Salinity along 150W in the North Pacific during the Marathon-II expedition (May-June 1984). The subsurface low salinity water mass (green colors) characteristic of NPIW occurs between ~26.6 and 27.0 kg/m3 potential density horizons. Note the low salinity surface waters of the high-latitude North Pacific and the resulting sharp density contrast. It is this sharp density contrast which inhibits direct ventilation of interior waters in the Gulf of Alaska. |
