An air-sea feedback mechanism for quasi-geostrophic water movement near a fast shelf ice edge with a small curvature
Abstract
An air-sea coupled model developed in this paper is intended to depict the generation of unstable coastal water waves near a fast shelf-ice edge with small curvature. Without any external forcing of the system, the unstable models are excited by the air-sea feedback mechanism. Thermally forced surface winds, generated by surface temperature gradient that is related to the vertical displacement by a surface temperature gradient that is related to the vertical displacement of the pycnocline, in turn produce a surface water current that further changes the vertical displacement of the pycnocline. The model consists of two elements: thermally forced surface air flow and mechanically driven coast water waves (Clarke). The two components are linked through the surface temperature gradient and surface wind stress. The coupled air-sea model is solved as an eigenvalue problem. It is found that the iceward convex ice-age, relatively thin ice, and small upper-layer water depth favor the generation of very unstable models. The influence of the coupling on the wave velocity is also discussed.
Description
Chinese Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences
Rights
This publication is a work of the U.S. Government as defined in Title 17, United States Code, Section 101. Copyright protection is not available for this work in the United States.Collections
Related items
Showing items related by title, author, creator and subject.
-
Dynamic and Double-Diffusive Instabilities in a Weak Pycnocline. Part I: Observations of Heat Flux and Diffusivity in the Vicinity of Maud Rise, Weddell Sea
Shaw, William J.; Stanton, Timothy P. (American Meteorological Society, 2014-08);An expedition to study the stability of the weakly stratified water column in the eastern Weddell Sea was undertaken in the austral winter of 2005. A regional CTD survey around Maud Rise delineated water mass boundaries ... -
Oceanic Variability Off the Central California Coast
Breaker, Laurence C.; Mooers, Christopher N.K. (1986);Mesoscale variability off the Central California coast is strongly influenced by coastal upwelling and related processes. Off Point Sur, there is significant space-time variability in oceanic properties over periods of ... -
Exponential leap-forward gradient scheme for determining the isothermal layer depth from profile data
Chu, P.C.; Fan, C.W. (Springer, 2017);Two distinct layers usually exist in the upper ocean. The rst has a near-zero vertical gradient in temperature (or density) from the surface and is called the iso-thermal layer (or mixed layer). Beneath that is a layer ...