Parsing the Kinetic Energy Budget of the Ocean Surface Mixed Layer
Abstract
The total rate of work done on the ocean by the wind is of considerable interest for understanding global energy balances, as the energy from the wind drives ocean currents, grows surface waves, and forces vertical mixing. A large but unknown fraction of this atmospheric energy is dissipated by turbulence in the upper ocean. The focus of this work is twofold. First, we describe a framework for evaluating the vertically integrated turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) equation using measurable quantities from a surface mooring, showing the connection to the atmospheric, mean oceanic, and wave energy. Second, we use this framework to evaluate turbulent energetics in the mixed layer using 10 months of mooring data. This evaluation is made possible by recent advances in estimating TKE dissipation rates from long‐enduring moorings. We find that surface fluxes are balanced by TKE dissipation rates in the mixed layer to within a factor of two.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Pub Defense Publication
- Publication Date
- Jan 18, 2022
- Source ID
- 10.1029/2021gl095920
Entities
People
- Albert J. Plueddemann
- Christopher J Zappa
- J. Thomas Farrar
- Seth Zippel
Organizations
- Columbia University
- NASA Earth Science
- National Aeronautics and Space Administration
- National Science Foundation
- Office of Naval Research
- Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution