Surface cooling caused by rare but intense near-inertial wave induced mixing in the tropical Atlantic
The direct response of the tropical mixed layer to near-inertial waves (NIWs) has only rarely been observed. Here, we present upper-ocean turbulence data that provide evidence for a strongly elevated vertical diffusive heat flux across the base of the mixed layer in the presence of a NIW, thereby co...
Published in: | Nature Communications |
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Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
Language: | English German |
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Nature Research
2020
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Online Access: | https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/50282/ https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/50282/1/s41467-020-17601-x.pdf https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/50282/2/41467_2020_17601_MOESM1_ESM.pdf https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/50282/13/pm_2020_36_vermischung-tropen.pdf https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/50282/14/pm_2020_36_mixing-tropics_en.pdf https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-17601-x |
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ftoceanrep:oai:oceanrep.geomar.de:50282 2023-12-10T09:51:26+01:00 Surface cooling caused by rare but intense near-inertial wave induced mixing in the tropical Atlantic Hummels, Rebecca Dengler, Marcus Rath, Willi Foltz, Gregory R. Schütte, Florian Fischer, Tim Brandt, Peter 2020-07-31 text https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/50282/ https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/50282/1/s41467-020-17601-x.pdf https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/50282/2/41467_2020_17601_MOESM1_ESM.pdf https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/50282/13/pm_2020_36_vermischung-tropen.pdf https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/50282/14/pm_2020_36_mixing-tropics_en.pdf https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-17601-x en de eng ger Nature Research https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/50282/1/s41467-020-17601-x.pdf https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/50282/2/41467_2020_17601_MOESM1_ESM.pdf https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/50282/13/pm_2020_36_vermischung-tropen.pdf https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/50282/14/pm_2020_36_mixing-tropics_en.pdf Hummels, R. , Dengler, M. , Rath, W. , Foltz, G. R., Schütte, F., Fischer, T. and Brandt, P. (2020) Surface cooling caused by rare but intense near-inertial wave induced mixing in the tropical Atlantic. Open Access Nature Communications, 11 (1). Art.Nr. 3829. DOI 10.1038/s41467-020-17601-x <https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-17601-x>. doi:10.1038/s41467-020-17601-x cc_by_4.0 info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess Article PeerReviewed 2020 ftoceanrep https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-17601-x 2023-11-13T00:22:56Z The direct response of the tropical mixed layer to near-inertial waves (NIWs) has only rarely been observed. Here, we present upper-ocean turbulence data that provide evidence for a strongly elevated vertical diffusive heat flux across the base of the mixed layer in the presence of a NIW, thereby cooling the mixed layer at a rate of 244 W m−2 over the 20 h of continuous measurements. We investigate the seasonal cycle of strong NIW events and find that despite their local intermittent nature, they occur preferentially during boreal summer, presumably associated with the passage of atmospheric African Easterly Waves. We illustrate the impact of these rare but intense NIW induced mixing events on the mixed layer heat balance, highlight their contribution to the seasonal evolution of sea surface temperature, and discuss their potential impact on biological productivity in the tropical North Atlantic. Article in Journal/Newspaper North Atlantic OceanRep (GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre für Ocean Research Kiel) Nature Communications 11 1 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
OceanRep (GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre für Ocean Research Kiel) |
op_collection_id |
ftoceanrep |
language |
English German |
description |
The direct response of the tropical mixed layer to near-inertial waves (NIWs) has only rarely been observed. Here, we present upper-ocean turbulence data that provide evidence for a strongly elevated vertical diffusive heat flux across the base of the mixed layer in the presence of a NIW, thereby cooling the mixed layer at a rate of 244 W m−2 over the 20 h of continuous measurements. We investigate the seasonal cycle of strong NIW events and find that despite their local intermittent nature, they occur preferentially during boreal summer, presumably associated with the passage of atmospheric African Easterly Waves. We illustrate the impact of these rare but intense NIW induced mixing events on the mixed layer heat balance, highlight their contribution to the seasonal evolution of sea surface temperature, and discuss their potential impact on biological productivity in the tropical North Atlantic. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Hummels, Rebecca Dengler, Marcus Rath, Willi Foltz, Gregory R. Schütte, Florian Fischer, Tim Brandt, Peter |
spellingShingle |
Hummels, Rebecca Dengler, Marcus Rath, Willi Foltz, Gregory R. Schütte, Florian Fischer, Tim Brandt, Peter Surface cooling caused by rare but intense near-inertial wave induced mixing in the tropical Atlantic |
author_facet |
Hummels, Rebecca Dengler, Marcus Rath, Willi Foltz, Gregory R. Schütte, Florian Fischer, Tim Brandt, Peter |
author_sort |
Hummels, Rebecca |
title |
Surface cooling caused by rare but intense near-inertial wave induced mixing in the tropical Atlantic |
title_short |
Surface cooling caused by rare but intense near-inertial wave induced mixing in the tropical Atlantic |
title_full |
Surface cooling caused by rare but intense near-inertial wave induced mixing in the tropical Atlantic |
title_fullStr |
Surface cooling caused by rare but intense near-inertial wave induced mixing in the tropical Atlantic |
title_full_unstemmed |
Surface cooling caused by rare but intense near-inertial wave induced mixing in the tropical Atlantic |
title_sort |
surface cooling caused by rare but intense near-inertial wave induced mixing in the tropical atlantic |
publisher |
Nature Research |
publishDate |
2020 |
url |
https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/50282/ https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/50282/1/s41467-020-17601-x.pdf https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/50282/2/41467_2020_17601_MOESM1_ESM.pdf https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/50282/13/pm_2020_36_vermischung-tropen.pdf https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/50282/14/pm_2020_36_mixing-tropics_en.pdf https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-17601-x |
genre |
North Atlantic |
genre_facet |
North Atlantic |
op_relation |
https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/50282/1/s41467-020-17601-x.pdf https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/50282/2/41467_2020_17601_MOESM1_ESM.pdf https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/50282/13/pm_2020_36_vermischung-tropen.pdf https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/50282/14/pm_2020_36_mixing-tropics_en.pdf Hummels, R. , Dengler, M. , Rath, W. , Foltz, G. R., Schütte, F., Fischer, T. and Brandt, P. (2020) Surface cooling caused by rare but intense near-inertial wave induced mixing in the tropical Atlantic. Open Access Nature Communications, 11 (1). Art.Nr. 3829. DOI 10.1038/s41467-020-17601-x <https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-17601-x>. doi:10.1038/s41467-020-17601-x |
op_rights |
cc_by_4.0 info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-17601-x |
container_title |
Nature Communications |
container_volume |
11 |
container_issue |
1 |
_version_ |
1784897032635285504 |