Transport Variability of the Canary Current

Abstract

Referencing geostrophic velocities through LADCP data is a valuable technique to study ocean dynamics. This was applied to study the seasonal and interannual variability of the water mass transport of the Canary Current. This work processed CTD and LADCP data of various RAPROCAN cruises, from February 2006 to December 2012. The 18 CTD stations go from 18.5º-15.5ºW at latitude 29º20’N and from that point on until [30º20’N, 13ºW], through the Fuerteventura-Lanzarote strait. The water mass characteristics were derived from the CTD data, as well as the geostrophic velocities computed through the thermal wind equation. These velocities were then adjusted to the LADCP drawn reference velocities in order to obtain temporal variability of the mass transport of the Canary Current.