After completing measurements in the eastern Black Sea, R/V Bilim-2 revisited the western Black Sea. Anticyclonic eddy observed during the first cruise could still be observed by mid-June. This area was re-visited on 22-23 June 2023, and there were implications of the eddy. Satellite images confirm a warmer core (Figure 1).
Additionally, stations within this warm core showed deepening of the iso-pycnals. Cold Intermediate Layer (CIL), a well-known hydrographic feature of the Black Sea, was observed around ~140m, much deeper than other stations. However, this was confined to couple of the stations, suggesting that the eddy is probably dissipating. First look on CTD data confirms fine-scale gradients (Figure 2) in the sampling grid inside SWOT swath.
