A note on the mean seasonal transport on the Argentinian shelf

A one dimensional model estimation of the winter and summer mean circulation on the Argentinian continental shelf is presented. The model forcing mechanisms are surface wind stress and horizontal density gradients assuming basic Ekman dynamics. The density and wind stress field were obtained from historical data sets. The calculation predicts a northward transport of 1×10 6 m 3 /s forced mainly by the wind stress, with largest values in winter. The primary density contribution is found to be from the barotropic density field. The surface velocities obtained were between 10 cm/s in summer and 17 cm/s in winter, toward the NNE. The results are consistent with both observations and other model calculations.