Seasonal Variation of the Indonesian Throughflow in Makassar Strait

Abstract

The seasonal variation of Indonesian Throughflow (ITF) transport is investigated using ocean general circulation model experiments with the Hybrid Coordinate Ocean Model (HYCOM). Twenty-eight years (1981–2008) of ⅓° Indo-Pacific basin HYCOM simulations and three years (2004–06) from a global HYCOM simulation are analyzed. Both models are able to simulate the seasonal variation of upper-ocean currents and the total transport through Makassar Strait measured by International Nusantara Stratification and Transport (INSTANT) moorings reasonably well. The annual cycle of upper-ocean currents is then calculated from the Indo-Pacific HYCOM simulation. The reduction of southward currents at Makassar Strait during April–May and October–November is evident, consistent with the INSTANT observations. Analysis of the upper-ocean currents suggests that the reduction in ITF transport during April–May and October–November results from the wind variation in the tropical Indian Ocean through the generation of a Wyrtki jet and the propagation of coastal Kelvin waves, while the subsequent recovery during January–March originates from upper-ocean variability associated with annual Rossby waves in the Pacific that are enhanced by western Pacific winds. These processes are also found in the global HYCOM simulation during the period of the INSTANT observations. The model experiments forced with annual-mean climatological wind stress in the Pacific and 3-day mean wind stress in the Indian Ocean show the reduction of southward currents at Makassar Strait during October–November but no subsequent recovery during January–March, confirming the relative importance of wind variations in the Pacific and Indian Oceans for the ITF transport in each season.