Abstract.Description of the shelfbreak front in the Middle Atlantic Bight is hampered by the extreme variability of the front. In order to gain insight into both the seasonal variability and regional variations in the mean frontal structure and associated baroclinic jet, historical data are used to produce twodimensional climatological fields of temperature and salinity for the region south of Nantucket shoals, along the south flank of Georges Bank, and off the coast of New Jersey.
[1] The seasonality of various characteristics of the detached bottom boundary layer of the Middle Atlantic Bight shelfbreak front is examined using a collection of highresolution transects across the front. The analysis follows previous methodology in which accumulated temperature change along isopycnals within the front is used to infer the location of the detached layer. The seasonal mean isopycnal at which detachment occurs (approximately 26.0 kg m À3 ) is fairly constant throughout the year. However, the vertical scale of the detached layer varies significantly with season, extending 60À80 m above the bottom in winter and spring, but only 20À40 m above the bottom in summer. The vertical scale is controlled by the strength and depth of the seasonal pycnocline. The observations suggest that the detached layer is capable of extending into the euphotic zone during winter and spring.
A high‐resolution hydrographic transect across the shelfbreak south of Nantucket Shoals in August, 1995, revealed an unusual surface‐trapped intrusion of saline Slope water onto the continental shelf. The intrusion was confined to the upper 25 m of the water column and penetrated 15 km shoreward of the 100‐m isobath, the typical position of the shelfbreak front. The maximum salinity within the intrusion was 35.0. Several strong jets were present within the surface layer with maximum velocities between 0.30 and 0.44 m s−1 in the alongshelf direction. Satellite thermal imagery confirms the presence of a warm‐core ring at the offshore edge of the section and shows a warm feature penetrating shoreward of the 100‐m isobath.
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