2014: Topographic enhancement of eddy efficiency in baroclinic equilibration
The processes that determine the depth of the Southern Ocean thermocline are considered. In existing conceptual frameworks, the thermocline depth is determined by competition between the mean and eddy heat transport, with a contribution from the interaction with the stratification in the enclosed po...
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ftciteseerx:oai:CiteSeerX.psu:10.1.1.696.9411 2023-05-15T18:25:25+02:00 2014: Topographic enhancement of eddy efficiency in baroclinic equilibration Ryan Abernathey The Pennsylvania State University CiteSeerX Archives 2007 application/pdf http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.696.9411 http://www-pord.ucsd.edu/%7Epcessi/abernathey_cessi_14.pdf en eng http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.696.9411 http://www-pord.ucsd.edu/%7Epcessi/abernathey_cessi_14.pdf Metadata may be used without restrictions as long as the oai identifier remains attached to it. http://www-pord.ucsd.edu/%7Epcessi/abernathey_cessi_14.pdf text 2007 ftciteseerx 2016-01-08T18:41:19Z The processes that determine the depth of the Southern Ocean thermocline are considered. In existing conceptual frameworks, the thermocline depth is determined by competition between the mean and eddy heat transport, with a contribution from the interaction with the stratification in the enclosed portion of the ocean. Using numerical simulations, this study examines the equilibration of an idealized circumpolar current with and without topography. The authors find that eddies are much more efficient when topography is present, leading to a shallower thermocline than in the flat case. A simple quasigeostrophic analytical model shows that the topographically induced standingwave increases the effective eddy diffusivity by increasing the local buoyancy gradients and lengthening the buoyancy contours across which the eddies transport heat. In addition to this local heat flux intensification, transient eddy heat fluxes are suppressed away from the to-pography, especially upstream, indicating that localized topography leads to local (absolute) baroclinic in-stability and its subsequent finite-amplitude equilibration, which extracts available potential energy very efficiently from the time-mean flow. 1. Text Southern Ocean Unknown Southern Ocean |
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Open Polar |
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ftciteseerx |
language |
English |
description |
The processes that determine the depth of the Southern Ocean thermocline are considered. In existing conceptual frameworks, the thermocline depth is determined by competition between the mean and eddy heat transport, with a contribution from the interaction with the stratification in the enclosed portion of the ocean. Using numerical simulations, this study examines the equilibration of an idealized circumpolar current with and without topography. The authors find that eddies are much more efficient when topography is present, leading to a shallower thermocline than in the flat case. A simple quasigeostrophic analytical model shows that the topographically induced standingwave increases the effective eddy diffusivity by increasing the local buoyancy gradients and lengthening the buoyancy contours across which the eddies transport heat. In addition to this local heat flux intensification, transient eddy heat fluxes are suppressed away from the to-pography, especially upstream, indicating that localized topography leads to local (absolute) baroclinic in-stability and its subsequent finite-amplitude equilibration, which extracts available potential energy very efficiently from the time-mean flow. 1. |
author2 |
The Pennsylvania State University CiteSeerX Archives |
format |
Text |
author |
Ryan Abernathey |
spellingShingle |
Ryan Abernathey 2014: Topographic enhancement of eddy efficiency in baroclinic equilibration |
author_facet |
Ryan Abernathey |
author_sort |
Ryan Abernathey |
title |
2014: Topographic enhancement of eddy efficiency in baroclinic equilibration |
title_short |
2014: Topographic enhancement of eddy efficiency in baroclinic equilibration |
title_full |
2014: Topographic enhancement of eddy efficiency in baroclinic equilibration |
title_fullStr |
2014: Topographic enhancement of eddy efficiency in baroclinic equilibration |
title_full_unstemmed |
2014: Topographic enhancement of eddy efficiency in baroclinic equilibration |
title_sort |
2014: topographic enhancement of eddy efficiency in baroclinic equilibration |
publishDate |
2007 |
url |
http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.696.9411 http://www-pord.ucsd.edu/%7Epcessi/abernathey_cessi_14.pdf |
geographic |
Southern Ocean |
geographic_facet |
Southern Ocean |
genre |
Southern Ocean |
genre_facet |
Southern Ocean |
op_source |
http://www-pord.ucsd.edu/%7Epcessi/abernathey_cessi_14.pdf |
op_relation |
http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.696.9411 http://www-pord.ucsd.edu/%7Epcessi/abernathey_cessi_14.pdf |
op_rights |
Metadata may be used without restrictions as long as the oai identifier remains attached to it. |
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1766206852734910464 |