Wavenumber spectra of along‐track Sea Surface Height from the most recent satellite radar altimetry missions [Jason‐2, Cryosat‐2, and SARAL/Altika) are used to determine the size of ocean dynamical features observable with the present altimetry constellation. A global analysis of the along‐track 1‐D mesoscale resolution capability of the present‐day altimeter missions is proposed, based on a joint analysis of the spectral slopes in the mesoscale band and the error levels observed for horizontal wavelengths lower than 20km. The global sea level spectral slope distribution provided by Xu and Fu () with Jason‐1 data is revisited with more recent altimeter missions, and maps of altimeter error levels are provided and discussed for each mission. Seasonal variations of both spectral slopes and altimeter error levels are also analyzed for Jason‐2. SARAL/Altika, with its lower error levels, is shown to detect smaller structures everywhere. All missions show substantial geographical and temporal variations in their mesoscale resolution capabilities, with variations depending mostly on the error level change but also on slight regional changes in the spectral slopes. In western boundary currents where the signal to noise ratio is favorable, the along‐track mesoscale resolution is approximately 40 km for SARAL/AltiKa, 45 km for Cryosat‐2, and 50 km for Jason‐2. Finally, a prediction of the future 2‐D mesoscale sea level resolution capability of the Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) mission is given using a simulated error level.

In the four major Eastern Boundary Upwelling Systems (EBUS), mesoscale eddies are known to modulate the biological productivity and transport near‐coastal seawater properties toward the offshore ocean, however little is known about their main characteristics and vertical structure. This study combines 10 years of satellite‐altimetry data and Argo float profiles of temperature and salinity, and our main goals are (i) to describe the main surface characteristics of long‐lived eddies formed in each EBUS and their evolution, and (ii) to depict the main vertical structure of the eddy‐types that coexist in these regions. A clustering analysis of the Argo profiles surfacing within the long‐lived eddies of each EBUS allows us to determine the proportion of surface and subsurface‐intensified eddies in each region, and to describe their vertical structure in terms of temperature, salinity and dynamic height anomalies. In the Peru‐Chile Upwelling System, 55% of the sampled anticyclonic eddies (AEs) have subsurface‐intensified maximum temperature and salinity anomalies below the seasonal pycnocline, whereas 88% of the cyclonic eddies (CEs) are surface‐intensified. In the California Upwelling System, only 30% of the AEs are subsurface‐intensified and all of the CEs show maximum anomalies above the pycnocline. In the Canary Upwelling System, ∼40% of the AEs and ∼60% of the CEs are subsurface‐intensified with maximum anomalies extending down to 800 m depth. Finally, the Benguela Upwelling System tends to generate ∼40–50% of weak surface‐intensified eddies and ∼50–60% of much stronger subsurface‐intensified eddies with a clear geographical distribution. The mechanisms involved in the observed eddy vertical shapes are discussed.

[1] Satellite altimetry is used to study the propagation pathways of warm and cold ocean eddies in different ocean basins. We consider eddies that have a life span longer than 3 months, and we present three regional studies: in the southeast Indian, the southeast Atlantic, and the northeast Pacific Oceans. The case studies show that simple theories for vortex propagation on a b-plane work in regions where energetic eddies propagate though a weak background flow. Under these conditions, anticyclonic/cyclonic eddies propagate westward and equatorward/poleward. This divergence in the eddy pathways implies a net equatorward eddy heat flux, and has implications for the meridional transport of freshwater, carbon, nutrients, etc.