Mixing near an Isolated Seamount (TOPO)
This study was part of the major interdisciplinary research initiative
to describe the physical and biological processes occurring near isolated
abrupt topography. The Fieberling
Guyot, a seamount located in the eastern North Pacific was the site
for this program. We completed 97 profiles over and around the seamount
on a 28 day cruise on the R/V New Horizon, with an additional 8
profiles done on the way back to San Diego.
The HRP dove to within 5 meters of the bottom to record mixing happening
near the boundary. This was the first attempt to make the HRP sample that
close to the bottom. A Datasonics 900-A acoustic altimeter had been incorporated
into the HRP and was used to help make these close approaches. We did very
well at getting to 10 meters off the bottom over the flat top of the seamount,
but not as well over the irregular sloping sides.
Publications using data from this experiment are:
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Montgomery, E. T. and J. M. Toole. 1993. Fine and microstructure
observations at Fieberling Guyot, R/V New Horizon cruise report. Woods
Hole Oceanographic Institution Technical Report 93-52, 27 pp.
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Toole, J. M., K. L. Polzin, and R. W. Schmitt, 1994. Estimates of diapycnal
mixing in the abyssal ocean. Science, 264,
1120-1123.
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Polzin, K., J. M. Toole, and R. W. Schmitt, 1995. Finescale parameterizations
of turbulent dissipation. Journal of Physical Oceanography,
25 (3), 306--328.
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Kunze, E. and J.M. Toole, 1997. Tidally-forced vorticity, diurnal shear
and turbulence atop Fieberling Seamount. Journal of Physical Oceanography,
27 (12), 2663-2693.
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Toole, John M., Raymond W. Schmitt, Kurt L. Polzin and Eric Kunze, 1997.
Near boundary mixing above the flanks of a mid-latitude seamount. Journal
of Geophysical Research, Vol. 102, pp. 947-959.
St. Laurent, L. and R. W. Schmitt, 1999. The contribution of salt fingers
to vertical mixing in the North Atlantic Tracer Release Experiment. Journal
of Physical Oceanography, 29, (7), 1404-1424
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