CONTRIBUTION FROM ALTIMETRY TO THE STUDY OF OCEANIC EDDIES: A REGIONAL APPLICATION TO THE BAY OF BISCAY AND NW MEDITERRANEAN

摘要

Based on the analysis of mesoscale eddy propertiesrnfrom the wavelet analysis of along-track altimetry data,rnregional sea level maps have been computed.rnThese maps allow a better representation of eddyrndynamics. The derived surface geostrophic currentrnanomalies and Eddy Kinetic Energy (EKE) arerncompared to in-situ measurments. Finite-Size LyapunovrnExponents (FSLE), characterizing surface stirring, are tornfronts detected on MODIS SST images.rnSeasonal variability of the enhanced EKE and FSLErnfields are analysed, reaching maximum in winter alongrnthe North Iberian slope after slope current (Navidad)rnevents. This energy then propagate offshore, peaking inrnMay in deeper waters. Submesoscale variability isrnshown to play a potential role on EKE decay offshore.rnFinally, some of the outcomes for biological studies andrnregional modeling are found from this study.