Interannual variability in upper ocean salt content in the southeast Indian Ocean

An average freshening of 0.2 psu, extending from 100°E to Australia, 25°S to Indonesia and down to 180 m depth, persisted for more than 3 years from 1999 to 2002. We map the anomaly using CTD profiles from Argo floats and suggest that the dominant forcing for the anomaly is surface freshwater flux over the Indonesian seas that is advected into the region. Using historical CTD data and surface freshwater flux reanalysis products we show that the Indonesian Australian Basin experiences strong interannual variability in upper ocean freshwater content and that the recent fresh event, a result of a long-lasting La Niña, is unprecedented during the last 25 years. Copyright 2005 by the American Geophysical Union.