Emergence of cyclonic structures due to the interaction between near‐inertial oscillations and mesoscale eddies

Klein, Patrice; Hua, Bach Lien; Carton, Xavier

doi:10.1256/qj.02.111

Cited by 8 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…Interestingly, cyclones are also more plentiful in the surface mixed layer (Rudnick, 2001). A potential explanation for this asymmetry is the destabilization of anticyclones by inertial oscillations (Klein et al, 2003). But the asymmetry could also be a signature of SQG+1 dynamics at the ocean surface.…”

Section: Summary and Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Estimating subsurface horizontal and vertical velocities from sea-surface temperature

LaCasce¹,

Mahadevan²

2006

J Mar Res

114

121

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We examine a dynamical method for estimating subsurface fields (density, pressure, horizontal and vertical velocities) in the upper ocean using sea-surface temperature (SST) and a climatological estimate of the stratification. The method derives from the "surface quasi-geostrophic" (SQG) approximation. The SST is used to generate a potential vorticity (PV) field which is then inverted for the pressure. We examine first the standard SQG model, in which the PV is assumed trapped in a delta-function layer at the surface. We then modify the model by introducing a subsurface PV which is proportional to the surface density and decays exponentially with depth. We derive the subsurface density from the hydrostatic relation, the horizontal velocities from geostrophy and the subsurface vertical velocities from the quasi-geostrophic omega equation. We compare the predicted densities and velocities with those from a three-dimensional (3D) ocean model, and from in situ measurements in the Mediterranean, Eastern Pacific and the Azores Current. In most cases the standard SQG model predicts the qualitative structure of the subsurface flow. But it also underestimates its strength. The modified model yields better estimates of both the strength and vertical structure of the subsurface flow.

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Section: Summary and Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Estimating subsurface horizontal and vertical velocities from sea-surface temperature

LaCasce¹,

Mahadevan²

2006

J Mar Res

114

121

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…But previous studies indicate that such heterogeneous mixing may in turn affect the nonlinear interactions between the eddies and consequently the eddy field itself. Klein et al [2003] for example showed that such heterogeneous mixing breaks the cyclone‐anticyclone symmetry preexisting in an eddy field at a time scale much smaller than the mixing time scale. Then, within the context of the recent findings on the impact of HF winds on the general oceanic circulation [ Wunsch and Ferrari , 2004], the emerging picture is that this general circulation could be modified by the HF wind energy input, not directly by the small‐scale mixing induced by the inertial energy, but indirectly through the mesoscale eddies.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Wind ringing of the ocean in presence of mesoscale eddies

Klein

2004

Geophysical Research Letters

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[1] Recent findings have highlighted the impact of high frequency (HF) winds on the inertial motions and the consequences on the large-scale oceanic circulation [Wunsch and Ferrari, 2004]. Within this context the present study focuses on the role of intermediate scales related to oceanic mesoscale eddies. Results show that a turbulent eddy field does not affect the impact of HF winds on the inertial motions. However the eddies efficiently and permanently concentrate the wind-forced inertial motions in small-scale anticyclonic structures. This leads to a spatially heterogeneous vertical mixing strongly related to the eddy field properties.

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“…As a result, these waves may become trapped within anticyclonic eddies and expelled from cyclonic ones with their frequencies and wavenumbers significantly increasing during this process (see Whitt & Thomas, for a short review). In other words, the scenario that emerges is that the scattering and dispersive impacts of BMs on IGWs may ultimately lead to intensified mixing in anticyclonic structures and reduced mixing in cyclonic ones which, in turn, modifies the OMT properties (Klein et al, ).…”

Section: Bms and Igwsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ocean‐Scale Interactions From Space

Klein

Lapeyre

Siegelman

et al. 2019

Earth and Space Science

Self Cite

109

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Satellite observations of the last two decades have led to a major breakthrough emphasizing the existence of a strongly energetic mesoscale turbulent eddy field in all the oceans. This ocean mesoscale turbulence is characterized by cyclonic and anticyclonic eddies (with a 100‐ to 300‐km size and depth scales of ∼500–1,000 m) that capture approximatively 80% of the total kinetic energy and is now known to significantly impact the large‐scale ocean circulation, the ocean's carbon storage, the air‐sea interactions, and therefore the Earth climate as a whole. However, ocean mesoscale turbulence revealed by satellite observations has properties that differ from those related to classical geostrophic turbulence theories. In the last decade, a large number of theoretical and numerical studies has pointed to submesoscale surface fronts (1–50 km), not resolved by satellite altimeters, as the key suspect explaining these discrepancies. Submesoscale surface fronts have been shown to impact mesoscale eddies and the large‐scale ocean circulation in counterintuitive ways, leading in particular to up‐gradient fluxes. The ocean engine is now known to involve energetic scale interactions, over a much broader range of scales than expected one decade ago, from 1 to 5,000 km. New space observations with higher spatial resolution are however needed to validate and improve these recent theoretical and numerical results.

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Emergence of cyclonic structures due to the interaction between near‐inertial oscillations and mesoscale eddies

Cited by 8 publications

References 25 publications

Estimating subsurface horizontal and vertical velocities from sea-surface temperature

Estimating subsurface horizontal and vertical velocities from sea-surface temperature

Wind ringing of the ocean in presence of mesoscale eddies

Ocean‐Scale Interactions From Space

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