Ricardo Matano (Oregon State University, USA); Ted Strub (Oregon State University, USA)

This study describes the oceanic circulation over the Agulhas Bank, the shelf region extending from the eastern to the western sides of the African continent. Using altimetry and a suite of process-oriented model experiments, we assess the driving mechanisms of the sea surface height and circulation variability over the Agulhas Bank. In particular, we assess the contributions of stochastic forcing (such as local wind stress, tides, and remotely generated equatorial Kelvin waves) and internal ocean variability (such passage of mesoscale eddies/pulses of the Agulhas current).