Observations and generation of internal waves in the Strait of Sicily

Created March 19, 2026

Updated on May 22, 2026

approved

Oceanic internal solitary waves (ISWs) can be generated by several mechanisms, among which by tidal flow over shallow bathymetry, atmospheric forcing, unbalanced sub-mesoscale flow without external forcing and rapid displacements of the sharp fronts separating e.g. cold ocean water masses or river plumes from the ambient seawater. In this paper, we analyze synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images acquired by the Sentinel-1 satellites over the Adventure Bank area, located on the western side of the Strait of Sicily in the years 2018–2021 showing numerous radar signatures of ISWs. This is the first time that massive presence of ISWs is reported in this area of the Mediterranean Sea. The internal wave field, observed primarily in the months from May to September, is very heterogeneous, with wavelengths ranging from a few hundred meters to a few kilometers, wave front lengths from a few km to about 40 km, and propagating in almost any direction. This suggests that the internal waves detected in the SAR images are generated by a variety of mechanisms and not by a specific one. Although in general tidal currents are weak in the Mediterranean Sea, the sum of the tidal flow and the Atlantic-Ionian Stream current can attain values up to 0.3 m s−1 such that ISW generation by interaction with shallow underwater bottom topography becomes possible. Furthermore, cold filaments and sub-mesoscale cyclonic eddies generated by upwelling at the south coast of Sicily, feature sharp and rapidly moving fronts, from which ISWs may originate. Theoretical evidence for these two types of ISW generation mechanisms is provided by model results obtained from the 1/48° resolution ENEA model and the 100 m resolution Delft3D model.

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Tags:
Fronts
Internal Wave
Mediterranean Sea
Publication - Article
Sicily
Synthetic Aperture Radar
Basic
Language
English
MainTitle
Observations and generation of internal waves in the Strait of Sicily
Original ids
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.csr.2024.105349
Type
publication
bestAccessRight
OPEN
contributors
  • ISMAR-CNR Sede Secondaria di Roma, Via Fosso del Cavaliere 100, 00133, Roma, Italy;
  • University of Hamburg, Institute of Oceanography, Bundesstrasse 53, D-20146, Hamburg, Germany;
  • ENEA Centro Ricerche Casaccia, Via Anguillarese, 301, 00123, Santa Maria di Galeria (RM), Italy
countries
  • Germany
  • Italy
Creator/Author
Full name
  • Francesco Bignami, orcid: 0000-0003-1997-1811;
  • Alpers Werner;
  • Davide Cavaliere;
  • La Forgia Giovanni, orcid: 0000-0002-8543-6369;
  • Gianmaria Sannino, orcid: cid: 0000-0003-1997-1811
Other
Description
Oceanic internal solitary waves (ISWs) can be generated by several mechanisms, among which by tidal flow over shallow bathymetry, atmospheric forcing, unbalanced sub-mesoscale flow without external forcing and rapid displacements of the sharp fronts separating e.g. cold ocean water masses or river plumes from the ambient seawater. In this paper, we analyze synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images acquired by the Sentinel-1 satellites over the Adventure Bank area, located on the western side of the Strait of Sicily in the years 2018–2021 showing numerous radar signatures of ISWs. This is the first time that massive presence of ISWs is reported in this area of the Mediterranean Sea. The internal wave field, observed primarily in the months from May to September, is very heterogeneous, with wavelengths ranging from a few hundred meters to a few kilometers, wave front lengths from a few km to about 40 km, and propagating in almost any direction. This suggests that the internal waves detected in the SAR images are generated by a variety of mechanisms and not by a specific one. Although in general tidal currents are weak in the Mediterranean Sea, the sum of the tidal flow and the Atlantic-Ionian Stream current can attain values up to 0.3 m s−1 such that ISW generation by interaction with shallow underwater bottom topography becomes possible. Furthermore, cold filaments and sub-mesoscale cyclonic eddies generated by upwelling at the south coast of Sicily, feature sharp and rapidly moving fronts, from which ISWs may originate. Theoretical evidence for these two types of ISW generation mechanisms is provided by model results obtained from the 1/48° resolution ENEA model and the 100 m resolution Delft3D model.
Publication Date
2024-11-07
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Subjects
  • Fronts;
  • Internal wave;
  • Mediterranean sea;
  • Sicily;
  • Synthetic aperture radar
isGreen
false
isInDiamondJournal
false
Software
Publication
Name
Continental Shelf Research
Publication
Article
Starting page
105349
issnPrinted
0278-4343
vol
284
Other Research Product
Detailed informations
system:type
Research Product
Management Info
Author
Catalogue Manager ITINERIS
Version
1
Last Updated
May 22, 2026, 09:50 (UTC)
Created
March 19, 2026, 00:30 (UTC)
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