Topic Area

The Loop Current

ENS Theodore G. Dorics III, USN

A portion of the Caribbean current and the North Equatorial current merge south of Cuba and become the Yucatan current.ÝThis current enters the Gulf of Mexico through the Yucatan Straight and becomes the Loop current.Ý The Loop Current eventually joins with the Florida current near the Straights of Florida and joins the Gulf Stream.Ý Prior to exiting the Gulf, however, the Loop current flow penetrates far into the Gulf, transporting warm water from the Caribbean as far north as the Florida panhandle coastline.Ý 

In the process of surging into the Gulf and making a pronounced anticyclonic turn upon exiting, the loop current often generates large anticylclonic eddies that pinch off from the main current. These warm eddies, in turn, spawn smaller cyclonic eddies as they propagate westward.ÝEventually the original anticyclonic eddies dissipate along the shelf waters of the Mexican coast.Ý 

The path of the Loop current and the subsequent generation of eddies plays a significant role in water transport in the Gulf of Mexico.Ý Specifically, the eddy formation process and eventual propagation to the west is key in characterizing the oceanographic state of the Gulf.Ý No oceanographic research endeavor would be accurate without Accounting for the presence of the Loop current eddies.Ý Additionally, from fishing to offshore drilling, the presence of these eddies is important in terms of industry in the Gulf.Ý The most important aspects of the Loop current include:

• The loop current is the dominant circulation mechanism in the Gulf of Mexico, transporting warm Caribbean water northward.
• Anticyclonic eddies are formed when the current pinches off in the Gulf.
• These eddies propagate slowly to the west, further transporting the waters of the Caribbean into the Gulf of Mexico.Ý 
• Cold core eddies are formed from the main anticyclonic eddy, leading to regions of nutrient-rich, upwelled water.
• The presence of these eddies must be considered for all oceanographic research applications.
• Industry in the Gulf of Mexico relies heavily on knowledge of the location of Loop current eddies.

Ý
 

Tomczak, M., Godfrey, J.S., 1994: "Regional Oceanography: An Introductionî

www.csc.noaa.gov

http://gulf.ocean.fsu.edu/

 

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