Article (Scientific journals)
Spiral eddies in the Baltic, Black and Caspian seas as seen by satellite radar data
Karimova, Svetlana
2012In Advances in Space Research, 50 (8), p. 1107-1124
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Abstract :
[en] Despite spiral eddies were first seen on the sea surface more than 40 years ago, there is still a lot of uncertainty concerning these eddies. The present paper is aimed to provide the comprehensive results on the occurrence and statistics of small-scale eddies in the three inner seas (the Baltic, Black and Caspian) using satellite synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images. The dataset used includes over 2,000 medium resolution Envisat ASAR and ERS-2 SAR images obtained in 2009-2010 in the different parts of the seas mentioned. As a result of the analysis performed ~14,000 vortical structures were detected. 71% of them were visualized due to surfactant films (“black” eddies), while 29% due to wave/current interactions (“white” eddies). Practically all eddies detected were cyclonically rotating. Their diameter was within 1-20 km. Characteristic size of the “black” eddies in all the basins was discovered to be less than that of the “white” eddies. Characteristic eddy size for the Baltic, Black and Caspian seas proved to be strictly proportional to the values of the baroclinic Rossby radius of deformation typical for these basins. The “black” eddies did not demonstrate a significant connection with the basin- and meso-scale surface circulation of the seas. Most of the “white” eddies detected were attributed to the zones with the most intense drift currents, i.e. those along the western boundaries and (in the Baltic Sea only) in the elongated parts of the basin.
Disciplines :
Earth sciences & physical geography
Author, co-author :
Karimova, Svetlana ;  Université de Liège - ULiège > Département d'astrophys., géophysique et océanographie (AGO) > GeoHydrodynamics and Environment Research (GHER)
Language :
English
Title :
Spiral eddies in the Baltic, Black and Caspian seas as seen by satellite radar data
Publication date :
15 October 2012
Journal title :
Advances in Space Research
ISSN :
0273-1177
eISSN :
1879-1948
Publisher :
Pergamon Press, Oxford, United Kingdom
Volume :
50
Issue :
8
Pages :
1107-1124
Peer reviewed :
Peer Reviewed verified by ORBi
Available on ORBi :
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