Fine-Jet Structure of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current
South of Africa

R. Yu. Tarakanov and A. M. Gritsenko

Shirshov Institute of Oceanology, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia

e-mail: rtarakanov@gmail.com

Received April 1, 2013

Abstract—The fine structure of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC) jets south of Africa is investigated
by means of the statistical analysis of weekly satellite altimetry data provided by the French CLS agency
(DT-Global-MADT-Upd product, http://aviso.oceanobs.com) and the data of the SR02 hydrophysical section
executed onboard the R/V Akademik Ioffe in December 2009. Twelve jets of the ACC were revealed in this
region. Six jets of the Subantarctic Current, four jets of the South Polar Current, and two jets of the South
Antarctic Current are among them. In addition, a jet of the Weddell Current was also revealed. The range of
the absolute dynamic topography (ADT) heights corresponding to each jet was about 10–15 cm. It is shown
that the jet axes maintain approximately the same ADT values during time intervals of up to half a year,
including the dates of the SR02 section. Good agreement was observed between the locations of the jet axes
along the section revealed earlier by the authors from direct hydrophysical measurements and the data in this
paper based on the altimetry data.

10.1134/S0001437014050130

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