Topographic effects on the mesoscale ocean circulation near Canarian archipelago examined by means of satellite images and laboratory simulations

The Canary archipelago acts as a barrier of about 500 km for the Canary Current, which flows along the north-west coast of Africa boundary, associated with the north-west African upwelling. As a consequence, this region is characterised by a large mesoscale turbulent activity. This paper deals with the effects of the most pronounced topographic features of the Canarian Archipelago and the north-west African coastal shelf on the Canary Current flow and the resulting mesoscale structures. To reach this goal, features observed in satellite images are compared with results of laboratory experiments carried out in a Coriolis rotating basin.