Related papers: Submesoscale dispersion in the vicinity of the Dee…
This study examines the mesoscale and submesoscale circulations along the continental slope in the northern Gulf of Mexico at depths greater than 1000 m. The investigation is performed using a regional model run at two horizontal grid…
The processes and instabilities occurring at the ocean surface in the northern Gulf of Mexico are investigated with a regional model at submesoscale-permitting horizontal grid resolution (i.e., HR with dx = 1.6 km) over a three-year period,…
Upper-ocean turbulent flows at horizontal length scales smaller than the deformation radius depart from geostrophic equilibrium and develop important vertical velocities, which are key to marine ecology and climatic processes. Due to their…
The three-dimensional transport pathways, the time scales of vertical transport, and the dispersion characteristics of submesoscale currents at an upper-ocean front are investigated using material points (tracer particles) that advect with…
Ecological interactions among phytoplankton occur in a moving fluid environment. Oceanic flows can modulate the competition and coexistence between phytoplankton populations, which in turn can affect ecosystem function and biogeochemical…
Latent heat flux is a primary pathway for ocean-atmosphere exchange of heat and moisture, yet the influence of sea surface temperature variability at fine scales ($\leq$ 100 km) on latent heat flux variability, particularly over the…
Pair-separation statistics of in-situ and synthetic surface drifters deployed near the \emph{Deepwater Horizon} site in the Gulf of Mexico are investigated. The synthetic trajectories derive from a 1-km-resolution data-assimilative Navy…
In the framework of Monitoring by Ocean Drifters (MONDO) Project, a set of Lagrangian drifters were released in proximity of the Brazil Current, the western branch of the Subtropical Gyre in the South Atlantic Ocean. The experimental…
We study the vertical dispersion and distribution of negatively buoyant rigid microplastics within a realistic circulation model of the Mediterranean sea. We first propose an equation describing their idealized dynamics. In that framework,…
Elastic waves of short wavelength propagating through the upper layer of the Earth appear to move faster at large separations of source and receiver than at short separations. This scale dependent velocity is a manifestation of Fermat's…
Turbulence in the upper ocean in the submesoscale range (scales smaller than the deformation radius) plays an important role for the heat exchange with the atmosphere and for oceanic biogeochemistry. Its dynamics should strongly depend on…
Drifters deployed in close proximity collectively provide a unique observational data set with which to separate mesoscale and submesoscale flows. In this paper we provide a principled approach for doing so by fitting observed velocities to…
The experiments of Leptos et al. [Phys. Rev. Lett. 103, 198103 (2009)] show that the displacements of small particles affected by swimming microorganisms achieve a non-Gaussian distribution, which nevertheless scales diffusively -- the…
We formulate a model for the mass exchange between oil at and below the sea surface. This is a particularly important aspect of modeling oil spills. Surface and subsurface oil have different chemical and transport characteristics and…
The impact of large atmospheric disturbances on deep benthic communities is not well known quantitatively. Observations are scarce but may reveal specific processes leading to turbulent disturbances. Here, we present high-resolution…
The spindown of a geostrophically balanced density front in an upper-ocean mixed layer is simulated with a large eddy simulation (LES) model that resolves O(1000) m down to O(1) m scale. Our goal is to examine the interaction between the…
High-frequency wave propagation in near-inertial wave shear has been considered fundamental in setting the spectral character of the oceanic internal wave continuum and for transporting energy to wave-breaking. We compare idealized ray…
Simulating oil transport in the ocean can be done successfully provided that accurate ocean currents and surface winds are available -- this is often too big of a challenge. Deficient ocean currents can sometimes be remediated by…
The dynamics of small-scale structures in free-surface turbulence is crucial to large-scale phenomena in natural and industrial environments. Here we conduct experiments on the quasi-flat free surface of a zero-mean-flow turbulent water…
Storm surge, the onshore rush of sea water caused by the high winds and low pressure associated with a hurricane, can compound the effects of inland flooding caused by rainfall, leading to loss of property and loss of life for residents of…