Annual velocity variations in the Labrador Current

Abstract

Analyses of CTD and current meter data obtained between 1978 and 1988 off southern Labrador reveal two distinct regimes in the Labrador Current. The first lies over the shelf and upper slope and is the traditional Labrador Current transporting cold low-salinity water south from Baffin Bay and Hudson Strait. The main branch of this flow, located over the shelf break, exhibits an annual variation in speed with a minimum in March-April and a maximum in October. The second current regime, referred to in this analysis as the deep Labrador Current, lies over the lower continental slope, seaward of the flow over the shelf break. It is a more barotropic flow than the shelf break current and exhibits a different annual cycle. -from Authors