The retroflection of the Faroe Current into the Faroe‐Shetland Channel

No abstracts are to be cited without prior reference to the author.

The Faroe Current (FC) flows eastward north of the Faroes, but when it reaches the northeastern corner of the Faroe Plateau a part of it is retroflected back into the Faroe Shetland Channel (FSC). Here Mean Sea Level Anomaly (MSLA) data and current mooring data are used to explore the variability of the retroflected FC. An EOF analysis of the MSLA indicates that there is a link between the MSLA over the central Nordic Seas and the strength of the FC and its retroflection. The first PC is compared to velocity data in the FC and the FSC. The comparison indicates that the variability of the MSLA is reflected in the velocities in the FC and along the slope on the Faroese side of the FSC, but not in the central part of the channel. The first PC has a strong seasonal signal resulting in the strongest velocities in January. Additionally, the first PC has an inter‐annual variability that can be interpreted to cause the apparent variable strength of the reflected FC and how far it progresses into the FSC.