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  • American Meteorological Society  (5)
  • 2005-2009  (5)
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  • 1
    Publication Date: 2005-07-01
    Description: Multiple-gyre ocean models have a weaker mean subtropical circulation than single-gyre calculations with the same viscosity and subtropical forcing. Traditionally, this reduction in circulation is attributed to an intergyre eddy vorticity flux that cancels some of the wind input, part of which does not require a Lagrangian mass exchange (theory of dissipative meandering). Herein the intergyre eddy vorticity flux is shown to be a controlling factor in barotropic models at high Reynolds number only with exactly antisymmetric gyres and slip boundary conditions. Almost no intergyre flux occurs when no-slip boundary conditions are used, yet the subtropical gyre is still significantly weaker in multiple-gyre calculations. Sinuous modes of instability present only in multiple gyres are shown here to vastly increase the eddy vorticity transport efficiency. This increase in efficiency reduces the mean circulation necessary for equilibrium. With slip boundary conditions, the intergyre eddy transport is possibly much larger. However, with wind forcing relevant for the ocean—two unequal gyres—a mean flow flux of vorticity rather than an eddy flux between the regions of opposing wind forcing is increasingly important with increasing Reynolds number. A physical rationalization of the differing results is provided by diagnosis of the equilibrium vorticity budget and eddy transport efficiency. Calculations varying 1) boundary conditions, 2) sources and sinks of vorticity, 3) eddy transport efficiency, and 4) the degree of symmetry of the gyres are discussed.
    Print ISSN: 0022-3670
    Electronic ISSN: 1520-0485
    Topics: Geosciences , Physics
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  • 2
    Publication Date: 2009-12-01
    Description: The time-mean effects of eddies are studied in a model based on the Parsons–Veronis–Huang–Flierl models of the wind-driven gyre. Much of the analysis used for the steady solutions carries over if the model is cast in terms of the thickness-weighted mean velocity, because then mass transport is nondivergent in the absence of diabatic forcing. The model exemplifies the use of residual mean theory to simplify analysis. A result of the analysis is a boundary layer width in the case of a rapid upper-layer flow and weak lower-layer flow. This boundary layer width is comparable to an eddy mixing length when the typical eddy velocity is taken to be the long Rossby wave phase speed. Further analysis of the model illustrates important aspects of eddy behavior, model sensitivity to eddy fluxes, and model sensitivity to frictional parameters.
    Print ISSN: 0022-3670
    Electronic ISSN: 1520-0485
    Topics: Geosciences , Physics
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  • 3
    Publication Date: 2007-09-01
    Description: The restratification of the oceanic surface mixed layer that results from lateral gradients in the surface density field is studied. The lateral gradients are shown to be unstable to ageostrophic baroclinic instabilities and slump from the horizontal to the vertical. These instabilities, which are referred to as mixed layer instabilities (MLIs), differ from instabilities in the ocean interior because of the weak surface stratification. Spatial scales are O(1–10) km, and growth time scales are on the order of a day. Linear stability analysis and fully nonlinear simulations are used to study MLIs and their impact on mixed layer restratification. The main result is that MLIs are a leading-order process in the ML heat budget acting to constantly restratify the surface ocean. Climate and regional ocean models do not resolve the scales associated with MLIs and are likely to underestimate the rate of ML restratification and consequently suffer from a bias in sea surface temperatures and ML depths. In a forthcoming paper, the authors discuss a parameterization scheme to include the effect of MLIs in ocean models.
    Print ISSN: 0022-3670
    Electronic ISSN: 1520-0485
    Topics: Geosciences , Physics
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  • 4
    Publication Date: 2008-06-01
    Description: The authors propose a parameterization for restratification by mixed layer eddies that develop from baroclinic instabilities of ocean fronts. The parameterization is cast as an overturning streamfunction that is proportional to the product of horizontal buoyancy gradient, mixed layer depth, and inertial period. The parameterization has remarkable skill for an extremely wide range of mixed layer depths, rotation rates, and vertical and horizontal stratifications. In this paper a coarse resolution prognostic model of the parameterization is compared with submesoscale mixed layer eddy resolving simulations. The parameterization proves accurate in predicting changes to the buoyancy. The climate implications of the proposed parameterization are estimated by applying the restratification scaling to observations: the mixed layer depth is estimated from climatology, and the buoyancy gradients are from satellite altimetry. The vertical fluxes are comparable to monthly mean air–sea fluxes in large areas of the ocean and suggest that restratification by mixed layer eddies is a leading order process in the upper ocean. Critical regions for ocean–atmosphere interaction, such as deep, intermediate, and mode water formation sites, are particularly affected.
    Print ISSN: 0022-3670
    Electronic ISSN: 1520-0485
    Topics: Geosciences , Physics
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  • 5
    Publication Date: 2008-06-01
    Description: Ageostrophic baroclinic instabilities develop within the surface mixed layer of the ocean at horizontal fronts and efficiently restratify the upper ocean. In this paper a parameterization for the restratification driven by finite-amplitude baroclinic instabilities of the mixed layer is proposed in terms of an overturning streamfunction that tilts isopycnals from the vertical to the horizontal. The streamfunction is proportional to the product of the horizontal density gradient, the mixed layer depth squared, and the inertial period. Hence restratification proceeds faster at strong fronts in deep mixed layers with a weak latitude dependence. In this paper the parameterization is theoretically motivated, confirmed to perform well for a wide range of mixed layer depths, rotation rates, and vertical and horizontal stratifications. It is shown to be superior to alternative extant parameterizations of baroclinic instability for the problem of mixed layer restratification. Two companion papers discuss the numerical implementation and the climate impacts of this parameterization.
    Print ISSN: 0022-3670
    Electronic ISSN: 1520-0485
    Topics: Geosciences , Physics
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