We present results from an experimental investigation of the interaction between a shelf break jet and a submarine canyon and of the response of this system to a single upwelling favorable wind event. The field site was Carson Canyon, located at the edge of the Grand Bank of Newfoundland. The shelf break jet is the Labrador Current. The time‐averaged current measurements indicate that the interaction between the Labrador Current and the canyon topography is nonlinear and that the mean current crosses isobaths to flow into the canyon on the upstream side but is steered off shelf on the downstream side. The mean flow vorticity balance in the near field and far field is examined, using a two‐layer model with the lower layer at rest. In the far field we obtain an interesting result which suggests that the cross‐stream shear in combination with bottom friction can drive a significant on‐shelf flow. This flow is equivalent to a volume transport of about 60 m3 s−1 per 100 m of along‐shelf distance, which is comparable to typical wind‐driven Ekman transports on and off continental shelves and which appears to have important implications for the on‐off‐shelf transport of icebergs in the Grand Banks region. In the near field the Rossby number is of order unity and bottom friction is less important. Many of the observed flow properties can be explained qualitatively in terms of an upstream inertial boundary layer and potential vorticity conservation. The time‐dependent response to upwelling favorable winds was registered by current meters in the canyon and at the shelf break at the canyon perimeter. These observations indicate an amplified upwelling response at the shelf break and vertical ascent rates within the canyon of about 0.7 cm s−1.
