Seasonal export of South Atlantic Bight and Mid-Atlantic Bight shelf waters at Cape Hatteras

Savidge, Dana K.; Savidge, William B.

doi:10.1016/j.csr.2013.12.008

Cited by 12 publications

(22 citation statements)

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“…Summer maxima in ESPreSSO SW water volume transport were consistent with field observations that show a northward flow into the MAB [ Savidge and Bane , ; Savidge and Savidge , ]. The CS export flux near Cape Hatteras likely includes the export of SAB shelf water in addition to MAB shelf water in approximately equal proportions with a maximum amount of SAB shelf water export occurring during summer [ Savidge and Savidge , ]. The cross‐shelf transport of water onto the shelf from offshore for the region south of Cape Hatteras found in ESPreSSO (Figure a) has been observed along the Hatteras Front during fall and winter [ Savidge , ; Savidge et al ., ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 90%

“…The greatest discrepancy in volume transport was found at the SW boundary, where the northward alongshore flow from ESPreSSO (0.48 Sv) was substantially larger than field observations (0.1 to 0.24 Sv) [ Flagg , ; Beardsley and Boicourt , ; Savidge and Bane , ]. This can be attributed to the more southern location of the SW boundary (just north of Cape Lookout) than field observations (near Cape Hatteras) as well as the complex circulation dynamics within the southern MAB and northern South Atlantic Bight (SAB) [ Savidge and Bane , ; Churchill and Gawarkiewicz , ; Savidge and Savidge , ]. The net cross‐shelf water volume transport for the entire MAB boundary from ESPreSSO (−1.09 Sv) was similar to the range of values from the observational literature (−0.14 to −1.3 Sv), which includes export through filaments (−0.1 to −0.9 Sv) [ Lillibridge et al ., ; Joyce et al ., ] and eddies (−0.13 Sv) [ Churchill et al ., ] (Table and Figure a).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This convergence forces MAB (and SAB) shelf water to flow offshore (to the northeast) [ Churchill and Gawarkiewicz , ]. Summer maxima in ESPreSSO SW water volume transport were consistent with field observations that show a northward flow into the MAB [ Savidge and Bane , ; Savidge and Savidge , ]. The CS export flux near Cape Hatteras likely includes the export of SAB shelf water in addition to MAB shelf water in approximately equal proportions with a maximum amount of SAB shelf water export occurring during summer [ Savidge and Savidge , ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Dissolved organic carbon fluxes in the Middle Atlantic Bight: An integrated approach based on satellite data and ocean model products

et al. 2016

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Continental margins play an important role in global carbon cycle, accounting for 15-21% of the global marine primary production. Since carbon fluxes across continental margins from land to the open ocean are not well constrained, we undertook a study to develop satellite algorithms to retrieve dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and combined these satellite data with physical circulation model products to quantify the shelf boundary fluxes of DOC for the U.S. Middle Atlantic Bight (MAB). Satellite DOC was computed through seasonal relationships of DOC with colored dissolved organic matter absorption coefficients, which were derived from an extensive set of in situ measurements. The multiyear time series of satellite-derived DOC stocks (4.9 Teragrams C; Tg) shows that freshwater discharge influences the magnitude and seasonal variability of DOC on the continental shelf. For the 2010-2012 period studied, the average total estuarine export of DOC into the MAB shelf is 0.77 Tg C yr (year). The integrated DOC tracer fluxes across the shelf boundaries are 12.1 Tg C yr entering the MAB from the southwest alongshore boundary, 18.5 Tg C yr entering the MAB from the northeast alongshore boundary, and 29.0 Tg C yr flowing out of the MAB across the entire length of the 100 m isobath. The magnitude of the cross-shelf DOC flux is quite variable in time (monthly) and space (north to south). The highly dynamic exchange of water along the shelf boundaries regulates the DOC budget of the MAB at subseasonal time scales.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 90%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Dissolved organic carbon fluxes in the Middle Atlantic Bight: An integrated approach based on satellite data and ocean model products

et al. 2016

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“…Recent evidence (Guerrero et al, 2014) also suggests that comparable features are likely to exist off the eastern coast of South America where the Brazil Current also turns offshore. As is the case with offshore eddies, there have been questions as to how effective these withdrawals are in terms of shelf water balances, but focused field programs (e.g., Savidge and Savidge, 2014) are shedding a good deal of light on this subject.…”

Section: Mesoscale Structuresmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cross-Shelf Exchange

Brink

2016

Annu. Rev. Mar. Sci.

120

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Abstract:Cross-shelf exchange dominates the pathways and rates by which nutrients, biota and materials on the continental shelf are delivered and removed. These transports are limited by Earth's rotation, which inhibits flow from crossing isobaths. Thus, cross-shelf transports are generally weak compared to alongshore flows, and this leads to interesting observational issues. Cross-shelf flows are enabled by turbulent mixing processes, by nonlinear processes (such as momentum advection), and by time-dependence. Thus, there is a wide range of possible effects that can allow these critical transports, and different natural settings are often governed by differing mixes of processes. Examples of representative transport mechanisms are discussed, and possible observational and theoretical paths to future progress are explored.

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“…Cape Hatteras, NC, the dividing point between the Middle Atlantic Bight (MAB) and South Atlantic Bight (SAB) along the US East Coast, is an active region for shelf-open ocean exchanges due to the confluent western boundary currents and convergence of the adjacent shelf and slope waters (Verity et al 2002;Jahnke 2010). It has long been recognized that a large amount of carbon-rich shelf water is exported from the shelf near Cape Hatteras (Fisher 1972;Churchill and Berger 1998;Savidge and Bane 2001;Gawarkiewicz 2012, 2014;Savidge and Savidge 2014). Exported shelf waters that have been entrained along the northern edge of the Gulf Stream have been observed hundreds of kilometers downstream of Cape Hatteras and are commonly referred to as 'Ford Waters' (Church 1937;Ford et al 1952;Kupferman and Garfield 1977;Lillibridge et al 1990).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Shelf Water Cascading Event near Cape Hatteras

Han

Seim

Bane

et al. 2021

Journal of Physical Oceanography

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Carbon-rich Middle Atlantic Bight (MAB) and South Atlantic Bight (SAB) shelf waters typically converge on the continental shelf near Cape Hatteras. Both are often exported to the adjacent open ocean in this region. During a survey of the region in mid-January 2018, there was no sign of shelf water export at the surface. Instead, a subsurface layer of shelf water with high chlorophyll and dissolved oxygen was observed at the edge of the Gulf Stream east of Cape Hatteras. Strong cooling over the MAB and SAB shelves in early January led to shelf waters being denser than offshore surface waters. Driven by the density gradient, the denser shelf waters cascaded beneath the Gulf Stream and were subsequently entrained into the Gulf Stream, as they were advected northeastward. Underwater glider observations 80 km downstream of the export location captured 0.44 Sv of shelf waters transported along the edge of the Gulf Stream in January 2018. In total, as much as 7×106 kg of carbon was exported from the continental shelf to a greater depth in the open ocean during this 5-day-long cascading event. Earlier observations of near-bottom temperature and salinity at a depth of 230 m captured several multiday episodes of shelf water at a location that was otherwise dominated by Gulf Stream water, indicating that the January 2018 cascading event was not unique. Cascading is an important, yet little-studied pathway of carbon export and sequestration at Cape Hatteras.

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Seasonal export of South Atlantic Bight and Mid-Atlantic Bight shelf waters at Cape Hatteras

Cited by 12 publications

References 35 publications

Dissolved organic carbon fluxes in the Middle Atlantic Bight: An integrated approach based on satellite data and ocean model products

Dissolved organic carbon fluxes in the Middle Atlantic Bight: An integrated approach based on satellite data and ocean model products

Cross-Shelf Exchange

A Shelf Water Cascading Event near Cape Hatteras

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