Wind relaxation and poleward flow events in the upwelling region off Baja California, Mexico

Abstract

Wind relaxation and poleward flow events in the upwelling region off Baja California, MexicoRelajación del viento y flujos hacia el polo en la región de surgencias frente a Baja California, México A coastal poleward flow event was conspicuous when a relaxation event followed a long upwelling favorable wind event. This pattern was also correlated with a negative or close to zero wind curl at the coast. A coastal equatorial jet and an upper-ocean offshore poleward flow were observed during spring, representing a typical upwelling pattern that is correlated with a large positive wind stress curl near the coast. In winter, a surface poleward flow was inhibited by a strong northwest wind event, which generated a shallow equatorward flow. The circulation patterns described here are consistent with theories that explain surface poleward flows through wind relaxation and negative wind curl.

Mean Summer Land Temperatures in the Southern California Coastal Zone: Connections With Ocean Processes

“…Below this wind anomaly in Figure 7b is the strongest expression of SST associated with A 2 (t), showing a warming of the surface ocean linked to decreased wind speeds. Wind relaxations in this region have been linked to MHWs (Fewings & Brown, 2019; Fumo et al., 2020; Robinson, 2016; Wei et al., 2021; Zaba & Rudnick, 2016; Zaba et al., 2020), and to poleward coastal current anomalies (Durazo, 2015; Melton et al., 2009; Oey, 1999; Vazquez & Gomez‐Valdes, 2018).…”