Climatological Hydrographic Properties and Water Mass Transports in the Balearic Channels From Repeated Observations Over 1996–2019

Vargas‐Yáñez, Manuel; Juza, Mélanie; Balbín, Rosa; Vélez‐Belchí, P.; García-Martínez, M.C.; Moyá, Francina; Hernández‐Guerra, Alonso

doi:10.3389/fmars.2020.568602

Cited by 15 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 34 publications

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“…In agreement with previous studies (e.g. Lascaratos et al, 1993;Bergamasco and Malanotte-Rizzoli, 2010;Millot, 2013;Hayes et al, 2019;Vargas-Yáñez et al, 2020), we confirmed the mean zonal gradients of the AW and LIW properties over the Mediterranean Sea: AW becomes saltier, warmer, and deeper moving eastward, while LIW becomes fresher, colder, and deeper moving westward. These results not only match the present literature but also provide a more detailed view of these water masses over eight sub-basins.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

“…Among these, AW and LIW are usually referred to the minimum and maximum salinity in the surface and intermediate layers of the water column, respectively (e.g. Millot and Taupier-Letage, 2005;Bergamasco and Malanotte-Rizzoli, 2010;Mauri et al, 2019;Juza et al, 2019;Kokkini et al, 2019;Vargas-Yáñez et al, 2020). However, different approaches can also be found in the literature.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The properties of the LIW core in the WMED are commonly referred to the following ranges of potential density, temperature, salinity and depth, respectively: [38.4-38.8], and D = [200-600] m (e.g. Millot, 2013;Hayes et al, 2019;Vargas-Yáñez et al, 2020). In contrast, in the EMED these properties span over different values: σ θ = [28.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Characterization of the Atlantic Water and Levantine Intermediate Water in the Mediterranean Sea using 20 years of Argo data

et al. 2022

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Abstract. Atlantic Water (AW) and Levantine Intermediate Water (LIW) are important water masses that play a crucial role in the internal variability of the Mediterranean thermohaline circulation. To be more specific, their variability and interaction, along with other water masses that characterize the Mediterranean basin, such as the Western Mediterranean Deep Water (WMDW), contribute to modify the Mediterranean Outflow through the Strait of Gibraltar, and hence they may influence the stability of the global thermohaline circulation. This work aims to characterize AW and LIW in the Mediterranean Sea, taking advantage of the large observational dataset (freely available on https://argo.ucsd.edu, https://www.ocean-ops.org, last access: 17 January 2022; Wong et al., 2020) provided by Argo floats from 2001 to 2019. AW and LIW were identified using different diagnostic methods, highlighting the inter-basin variability and the strong zonal gradient that both denote the two water masses in this marginal sea. Their temporal variability was also investigated over the last 2 decades, providing a more robust view of AW and LIW characteristics, which have only been investigated using very short periods in previous studies due to a lack of data. A clear salinification and warming trend characterize AW and LIW over the last 2 decades (∼ 0.007 ± 0.140 and 0.006 ± 0.038 yr−1; 0.026 ± 0.715 and 0.022 ± 0.232 ∘C yr−1, respectively). The salinity and temperature trends found at sub-basin scale are in good agreement with previous results. The strongest trends are found in the Adriatic basin in the properties of both AW and LIW.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Characterization of the Atlantic Water and Levantine Intermediate Water in the Mediterranean Sea using 20 years of Argo data

et al. 2022

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“…The sub-regional distributions of Ta, Sa, and ρa profiles are characterized by their median to estimate the vertical propagation of MHW. This statistical approach is appropriate since the distributions of ocean hydrographic properties are not Gaussian (Vargas-Yáñez et al, 2020;Juza and Tintoré, 2021). Note that the median estimations are computed when a minimum of three profiles are available in the sub-regions.…”

Section: Marine Heat Wave Anomaly Profilesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sub-Regional Marine Heat Waves in the Mediterranean Sea From Observations: Long-Term Surface Changes, Sub-Surface and Coastal Responses

2022

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Society is facing climate-related challenges and impacts, such as marine heat wave (MHW) events that adversely affect ecosystems, threaten economies and strengthen storms by warming ocean waters. MHWs are substantially increasing in intensity, duration and frequency worldwide, particularly in the Mediterranean Sea, which responds rapidly to climate change. This study proposes a comprehensive analysis of MHWs in the different sub-regions of the Mediterranean, where the strong spatial variability requires focused attention, from surface to sub-surface and from open to coastal oceans. At surface, the MHW indices have dramatically increased over the last four decades from 1982 to 2020, with an unprecedented acceleration rate in recent years in all sub-regions. Besides the sub-regional features of surface MHWs, the propagation of such events into the ocean interior is also examined highlighting sub-regional and seasonal variability in the sub-surface ocean response. The resulting upper-ocean density stratification to these extreme events is enhanced in all sub-regions which would increase the degree of decoupling between surface and deep oceans causing changes in water masses and marine life. Finally, extremely warm events in coastal waters are also addressed through a case study in the Balearic Islands showing their higher intensity and occurrence in near-shore environment as well as the different response from surface to sub-surface that strongly depends on local features. In addition to this study, the Balearic Islands Coastal Observing and Forecasting System (SOCIB) has implemented a smart platform to monitor, visualize and share timely information on sub-regional MHWs, from event detection in real-time to long-term variations in response to global warming, to diverse stakeholders. Society-aligned ocean information at sub-regional scale will support the policy decision-making and the implementation of specific actions at local, national and regional scales, and thus contribute to respond to societal and worldwide environmental challenges.

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“…The time series display the medians of the seasonal distribution to exclude extreme values. This approach is more adapted that the use of mean since the distributions of the ocean hydrographic properties are not Gaussian (Vargas-Yáñez et al, 2020). Together with the median, the 17 and 83th percentiles provide complementary information about the width and asymmetry of the regional distribution.…”

Section: Ocean Heat and Salt Contentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Multivariate Sub-Regional Ocean Indicators in the Mediterranean Sea: From Event Detection to Climate Change Estimations

Juza

Tintoré

2021

Front. Mar. Sci.

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The increasing science and society requests for ocean monitoring from global to regional and local scales, the need for integration and convergence into a globally consistent ocean observing system as well as the need for improvement of access to information are now internationally recognized goals to progress toward the sustainable management of a healthy ocean. To respond to these challenges at regional level, the Balearic Islands Coastal Observing and Forecasting System (SOCIB) is developing a comprehensive set of ocean indicators in the Mediterranean Sea and around the Balearic Islands, key environments that are strongly affected by climate change and human pressure. This new SOCIB value-added product addresses the sub-regional ocean variability from daily (events) to interannual/decadal (climate) scales. A user-friendly interface has been implemented to monitor, visualize and communicate ocean information that is relevant for a wide range of sectors, applications and regional end-users. These sub-regional indicators allowed us to detect specific events in real time. Remarkable events and features identified include marine heat waves, atmospheric storm, extreme river discharge, mesoscale eddy, deep convection among others, all of them being oceanic phenomena that directly impact the ocean circulation and marine ecosystems. The long-term variations, in response to climate change, are also addressed highlighting and quantifying trends in physical and biogeochemical components of the ocean as well as sub-regional differences. At both (sub-) regional, national and international levels, a society-aligned science will have stronger impact on policy decision-makings and will support society to implement specific actions to address worldwide environmental challenges.

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Climatological Hydrographic Properties and Water Mass Transports in the Balearic Channels From Repeated Observations Over 1996–2019

Cited by 15 publications

References 34 publications

Characterization of the Atlantic Water and Levantine Intermediate Water in the Mediterranean Sea using 20 years of Argo data

Characterization of the Atlantic Water and Levantine Intermediate Water in the Mediterranean Sea using 20 years of Argo data

Sub-Regional Marine Heat Waves in the Mediterranean Sea From Observations: Long-Term Surface Changes, Sub-Surface and Coastal Responses

Multivariate Sub-Regional Ocean Indicators in the Mediterranean Sea: From Event Detection to Climate Change Estimations

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