Collaborative Research: Dynamics and Transport of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current in Drake Passage

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The proposed work is a multi-year study of the transport of water through Drake Passage by the Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC). Drake Passage acts as a chokepoint that is not only well suited geographically for measuring the time-varying transport, but observations and computer models suggest that dynamical balances which control the transport are particularly effective here. An array of Current Meters and Pressure-recording Inverted Echo Sounders (CPIES) will be set out for a period of 4 years to quantify the transport and dynamics of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current. Data will be collected annually by acoustic telemetry, leaving the instruments undisturbed until recovered at the end of the project. The Southern Ocean is believed to be especially sensitive to climate change, responding to winds that have increased over the past thirty years, and warming significantly more than the global ocean over the past fifty years. The proposed observations will resolve the seasonal and interannual variability of the total ACC transport, as well as its vertical and lateral structure. Although not submitted specifically to the International Polar Year (IPY) Program Solicitation, the proposed project contributes to the IPY goal of understanding environmental change in polar regions and represents a pulse of activity in the IPY time frame that will extend the legacy of the IPY. The data and findings will be reported to publicly accessible archives and submitted for publication in the scientific literature. It is a scientific collaboration between the University of California, San Diego, and the University of Rhode Island.