Moored Current Measurements at the Entrance to the Gulf of California

Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey CA

Investigators

Abstract

0333517 Collins This project is a one year study to initiate continuous measurements of water properties and velocity at the entrance of the Gulf of California to understand the processes controlling the exchange of mass and heat between the Gulf of California and the Pacific Ocean. This is collaboration with Mexican Scientists at the Universitad Autonoma de Baja California in Ensenada. Specific scientific objectives include: to determine the kinematics of the forcing of the Gulf by the Pacific Ocean, to determine the characteristics of the water masses exchanged between the pacific and the Gulf of California, and to determine if the circulation yields the fluxes of heat needed to reproduce the observed warming and cooling of the Gulf. Broader Impacts: the US Scientists involved in this project will training their Mexican counterpart and their technical staff in deploying moorings. The scientific analysis of the data will be done jointly, thus fostering international collaborations.