1. East Australian Current (the EAC)

2. Where is it?

3. EAC Properties Warm, deep, fast, nutrient poor water 100 km wide by 500km deep 30 million m 3 /s transport! Well known for eddy formation (can be 200km across!)

4. Physical Description Balance of Ekman wind-stress and coastal friction (balance of wind curl and frictional vorticity) In S.H. : curl + or counterclockwise and friction vorticity – or clockwise Stommel- Coriolis term varies with latitude, strengthens W. Boundary EAC Surface EAC also strengthened (some) by deep->shallow shelf

6. Wind field response drives separation (not New Zealand or bottom topography

7. Eddies Geostrophic balance: pressure balances coriolis Cyclonic clockwise around low-pressure cells and counterclockwise (anticyclonic around high pressure cells) IN S.Hemis!

8. Upwelling W. coast of Aus doesn’t have wind- driven upwelling Instead EAC “encroachment” towards coast pushes up isopycnals

9. References M. Roughan, J.H. Middleton / Continental Shelf Research 22 (2002) 2551–2572 K.R. Ridgway, J.R. Dunn / Progress in Oceanography 56 (2003) 189-222 http://www.cmar.csiro.au/remotesensing/oceancurrents/ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/view.php?id=15366