A Synopsis of the Circulation in the Gulf of Mexico and on its Continental Margins

This article is a synopsis of the state-of-the-art knowledge and understanding of the circulation in the deep Gulf of Mexico as well as in the coastal flow regimes on its continental margins. The primary purpose is to review the ideas and results in this special new volume on the circulation in the Gulf of Mexico and integrate them with material from selected previous publications. This overview therefore contains more repetition and expository discussion than normally found in journal articles. An extensive reference list is provided for interested readers, a special feature for students. This volume is also meant to appeal to an audience beyond the general population of physical oceanographers, to include a more diverse community of Marine Scientists and Engineers, along with social interests of a scientific/technical nature. The article in this volume by Biggs et al. is focused on a study of some specific biogeochemical implications of on- and off-margin flow (on- and off- continental shelf/slope regions) in the northern Gulf of Mexico. The articles by Chassignet et al. [this volume] and Morey et al. [this volume], for example, note particular applications. Potential influences by the currents in the Gulf of Mexico on processes of interest in other branches of Marine Science are occasionally considered in this synopsis (for example, there is a special section on the effects of current patterns on coral reefs). The reader may also refer to a comparatively recent review of some of the physical oceanographic influences that regulate the biology of the Gulf of Mexico by Wiseman and Sturges [1999]. Finally, this synopsis is meant to complement and expand upon the Introduction to this volume by Sturges et al, which includes consideration of some general societal interests motivating marine research in the Gulf of Mexico.