Satellite Remote Sensing Signatures of the Major Baltic Inflows

Abstract

Variability of sea level in the North and Baltic Seas, enforced by weather patterns, a ects the intensity of water exchange between these seas. Transfer of salty water from the North Sea is very important for the hydrography of the Baltic Sea. The volume of inflowing salty water can occasionally increase remarkably. Such incidents, called the Major Baltic Inflows (MBIs), are unpredictable, of relatively short duration, and di cult to observe using in situ data. We have shown that remote sensing altimetry can be used as a complementary source of information about the MBI events. The advantage of using such data is that large-scale spatial information about SLA is available with daily resolution. We have described changes in SLA during several MBI events observed in 1993–2017. The net volume of water transported into the Baltic Sea varied between the events due to di erences in atmospheric forcing. Based on SLA data, the largest inflow of water happened during the 2014 MBI. This is in agreement with previously published results, based on in situ data.