Drifter trajectories calculated from geostrophic currents

In this page you can see drifter trajectories over the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico calculated from geostrophic surface currents. Sea Surface Anomaly (SSA) fields are taken from the CLS Space Oceanography Division (Collecte Localisation Satellites, http://www.cls.fr). A HYCOM mean Sea Surface Height (SSH) is used to obtain absolute SSH, which is used to calculate the geostrophic currents. The trajectories are calculated using a Runge-Kutta second order scheme, and they are calculated each 6 hours. Here the drifter trajectories are superimposed on our OI SST product.

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Drifters on the Gulf of Mexico:

Drifters on the Caribbean Sea:

Related information:

Katrina Tracking Tool page, developed in the wake of the Katrina Hurricane hitting the Gulf Coast. The outflow of the Mississippi River, with contaminated waters coming from New Orleans, was being taken rapidly to the Florida Keys, with important ecological consequences. The Katrina Tracking Tool helped to better understand and predict the fate of the Mississippi water.