Interannual Variability of subsurface connections in the Southeastern Tropical Pacific during 1999 - 2004

A remarkable feature of the Humboldt Current system (HCS) is its remote connection with the Equatorial Current System (ECS). Evidences have shown that, under climatological atmospheric and oceanic conditions, the eastward subsurface currents of ECS feed the Peru - Chile Undercurrent (PCUC) which constitutes the main source of coastally upwelled waters off Peru. Based on this hypothesis and considering that the region is strongly affected by interannual variability (e.g. ENSO events), we configure ROMS to investigate the ECS - HCS subsurface interactions during the warm phase, El Niño, and the cold phase, La Niña, of ENSO. Our domain encompasses the Peruvian and the equatorial domains. The solution is obtained with interannual forcing (atmospheric and open boundaries) between 1999 and 2004. Preliminary results, mainly based on offline Lagrangian diagnostics, will be presented.