productivity in the East China Sea and its adjacent area was measured by the¹³C tracer method during winter, summer and fall in 1993 and 1994. The depth-integrated primary productivity in the Kuroshio Current ranged from 220 to 350 mgC m⁻²d⁻¹, and showed little seasonal variability. High primary productivity (above 570 mgC m⁻²d⁻¹) was measured at the center of the continental shelf throughout the observation period. The productivity at the station nearest to the Changjiang estuary exhibited a distinctive seasonal change from 68 to 1,500 mgC m⁻²d⁻¹. Depth-integrated primary productivity was 2.7 times higher in the shelf area than the rates at the Kuroshio Current. High chlorophyll-a specific productivity (mgC mgChl.-a⁻²d⁻¹) throughout the euphotic zone was mainly found in the shelf area rather than off-shelf area, probably due to higher nutrient availability and higher activity of phytoplankton at the subsurface layer in the shelf area.     

Mesoscale variability along the east coast of India in spring as revealed from satellite data and OGCM simulations

Since mesoscale features like meanders have great importance in nourishing the coastal fisheries, satellite data analyses and a numerical modeling study were carried out for the east coast of India during spring inter-monsoon time (March-May), when biological productivity is high. During this time, the East India Coastal Current (EICC) system appears as a northward flowing western boundary current of a seasonal subtropical gyre in the Bay of Bengal prior to the summer monsoon with a more intense upwelling in the coastal region. A relatively clear sky permits satellite remote sensing of Sea Surface Temperature (SST) and Chlorophyll-a (Chl-a), whose patterns were verified against geostrophic velocity in altimeter data: i.e., phytoplankton grows in colder and nutrient richer water bounded by the seaward meanders. Progression of meanders in the coastal current was revealed and compared with an eddy-resolving Ocean General Circulation Model (OGCM), which is capable of modeling wind-driven general circulation and each stage of the meander growth. The numerical solutions provided the following results, in reasonable agreement with the linear stability theory using a two-and-a-half layer quasi-geostrophic model. Baroclinic instability plays a key role for the meander growth and eddy generation, while meanders in the coastal current are initiated by isolated mesoscale rotations propagating westward. The baroclinically unstable meanders have a wavelength of 500∼700 km, grow in one month and propagate downstream of the coastal current at several kilometers per day. The instability is not strong enough for the meanders to detach an eddy from the western boundary current.     

赤道东印度洋和孟加拉湾障碍层厚度的季节内和准半年变化

利用2002—2015年ARGO网格化的温度、盐度数据, 结合卫星资料揭示了赤道东印度洋和孟加拉湾障碍层厚度的季节内和准半年变化特征, 探讨了其变化机制。结果表明, 障碍层厚度变化的两个高值区域出现在赤道东印度洋和孟加拉湾北部。在赤道区域, 障碍层同时受到等温层和混合层变化的影响, 5—7月和11—1月受西风驱动, Wyrtki急流携带阿拉伯海的高盐水与表层的淡水形成盐度层结, 同时西风驱动的下沉Kelvin波加深了等温层, 混合层与等温层分离, 障碍层形成。在湾内, 充沛的降雨和径流带来的大量淡水产生很强的盐度层结, 混合层全年都非常浅, 障碍层季节内变化和准半年变化主要受等温层深度变化的影响。上述两个区域障碍层变化存在关联, 季节内和准半年周期的赤道纬向风驱动的波动过程是它们存在联系的根本原因。赤道东印度洋地区的西风(东风)强迫出向东传的下沉(上升)的Kelvin波, 在苏门答腊岛西岸转变为沿岸Kelvin波向北传到孟加拉湾的东边界和北边界, 并且在缅甸的伊洛瓦底江三角洲顶部(95°E, 16°N)激发出向西的Rossby波, 造成湾内等温层深度的正(负)异常, 波动传播的速度决定了湾内的变化过程滞后于赤道区域1~2个月。     

The phytoplankton bloom response to wind events and upwelled nutrients during the CoOP WEST study

In the coastal waters off northern California, seasonal wind-driven upwelling supplies abundant nutrients to be processed by phytoplankton productivity. As part of the Coastal Ocean Processes: Wind Events and Shelf Transport (CoOP WEST) study, nutrients, CO₂, size-fractionated chlorophyll, and phytoplankton community structure were measured in the upwelling region off Bodega Bay, CA, during May–June 2000, 2001 and 2002. The ability of this ecosystem to assimilate nitrate (NO₃) and silicic acid/silicate (Si(OH)₄) and accumulate particulate material (i.e. phytoplankton) was realized in all 3 years, following short events of upwelling-favorable winds, followed by periods of relaxed winds. This was observed as phytoplankton blooms, dominated by chlorophyll in cells greater than 5 μm in diameter, that reduced the ambient nutrients to zero. These communities were located over the near-shore shelf (<100 m depth) and were dominated by diatoms. An optimal window of 3–7 days of relaxed winds, following an upwelling pulse, was required for chlorophyll accumulation. The large-celled phytoplankton that result are likely important players in coastal new production and carbon cycling.     

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.     

2006年冬季粤东沿岸下降流观测分析

根据珠江口及其附近海域2006年冬季(2006年12月至2007年1月)航次的CTD调查资料发现,由于表层水体冷却而产生的对流作用,以及东北季风、浪、流等强动力条件下,冬季陆架水体垂向混合均匀,但粤东近岸海域却存在显著的温跃层及逆盐跃层,其原因在于:东北季风的Ekman效应引起了陆架表层高温、高盐海水向岸输送,东北季风还驱动了西南向沿岸流,其底边界层的Ekman效应引起了沿岸底层低温、低盐海水离岸输送,这样就形成了陆架方向的次生环流,在沿岸海域则为下降流,并表现为沿岸海域的逆盐跃层及温跃层现象。在下降流显著的区域,溶解氧垂向分布均匀且浓度较高,这应归因于下降流将溶解氧浓度较高的表层水带入深层所致。     

A review of the shelf-slope circulation along Australia’s southern shelves: Cape Leeuwin to Portland

A review is presented of the ocean circulation along Australia’s southern shelves and slope. Uniquely, the long, zonal shelf is subject to an equatorward Sverdrup transport that gives rise to the Flinders Current - a small sister to the world’s major Western Boundary Currents. The Flinders Current is strongest near the 600 m isobath where the current speeds can reach 20 cm/s and the bottom boundary layer is upwelling favourable. It is larger in the west but likely intermittent in both space and time due to possibly opposing winds, thermohaline circulation and mesoscale eddies. The Flinders Current may be important to deep upwelling within the ubiquitous canyons of the region.During winter, the Leeuwin Current and local winds act to drive eastward currents that average up to 20-30 cm/s. The currents associated with the intense coastal-trapped wave-field (6-12 day band) are of order 25-30 cm/s and can peak at 80-90 cm/s. Wintertime winds and cooling also lead to downwelling to depths of 200 m or more and the formation of dense coastal water within the Great Australian Bight and the South Australian Sea. Within the Great Australian Bight, the thermohaline circulation associated with this dense water is unknown, but may enhance the eastward shelf-edge, South Australian Current. The dense salty water formed within Spencer Gulf is known to cascade as a gravity current to depths of 200 m off Kangaroo Island. This dense water outflow and meanders in the shelf circulation also fix the locations of a sequence of quasi-permanent mesoscale eddies between the Eyre Peninsula and Portland.During summer, the average coastal winds reverse and surface heating leads to the formation of warm water in the western Great Australian Bight and the South Australian Sea. No significant exchange of shelf water and gulf water appears to occur due to the presence of a dense, nutrient-rich (sub-surface) pool that is upwelled off Kangaroo Island. The winds lead to weak average coastal currents (<10 cm/s) that flow to the north-west. In the Great Australian Bight, the wind stress curl can lead to an anticyclonic circulation gyre that can result in shelf-break downwelling in the western Great Australian Bight and the formation of the eastward, South Australian Current. In the east, upwelling favourable winds and coastal-trapped waves can lead to deep upwelling events off Kangaroo Island and the Bonney Coast that occur over 3-10 days and some 2-4 times a season. The alongshore currents here can be large (∼40 cm/s) and the vertical scales of upwelling are of order 150 m (off Kangaroo Island) and 250 m (off the Bonney Coast).Increasing evidence suggests that El Nino events (4-7 year period) can have a major impact on the winter and summer circulation. These events propagate from the Pacific Ocean and around the shelf-slope wave-guide of West Australia and into the Great Australian Bight. During winter El Nino events, the average shelf currents may be largely shut-down. During summer, the thermocline may be raised by up to 150 m. The nature and role of tides and surface waves is also discussed along with uncertainties in the general circulation and future research.     

Seasonal cycle of circulation in the Antarctic Peninsula and the off-shelf transport of shelf waters into southern Drake Passage and Scotia Sea

The seasonal cycle of circulation and transport in the Antarctic Peninsula shelf region is investigated using a high-resolution (∼2 km) regional model based on the Regional Oceanic Modeling System (ROMS). The model also includes a naturally occurring tracer with a strong source over the shelf (radium isotope ²²⁸Ra, t_1/2=5.8 years) to investigate the sediment Fe input and its transport. The model is spun-up for three years using climatological boundary and surface forcing and then run for the 2004–2006 period using realistic forcing. Model results suggest a persistent and coherent circulation system throughout the year consisting of several major components that converge water masses from various sources toward Elephant Island. These currents are largely in geostrophic balance, driven by surface winds, topographic steering, and large-scale forcing. Strong off-shelf transport of the Fe-rich shelf waters takes place over the northeastern shelf/slope of Elephant Island, driven by a combination of topographic steering, extension of shelf currents, and strong horizontal mixing between the ACC and shelf waters. These results are generally consistent with recent and historical observational studies. Both the shelf circulation and off-shelf transport show a significant seasonality, mainly due to the seasonal changes of surface winds and large-scale circulation. Modeled and observed distributions of ²²⁸Ra suggest that a majority of Fe-rich upper layer waters exported off-shelf around Elephant Island are carried by the shelfbreak current and the Bransfield Strait Current from the shallow sills between Gerlache Strait and Livingston Island, and northern shelf of the South Shetland Islands, where strong winter mixing supplies much of the sediment derived nutrients (including Fe) input to the surface layer.     

Barotropic Response of the Sea of Okhotsk to Wind Forcing

We have examined wind-induced circulation in the Sea of Okhotsk using a barotropic model that contains realistic topography with a resolution of 9.25 km. The monthly wind stress field calculated from daily European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasting (ECMWF) Re-Analysis data is used as the forcing, and the integration is carried out for 20 days until the circulation attains an almost steady state. In the case of November (a representative for the winter season from October to March), southward currents of velocity 0.1–0.3 m s⁻¹ occur along the bottom contours off the east of Sakhalin Island. The currents are mostly confined to the shelf (shallower than 200 m) and extend as far south as the Hokkaido coast. In the July case (a representative for the summer season from April to September), significant currents do not occur, even in the shallow shelves. The simulated southward current over the east Sakhalin shelf appears to correspond to the near-shore branch of the East Sakhalin Current (ESC), which was observed with the surface drifters. These seasonal variations simulated in our experiments are consistent with the observations of the ESC. Dynamically, the simulated ESC is interpreted as the arrested topographic wave (ATW), which is the coastally trapped flow driven by steady alongshore wind stress. The volume transport of the simulated ESC over the shelf reaches about 1.0 Sv (1 Sv = 10⁶ m³s⁻¹) in the winter season, which is determined by the integrated onshore Ekman transport in the direction from which shelf waves propagate. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Onset of coastal upwelling in a two-layer ocean by wind stress with longshore variation

On the assumption that motions of the barotropic mode are horizontally nondivergent, action of the wind stress with longshore variation on a two-layer ocean adjacent to the meridional east coast is studied. Only the equatorward wind stress is considered. Along the east coast, upwelling is induced by the direct effect of the coast and is confined in a narrow strip with the width of the order of the internal radius of deformation. The upwelling propagates poleward with the internal gravity wave speed. Coastal upwelling induced by the wind stress with longshore variation may be interpreted as the generation and propagation of internal Kelvin waves. Associated with the coastal upwelling, the equatorward flow in the upper layer and the poleward flow in the lower layer are formed as an internal mode of motions. When the bottom topography with the continental shelf and slope is taken into account, occurrence of the poleward undercurrent is delayed by a few days because of the generation of continental shelf waves. And, after the forcing is stopped, the shelf waves propagate poleward away from the upwelling region and the poleward undercurrent fully develops. At the margin of the continental shelf, another upwelling region is induced and propagates poleward.     

我国近海陆架锋面与生态效应研究回顾

海洋锋面存在于特征明显不同的2种或多种水系或水团交界处,锋面区域形成的次生环流和辐聚作用可显著影响到海洋中的物质输运与生物生产,故受到海洋学家的广泛关注。研究发现,我国近海陆架存在14个永久性的准静止锋面（渤海海峡锋面、山东半岛沿岸锋面、苏北沿岸锋面、西韩湾锋面、京畿湾锋面、济州岛西锋面、长江环形浅滩锋面、闽浙沿岸锋面、黑潮锋面、台湾沿岸锋面、闽粤沿岸锋面、珠江口沿岸锋面、琼东锋面和北部湾锋面）,且部分海域观测到双锋面、穿刺锋面和锋面波等现象。它们与陆架环流及其他动力过程（如：涡旋、内波等）共同控制着我国边缘海的物质能量输运与交换以及生物生产力格局。近岸物质沿锋面、跨锋面输运与锋区的垂向输送过程对我国边缘海生物地球化学循环和生态过程存在显著季节性影响。冬季到春季,沿岸锋面松弛能够加强物质从近岸向陆架的输运,进而在空间上调制春季藻华暴发的时间与量级;夏季到秋季,我国边缘海存在显著的潮汐锋面系统,锋面的辐聚效应以及次级环流可显著提高锋面区域的营养盐浓度和改善光照水平,对浮游植物的生长聚集起到促进作用,故在富营养化的河口与沿岸海域,锋面区域容易成为赤潮或缺氧高发区。此外,锋面的物理屏障作用使得两侧水团保持相对独立的物理与化学特征,因而在我国边缘海生境区划和生物多样性梯度变化等方面扮演重要角色,这些研究对认识我国边缘海物质循环与生物生产的控制机制具有重要作用。未来仍需充分结合观测与卫星资料,运用多过程耦合的高分辨率模型,深入认识锋面的精细结构与动态变化,加强亚中尺度和小尺度过程及其生态效应的研究。     

Role of environment and hydrography in determining the picoplankton community structure of Sagami Bay,Japan

Seasonal variations in the picoplankton community were investigated from June 2002 to March 2004 within the photic zone of Sagami Bay, Japan. The study area was mostly dominated by coastal waters during the warm period (mixed layer water temperature ≥ 18°C). During the cold period (mixed layer water temperature ≤ 18°C), the water mass was characterized by low temperature and high saline waters indicative of the North Pacific Subtropical Mode Water (NPSTMW). Occasionally, a third type of water mass characterized by high temperature and low saline properties was observed, which could be evidence of the intrusion of warm Kuroshio waters. Synechococcus was the dominant picophytoplankton (5−28 × 10¹¹ cells m⁻²) followed by Prochlorococcus (1−5 × 10¹¹ cells m⁻²) and picoeukaryotes during the warm period. Heterotrophic bacteria dominated the picoplankton community throughout the year, especially in the warm period. During the Kuroshio Current advection, cyanobacterial abundance was high whereas that of picoeukaryotes and heterotrophic bacteria was low. During the cold period, homogeneously distributed, lower picophytoplankton cell densities were observed. The dominance of Synechococcus in the warm period reflects the importance of high temperature, low salinity and high Photosynthetically Active Radiation (PAR) on its distribution. Cyanobacterial and heterotrophic bacterial abundance showed a positive correlation with temperature. Prochlorococcus and picoeukaryotes showed a positive correlation with nutrients. Picoeukaryotes were the major contributors to the picophytoplankton carbon biomass. The annual picophytoplankton contribution to the photosynthetic biomass was 32 ± 4%. These observations suggest that the environmental conditions, combined with the seasonal variability in the source of the water mass, determines the community structure of picoplankton, which contributes substantially to the phytoplankton biomass and can play a very important role in the food web dynamics of Sagami Bay.     

A theory of semigeostrophic gravity waves and its application to the intrusion of a density current along a coast

Semigeostrophic gravity waves associated with a coastal boundary current, which has finite and uniform potential vorticity and is bounded away from the coastline by a density front on the ocean surface, are investigated. It is shown that the semigeostrophic coastal current has two waves which are named here the Semigeostrophic Coastal Wave (SCW) and the Semigeostrophic Frontal Wave (SFW). The SCW becomes an elementary Kelvin wave at some limit while the SFW is caused by the existence of the surface density front. The SCW appears mainly as variations in the upper layer depth at the coast and as alongshore velocity at the density front. On the other hand, the SFW appears mainly as variations in the width of the current. When the weak nonlinearity and ageostrophic effect are included, these semigeostrophic gravity waves satisfy the Kortweg- de Vries equation, which suggests that the local changes in the width and/or velocity of the semigeostrophic coastal current propagate as wave-like disturbances.