The Structure of the Internal Bore in the Strait of Gibraltar and its Influence on the Atlantic Inflow

As part of the Gibraltar Experiment, acoustic Doppler current profilers were deployed in the Tarifa Narrows section of the Strait of Gibraltar. Analysis of data from a Doppler profiler deployed near midstrait has shown that the passage of large amplitude nonlinear internal waves exerts profound influence on both the transient and mean flow structures in this section of the strait. Direct current measurements in the Tarifa Narrows yield an inflow transport estimate of one Sverdrup in the Atlantic layer. Of this total approximately 60% is associated with the internal bore, and only 40% is due to the steady circulation.