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Rapid dissipation of a Loop Current eddy due to interaction with a severe Gulf of Mexico hurricane

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Abstract

Loop Current Eddies (LCEs) are warm-core, anticyclonic rings that shed from the Loop Current and migrate westward providing kinetic and potential energy to the Gulf of Mexico (GoM). Typically, LCEs dissipate through interaction with the western shelf slope, other mesoscale eddies, and diapycnal mixing. Here, we explore a case where a LCE, Eddy Poseidon, encountered Hurricane Harvey in the northwest GoM in August 2017 causing its rapid dissipation. This interaction significantly reduced Poseidon’s areal extent, dynamic height, heat content, and kinetic energy. Using in situ observations and numerical model output, we explore Poseidon’s dissipation and show it was caused by a combination of processes. A rigorous cold wake formed along Poseidon’s east, strong hurricane-induced surface currents transported shelf water towards the eddy on its north and west sides, and heat was lost throughout the water column from Poseidon’s southern edge. Horizontal advection was greatest at the surface and decreased with depth—27% of heat lost from Poseidon occurred in the top 100 m and 47% from the top 200 m.

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Data availability

All data are freely available. Argo data were downloaded from www.argo.ucsd.edu. Copernicus model output was downloaded from E. U. Copernicus Marine Service Information www.marine.copernicus.eu. Hurricane data was downloaded from the National Hurricane Center Atlantic hurricane database (HURDAT2) https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/data/#hurdat.

Code availability

Not applicable.

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Funding

This research was funded in part by the Gulf of Mexico Coastal Ocean Observing System (GCOOS) and Texas A&M Department of Oceanography.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Oceanography, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA

    Henry Potter, Chuan-Yuan Hsu & Steven F. DiMarco

  2. Gulf of Mexico Coastal Ocean Observing System, College Station, TX, USA

    Chuan-Yuan Hsu

  3. Geochemical and Environmental Research Group, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA

    Steven F. DiMarco

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  1. Henry Potter
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  2. Chuan-Yuan Hsu
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  3. Steven F. DiMarco
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Correspondence to Henry Potter.

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Responsible Editor: Tal Ezer

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Potter, H., Hsu, CY. & DiMarco, S.F. Rapid dissipation of a Loop Current eddy due to interaction with a severe Gulf of Mexico hurricane. Ocean Dynamics 71, 911–922 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10236-021-01471-y

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