The NOAA IR serves as an archival repository of NOAA-published products including scientific findings, journal articles, guidelines, recommendations, or other information authored or co-authored by NOAA or funded partners.
As a repository, the NOAA IR retains documents in their original published format to ensure public access to scientific information.
i
The Seasonality of Submesoscale Energy Production, Content, and Cascade
-
2020
-
-
Source: Geophysical Research Letters, 47(6)
[PDF-11.06 MB]
Details:
-
Journal Title:Geophysical Research Letters
-
Personal Author:
-
NOAA Program & Office:
-
Description:Submesoscale processes in the upper ocean vary seasonally, in tight correspondence with mixed layer thickness variability. Based on a global high‐resolution MITgcm simulation, seasonal evaluation of strong vorticity and spectral analysis of the kinetic energy in the Kuroshio Extension System show the strongest submesoscales occur in March, implying a lag of about a month behind mixed layer thickness maximum in February. An analysis of spectral energy sources and transfers indicates that the seasonality of the submesoscale energy content is a result of the competition between the conversion of available potential energy into submesoscale kinetic energy via a buoyancy production/vertical buoyancy flux associated with mixed layer instability and nonlinear energy transfers to other scales associated with an energy cascade. The buoyancy production is seasonally in phase with the mixed layer depth, but the transfers of energy across scales makes energizing the reservoir of submesoscale kinetic energy lag behind by a month.
-
Source:Geophysical Research Letters, 47(6)
-
DOI:
-
ISSN:0094-8276;1944-8007;
-
Format:
-
Publisher:
-
Document Type:
-
Funding:
-
License:
-
Rights Information:CC BY
-
Compliance:Submitted
-
Main Document Checksum:
-
Download URL:
-
File Type:
