Conclusions
The mean transports estimated here based on the AMIGO dataset appeared close to
those reported in [20, 22] from the computations based on direct velocity measurements. Our findings can be viewed as the further quantification of the ACC
characteristics obtained using an alternative approach based on the newly developed method utilizing constantly increasing data flow from autonomous Argo
profiling floats. The major results are as follows.
1. The mean ACC transport over a period of 2005–2014 through the Drake Passage based on the AMIGO data is diagnosed as 162 ± 5 Sv. The transport
through the African section is calculated as 162.6 ± 5 Sv. The net mean flow of
178 ± 6 Sv is diagnosed between Australia and Antarctica; the mean transport
through the section between New Zealand and Antarctica is found as
187.6 ± 7 Sv.
2. The maximum values of transports are diagnosed as 173 Sv in the Drake Passage (May 2006), 194 Sv through the section between Australia and Antarctica
(July 2010), and 24.8 Sv from the Southern ocean to the Pacific Ocean (July
2010).
3. The minimum values of transports are found as 149 Sv in the Drake Passage
(July 2007), 165 Sv through the section between Australia and Antarctica
(January 2010), and 8.4 Sv from the Southern Ocean to the Pacific Ocean
(January 2014).
Acknowledgements This work was supported by the Russian Science Foundation (project no.
16-17-10149).
References
1. Antonov, J. I., Seidov, D., Boyer, T. P., et al. (2010). World Ocean Atlas 2009, Vol. 2:
Salinity. In S. Levitus (Ed.), NOAA Atlas NESDIS 69 Ser. Washington, D.C.: US Government
Printing Office.
2. Argo. (2000). Argo float data and metadata from Global Data Assembly Center (Argo
GDAC). SEANOE. http://doi.org/10.17882/42182.
3. Cunningham, S. A., Alderson, S. G., King, B. A., & Brandon, M. A. (2003). Transport and
variability of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current in Drake Passage. Journal Geophysical
Research, 108(C5), 8084. https://doi.org/10.1029/2001JC001147.
4. Dee, D. P., Uppala, S. M., Simmons, A. J., et al. (2011). The ERA-Interim reanalysis:
Configuration and performance of the data assimilation system. Quarterly Journal of the
Royal Meteorological Society, 137, 553–597.
5. Donohue, K. A., Tracey, K. L., Watts, D. R., et al. (2016). Mean Antarctic Circumpolar
Current transport measured in Drake Passage. Geophysical Reseach Letters, 43, 11760–
11767. https://doi.org/10.1002/2016GL070319.
492
K. V. Lebedev
The mean transports estimated here based on the AMIGO dataset appeared close to
those reported in [20, 22] from the computations based on direct velocity measurements. Our findings can be viewed as the further quantification of the ACC
characteristics obtained using an alternative approach based on the newly developed method utilizing constantly increasing data flow from autonomous Argo
profiling floats. The major results are as follows.
1. The mean ACC transport over a period of 2005–2014 through the Drake Passage based on the AMIGO data is diagnosed as 162 ± 5 Sv. The transport
through the African section is calculated as 162.6 ± 5 Sv. The net mean flow of
178 ± 6 Sv is diagnosed between Australia and Antarctica; the mean transport
through the section between New Zealand and Antarctica is found as
187.6 ± 7 Sv.
2. The maximum values of transports are diagnosed as 173 Sv in the Drake Passage (May 2006), 194 Sv through the section between Australia and Antarctica
(July 2010), and 24.8 Sv from the Southern ocean to the Pacific Ocean (July
2010).
3. The minimum values of transports are found as 149 Sv in the Drake Passage
(July 2007), 165 Sv through the section between Australia and Antarctica
(January 2010), and 8.4 Sv from the Southern Ocean to the Pacific Ocean
(January 2014).
Acknowledgements This work was supported by the Russian Science Foundation (project no.
16-17-10149).
References
1. Antonov, J. I., Seidov, D., Boyer, T. P., et al. (2010). World Ocean Atlas 2009, Vol. 2:
Salinity. In S. Levitus (Ed.), NOAA Atlas NESDIS 69 Ser. Washington, D.C.: US Government
Printing Office.
2. Argo. (2000). Argo float data and metadata from Global Data Assembly Center (Argo
GDAC). SEANOE. http://doi.org/10.17882/42182.
3. Cunningham, S. A., Alderson, S. G., King, B. A., & Brandon, M. A. (2003). Transport and
variability of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current in Drake Passage. Journal Geophysical
Research, 108(C5), 8084. https://doi.org/10.1029/2001JC001147.
4. Dee, D. P., Uppala, S. M., Simmons, A. J., et al. (2011). The ERA-Interim reanalysis:
Configuration and performance of the data assimilation system. Quarterly Journal of the
Royal Meteorological Society, 137, 553–597.
5. Donohue, K. A., Tracey, K. L., Watts, D. R., et al. (2016). Mean Antarctic Circumpolar
Current transport measured in Drake Passage. Geophysical Reseach Letters, 43, 11760–
11767. https://doi.org/10.1002/2016GL070319.
492
K. V. Lebedev