A loop current-induced jet along the edge of the West Florida Shelf

The pressure imposed upon the West Florida Shelf by the Gulf of Mexico Loop Current is found to give rise to a southward flowing jet along the shelf e dge. The pressure-induced jet is simulated by a general circulation model o f the Gulf. However, the physics causing formation of the jet are well repr esented by a simple continental shelf model incorporating an idealized geom etry for the West Florida Shelf. The pressure response over the shelf, in a n analogy to conductive heat transfer in a rod, is limited by the "insulati ng" effect of the steep topography of the West Florida Escarpment, which hi nders the onshore spreading of the pressure influence. The shelf-edge jet i s apparent in the trajectories of satellite-tracked surface drifters deploy ed from February 1996 through March 1997. Evidence for the requisite pressu re distribution over the escarpment is provided by measurements of sea leve l from the satellite altimeter aboard the TOPEX/POSEIDON satellite.