The East Australian Current (EAC) affects the climate and marine environment from 15oS to 42oS along the east coast of Australia. As the strongest ocean current in the region, it influences the marine ecosystem by moving vast amounts of water south from the tropics to the temperate latitudes. Oke et al. 2019, composite previous studies, to provide a summary of what is known about the annual cycle of the EAC transport. These studies have found that the southward EAC transport reaches a maximum in Austral summer (18-20 Sv [1Sv = 106 m3 s-1]) and a minimum in Austral winter (12-18 Sv) and has a seasonal amplitude of approximately 5-9 Sv.
A new view of the annual transport cycle of the EAC is obtained from the IMOS/CSIRO 9.5-year mooring array at ~27oS. From the direct velocity observations, we find that the southward EAC transport is 14-16 Sv between April-October and has two distinct maxima of 24-27 Sv in September-August and 25-27 Sv in December-February. While the Austral winter minimum and Austral summer maximum has been previously identified, the Austal spring transport maximum has not been previously documented. The EAC dynamical balance is explored to understand the two EAC transport maxima.