Australia: The Land Where Time Began

A biography of the Australian continent 

Antarctic Circumpolar Current Transport Across Kerguelen Plateau – Direct Observations

Park et al. observed directly major pathways and transport of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current across the Kerguelen Plateau during the Track cruise in 2009. It is estimated that the net transport to the east, that passed south of the Heard/ McDonald Islands, is 56 Sv (1 Sv = 10⁶ m³/ s), of which 43 Sv is channelled tightly into the Fawn Trough that appears to be a predominant gateway across the Kerguelen Plateau for the flow associated with the Southern ACC Front (SACCF).  Also, there are 2 secondary passages, 1 of which is 6 Sv, which is attached to the nearshore slope just to the south of the Heard/McDonald Islands, while the other, of 7 Sv, passes through the Princess Elizabeth Trough. There is also an additional 2 Sv that is inferred just to the south of the Kerguelen Islands, the transport across the entire plateau totalling 58 Sv, which accounts for 40 % of the ACC that transits through the region, 147-152 Sv, and these quantities are consistent with independent estimates for the Indian Ocean sector of the Southern Ocean.

Sources & Further reading

1. Park, Y.-H., F. Vivier, F. Roquet and E. Kestenare (2009). "Direct observations of the ACC transport across the Kerguelen Plateau." Geophysical Research Letters 36(18): L18603.