Mean Positions and Transports of the Kuroshio Extension and
its Northern Branch
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Mean Positions of the Kuroshio Extension, its Northern Branch, and
the Bifurcation Point
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Kuroshio Extension
The mean and standard deviation of the Kuroshio Extension axis
(142°E to 175°W) is 34°55'N and 0.87°.
The minimum latitude (34°36'N) is
located over the Shatsky Rise (155°-165°E)
where there is a maxima in standard deviation (0.98°).
Northern Branch
The mean location of the Northern Branch east of 155°E
directs northward in the area of the Shatsky Rise increasing its latitude
until it passes through the widest and deepest gap in the Emperor Sea Mounts
(Roden et al., 1982) near 170°E.
Bifurcation Point
The gray line schematically represents the mean location of
the bifurcation linking the Bifurcation Point and the Northern Branch.
The longitude of the Bifurcation Point ranges from 147° to 160°E.
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Volume Transport of the Kuroshio Extension and its Northern Branch
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Results show that the mean volume transport of the KE decreases steadily
to the east.
A distinctive peak in the volume transport of near or over 10 Sv was observed at the Northern Branch where the bifurcation occurs.
We distinguish 4 different regions based on their mean volume
transports.
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Location
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Kuroshio Extension Transport
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Northern Branch Transport
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Mean (standard deviation)
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Mean (standard deviation)
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Sverdrups
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Sverdrups
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upstream of 150°E
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35 (10)
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between 150° and 160°E
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29 (8)
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bifurcation region between 160° and 170°E
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21 (6)
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5 (4)
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downstream of 170°E
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11 (4)
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3 (2)
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