Deep water hydrodynamic observations of two moorings sites on the continental slope of the Southern Adriatic Sea (Mediterranean Sea).

This work presents an 8-years long dataset of monitoring activities conducted on the western margin of the Southern Adriatic Sea, where two moorings have been placed since 2012 in sites that are representative of different morpho-dynamic conditions of the continental slope (open slope vs. submarine canyon). The dataset includes measurements conducted with both current meters and CTD probes, and provides information about the hydrodynamics and thermohaline properties of the last 100 m of the water column. The hydrodynamics in both sites is dominated by weak currents (<0.1 ms^-1), which undergo yearly to episodic pulsation able to exceed intensity greater than 0.5 ms^-1 which are linked to the passage of dense waters. The 8-years records presented here, represents a starting point for the continuous observation activity set up on occasion of the "Operation Dense Water" in 2012, focused on the Southern Adriatic deep-water dynamic. Since then the observatory has been on-going since 2012 and the database is regularly updated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]