[1] We present a set of new current meter measurements collected to monitor the Malvinas Current (MC) near its merger with the Brazil Current at 40-41°S from December 2001 to February 2003 below a Jason-1 altimeter track. These measurements are compared to former measurements obtained 8 years earlier at the same location; they also provide new information on the core of the MC on the continental slope above the 1000-m isobath where a mooring had been previously lost. There, most of the velocity variation is along-isobath (80% of the variance) and shows a significant annual cycle. The two data sets provide coherent means and statistical parameters on the vertical structure of the flow. A 14-year-long time series of MC volume transport is derived using satellite altimetry. The good correlation between the altimetry-derived transport and the transport estimated from the current meter data persists in time (over 0.7 for each measurement period). A spectacular shift in the spectral composition of transport variations was observed: from 1992 until the end of 1997 transport variations occurred at rather short periods (50-90 days and to some degree around 180 days) whereas, after year 2000, longer periods including a seasonal cycle predominated. Altimetry-derived anomalies of surface geostrophic velocities along the core of the MC show a similar shift in spectral composition suggesting a remote-forcing origin.

ABSTRACT1. Marine areas beyond national jurisdiction (ABNJ) comprise most of Earth's interconnected ocean, hosting complex ecosystems that play key roles in sustaining life and providing important goods and services.2. Although ABNJ encompass nearly half the planet's surface, biological diversity found in these areas remains largely unprotected. Mounting pressures generated by the escalation of human activities in ABNJ threaten vital ecosystem services and the fragile web of life that supports them.3. Marine protected areas (MPAs) are widely acknowledged as an important tool for the conservation of biological diversity. Currently less than 1% of ABNJ are protected, with the vast majority of MPAs located in waters within national jurisdiction.4. The existing legal framework for protection and sustainable use of ABNJ lacks common goals, principles or standards, multi-sectoral coordination and comprehensive geographic coverage to ensure conservation or good governance grounded in science-based decision-making, transparency, accountability and effective enforcement.