Processed data were imported to the ODV database (Ocean Data View, Schlitzer 2005) for further manipulation and export to relevant databases (e.g., WOCE, WOD, etc.). Horizontal maps of selected variables were produced using DIVA gridding software

(Data Interpolating Variational Analysis), an algorithm that considers coastlines and bathymetry features for domain subdivision and performs better in the case of sparse and heterogeneous data coverage (signal-to-noise ratio = 40; quality limit = 1.5; excluding outliers). Meridional sections were produced for each parameter using VG gridding, utilizing data from the original sampling stations and not reconstructing them from the 3-D parameter ZD1839 field. Meteorological data (air temperature, atmospheric pressure, wind speed and direction) for the period commencing fifteen days prior to the cruise start until the end of each annual cruise, were obtained from all the main airports of the broader North Aegean Sea area (Thessaloniki, Kavala, Alexandroupolis, Chios I., Lemnos I., Skyros I. and Istanbul). These data were combined with the surface wind vectors obtained from the NOAA 3-D atmospheric model, based on systematic satellite observations over the North Aegean Sea (http://www.arl.noaa.gov/ready/amet.html). Figure 3 presents a synoptic view of the surface wind vectors prevailing over the North Aegean Sea during each cruise period.

The significant impact of the Etesians (north to north-easterly 17-AAG research buy winds) during the 1998 to 2000 cruises is shown. Strong south to south-westerly winds, changing rapidly to northerlies,

dominate during the 2001 sampling period. The sea surface temperature displays a zonal distribution, with lower values (20–21°C) in the Thracian Sea and higher ones (23.2°C) in the Chios Basin (Figure 4a). This distinct north-to-south gradient is disrupted by the presence of cooler water (19–20°C) in the area south of Lemnos Island, corresponding to the BSW U0126 mouse core. Relatively colder water occupies the surface layer along the eastern coastline of the North and Central Aegean Sea, with values 22–23°C near Lesvos and Chios Islands, compared to the warmer water (24.5°C) near the Sporades Islands. A similar zonal pattern is also exhibited by the surface salinity, with minimum values in an extended area south of Lemnos Island (28.7–29.3), occupied by the BSW. From this minimum, the surface salinity showed gradually increasing values of 33.0–34.5 towards the Thracian Sea and to the south-west towards the Sporades Basin (33.8–36.3) (Figure 4b). The very distinctive frontal zone separating the BSW and the LIW appears to be located in the vicinity of Agios Efstratios Island. However, the ‘closed-bull-eye’ pattern in this area is mostly the result of the sparse and heterogeneous data coverage in this area, representing the exit of the BSW from the Dardanelles, rather than an existing hydrographic feature.