At the end of October there were 283 satellite-tracked drifting buoys, of which 69% had subsurface drogues intact, in operation for the WOCE/CLIVAR Surface Velocity Program in the tropical Pacific Ocean. The three major currents are all well-established. Tropical instability waves are active between 130 W and 110W. Equatorial SST anomalies at the end of the month are generally cool (< 1 C) except for some positive anomalies (1 C) near the Galapagos Islands.

FIGURE A1.1 - Movements of drifting buoys in the tropical Pacific Ocean during October 1995. The linear segments of the trajectories represent two week displacements. Red (solid) paths show buoys drogued to 15-m depth; blue (dotted) paths show undrogued buoys.