Solomon Islands Downwelling Eddy Frequency

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Solomon Islands Eddy maps

Eddies are circular shaped or elongated rotating vortices of the sea surface, 300 - 500km wide. They are the oceanic analogy to storms in the atmosphere, and are clearly seen in maps of sea surface anomaly from altimeters. Positive anomaly features indicate the presence of anticyclonic eddies where the sea surface is doming upwards and causing downwelling. For downwelling features, strength and persistence are key determinants of increased primary productivity and thus aggregations of bioty.