This study investigated the temporal variability in the basic physical properties of deep and intermediate waters in the West Spitsbergen Current region at 76°30’N latitude from 1997 to 2016. Emphasis was placed on quantifying the changes in temperature and salinity and determining the potential drivers of these changes. Hydrographic data were obtained during annual summer cruises aboard the R/V Oceania in the Nordic Seas. The increase in the water temperature, which was especially strong in the western part of the investigated section, was associated with considerable changes in the water layers salinity. The temperature and salinity of the intermediate water increased much faster (0.021°C yr⁻¹ and 0.022 yr⁻¹, respectively) than those of the deep water (0.009°C yr⁻¹ and 0.0004 yr⁻¹, respectively). The warming rate in the upper 2000 m was also higher than the mean warming rate of the global ocean. The source of the deep water temperature and salinity increases was the deep water inflow from the Arctic Ocean into the Greenland Sea. In contrast, the increase in these properties in the intermediate water was associated with the advection of warmer and more saline Atlantic Water from the North Atlantic to the Nordic Seas.

这项研究调查了1997年至2016年西斯匹次卑尔根海流地区南纬76°30'时深水和中水基本物理特性的时间变化。重点是量化温度和盐度的变化并确定潜在的驱动因素这些变化。在北欧海洋R / V大洋洲号上的年度夏季航行期间，获得了水文数据。水温的升高在被调查区域的西部尤为强烈，这与水层盐度的显着变化有关。中间水的温度和盐度增加得更快（0.021°C yr ^-1和0.022 yr ^-1分别比深水（分别为0.009°C yr ^-1和0.0004 yr ^-1）高。2000 m上部的升温速度也高于全球海洋的平均升温速度。深水温度和盐度增加的来源是从北冰洋流入格陵兰海的深水。相比之下，中间水中这些性质的增加与从北大西洋到北欧海的平流和盐分较高的大西洋水的平流有关。