On the presence of a coastal current of Levantine intermediate water in the central Tyrrhenian sea

The hydrological structure and the seasonal variability of marine currents in the Tyrrhenian Sea, off the coasts of Latium, are analysed using a data set obtained during several cruises between February 1988 and August 1990. Of particular interest is the fact that the hydrological surveys show the intermittent presence of a current of Levantine Intermediate Water (LIW) flowing anticlockwise along the Italian slope, at 250–700 m. This current is of particular importance in inferring the pathways of the Levantine Intermediate Water in the western Mediterranean Sea and in particular in the Tyrrhenian basin, downstream of the Strait of Sicily. These phenomena remain an open problem: our observations give support to the Millot's proposed general scheme, on the existence of a general cyclonic circulation of the LIW from the Strait of Sicily to the western Mediterranean, as opposed to a direct injection of LIW towards the Algerian basin.