Nonlinear Gulf Stream Interaction with the Deep Western Boundary Current System: Observations and a Numerical Simulation

Gulf Stream (GS) separation near its observed Cape Hatteras (CH) separation location, and its ensuing path and dynamics, is a challenging ocean modeling problem. If a model GS separates much farther north than CH, then northward GS meanders, which pinch off warm core eddies (rings), are not possible...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Dietrich, David E., Mehra, Avichal, Haney, Robert L., Bowman, Malcolm J., Tseng, Yu-Heng
Other Authors: STATE UNIV OF NEW YORK AT STONY BROOK
Format: Text
Language:English
Published: 2003
Subjects:
Physical and Dynamic Oceanography
*OCEAN CURRENTS
*GULF STREAM
CORES
NUMERICAL ANALYSIS
NONLINEAR SYSTEMS
CLIMATE
RINGS
AIR WATER INTERACTIONS
OCEAN MODELS
CAPE HATTERAS
COMPONENT REPORT
DWBC(DEEP WESTERN BOUNDARY CURRENT SYSTEM)
WARM CORE RINGS
COLD CORE RINGS
Arctic
Arctic Ocean
Online Access:http://www.dtic.mil/docs/citations/ADP014796
http://oai.dtic.mil/oai/oai?&verb=getRecord&metadataPrefix=html&identifier=ADP014796
Description
Summary:Gulf Stream (GS) separation near its observed Cape Hatteras (CH) separation location, and its ensuing path and dynamics, is a challenging ocean modeling problem. If a model GS separates much farther north than CH, then northward GS meanders, which pinch off warm core eddies (rings), are not possible or are strongly constrained by the Grand Banks shelfbreak. Cold core rings pinch off the southward GS meanders. The rings are often re-absorbed by the GS. The important warm core rings enhance heat exchange and, especially, affect the northern GS branch after GS bifurcation near the New England Seamount Chain. This northern branch gains heat by contact with the southern branch water upstream of bifurcation, and warms the Arctic Ocean and northern seas, thus playing a major role in ice dynamics, thermohaline circulation and possible global climate warming. These rings transport heat northward between the separated GS and shelf slope/Deep Western Boundary Current system (DWBC). This region has nearly level time mean isopycnals. The eddy heat transport convergence/divergence enhances the shelfbreak and GS front intensities and thus also increases watermass transformation. The fronts are maintained by warm advection by the Florida Current and cool advection by the DWBC. Thus, the GS interaction with the DWBC through the intermediate eddy field is climatologically important. Published in Annual Research Briefs - 2003, p101-114, Dec 2003. This article is from ADA420749 Annual Research Briefs - 2003 (Center for Turbulence Research)

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