Abyssal undular vortices in the Easternmediterranean basin

摘要

Abyssal temperature and velocity observations performed within the framework of the neutrinomediterranean observatory, a project devoted to constructing a km3-scale underwatertelescope for the detection of high-energy cosmic neutrinos, demonstrate cross-fertilizationbetween subnuclear physics and experimental oceanography. Here we use data collected southof sicily in the Ionian abyssal plain of the Eastern mediterranean (Em) basin to show for the firsttime that abyssal vortices exist in the Em, at depths exceeding 2,500m. The eddies consist ofchains of near-inertially pulsating mesoscale cyclones/anticyclones. They are embedded in anabyssal current flowing towards north-northwest. The paucity of existing data does not allowfor an unambiguous determination of the vortex origin. A local generation mechanism seemsprobable, but a remote genesis cannot be excluded a priori. The presence of such eddies addsfurther complexity to the discussion of structure and evolution of water masses in the Em.