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- Author or Editor: Pierre-Marie Poulain x
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Abstract
Horizontal divergence and vertical velocity in the surface mixed layer of the equatorial Pacific between 90° and 150°W are estimated from current measurements obtained from trajectories of freely drifting buoys during 1979–1990. The 12-year averaged horizontal divergence is predominantly meridional and has a maximum magnitude of 3–4 (× 10−6 s−1) in a 20-km-wide latitude band cantered on the equator. Using the equation of continuity, this divergence corresponds to an upwelling velocity of 1.5–2 (× 10−4 m s−1) at 50-m depth. The seasonal variations of equatorial divergence are in good agreement with the local zonal wind stress.
Abstract
Horizontal divergence and vertical velocity in the surface mixed layer of the equatorial Pacific between 90° and 150°W are estimated from current measurements obtained from trajectories of freely drifting buoys during 1979–1990. The 12-year averaged horizontal divergence is predominantly meridional and has a maximum magnitude of 3–4 (× 10−6 s−1) in a 20-km-wide latitude band cantered on the equator. Using the equation of continuity, this divergence corresponds to an upwelling velocity of 1.5–2 (× 10−4 m s−1) at 50-m depth. The seasonal variations of equatorial divergence are in good agreement with the local zonal wind stress.
Assessment of the Water-Following Capabilities of CODE Drifters Based on Direct Relative Flow MeasurementsAbstract
Direct measurements of the relative water flow near the top and bottom of Coastal Ocean Dynamics Experiment (CODE) drifters were made in the northeast Pacific Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea in wind speeds as large as 15 m s−1. These measurements confirmed that the CODE drifter is a good Lagrangian drifter with a mean downwind slip of about 0.1% of the wind speed. Substantial mean vertical shears across the drifter (top 1 m below the surface) were observed, reaching an amplitude of 12 cm s−1 and corresponding to strong stratification (due to the proximity of river runoff) and strong winds.
Abstract
Direct measurements of the relative water flow near the top and bottom of Coastal Ocean Dynamics Experiment (CODE) drifters were made in the northeast Pacific Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea in wind speeds as large as 15 m s−1. These measurements confirmed that the CODE drifter is a good Lagrangian drifter with a mean downwind slip of about 0.1% of the wind speed. Substantial mean vertical shears across the drifter (top 1 m below the surface) were observed, reaching an amplitude of 12 cm s−1 and corresponding to strong stratification (due to the proximity of river runoff) and strong winds.
Abstract
Satellite-tracked drifting buoy data are being collected by numerous investigators and agencies in several countries for the World Ocean Circulation Experiment-Tropical Oceans Global Atmosphere (WOCE-TOGA) Surface Velocity Program. By the end of the century, and thereafter, this global dataset will provide the best available climatology and chronology of the surface currents of the World Ocean. To expedite completion of research quality datasets for archival and dissemination, a data acquisition activity is being conducted at NOAA Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (AOML), Miami, Florida. At AOML, data from drifting buoys of cooperating operators are quality controlled and optimally interpolated to uniform 6-h interval trajectories for archival at the Marine Environmental Data Service (Canada). This report describes in detail the procedures used in preparing these data for the benefit of second- or third-party users, or future buoy operators who may wish to process data in a consistent way. Particular attention is given to provide quantitative estimates for uncertainty of interpolation.
Abstract
Satellite-tracked drifting buoy data are being collected by numerous investigators and agencies in several countries for the World Ocean Circulation Experiment-Tropical Oceans Global Atmosphere (WOCE-TOGA) Surface Velocity Program. By the end of the century, and thereafter, this global dataset will provide the best available climatology and chronology of the surface currents of the World Ocean. To expedite completion of research quality datasets for archival and dissemination, a data acquisition activity is being conducted at NOAA Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (AOML), Miami, Florida. At AOML, data from drifting buoys of cooperating operators are quality controlled and optimally interpolated to uniform 6-h interval trajectories for archival at the Marine Environmental Data Service (Canada). This report describes in detail the procedures used in preparing these data for the benefit of second- or third-party users, or future buoy operators who may wish to process data in a consistent way. Particular attention is given to provide quantitative estimates for uncertainty of interpolation.
Abstract
A kinematic description of the surface circulation in the southern California current System is presented using the statistics of the 7–11 month long trajectories of 29 satellite-tracked mixed layer drifters. The drifters were released north of 30°N and traveled southward at an average speed of 3–4 cm s−1 along Baja California through an inhomogeneous field of mesoscale eddies of 15 cm s−1 rms variability. Lagrangian and Eulerian statistics of the variations about this mean southward drift are computed. The drifter ensemble mean Lagrangian decorrelation time scale is 4–5 days and the Lagrangian decorrelation space scale is 40–50 km. The computation of dispersion of single particles about the mean drift shows that the theory of diffusion by homogeneous random motion (Taylor's theory) describes these dispersive motions well. Ensemble mean diffusivities of about 4 × 107 cm2 s−1 are found. On a 200 × 200 km2 spatial average, single-partial diffusivities are found to be proportional to the kinetic energy of the locally inhomogeneous fluctuations. Particle-pair statistics are used to study the relative dispersion of particles. The relative diffusivities depend on the initial separation and on the duration of drift. The results are compared to Richardson's 4/3 power law. The Eulerian spatial and temporal correlation of the velocity field indicates that the eddy field is isotropic for scales less than 200 km. The zero time lag correlation indicates an Eulerian length scale of 80 km. The 25-day lagged correlation function indicates that a 2 cm S−1 northwestward propagation of features exists roughly perpendicular to the mean flow.
Abstract
A kinematic description of the surface circulation in the southern California current System is presented using the statistics of the 7–11 month long trajectories of 29 satellite-tracked mixed layer drifters. The drifters were released north of 30°N and traveled southward at an average speed of 3–4 cm s−1 along Baja California through an inhomogeneous field of mesoscale eddies of 15 cm s−1 rms variability. Lagrangian and Eulerian statistics of the variations about this mean southward drift are computed. The drifter ensemble mean Lagrangian decorrelation time scale is 4–5 days and the Lagrangian decorrelation space scale is 40–50 km. The computation of dispersion of single particles about the mean drift shows that the theory of diffusion by homogeneous random motion (Taylor's theory) describes these dispersive motions well. Ensemble mean diffusivities of about 4 × 107 cm2 s−1 are found. On a 200 × 200 km2 spatial average, single-partial diffusivities are found to be proportional to the kinetic energy of the locally inhomogeneous fluctuations. Particle-pair statistics are used to study the relative dispersion of particles. The relative diffusivities depend on the initial separation and on the duration of drift. The results are compared to Richardson's 4/3 power law. The Eulerian spatial and temporal correlation of the velocity field indicates that the eddy field is isotropic for scales less than 200 km. The zero time lag correlation indicates an Eulerian length scale of 80 km. The 25-day lagged correlation function indicates that a 2 cm S−1 northwestward propagation of features exists roughly perpendicular to the mean flow.
Abstract
The maximum cross-correlation (MCC) technique is utilized to estimate the Adriatic Sea surface currents in regions characterized by strong horizontal temperature gradients using sequential pairs of sea surface temperature images from the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer data collected between September 2002 and December 2003. A variety of filtering techniques are used to eliminate erroneous MCC-derived currents resulting in velocity and direction estimates that are spatially coherent in most of the thermal features observed. The results are compared quantitatively to the currents measured by surface drifters and high-frequency coastal radars, operating simultaneously in the vicinity of the thermal structures considered. These comparisons show that surface MCC-derived velocities agree with the typical circulation pattern generally observed in the Adriatic basin. The MCC velocity estimates agree well with collocated and cotemporal drifter and radar measurements averaged on the time interval separating the pairs of images. Since the MCC method provides only estimates of surface currents when thermal features exist and are not covered by clouds, it is proposed that this technique be used preferably with other measurements of surface circulation (high-frequency coastal radars, drifters, etc.) to construct more accurate, more frequent, and more extended circulation maps for scientific and operational purposes in marginal seas such as the Adriatic.
Abstract
The maximum cross-correlation (MCC) technique is utilized to estimate the Adriatic Sea surface currents in regions characterized by strong horizontal temperature gradients using sequential pairs of sea surface temperature images from the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer data collected between September 2002 and December 2003. A variety of filtering techniques are used to eliminate erroneous MCC-derived currents resulting in velocity and direction estimates that are spatially coherent in most of the thermal features observed. The results are compared quantitatively to the currents measured by surface drifters and high-frequency coastal radars, operating simultaneously in the vicinity of the thermal structures considered. These comparisons show that surface MCC-derived velocities agree with the typical circulation pattern generally observed in the Adriatic basin. The MCC velocity estimates agree well with collocated and cotemporal drifter and radar measurements averaged on the time interval separating the pairs of images. Since the MCC method provides only estimates of surface currents when thermal features exist and are not covered by clouds, it is proposed that this technique be used preferably with other measurements of surface circulation (high-frequency coastal radars, drifters, etc.) to construct more accurate, more frequent, and more extended circulation maps for scientific and operational purposes in marginal seas such as the Adriatic.
Abstract
In this paper, a method to analyze historical surface drifter data is presented that is aimed at investigating particle evolution as a function of initial conditions. Maps of drifter concentration at different times are built and interpreted as maps of the probability of finding a particle at a given time in the neighborhood of a given point in the domain. A case study is considered in a coastal area of the middle Adriatic Sea (a subbasin of the Mediterranean Sea) around the Gargano Cape, which is the focus of a newly planned experiment, the Dynamics of the Adriatic in Real Time (DART). A specific application is considered that seeks to improve the DART Lagrangian sampling planning.
The results indicate that the analysis of historical drifters can provide very valuable information on statistical particle prediction to be used in experiment design. In the DART region, particle dynamics appear mostly controlled by the upstream properties of the boundary current as well as by the presence of a stagnation point located offshore of the tip of Gargano and separating two cross-basin recirculations. A significant seasonal dependence is observed, with drifters being more likely to leave the boundary current in winter and fall, when the current is wider and more connected to the cross-basin recirculations. Future developments are discussed, including joint analyses with numerical model results.
Abstract
In this paper, a method to analyze historical surface drifter data is presented that is aimed at investigating particle evolution as a function of initial conditions. Maps of drifter concentration at different times are built and interpreted as maps of the probability of finding a particle at a given time in the neighborhood of a given point in the domain. A case study is considered in a coastal area of the middle Adriatic Sea (a subbasin of the Mediterranean Sea) around the Gargano Cape, which is the focus of a newly planned experiment, the Dynamics of the Adriatic in Real Time (DART). A specific application is considered that seeks to improve the DART Lagrangian sampling planning.
The results indicate that the analysis of historical drifters can provide very valuable information on statistical particle prediction to be used in experiment design. In the DART region, particle dynamics appear mostly controlled by the upstream properties of the boundary current as well as by the presence of a stagnation point located offshore of the tip of Gargano and separating two cross-basin recirculations. A significant seasonal dependence is observed, with drifters being more likely to leave the boundary current in winter and fall, when the current is wider and more connected to the cross-basin recirculations. Future developments are discussed, including joint analyses with numerical model results.
Abstract
Drifter observations and satellite-derived sea surface height data are used to quantitatively study the surface geostrophic circulation of the entire Mediterranean Sea for the period spanning 1992–2010. After removal of the wind-driven components from the drifter velocities and low-pass filtering in bins of 1° × 1° × 1 week, maps of surface geostrophic circulation (mean flow and kinetic energy levels) are produced using the drifter and/or satellite data. The mean currents and kinetic energy levels derived from the drifter data appear stronger/higher with respect to those obtained from satellite altimeter data. The maps of mean circulation estimated from the drifter data and from a combination of drifter and altimeter data are, however, qualitatively similar. In the western basin they show the main pathways of the surface waters flowing eastward from the Strait of Gibraltar to the Sicily Channel and the current transporting waters back westward along the Italian, French, and Spanish coasts. Intermittent and long-lived subbasin-scale eddies and gyres abound in the Tyrrhenian and Algerian Seas. In the eastern basin, the surface waters are transported eastward by several currents but recirculate in numerous eddies and gyres before reaching the northward coastal current off Israel, Lebanon, and Syria and veering westward off Turkey. In the Ionian Sea, the mean geostrophic velocity maps were also produced separately for the two extended seasons and for multiyear periods. Significant variations are confirmed, with seasonal reversals of the currents in the south and changes of the circulation from anticyclonic (prior to 1 July 2007) to cyclonic and back to anticyclonic after 31 December 2005.
Abstract
Drifter observations and satellite-derived sea surface height data are used to quantitatively study the surface geostrophic circulation of the entire Mediterranean Sea for the period spanning 1992–2010. After removal of the wind-driven components from the drifter velocities and low-pass filtering in bins of 1° × 1° × 1 week, maps of surface geostrophic circulation (mean flow and kinetic energy levels) are produced using the drifter and/or satellite data. The mean currents and kinetic energy levels derived from the drifter data appear stronger/higher with respect to those obtained from satellite altimeter data. The maps of mean circulation estimated from the drifter data and from a combination of drifter and altimeter data are, however, qualitatively similar. In the western basin they show the main pathways of the surface waters flowing eastward from the Strait of Gibraltar to the Sicily Channel and the current transporting waters back westward along the Italian, French, and Spanish coasts. Intermittent and long-lived subbasin-scale eddies and gyres abound in the Tyrrhenian and Algerian Seas. In the eastern basin, the surface waters are transported eastward by several currents but recirculate in numerous eddies and gyres before reaching the northward coastal current off Israel, Lebanon, and Syria and veering westward off Turkey. In the Ionian Sea, the mean geostrophic velocity maps were also produced separately for the two extended seasons and for multiyear periods. Significant variations are confirmed, with seasonal reversals of the currents in the south and changes of the circulation from anticyclonic (prior to 1 July 2007) to cyclonic and back to anticyclonic after 31 December 2005.
Abstract
An array of current meter moorings along 12°W on the southern side of the lceland-Faeroe Ridge reveals a narrowband barotropic oscillation with period 1.8 days in spectra of velocity. The signal is coherent over at least 55-km scales and propagates phase with shallow water on the right (toward the northwest). Velocity ellipses tend to be elongated (crossing contours of f/H) and rotate anticyclonically. Solutions of the rigid-lid barotropic shallow-water equations predict the occurrence of a topographic-Rossby normal mode on the south side of the ridge with spatial scales exceeding 250 km and with intrinsic period near 1.84 days. This fundamental mode of the south side of the ridge has predicted spatial structure, phase propagation, and velocity ellipses consistent with the observed oscillation. The frictional amplitude e-folding decay time for this normal mode is estimated from the observations to be 13 days. The observed ocean currents are significantly coherent with zonal wind stress fluctuations (but not with wind stress curl) in the relevant period band, which indicates the oscillation is wind forced. This appears to be the first clear evidence of a stochastically forced resonant barotropic topographic-Rossby normal mode in the ocean.
Abstract
An array of current meter moorings along 12°W on the southern side of the lceland-Faeroe Ridge reveals a narrowband barotropic oscillation with period 1.8 days in spectra of velocity. The signal is coherent over at least 55-km scales and propagates phase with shallow water on the right (toward the northwest). Velocity ellipses tend to be elongated (crossing contours of f/H) and rotate anticyclonically. Solutions of the rigid-lid barotropic shallow-water equations predict the occurrence of a topographic-Rossby normal mode on the south side of the ridge with spatial scales exceeding 250 km and with intrinsic period near 1.84 days. This fundamental mode of the south side of the ridge has predicted spatial structure, phase propagation, and velocity ellipses consistent with the observed oscillation. The frictional amplitude e-folding decay time for this normal mode is estimated from the observations to be 13 days. The observed ocean currents are significantly coherent with zonal wind stress fluctuations (but not with wind stress curl) in the relevant period band, which indicates the oscillation is wind forced. This appears to be the first clear evidence of a stochastically forced resonant barotropic topographic-Rossby normal mode in the ocean.
Abstract
The wind effects on drogued and undrogued drifters are assessed using Coastal Ocean Dynamics Experiment (CODE) and Surface Velocity Program (SVP) drifter datasets and ECMWF wind products in the eastern Mediterranean. Complex and real linear regression models are used to estimate the relative slip of undrogued SVP drifters and to extract the wind-driven currents from the drifter velocities. The frequency response of the wind-driven currents is studied using cross-spectral analysis. By comparing the velocities of cotemporal and nearly collocated undrogued and drogued SVP drifters, it appears that undrogued SVP drifters have a general downwind slippage of about 1% of the wind speed. Time-lagged complex correlations and cross-spectral results show that the wind response is almost simultaneous. The velocities of SVP drifters drogued to 15 m are poorly correlated with the winds (R 2 ≈ 3%): wind-driven currents have a magnitude of 0.7% of the wind speed and are 27°–42° to the right of the wind. For undrogued SVP drifters, the correlation with the winds increases to R 2 ≈ 22% and the angle between winds and currents decreases to 17°–20°. The magnitude of the wind-driven currents is about 2% of the wind speed. For CODE designs, wind-driven currents are 1% of the wind speed at an angle of about 28° to the right of the wind (R 2 ≈ 8%). Spectral and cospectral analyses reveal that the drifters sampled more anticyclonic than cyclonic motions. The inner coherence spectra show that wind and currents are more correlated at temporal scales spanning 3–10 days. They also confirm that the wind response is quasi-simultaneous and that currents are generally to the right of the wind.
Abstract
The wind effects on drogued and undrogued drifters are assessed using Coastal Ocean Dynamics Experiment (CODE) and Surface Velocity Program (SVP) drifter datasets and ECMWF wind products in the eastern Mediterranean. Complex and real linear regression models are used to estimate the relative slip of undrogued SVP drifters and to extract the wind-driven currents from the drifter velocities. The frequency response of the wind-driven currents is studied using cross-spectral analysis. By comparing the velocities of cotemporal and nearly collocated undrogued and drogued SVP drifters, it appears that undrogued SVP drifters have a general downwind slippage of about 1% of the wind speed. Time-lagged complex correlations and cross-spectral results show that the wind response is almost simultaneous. The velocities of SVP drifters drogued to 15 m are poorly correlated with the winds (R 2 ≈ 3%): wind-driven currents have a magnitude of 0.7% of the wind speed and are 27°–42° to the right of the wind. For undrogued SVP drifters, the correlation with the winds increases to R 2 ≈ 22% and the angle between winds and currents decreases to 17°–20°. The magnitude of the wind-driven currents is about 2% of the wind speed. For CODE designs, wind-driven currents are 1% of the wind speed at an angle of about 28° to the right of the wind (R 2 ≈ 8%). Spectral and cospectral analyses reveal that the drifters sampled more anticyclonic than cyclonic motions. The inner coherence spectra show that wind and currents are more correlated at temporal scales spanning 3–10 days. They also confirm that the wind response is quasi-simultaneous and that currents are generally to the right of the wind.
Abstract
The surface transport properties in the Adriatic Sea, a semienclosed subbasin of the Mediterranean Sea, have been studied using a drifter dataset in the period December 1994–March 1996. Three main points have been addressed. First, the exchange between southern and northern regions and between deep and coastal areas have been studied, focusing on the role of topography. A significant cross-topography or cross-shelf exchange has been found, probably due to the direct wind forcing and to the influence of stratification that isolates the surface flow from bottom effects, especially in the open sea. Second, a Lagrangian transport model with parameters derived from the data has been implemented. Simulated particles have been compared with drifter data with positive results. The model is found to be able to reproduce reality with good approximation, except for a specific advective event during the late summer season. Finally, the residence timescale T, that is, the average time spent by a surface particle in the basin, has been estimated. Direct estimates from the data suggest T ≈ 70–90 days, but these values are biased due to the finite lifetime of the drifters. Model results have been used to estimate the bias, and they suggest a “true” value of T ≈ 200 days.
Abstract
The surface transport properties in the Adriatic Sea, a semienclosed subbasin of the Mediterranean Sea, have been studied using a drifter dataset in the period December 1994–March 1996. Three main points have been addressed. First, the exchange between southern and northern regions and between deep and coastal areas have been studied, focusing on the role of topography. A significant cross-topography or cross-shelf exchange has been found, probably due to the direct wind forcing and to the influence of stratification that isolates the surface flow from bottom effects, especially in the open sea. Second, a Lagrangian transport model with parameters derived from the data has been implemented. Simulated particles have been compared with drifter data with positive results. The model is found to be able to reproduce reality with good approximation, except for a specific advective event during the late summer season. Finally, the residence timescale T, that is, the average time spent by a surface particle in the basin, has been estimated. Direct estimates from the data suggest T ≈ 70–90 days, but these values are biased due to the finite lifetime of the drifters. Model results have been used to estimate the bias, and they suggest a “true” value of T ≈ 200 days.
