Premium
Direct measurement of volume flux in the Faroe‐Shetland Channel and over the Iceland‐Faroe Ridge
Author(s) -
Rossby T.,
Flagg C. N.
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
geophysical research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.007
H-Index - 273
eISSN - 1944-8007
pISSN - 0094-8276
DOI - 10.1029/2012gl051269
Subject(s) - shetland , ridge , geology , oceanography , channel (broadcasting) , current (fluid) , acoustic doppler current profiler , paleontology , electrical engineering , engineering
Determining the exchange of water across the Iceland‐Faroe‐Scotland ridge is of fundamental interest because it measures the rate of transformation of North Atlantic water into dense water and thus the strength of the meridional overturning circulation (MOC). Here we study this exchange by monitoring all water flowing through the area east of Iceland to near the bottom or ∼600 m depth using a 75 kHz acoustic Doppler current profiler (ADCP) mounted on the high‐seas ferry M/F Norröna. Starting in March 2008, currents have been measured in the Faroe‐Shetland Channel (FSC) and along the Iceland‐Faroe Ridge (IFR) on the ferry's weekly round‐trips between Iceland and Denmark. The detided average transports (to the north) across the two sections are 4.1 ± 0.1 Sv (10 6 m 2 s −1 ) through the FSC and 4.4 ± 0.25 Sv across the IFR (this excludes ∼1.6 Sv circulating around the Faroes). The Norröna program is ongoing.