This Figure shows the time evolution of various transports at 90W in the Gulf of Mexico in the high resolution MICOM simulation. The vertical solid line represents the ejection events. Two consecutive solid lines means that the Loop Current (LC) ring reattached. The dashed line shows the end of the cycle, which means that the LC returned to its port to port regime. The dotted line indicates that a small ring was ejected and that the LC didn't return to its port to port regime before the next ejection. Positive (negative) transport is eastward (westward).
In the upper panel, the net transport, and the transport below and above layer 12 are displayed. Globally, the frequency of the eastward tranports is higher above layer 12 while higher for the westward transport in the deep layers.
In the two lower panels we separate transport between the northern and southern halves of the GOM. The middle panel shows the eastward transports in the northern and southern side (bold lines) and above layer 12 (thin dashed lines). The lower panel shows the westward transports. A comparison between the two lower panels yields the strongest transports being to the west in the south in the lower panel. Each peak in the transport is associated with the passage of a LC ring. Most of the eastward events occur in the northern half of the GOM while the westward events occur in the southern half of the GOM since the rings rotate clockwise. So the eastward (westward) transport dominates in the northern (southern) half.
Moreover, most of the transport takes place above layer 12 (the average transport are shown in the Table below) with some exceptions during the passage of the rings since the difference between the total transport and the transport above layer 12 increases. This means that the deep ciculation is strongly influenced by the LC rings.
Finally, these plots show that both the cyclonic and anticyclonic circulation exist. But the anticyclonic circulation forced by the LC rings is the strongest. The eastward (westward) transport in the south (north) is weaker than in the north (south) (see Table below).
| Eastward | Westward | Eastward ab. l. 12 | Westward ab. l. 12 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| North | 12.05 | -8.56 | 8.37 | -5.17 |
| South | 7.19 | -10.78 | 4.03 | -6.99 |
The net mean transport is 0.08Sv with a weak eastward component above layer 12 (0.26Sv) and a westward one below layer 12 (-0.17Sv).