Updated Eddy Statistics For The Western Mediterranean Based On Three Years Of Sentinel-1A Sar Imagery

We inferred spatial densities of mesoscale and submesoscale eddies in the Western Mediterranean from Sentinel-1 SAR-C imagery. Highest normalized eddy densities, i.e. average numbers of eddy manifestations per SAR image acquired under favorable wind conditions, were found in autumn in several parts of the Western Mediterranean, when the biological enrichment of surface waters is high enough, the regional mean wind field is variable and when regional mean SST gradients are strong enough. Our results also imply that the observation period of 3 years is not sufficiently long for definite conclusions.