Tidal currents in the Yucatan Channel

Abstract

Currents data from a ten–month period at 197 measuring points covering all Yucatan Channel were processed by harmonic analysis to estimate tidal parameters for the O₁, K₁, M₂ and S₂ components. The highly detailed coverage confirms the known dominance for the O₁ and K₁ diurnal components, but also showed, for the first time, their intensification in the deep eastern margin of the channel where maximum amplitudes in main axis are 17 and 19 cm•s^–1. The data also confirms weak semi–diurnal components, of which the most intense, M₂ and S₂, have amplitudes only up to 2 cm•s^–1. The tidal ellipses were elongated (i.e. with eccentricities close to one) in the NNW direction. The O₁, K₁, M₂ and S₂ contributions in transport variability through the channel have amplitudes of 11.7, 12.5, 1.2 and 1.0 Sv, all well determined above noise.