{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,14]],"date-time":"2026-02-14T03:53:45Z","timestamp":1771041225857,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":60,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"23","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2023,11,28]],"date-time":"2023-11-28T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1701129600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/100000001","name":"NSF","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["OCE-2219874"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["OCE-2219874"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/100000001","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"DOI":"10.13039\/100000001","name":"NSF","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["OCE-2212654"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["OCE-2212654"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/100000001","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"name":"NASA Physical Oceanography Program","award":["OCE-2219874"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["OCE-2219874"]}]},{"name":"NASA Physical Oceanography Program","award":["OCE-2212654"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["OCE-2212654"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Remote Sensing"],"abstract":"<jats:p>The offshore transport of Greenland coastal waters influenced by freshwater input from ice sheet melting during summer plays an important role in ocean circulation and biological processes in the Labrador Sea. Many previous studies over the last decade have investigated shelfbreak transport processes in the region, primarily using ocean model simulations. Here, we use 27 years of surface geostrophic velocity observations from satellite altimetry, modified to include Ekman dynamics based on atmospheric reanalysis, and virtual particle releases to investigate seasonal and interannual variability in transport of coastal water in the Labrador Sea. Two sets of tracking experiments were pursued, one using geostrophic velocities only, and another using total velocities including the wind effect. Our analysis revealed substantial seasonal variability, even when only geostrophic velocities were considered. Water from coastal southwest Greenland is generally transported northward into Baffin Bay, although westward transport off the west Greenland shelf increases in fall and winter due to winds. Westward offshore transport is increased for water from southeast Greenland so that, in some years, water originating near the east Greenland coast during summer can be transported into the central Labrador Sea and the convection region. When wind forcing is considered, long-term trends suggest decreasing transport of Greenland coastal water during the melting season toward Baffin Bay, and increasing transport into the interior of the Labrador Sea for water originating from southeast Greenland during summer, where it could potentially influence water column stability. Future studies using higher-resolution velocity observations are needed to capture the role of submesoscale variability in transport pathways in the Labrador Sea.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/rs15235545","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2023,11,28]],"date-time":"2023-11-28T11:43:16Z","timestamp":1701171796000},"page":"5545","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":3,"title":["Satellite-Derived Lagrangian Transport Pathways in the Labrador Sea"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"15","author":[{"given":"Renato M.","family":"Castelao","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Marine Sciences, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-5507-3333","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Hilde","family":"Oliver","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Applied Ocean Physics and Engineering Department, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, MA 02543, USA"}]},{"given":"Patricia M.","family":"Medeiros","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Marine Sciences, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2023,11,28]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","unstructured":"Vahl, M., and Rietzel, C.A. (1928). The Waters around Greenland. Greenland: The Discovery of Greenland, Exploration, and the Nature of the Country, Oxford University Press Publisher."},{"key":"ref_2","first-page":"1","article-title":"The Marion and General Greene expeditions to Davis Strait and Labrador Sea. Scientific Results, Part 2, Physical Oceanography","volume":"19","author":"Smith","year":"1937","journal-title":"Bull. U.S. Coast Guard"},{"key":"ref_3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"341","DOI":"10.1016\/0011-7471(73)90058-2","article-title":"The renewal of Labrador Sea water","volume":"20","author":"Lazier","year":"1973","journal-title":"Deep. Sea Res. Oceanogr. Abstr."},{"key":"ref_4","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"9","DOI":"10.3354\/meps07233","article-title":"Regional differences in the timing of the spring bloom in the Labrador Sea","volume":"355","author":"Wu","year":"2008","journal-title":"Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser."},{"key":"ref_5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"6278","DOI":"10.1002\/2017GL073583","article-title":"Melting glaciers stimulate large summer phytoplankton blooms in southwest Greenland waters","volume":"44","author":"Arrigo","year":"2017","journal-title":"Geophys. Res. Lett."},{"key":"ref_6","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"eabc4254","DOI":"10.1126\/sciadv.abc4254","article-title":"A continuous pathway for fresh water along the East Greenland shelf","volume":"6","author":"Foukal","year":"2020","journal-title":"Sci. Adv."},{"key":"ref_7","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"8828","DOI":"10.1029\/2018JC014511","article-title":"Seasonality of freshwater in the East Greenland Current system from 2014 to 2016","volume":"123","author":"Straneo","year":"2018","journal-title":"J. Geophys. Res. Ocean."},{"key":"ref_8","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"L20502","DOI":"10.1029\/2008GL035417","article-title":"Mass balance of the Greenland ice sheet from 1958 to 2007","volume":"35","author":"Rignot","year":"2008","journal-title":"Geophys. Res. Lett."},{"key":"ref_9","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1183","DOI":"10.1126\/science.1228102","article-title":"A reconciled estimate of ice-sheet mass balance","volume":"338","author":"Shepherd","year":"2012","journal-title":"Science"},{"key":"ref_10","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"L19501","DOI":"10.1029\/2012GL052552","article-title":"Recent large increases in freshwater fluxes from Greenland into the North Atlantic","volume":"39","author":"Bamber","year":"2012","journal-title":"Geophys. Res. Lett."},{"key":"ref_11","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1827","DOI":"10.1002\/2017JC013605","article-title":"Land ice freshwater budget of the Arctic and North Atlantic Oceans: 1. Data, methods, and results","volume":"123","author":"Bamber","year":"2018","journal-title":"J. Geophys. Res. Ocean."},{"key":"ref_12","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"The IMBIE Team (2020). Mass balance of the Greenland Ice Sheet from 1992 to 2018. Nature, 579, 233\u2013239.","DOI":"10.1038\/s41586-019-1855-2"},{"key":"ref_13","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"523","DOI":"10.1038\/ngeo2740","article-title":"Emerging impact of Greenland meltwater on deepwater formation in the North Atlantic Ocean","volume":"9","author":"Behrens","year":"2016","journal-title":"Nat. Geosci."},{"key":"ref_14","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"475","DOI":"10.1038\/nclimate2554","article-title":"Exceptional twentieth-century slowdown in Atlantic Ocean overturning circulation","volume":"5","author":"Rahmstorf","year":"2015","journal-title":"Nat. Clim. Change"},{"key":"ref_15","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"191","DOI":"10.1038\/s41586-018-0006-5","article-title":"Observed fingerprint of a weakening Atlantic Ocean overturning circulation","volume":"556","author":"Caesar","year":"2018","journal-title":"Nature"},{"key":"ref_16","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"274","DOI":"10.1038\/ngeo1746","article-title":"Greenland meltwater as a significant and potentially bioavailable source of iron to the ocean","volume":"6","author":"Bhatia","year":"2013","journal-title":"Nat. Geosci."},{"key":"ref_17","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"3929","DOI":"10.1038\/ncomms4929","article-title":"Ice sheets as a significant source of highly reactive nanoparticulate iron to the oceans","volume":"5","author":"Hawkings","year":"2014","journal-title":"Nat. Commun."},{"key":"ref_18","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"94","DOI":"10.7185\/geochemlet.1510","article-title":"The effect of warming climate on nutrient and solute export from the Greenland Ice Sheet","volume":"1","author":"Hawkings","year":"2015","journal-title":"Geochem. Perspect. Lett."},{"key":"ref_19","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"3256","DOI":"10.1038\/s41467-018-05488-8","article-title":"Non-linear response of summertime marine productivity to increased meltwater discharge around Greenland","volume":"9","author":"Hopwood","year":"2018","journal-title":"Nat. Commun."},{"key":"ref_20","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2570","DOI":"10.1002\/2018JC013802","article-title":"Exploring the potential impact of Greenland meltwater on stratification, photosynthetically active radiation, and primary production in the Labrador Sea","volume":"123","author":"Oliver","year":"2018","journal-title":"J. Geophys. Res. Ocean."},{"key":"ref_21","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"428","DOI":"10.1175\/1520-0485(2002)032<0428:HOTLSD>2.0.CO;2","article-title":"Hydrography of the Labrador Sea during active convection","volume":"32","author":"Pickart","year":"2002","journal-title":"J. Phys. Oceanogr."},{"key":"ref_22","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"627","DOI":"10.1175\/1520-0485(2002)032<0627:LSBCAT>2.0.CO;2","article-title":"Labrador Sea boundary currents and the fate of the Irminger Sea Water","volume":"32","author":"Cuny","year":"2002","journal-title":"J. Phys. Oceanogr."},{"key":"ref_23","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"411","DOI":"10.1175\/1520-0485(2002)032<0411:EITLSA>2.0.CO;2","article-title":"Eddies in the Labrador Sea as observed by profiling RAFOS floats and remote sensing","volume":"32","author":"Prater","year":"2002","journal-title":"J. Phys. Oceanogr."},{"key":"ref_24","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"606","DOI":"10.1175\/JPO2875.1","article-title":"Heat and freshwater Transport through the central Labrador Sea","volume":"36","author":"Straneo","year":"2006","journal-title":"J. Phys. Oceanogr."},{"key":"ref_25","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"695","DOI":"10.1007\/s00382-012-1479-9","article-title":"Decadal fingerprints of freshwater discharge around Greenland in a multi-model ensemble","volume":"41","author":"Swingedouw","year":"2013","journal-title":"Clim. Dyn."},{"key":"ref_26","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"877","DOI":"10.1002\/2015JC011290","article-title":"Greenland freshwater pathways in the sub-Arctic seas from model experiments with passive tracers","volume":"121","author":"Dukhovskoy","year":"2016","journal-title":"J. Geophys. Res. Oceans"},{"key":"ref_27","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1247","DOI":"10.5194\/os-14-1247-2018","article-title":"Wind-driven transport of fresh shelf water into the upper 30 m of the Labrador Sea","volume":"14","author":"Chretien","year":"2018","journal-title":"Ocean Sci."},{"key":"ref_28","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1","DOI":"10.1038\/s41598-020-74345-w","article-title":"Submesoscale modulation of deep water formation in the Labrador Sea","volume":"10","author":"Tagklis","year":"2020","journal-title":"Sci. Rep."},{"key":"ref_29","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"528","DOI":"10.1038\/ngeo2708","article-title":"Oceanic transport of surface meltwater from the southern Greenland ice sheet","volume":"9","author":"Luo","year":"2016","journal-title":"Nat. Geosci."},{"key":"ref_30","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"10873","DOI":"10.1002\/2016GL070969","article-title":"Meltwater pathways from marine terminating glaciers of the Greenland ice sheet","volume":"43","author":"Gillard","year":"2016","journal-title":"Geophys. Res. Lett."},{"key":"ref_31","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"3551","DOI":"10.1029\/2019JC015159","article-title":"Controls on the transport of meltwater from the southern Greenland ice sheet in the Labrador Sea","volume":"124","author":"Castelao","year":"2019","journal-title":"J. Geophys. Res. Oceans"},{"key":"ref_32","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2938","DOI":"10.1175\/1520-0485(2002)032<2938:DMAAOT>2.0.CO;2","article-title":"Diagnostic model and analysis of the surface currents in the tropical Pacific Ocean","volume":"32","author":"Bonjean","year":"2020","journal-title":"J. Phys. Oceanogr."},{"key":"ref_33","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"3571","DOI":"10.5194\/gmd-12-3571-2019","article-title":"The Parcels v2.0 Lagrangian framework: New field interpolation schemes","volume":"12","author":"Delandmeter","year":"2019","journal-title":"Geosci. Model Dev."},{"key":"ref_34","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Castelao, R.M., and Medeiros, P.M. (2022). Coastal Summer Freshening and Meltwater Input off West Greenland from Satellite Observations. Remote Sens., 14.","DOI":"10.3390\/rs14236069"},{"key":"ref_35","unstructured":"Hersbach, H., Bell, B., Berrisford, P., Biavati, G., Hor\u00e1nyi, A., Mu\u00f1oz Sabater, J., Nicolas, J., Peubey, C., Radu, R., and Rozum, I. (2018). ERA5 Hourly Data on Single Levels from 1979 to Present, European Commission."},{"key":"ref_36","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"49","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ocemod.2017.11.008","article-title":"Lagrangian ocean analysis: Fundamentals and practices","volume":"121","author":"Griffies","year":"2018","journal-title":"Ocean Model."},{"key":"ref_37","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1393","DOI":"10.5194\/os-19-1393-2023","article-title":"Evaluating altimetry-derived surface currents on the south Greenland shelf with surface drifters","volume":"19","author":"Coquereau","year":"2023","journal-title":"Ocean Sci."},{"key":"ref_38","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"93","DOI":"10.1016\/j.pocean.2008.12.003","article-title":"Structure and variability of the West Greenland Current in summer derived from 6 repeat standard sections","volume":"80","author":"Myers","year":"2009","journal-title":"Prog. Oceanogr."},{"key":"ref_39","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e2020JC016751","DOI":"10.1029\/2020JC016751","article-title":"Freshwater variability and transport in the Labrador Sea from in situ and satellite observations","volume":"126","author":"Majumder","year":"2021","journal-title":"J. Geophys. Res. Oceans"},{"key":"ref_40","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Mears, C., Lee, T., Ricciardulli, L., Wang, X., and Wentz, F. (2022). RSS Cross-Calibrated Multi-Platform (CCMP) 6-Hourly Ocean Vector Wind Analysis on 0.25 Deg Grid, Version 3.0, Remote Sensing Systems.","DOI":"10.56236\/RSS-uv6h30"},{"key":"ref_41","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"3719","DOI":"10.1073\/pnas.0700462104","article-title":"Delayed upwelling alters nearshore coastal ocean ecosystems in the northern California current","volume":"104","author":"Barth","year":"2007","journal-title":"Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA"},{"key":"ref_42","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"6339","DOI":"10.5194\/bg-13-6339-2016","article-title":"Sources, cycling and export of nitrogen on the Greenland Ice Sheet","volume":"13","author":"Wadham","year":"2016","journal-title":"Biogeosciences"},{"key":"ref_43","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1","DOI":"10.1007\/s10533-015-0091-6","article-title":"Glacial meltwater from Greenland is not likely to be an important source of Fe to the North Atlantic","volume":"124","author":"Hopwood","year":"2015","journal-title":"Biogeochemistry"},{"key":"ref_44","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"15","DOI":"10.3389\/feart.2016.00015","article-title":"Seasonal changes in Fe along a glaciated Greenlandic Fjord","volume":"4","author":"Hopwood","year":"2016","journal-title":"Front. Earth Sci."},{"key":"ref_45","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"5344","DOI":"10.1111\/gcb.13801","article-title":"Marine-terminating glaciers sustain high productivity in Greenland fjords","volume":"23","author":"Meire","year":"2017","journal-title":"Glob. Change Biol."},{"key":"ref_46","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2489","DOI":"10.5194\/tc-13-2489-2019","article-title":"Estimating Greenland tidewater glacier retreat driven by submarine melting","volume":"13","author":"Slater","year":"2019","journal-title":"Cryosphere"},{"key":"ref_47","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"89","DOI":"10.1146\/annurev-marine-010213-135133","article-title":"The dynamics of Greenland\u2019s glacial fjords and their role in climate","volume":"7","author":"Straneo","year":"2015","journal-title":"Annu. Rev. Mar. Sci."},{"key":"ref_48","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"9739","DOI":"10.1002\/2016GL070170","article-title":"The impact of glacier geometry on meltwater plume structure and submarine melt in Greenland fjords","volume":"43","author":"Carroll","year":"2016","journal-title":"Geophys. Res. Lett."},{"key":"ref_49","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"6611","DOI":"10.1002\/2017JC012962","article-title":"Subglacial discharge-driven renewal of tidewater glacier fjords","volume":"122","author":"Carroll","year":"2017","journal-title":"J. Geophys. Res. Oceans"},{"key":"ref_50","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e2020JC01618","DOI":"10.1029\/2020JC016185","article-title":"Meltwater-enhanced nutrient export from Greenland\u2019s glacial fjords: A sensitivity analysis","volume":"125","author":"Oliver","year":"2020","journal-title":"J. Geophys. Res. Oceans"},{"key":"ref_51","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"106246","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ecss.2019.106246","article-title":"Lagrangian observations of estuarine residence times, dispersion, and trapping in the Salish Sea","volume":"225","author":"Pawlowicz","year":"2019","journal-title":"Estuar. Coast. Shelf Sci."},{"key":"ref_52","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"167","DOI":"10.1016\/j.pocean.2011.01.002","article-title":"Global observations of nonlinear mesoscale eddies","volume":"91","author":"Chelton","year":"2011","journal-title":"Prog. Oceanogr."},{"key":"ref_53","first-page":"20160117","article-title":"Submesoscale currents in the ocean","volume":"472","author":"McWilliams","year":"2016","journal-title":"Proc. R. Soc. A Math. Phys. Eng. Sci."},{"key":"ref_54","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"75","DOI":"10.1016\/j.pocean.2003.08.013","article-title":"Observations of the Labrador Sea eddy field","volume":"59","author":"Lilly","year":"2003","journal-title":"Prog. Oceanogr."},{"key":"ref_55","unstructured":"Fu, L.-L., Alsdorf, D., Morrow, R., Rodriguez, E., and Mognard, N. (2022, November 20). SWOT: The Surface Water and Ocean Topography Mission\u2014Wideswath Altimetric Measurement of Water Elevation on Earth. NASA, Available online: https:\/\/trs.jpl.nasa.gov\/handle\/2014\/41996."},{"key":"ref_56","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"232","DOI":"10.3389\/fmars.2019.00232","article-title":"Global Observations of Fine-Scale Ocean Surface Topography with the Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) Mission","volume":"6","author":"Morrow","year":"2019","journal-title":"Front. Mar. Sci."},{"key":"ref_57","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"410","DOI":"10.1002\/2015JC011082","article-title":"The impact of wave-induced Coriolis-Stokes forcing on satellite-derived ocean surface currents","volume":"121","author":"Hui","year":"2016","journal-title":"J. Geophys. Res. Oceans"},{"key":"ref_58","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2820","DOI":"10.1175\/2009JPO4169.1","article-title":"Observation and estimation of Lagrangian, Stokes and Eulerian currents induced by wind and waves at the sea surface","volume":"39","author":"Ardhuin","year":"2019","journal-title":"J. Phys. Oceanogr."},{"key":"ref_59","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"202","DOI":"10.1016\/j.marpolbul.2019.07.057","article-title":"Large impact of Stokes drift on the fate of surface floating debris in the South Indian Basin","volume":"148","author":"Dobler","year":"2019","journal-title":"Mar. Pollut. Bull."},{"key":"ref_60","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e2022JC019135","DOI":"10.1029\/2022JC019135","article-title":"Ageostrophic contribution by the wind and waves induced flow to the lateral stirring in the Mediterranean Sea","volume":"128","author":"Orfila","year":"2023","journal-title":"J. Geophys. Res. Oceans"}],"container-title":["Remote Sensing"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2072-4292\/15\/23\/5545\/pdf","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,10]],"date-time":"2025-10-10T21:32:49Z","timestamp":1760131969000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2072-4292\/15\/23\/5545"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2023,11,28]]},"references-count":60,"journal-issue":{"issue":"23","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2023,12]]}},"alternative-id":["rs15235545"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/rs15235545","relation":{},"ISSN":["2072-4292"],"issn-type":[{"value":"2072-4292","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2023,11,28]]}}}