A reduced-gravity model of the Catalan Sea

A reduced-gravity model is used to study the effects of the wind on the upper layer circulation in the Catalan Sea. The model parameters were set by observed features of the circulation in the basin. It is shown that the results are particularly sensitive to the open sea boundary conditions. Simulations were done using the following boundary fluxes: (i) mean values estimated by Bethoux (1980) and (ii) more recent geostrophic transports computed from hydrographic data by Font et al. (1988). The latter seem to lead to more realistic circulation patterns. The influence of seasonal winds (climatological data) on the dynamics is clear, especially during the winter.