Cross‐shelf passage of coastal water transport at the South Atlantic Bight observed with MODIS Ocean Color/SST

Images of cross‐shelf fronts of ocean color parameters and Sea Surface Temperature (SST) of the South Atlantic Bight (SAB) area are presented and analyzed. The ocean color parameters (K‐490 and suspended solid concentration) and SST clearly indicate a penetrating front originating from the coastal water within the inner shelf. The front is triangular shaped with its broad base on the coast and its sharp end penetrating into the outer shelf and merging into the Gulf Stream, depicting a passage of coastal water transport across the shelf. This passage changes in position and orientation (from southwest‐northeast to west‐east). The horizontal Ekman number was estimated to be outside the limit of baroclinic instability, suggesting that the process is deterministic. Thus, the water transport passage may play a significant role in a non‐diffusive transport process of heat and land‐derived biogeochemical materials.