Satellite observations of the circulation east of the Mississippi Delta: Cold-air outbreak conditions

Examination of 12 years of Landsat multispectral scanner images shows a recurrent pattern of westward flow immediately south of the Mississippi-Alabama barrier islands under northerly winds. Such flow patterns are also seen under similar conditions in imagery from the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) of the NOAA-series satellites. The flow enters Chandeleur Sound between Ship Island and the northern end of the Chandeleur Islands. It appears to be driven by northerly winds, which force water south through the ChandeleurBreton Sound, drawing water in from the shelf region south of the Mississippi-Alabama barrier islands. These observations on circulation can be simply explained assuming linear dynamics. These two operational satellite systems are accumulating valuable records of coastal circulation patterns under clear-sky conditions.