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Eddy Formation in the Caspian Sea
Chapter
17
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Eddy Formation in the Caspian Sea
L. M. Shipilova
Department of Geography
Moscow State University
Moscow, Russia
Abstract
Eddy movements of water masses along the shores of the Caspian Sea were discovered in photographs taken from U.S. and Russian spacecraft. Possible causes for the onset of rotary motions of the waters were analyzed. The most important conditions for stability disruption of the main littoral flow are regional surface wind flow, bathymetry, and specific features of the coastal topography. Other destabilizing factors include internal waves and littoral upwelling, which decreases the vertical stability of the nearshore waters by a factor of 7 to 8 in comparison with the open sea.
Citation for the published article
Shipilova, L. M., 2000. Eddy formation in the Caspian Sea, in Dynamic Earth Environments: Remote Sensing Observations from Shuttle-Mir Missions (K. P. Lulla and L. V. Dessinov, eds.), John Wiley & Sons, New York, pp. 211-219, 267, 283.
Links to Color Images
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Figure 17.1
Southern Caspian coast in Iran: NASA photographs (A) STS009-43-2719; (B) STS009-40-2587. Sediment from the Safid River becomes entrained in an eddy off Cape Sefid-Rud. |
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Figure 17.2
Movement of suspended particles offshore of Dagestan on August 30, 1979, photographed from Kosmos satellite. Eddies form in the absence of strong zonal winds. Geographical features mentioned in the text: A, Cape Satun, near Kaspiysky; B, Sulak River delta; C, Agrakhan Peninsula; D, Chechen Island. The Terek River is inland from the Agrakhan Peninsula. Numbered features discussed in the text: 1, cyclonic eddy in region of Makhachkala; 2, smaller eddy induced by it; 3, 4, diffuse eddies offshore from the Agrakhan Peninsula. The bright parallel bands along the southeast edge of the photo (lower right) are internal waves approaching Cape Satun. |
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Figure 17.3
Movement of suspended particles in the littoral zone off Makhachkala, June 30, 1979, photographed from Kosmos satellite. No eddies are observed. Zonal winds predominate. |
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Figure 17.4
Time sweep of zonal index (Iz) anomalies in June (solid line) and August (dashd line), 1979. Iz is a measure of zonal (east-west) winds proposed by Dmitriev et al. (1989). |
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Figure 17.5
Surface water temperatures (°C) off of the Mangyshlak Peninsula on October 4, 1991, based on AVHRR data from the NOAA 11 satellite. Warm water bathes the coast; no upwelling is observed. |
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Figure 17.6
Surface water temperatures deduced from AVHRR data collected July 31, 1995, indicate upwelling off the eastern coast of the central Caspian. Note that the temperature scales are different for the two views. See text for details of temperature estimation method from AVHRR data. |
