Breaking of unsteady lee waves generated by diurnal tides
Diapycnal mixing caused through breaking of large-amplitude internal lee waves generated by sub-inertial diurnal tides, which are modulated with a 18.6-year period, is hypothesized to be fundamental to both the intermediate-layer ventilation and the bi-decadal oscillation around the North Pacific Oc...
| Published in: | Geophysical Research Letters |
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| Main Authors: | , , , , |
| Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
American Geophysical Union
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/2115/43790 https://doi.org/10.1029/2009GL041456 |
| Summary: | Diapycnal mixing caused through breaking of large-amplitude internal lee waves generated by sub-inertial diurnal tides, which are modulated with a 18.6-year period, is hypothesized to be fundamental to both the intermediate-layer ventilation and the bi-decadal oscillation around the North Pacific Ocean. The first observational evidence of such wave breaking is presented here. The breaking wave observed had ∼200 m height and ∼1 km width, and its associated diapycnal mixing was estimated to be ∼1.5 m2 s^[-1], with a temporal average ∼10^[4] times larger than typical values in the open oceans. Our estimate suggests that a similar mixing process occurs globally, particularly around the Pacific and Antarctic Oceans. |
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