Low-frequency variability of currents and temperatures on the Pacific continental shelf off northern Baja California, 1978 to 1979

Currents, coastal winds, coastal sea level, and coastal ocean temperatures were observed at a number of northern Baja California Pacific sites between October 1978 and October 1979. Coastal winds were weakly southward on average and fluctuated north-south throughout the year. Fluctuations were uncorrelated over alongshore separations of 200 km. Coastal winds differed considerably from the large-scale offshore wind estimate (Bakun's Index) both in strength and in variability. At 30°50′N the mean currents were weakly equatorward at 25 m depth and weakly poleward at 42 and 60 m in a water depth of 75 m. The seasonal mean flow was equatorward from October to April and poleward from April to October at the shallower level but poleward all year near bottom. The fluctuations on a time scale of days to weeks were about an order of magnitude stronger than the seasonal variation, were oriented predominantly alongshore, and were quasi-barotropic in nature. Empirical orthogonal analyses showed that almost 90% of the variability could be represented by a single empirical mode. The alongshore fluctuations were significantly correlated with coastal sea level from October to July but during the rest of the year correlation was insignificant, possibly as a result of offshore eddies approaching the shelf.Observations at 25- and 60-m depth at a second mooring 100 km south of the first indicated a mean alongshore divergence from April to July 1979, consistent with long-term mean geostrophic flow patterns for the area. In general, currents were correlated alongshore but a two-week event in May, which manifested itself differently at the two sites, was suggestive of the impingement of an eddy onto the continental shelf. Currents and winds were poorly correlated in general.Temperature variation at sites along 700 km of coast showed a strong seasonal variation with the winter cool period extended by spring upwelling. Days-to-weeks scale fluctuations were similar at the five northernmost sites and correlations alongshore were significant for separations of up to 400 km. No evidence of propagating events was found in coastal temperatures or in currents.     

Numerical study on the summer upwelling system in the northern continental shelf of the South China Sea

A three-dimensional baroclinic nonlinear numerical model is employed to investigate the summer upwelling in the northern continental shelf of the South China Sea (NCSCS) and the mechanisms of the local winds inducing the coastal upwelling, associated with the QuikSCAT wind data. First, the persistent signals of the summer upwelling are illustrated by the climatological the Advanced Very High-Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) Sea Surface Temperature (SST) image over 1985–2006 and field observations in 2006 summer. Then, after the successful simulation of the summer upwelling in the NCSCS, four numerical experiments are conducted to explore the different effects of local winds, including the wind stress and wind stress curl, on the coastal upwelling in two typical strong summer upwelling regions of the NCSCS. The modeled results indicate that the summer upwelling is a seasonal common phenomenon during June–September in the NCSCS with the spatial extent of a basin-scale. Typical continental shelf upwelling characteristics are clearly shown in the coastal surface and subsurface water, such as low temperature, high salinity and high potential density in the east of the Hainan Island, the east of the Leizhou Peninsula and the southeast of the Zhanjiang Bay (noted as the Qiongdong-QD), and the inshore areas from the Shantou Coast to the Nanri Islands of the Fujian Coast (noted as the Yuedong-YD). The analysis of the QuikSCAT wind data and modeled upwelling index suggests that the local winds play significant roles in causing the coastal upwelling, but the alongshore wind stress and wind stress curl have different contributions to the upwelling in the Qiongdong (QDU) and the coastal upwelling in the Yuedong (YDU), respectively. Furthermore, model results from the numerical experiments show that in the YD the stable alongshore wind stress is a very important dynamic factor to induce the coastal upwelling but the wind stress curl has little contribution and even unfavorable to the YDU. However, in the QD the coastal upwelling is strongly linked to the local wind stress curl. It is also found that not only the offshore Ekman transport driven by the alongshore wind stress, the wind stress curl-induced Ekman pumping also plays a crucial effect on the QDU. Generally, the wind stress curl even has more contributions to the QDU than the alongshore wind stress.     

Wind-forced continental shelf waves from a geographical origin

The response of a barotropic coastal ocean on a step-shaped continental shelf to a traveling sinusoidal wind stress forcing is predicted theoretically using a frictional force proportional to the alongshore current velocity. This theory is compared to a small set of observations from the northeast coast of Australia where a sudden widening of the continental shelf provides a geographical origin. The comparison is accomplished by means of frequency response functions relating alongshore wind stress with alongshore velocity. Amplitudes of the response functions are predicted to increase with alongshore distance equatorward and also to decrease with frequency at any location. These predictions are verified by the measurements. Predicted phase lags are generally less than about 30°, with observations agreeing with theory to within about 20°C. In general, the measurements provide reasonable evidence to support the theory of wind-forced continental shelf waves from a geographical origin.     

Onset of the Iberian upwelling along the Galician coast

Through a set of observations including satellite, cruise and mooring data during May-July 1997 the transition between the downwelling and upwelling regimes off Galicia has been characterized. The poleward flow, typical of downwelling, was associated with a series of mesoscale eddies and interacted with coastal freshwater inputs. The poleward flow along the continental slope was separated into an offshore branch and a nearshore branch by a well-defined equatorward flow and both associated with a prominent salinity maximum. With the onset of upwelling-favorable winds, equatorward flow was established over the entire shelf. At the same time, a buoyant, warm surface layer spread out over the shelf from the Rías as water previously forced in by southerly winds was flushed out by the upwelling winds. The completed transition to summertime coastal upwelling took place after the cruise but was evident in satellite images. A conceptual model is used to demonstrate that the coastal orientation with respect to the upwelling winds enhances offshore flow outside the Rías and displaces the poleward flow offshore after several days of upwelling.     

An externally forced barotropic circulation model for the New York Bight

The sea level and the barotropic, frictional circulation response for the New York Bight are used to demonstrate the effects of external sea-level forcing, bathymetry, and variable friction. The governing equation is the steady, integrated vorticity equation and is computed by finite differencing over a curvilinear grid conforming to the 10- and 100-m isobaths and extending for 250 km alongshore. The boundary conditions are based on the hypothesis that the dynamics of the shelf are driven by the external sea-level gradient and the coastal no-flux condition; and consequently the conditions at the lateral boundaries are dependent thereon. Therefore, the external sea-level slope must be independently specified, and the lateral boundary conditions must be dependently generated. The diabathic component of the external sea slope forces the calm wind circulation by its effect on the transport through the upstream boundary; and the parabathic component has also an important modifying effect by forcing a shelf convergent transport. The parabathic sea slope at the coast is independent of its offshore value, being instead a direct product of the coastal boundary condition.The bottom friction is expressed as related to the sea level through a bottom length parameter and a veer angle, both of which are taken to increase shoreward. An additional bottom stress component, related to the surface stress, is determined for bottom depths less than the Ekman depth. Such bottom stress variability produces significant alterations in the nearshore flow field, over the constant bottom stress formulation, by reducing it and causing it to veer downgradient and downwind in the nearshore.The model is forced by different wind directions and the results are discussed. The circulations generally conform to the observed mean flow patterns, but with several smaller-scale features. The strong bathymetric feature of the Hudson Shelf Valley causes a polarized up- and downvalley flow for winds with an eastward or westward component, respectively. Under mean westerly winds, there is a divergence in the shelf valley flow at about the 60-m isobath. The Apex gyre existing off the western tip of Long Island becomes more extensive for winds changing from northeast to southwest. Mean flow reversals (to the northeast) occur off both Long Island and New Jersey for wind directions changing counterclockwise from northwest to southeast and from west to east, respectively. Southeastward transport over the outer New Jersey shelf tends to be enhanced by wind and external sea-level conditions; and the transport over the New Jersey midshelf, particularly in the lee of the shelf valley, tends to be weak and variable also under these mean conditions.     

A simulation of the Chilean Coastal Current and associated topographic upwelling near Valparaíso, Chile

A 4-year simulation of the surface circulation driven by the local wind on a section of the central Chilean coast is presented. The model is shown to reproduce the major observed features of the circulation. Comparison to observations of sea-surface temperature (SST) taken within the study area suggests that the model captures well coastal upwelling processes in the region. The circulation is shown to have two distinct modes corresponding to spring/summer and autumn/winter. During spring/summer sustained strong south-westerly wind forcing drives an equatorward coastal jet consistent with the Chile Coastal Current (CCC) and coastal upwelling at previously identified locations of intense upwelling at Topocalma Point and Curaumilla Point. Weaker winds during autumn/winter produce a slower CCC and a more homogenous SST field. Upwelling/relaxation and topographic eddies provide the main sources of variability on sub-seasonal time-scales in the model. The mechanisms responsible for each of these are discussed. Upwelling at Topocalma and Curaumilla Points is shown to be produced through generation of an upwelling Ekman bottom boundary layer following acceleration of the CCC close to the coast, reinforced by secondary circulation due to flow curvature around the headlands. Additional upwelling occurs north of Curaumilla Point due to development of shallow wind-driven overturning flow. Wind-sheltering is shown to be an important factor for explaining the fact that Valparaíso Bay is typically an upwelling shadow. Flow separation and eddy formation within Valparaíso Bay is seen to occur on the order of 10 times per year during relaxation after strong wind events and may persist for a number of weeks. Shorter lived topographic eddies are also seen to occur commonly at Topocalma and Toro Points. These eddies are shown to form in response to the surface elevation minima produced at each of these locations during upwelling.     

Seasonal variability of SST fronts and winds on the southeastern continental shelf of Brazil

Fourteen years (September 2002 to August 2016) of high-resolution satellite observations of sea surface temperature (SST) data are used to describe the frontal pattern and frontogenesis on the southeastern continental shelf of Brazil. The daily SST fronts are obtained using an edge-detection algorithm, and the monthly frontal probability (FP) is subsequently calculated. High SST FPs are mainly distributed along the coast and decrease with distance from the coastline. The results from empirical orthogonal function (EOF) decompositions reveal strong seasonal variability of the coastal SST FP with maximum (minimum) in the astral summer (winter). Wind plays an important role in driving the frontal activities, and high FPs are accompanied by strong alongshore wind stress and wind stress curl. This is particularly true during the summer, when the total transport induced by the alongshore component of upwelling-favorable winds and the wind stress curl reaches the annual maximum. The fronts are influenced by multiple factors other than wind forcing, such as the orientation of the coastline, the seafloor topography, and the meandering of the Brazil Current. As a result, there is a slight difference between the seasonality of the SST fronts and the wind, and their relationship was varying with spatial locations. The impact of the air-sea interaction is further investigated in the frontal zone, and large coupling coefficients are found between the crosswind (downwind) SST gradients and the wind stress curl (divergence). The analysis of the SST fronts and wind leads to a better understanding of the dynamics and frontogenesis off the southeastern continental shelf of Brazil, and the results can be used to further understand the air-sea coupling process at regional level.

     

Currents and upwelling along the Latium coasts in the Central Tyrrhenian Sea (western Mediterranean)

In this study, springtime coastal currents along the Latium coast and their relation to external forcings, mainly wind stress curl and atmospheric pressure, are analysed. As a main result, we find that hydrographical measurements reveal currents parallel to the bottom isobaths, but with isopycnal sloping upwards towards the coast, suggesting the importance of upwellings in determining the coastal currents. This is confirmed by thermal satellite data showing the presence of a \sim10-km-wide patch of cold water east of Mount Argentario, i.e. a cyclonic vortex. The current meter data give rather small values of the time-averaged alongshore velocities (\sim2 cm s⁻¹ for most current meters and \sim3 cm s⁻¹ for the current meter placed immediately off the Argentario) and also smaller values for the offshore velocities. The correlation between these two types of currents is rather poor; this is also due to the variability characteristic of a wind-induced upwelling. Finally, we obtain a value of 0.74 for the correlation between the alongshore current (first mode of Empirical Orthogonal Functions decomposition) and the wind stress if a 23-h time lag is assumed.     

Bifurcation of the Pacific North Equatorial Current in a wind-driven model: response to climatological winds

The sensitivity of the bifurcation of the North Equatorial Current in the Pacific to different wind products is investigated. Variations of the bifurcation latitude with season is simulated in a purely wind-driven model and is found to be in agreement with recent observations. The seasonal cycle is nearly independent of the wind climatology, but the annual average latitude depends on the wind stress curl. It is also shown that in the upper ocean, the poleward shift in bifurcation latitude with depth is realistic in our simple model. This implies that given a stratification close to the observed, it is primarily the wind forcing that determines the location of the bifurcation and its seasonal variation.     

SST observations of upwelling induced by tidal straining in the Rhine ROFI

In this paper SST imagery and a three-dimensional numerical model of a river plume were employed to detect upwelling induced by tidal straining in the Rhine ROFI (region of fresh water influence). Previous studies have shown that the Rhine ROFI in the North Sea exhibits strong cross-shore density gradients that compete with tidal and wind mixing to establish stratification. During neap periods with low mixing energy an area measuring 30 km offshore by 100 km alongshore becomes stratified. When the ROFI is stratified strong cross-shore currents are observed, with surface currents rotating anti-cyclonically and bottom currents rotating cyclonically. The cross-shore currents interact with the cross-shore density gradients to produce a semi-diurnal cycle of stratification. Due to continuity requirements imposed by the proximity of the coast, the offshore-directed surface currents and onshore-directed bottom currents should lead to coastal upwelling.     

Along-shelf evolution and sea levels across the continental slope

If wind-stress or a horizontal oceanic density gradient acts over an ocean basin with an adjacent continental shelf and slope, sea-surface slopes and currents are set up along the shelf and slope with a return flow in the ocean. The currents evolve from zero at blocked ends of the shelf and basin. Such evolution is essentially barotropic (even for baroclinic forcing) and is relevant to all flow adjustments after longshore changes of depth profile or forcing. The distance over which this evolution takes place is investigated analytically for simple geometries, and numerically for a range of shelf, slope and ocean widths, shelf/ocean depth ratios, frictional decay rates and oscillatory frequencies. A close correspondence is found with the decay distance (group velocity x decay time) for a lowest mode continental shelf wave, often exceeding 1000 km. This correspondence is used to interpret some published model calculations of shelf and slope currents or return flows resulting from wind-stress or alongshore pressure gradients.Where a slope current is evolving, coastal sea levels do not follow oceanic levels. Implications for coastal/oceanic level differences are discussed. Oceanic sea-level features of shorter scale than the above 1000 km (say) do not penetrate fully to the coast. However, coastal sea levels averaged around small islands without broad shelves well represent surrounding oceanic levels.     

Regional coupled ocean–atmosphere downscaling in the Southeast Pacific: impacts on upwelling, mesoscale air–sea fluxes, and ocean eddies

Ocean–atmosphere coupling in the Humboldt Current System (HCS) of the Southeast Pacific is studied using the Scripps Coupled Ocean–atmosphere Regional (SCOAR) model, which is used to downscale the National Center for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) Reanalysis-2 (RA2) product for the period 2000–2007 at 20-km resolution. An interactive 2-D spatial smoother within the sea-surface temperature (SST)–flux coupler is invoked in a separate run to isolate the impact of the mesoscale (～50–200 km, in the oceanic sense) SST field felt by the atmosphere in the fully coupled run. For the HCS, SCOAR produces seasonal wind stress and wind stress curl patterns that agree better with QuikSCAT winds than those from RA2. The SCOAR downscaled wind stress distribution has substantially different impacts on the magnitude and structure of wind-driven upwelling processes along the coast compared to RA2. Along coastal locations such as Arica and Taltal, SCOAR and RA2 produce seasonally opposite signs in the total wind-driven upwelling transport. At San Juan, SCOAR shows that upwelling is mainly due to coastal Ekman upwelling transport, while in RA2 upwelling is mostly attributed to Ekman pumping. Fully coupled SCOAR shows significant SST–wind stress coupling during fall and winter, while smoothed SCOAR shows insignificant coupling throughout, indicating the important role of ocean mesoscale eddies on air–sea coupling in HCS. Coupling between SST, wind speed, and latent heat flux is incoherent in large-scale coupling and full coupling mode. In contrast, coupling between these three variables is clearly identified for oceanic mesoscales, which suggests that mesoscale SST affects latent heat directly through the bulk formulation, as well as indirectly through stability changes on the overlying atmosphere, which affects surface wind speeds. The SST–wind stress and SST–heat-flux couplings, however, fail to produce a strong change in the ocean eddy statistics. No rectified effects of ocean–atmosphere coupling were identified for either the atmospheric or oceanic mean conditions, suggesting that mesoscale coupling is too weak in this region to strongly alter the basic climate state.     

Lagrangian circulation and forbidden zone on the West Florida Shelf

This paper presents some recent results of drifters released on the West Florida Shelf during 1996–1997 and compares with the numerical model results of the wind-driven circulation. Using satellite tracked surface drifters during the one year period from February 1996 to February 1997, a drifter free region, called the “forbidden zone”, is found over the southern portion of the West Florida Shelf. This finding is consistent with historical drift bottle data and with a recent numerical model study of the West Florida Shelf circulation response to climatological wind forcing. Direct drifter simulations by numerical model during March 1996 show a good agreement with both the in situ ADCP current observation and drifter observation. Three mechanisms are proposed for the observed Lagrangian features. The primarily dynamic mechanism is the along-shore wind forcing, which induces a coastal jet that tends to leave the coast and the bottom onshore and near surface offshore transports. The second one is the convergent coastal geometry and bottom topography for the southward flow in central shelf near Tampa Bay that enforces the coastal jet and the bottom and near surface transport. The last is a kinematic one, simply due to the short along-shore Lagrangian excursion, driven by the typical synoptic weather systems. Thus near surface shelf waters over the north may not reach the southern coast of the West Florida. Implication is that surface hazard such as oil spill that may occur outside of the southern West Florida shelf may not greatly impact the southern coastal region except Florida Keys. However, the biological and chemical patches over the north that may occur in the water column such as red tides still can easily reach the southern coastal region through the subsurface and bottom waters.     

Nearshore currents on the southern Namaqua shelf of the Benguela upwelling system

Nearshore currents of the southern Namaqua shelf were investigated using data from a mooring situated three and a half kilometres offshore of Lambert's Bay, downstream of the Cape Columbine upwelling cell, on the west coast of South Africa. This area is susceptible to harmful algal blooms (HABs) and wind-forced variations in currents and water column structure are critical in determining the development, transport and dissipation of blooms. Time series of local wind data, and current and temperature profile data are described for three periods, considered to be representative of the latter part of the upwelling season (27 January–22 February), winter conditions (5–29 May) and the early part of the upwelling season (10 November–12 December) in 2005. Differences observed in mean wind strength and direction between data sets are indicative of seasonal changes in synoptic meteorological conditions. These quasi-seasonal variations in wind forcing affect nearshore current flow, leading to mean northward flow in surface waters early in the upwelling season when equatorward, upwelling-favourable winds are persistent. Mean near-surface currents are southward during the latter part of the upwelling season, consistent with more prolonged periods of relaxation from equatorward winds, and under winter conditions when winds were predominantly poleward. Within these seasonal variations in mean near-surface current direction, two scales of current variability were evident within all data sets: strong inertial oscillations were driven by diurnal winds and introduced vertical shear into the water column enhancing mixing across the thermocline, while sub-inertial current variability was driven by north–south wind reversals at periods of 2–5 days. Sub-inertial currents were found to lag wind reversals by approximately 12 h, with a tendency for near-surface currents to flow poleward in the absence of wind forcing. Consistent with similar sites along the Californian and Iberian coasts, the headland at Cape Columbine is considered to influence currents and circulation patterns during periods of relaxation from upwelling-favourable winds, favouring the development of a nearshore poleward current, leading to poleward advection of warm water, the development of stratification, and the creation of potentially favourable conditions for HAB development.     

A numerical study of the dynamics of the wave-driven circulation within a fringing reef system

The circulation driven by wave breaking, tides and winds within a fringing coral reef system (Ningaloo Reef) in Western Australia was investigated using the ocean circulation model ROMS two-way coupled to the wave model SWAN. Currents within the system were dominantly forced by wave breaking, with flow driven over the shallow reefs and towards the lagoon, which returned to the ocean through channels in the reef. Hindcast model simulations were compared against an extensive field dataset, revealing that the coupled wave–circulation model could accurately predict the waves and currents throughout this morphologically complex reef–lagoon system. A detailed momentum budget analysis showed that, over the reef, a dominant cross-shore balance was established between radiation stress gradients and a pressure (mean water level) gradient (similar to a beach). Within the lagoon, alongshore currents were primarily balanced by alongshore gradients in wave setup, which drove flow towards (and ultimately out) the channels. The importance of these wave-driven currents to Ningaloo Reef was quantified over a full seasonal cycle, during periods when wave and wind conditions significantly differed. These results showed that wave breaking still overwhelmingly dominated the circulation and flushing of Ningaloo Reef throughout the year, with winds playing an insignificant role.     

Baroclinic and topographic influences on the transport in western boundary currents

Abstract

One of the central unsolved theoretical problems of the large scale ocean circulation is concerned with explaining the very large transports measured in western boundary currents such as the Gulf Stream and the Kuroshio. The only theory up to now that can explain the size of these transports is that of non-linear recirculation in which the advective terms in the momentum equations became important near the western boundary. In this paper an alternative explanation is suggested. When bottom topography and baroclinic effects are included in a wind-driven ocean model it is shown that the western boundary current can have a transport larger than that predicted from the wind stress distribution even when the nonlinear advective terms are ignored. The explanation lies in the presence of pressure torques associated with bottom topography which can contribute to the vorticity balance in the same sense as the wind stress curl.

Three numerical experiments have been carried out to explore the nature of this process using a three dimensional numerical model. The first calculation is done for a baroclinic ocean of constant depth, the second for a homogeneous ocean with an idealized continental slope topography, and the third for a baroclinic ocean with the same continental slope topography. The nature of the vorticity balance and of the circulation around closed paths is examined in each case, and it is shown that bottom pressure torques lead to enhanced transport in the western boundary current only for the baroclinic case with variable depth.     

A numerical study of island wakes in the Southern California Bight

With the existence of eight substantial islands in the Southern California Bight, the oceanic circulation is significantly affected by island wakes. In this paper a high-resolution numerical model (on a 1 km grid), forced by a high-resolution wind (2 km), is used to study the wakes. Island wakes arise due both to currents moving past islands and to wind wakes that force lee currents in response. A comparison between simulations with and without islands shows the surface enstrophy (i.e., area-integrated square of the vertical component of vorticity at the surface) decreases substantially when the islands in the oceanic model are removed, and the enstrophy decrease mainly takes place in the areas around the islands. Three cases of wake formation and evolution are analyzed for the Channel Islands, San Nicolas Island, and Santa Catalina Island. When flows squeeze through gaps between the Channel Islands, current shears arise, and the bottom drag makes a significant contribution to the vorticity generation. Downstream the vorticity rolls up into submesoscale eddies. When the California Current passes San Nicolas Island from the northwest, a relatively strong flow forms over the shelf break on the northeastern coast and gives rise to a locally large bottom stress that generates anticyclonic vorticity, while on the southwestern side, with an adverse flow pushing the main wake current away from the island, positive vorticity has been generated and a cyclonic eddy detaches into the wake. When the northward Southern California Countercurrent passes the irregular shape of Santa Catalina Island, cyclonic eddies form on the southeastern coast of the island, due primarily to lateral stress rather than bottom stress; they remain coherent as they detach and propagate downstream, and thus they are plausible candidates for the submesoscale “spirals on the sea” seen in many satellite images. Finally, the oceanic response to wind wakes is analyzed in a spin-up experiment with a time-invariant wind that exhibits strips of both positive and negative curl in the island lee. Corresponding vorticity strips in the ocean develop through the mechanism of Ekman pumping.     

A model of secondary upwelling over the shelf break. II

Abstract

In this unsteady barotropic model of the circulation over an oceanic continental shelf and shelf break, account is taken of variations in the surface wind stress along the coast. It is found that the position of maximum onshore flow is very sensitive to the alongshore variation of the wind stress, and that the longshore current becomes more influenced by the shelf break as the wind stress decreases.

The relation between the shelf break secondary upwelling and the surface wind stress is investigated. The secondary upwelling is greatest when the wind is increasing most rapidly.     

Thermospheric response to ion heating in the dayside cusp

Recent observations from the CHAMP satellite indicate that neutral density enhancements are common in the northern dayside cusp. The neutral density in this region can be nearly a factor of 2 larger than in adjacent regions of the thermosphere on the poleward and equatorward sides of the cusp. The presence of density enhancements implies that the neutral atmosphere is being heated in the cusp region causing upwelling. A high-resolution model of the global thermosphere is used to study the thermospheric response to heating in the northern dayside cusp. It is found that heating in the cusp results in the creation of a neutral fountain. Specifically, upward drift of the thermosphere within the cusp region is followed at higher altitudes by poleward and equatorward movement out of the cusp region and the gradual subsidence of the neutral gas. Density enhancements of the magnitude observed by the CHAMP satellite occur in the model results for sufficiently strong heating in the cusp. Neutral temperature enhancements also occur and are strongest near the poleward and equatorward boundaries of the cusp region.     

Steep latitudinal gradients of thermospheric composition during magnetic storms: a possible formation mechanism

Mass spectrometer satellite observations show that a narrow region with steep latitudinal gradients of neutral composition is formed in the subauroral winter thermosphere during magnetic storms. In order to analyze the relative importance of individual terms in the continuity equation for atomic oxygen, a two-dimensional model was used to simulate the thermospheric disturbance formation in response to intense Joule heating imposed in the auroral oval. Such an approach allowed three characteristic zones to be distinguished in the high-latitude thermosphere at heights of about 250 km. It was shown that vertical transport is of greatest importance within the local heating region. Horizontal transport dominates at subauroral latitudes near the mid-night edge of the auroral oval. Propagation of the disturbances to middle latitudes is prohibited near the noon edge of the oval by a strong counteraction of a poleward meridional wind. Here is a “relaxation zone” defined as the region which is spread to the equator from the boundary between the local heating area and the subauroral zone in the noon sector LT. It is at this boundary that composition distributions with steep latitudinal gradient are formed within the first few hours of Joule heating source action. Perturbations transported to middle latitudes during the periods when the meridional wind is directed equatorward begin to relax in this zone with a characteristic time scale of about 7 h, independent of season. However, in winter, composition at subauroral latitudes recovers to unperturbed N₂/O values before the wind again turns equatorward, giving rise to a distribution with steep latitudinal gradient recovering. In summer, a complete relaxation cannot be reached due to a shorter time interval with poleward wind and a larger disturbance amplitude. These two factors result in an effective smoothing of the initial steep gradient and a more regular latitudinal distribution of composition is observed in the summer thermosphere.