On the World Ocean Circulation: Volume 2 The Pacific and Indian Oceans / A Global Update.

• Main Author: Schmitz, William J., Jr
• Other Authors: WOODS HOLE OCEANOGRAPHIC INSTITUTION MA
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: 1996
• Subjects: Physical and Dynamic Oceanography; *OCEAN CURRENTS; *PACIFIC OCEAN; *INDIAN OCEAN; WATER FLOW; OCEAN SURFACE; EDDIES(FLUID MECHANICS); OCEANOGRAPHIC DATA; FLOW FIELDS; SALINITY; SEA WATER; FRONTS(OCEANOGRAPHY); OCEAN BASINS; ANTARCTIC REGIONS; Antarctic; Southern Ocean; Pacific; Indian; Antarc*; North Atlantic
• Online Access: http://www.dtic.mil/docs/citations/ADA323804; http://oai.dtic.mil/oai/oai?&verb=getRecord&metadataPrefix=html&identifier=ADA323804

This is the second and final volume of a report that describes some of my investigations over the last 35 years or so into low-frequency ocean current structures, a topic which I will call the World Ocean Circulation (WOC). The material presented constitutes my final report to the Office of Naval Research, and their support over the years is deeply appreciated. I was also fortunate to have been partially supported by the National Science Foundation during my career and, for some of the preparation of this report, by the Clark Foundation. Volume 1 was focused on the North Atlantic Ocean, after a global scale summary. This volume (2) will consider first the Pacific and Indian Oceans, concentrating on interbasin circulations, meridional cells, and mesoscale eddy fields. Then, there is an exceptionally brief discussion of the Southern Ocean(s) for background only, followed by a global summary. Lately, I have worked intensely on intergyre and interbasin exchanges, including an intercomparison of some of the properties of the eddy field in the World's Oceans. Volume 2 contains not only an update of the global picture, but also new representations of the transport structure of various components of the meridional overturning cells for each ocean. In summary, several similarities as well as dissimilarities between different oceans relative to both their general circulation and their mesoscale eddy field are shown to be associated with interbasin exchanges. This report is meant to be an informal-occasionally anecdotal, state-of-the-art summary account of the World Ocean Circulation. Seemingly simple questions about how ocean currents behave, such as where various brands of sea water are coming from and going to, have been exciting research topics for many years. Original contains color plates: All DTIC reproductions will be in black and white.