Topographic effects on mesoscale ocean circulation
The trajectories and stability of boundary currents, of mesoscale vortices, and of recirculations, are often largely imposed by ocean bottom topography. Here several related questions in the influence of topography on mesoscale ocean circulation are investigated, largely motivated by observed circul...
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| Other Authors: | , |
| Format: | Thesis |
| Language: | English |
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eScholarship, University of California
2020
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://escholarship.org/uc/item/3kc6m1vw https://escholarship.org/content/qt3kc6m1vw/qt3kc6m1vw.pdf |
| Summary: | The trajectories and stability of boundary currents, of mesoscale vortices, and of recirculations, are often largely imposed by ocean bottom topography. Here several related questions in the influence of topography on mesoscale ocean circulation are investigated, largely motivated by observed circulation features in the sub-polar North Atlantic ocean.Observations show that boundary currents tend to become highly variable and shed material near sharp topographic variations, such as peninsula edges or corners of underwater capes. Baroclinic instability is understood to be one of the main causes of internal variability of large scale ocean circulation. Therefore the influence of horizontally curving topography on baroclinic instability is studied, under the hypothesis that the curvature may cause a higher tendency towards instability. That is done within a minimum complexity model, a two-layer quasi-geostrophic model, and compared with the classic rectilinear model. First necessary conditions for instability as well as growth rate bounds are derived. Growth rates are calculated analytically or numerically for several flow and topography profiles. The growth rate in uniform azimuthal flow is similar to that in uniform rectilinear azimuthal flow, but decreases with increasing depth-averaged flow component amplitude. That is recognized as a generalization of the so called “barotropic governor” effect. Instability growth rate is nonetheless higher with uniform azimuthal flow when isopycnal slope is similar to the topographic slope magnitude, a common scenario in the ocean. Non-normal instability is studied as well, and is generally intensified with uniform azimuthal flow. Thus a complex picture emerges as to the influence of horizontal curvature on baroclinic instability.The Deep Western Boundary Current (DWBC) carries water masses formed in deep convection sites southward, as part of the Atlantic Overturning Meridional Circulation (AMOC), a circulation pattern of climatic importance. Observations show that the DWBC ... |
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