Lagrangian study of temporal changes of a surface flow through the Kamchatka Strait

TL;DR

This study uses 20 years of Lagrangian analysis of AVISO data to examine surface water flux variability through Kamchatka Strait, revealing seasonal and interannual patterns linked to wind stress and mesoscale eddies.

Contribution

It provides a detailed Lagrangian-based analysis of long-term surface flow variability through Kamchatka Strait, highlighting the influence of wind stress and mesoscale eddies on flux patterns.

Findings

Seasonal outflow variability explained by wind stress changes.

Interannual outflow correlates with Near Strait inflow and Bering Strait outflow.

Summer flow patterns influenced by mesoscale eddies.

Abstract

Using Lagrangian methods we analyze a 20-year-long estimate of water flux through the Kamchatka Strait in the northern North Pacific based on AVISO velocity field. It sheds new light on the flux pattern and its variability on annual and monthly time scales. Strong seasonality in surface outflow through the strait could be explained by temporal changes in the wind stress over the northern and western Bering Sea slopes. Interannual changes in a surface outflow through the Kamchatka Strait correlate significantly with the Near Strait inflow and Bering Strait outflow. Enhanced westward surface flow of the Alaskan Stream across the $174^\circ$ E section in the northern North Pacific is accompanied by an increased inflow into the Bering Sea through the Near Strait. In summer, the surface flow pattern in the Kamchatka Strait is determined by passage of anticyclonic and cyclonic mesoscale eddies. The wind stress over the Bering basin in winter - spring is responsible for eddy generation in the region.