We use wind stress data, as obtained from the QuikSCAT/SeaWinds Scatterometer, to calculate the monthly Ekman meridional transports across 3.75°N and 3.75°S during a 10 years period, from 1999 to 2009. These transports are first employed to calculate the meridional divergence at different longitudes all across the ocean and then added up (starting from the African coast) to compute the cumulative transports. This cumulative divergent transport shows up to be comparable in size to the water transport by the Equatorial Undercurrent (EUC). This result emphasizes the large‐scale coupling between the equatorial easterlies and the ocean response: the winds build up pressure at the western margin, which is the origin of the EUC, and accommodate this zonal flow through the meridional Ekman divergence, the fate of the EUC. Our results also reveal substantial seasonal variability related to the meridional displacement of the Inter‐Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ). The ITCZ attains its northernmost position in August and September, allowing southern high pressures at about 32°W to enter the Equatorial region. This in turn intensifies the winds along the Brazilian cost, increasing sea water inflow through the North Brazil Current along the occidental Atlantic margin

I Encuentro de la Oceanografía Física Española (EOF), 13-15 de octubre 2010, Barcelona

Peer Reviewed