Statistical Analysis of Tidal Currents Based on Surface Drifter Observations: Application to the Barents Sea and the Waters around the Svalbard Archipelago

Abstract Two statistical methodologies are introduced for analyzing tidal currents based on direct surface current measurements from freely drifting buoys. Applied to 17 years (2006–22) of historical drifter data from the Barents Sea and the waters surrounding the Svalbard Archipelago, these approaches provide detailed insights into the spatial distribution of tidal currents with high horizontal resolution (∼20 km). The observed tidal currents are particularly pronounced in certain shallow areas, with amplitudes reaching up to 84, 47, and 24 cm s −1 for the principal lunar semidiurnal M2 tide in the southern Barents Sea near the entrance of the White Sea, on the Spitsbergen Bank, and northeast of the Svalbard Archipelago, respectively. In the diurnal band, lunar diurnal K1 tidal currents exhibit localized maxima on the slope between the Norwegian and Barents Seas at two specific latitudes (reaching ∼15 cm s −1 near 71°50′ and 76°N) where the bathymetry flattens and induces topographic waves. Diurnal currents are also substantial (27 cm s −1 ) on the Spitsbergen Bank and on the Yermak Plateau. Most tidal currents rotate along eccentric ellipses in a clockwise direction, with the ellipses tending to be more elongated along the topography near the coast. In some areas, a clear propagation of the tidal signal is evident. Particularly, the M2 currents propagate eastward as a Kelvin wave off the coast of Norway and Russia, with a phase speed of 40 m s −1 . The K1 currents appear to propagate clockwise around Bear Island and northward on the continental shelf separating the Norwegian and Barents Seas, as well as between Fram Strait and Yermak Plateau.