Modification of the Stratification and Velocity Profile Within the Straits and Seas of the Indonesian Archipelago

Abstract

Long-term goals are to better resolve in observations and models the ocean physical processes in the eastern Indonesian seas as needed to improve our understanding of the circulation and mixing patterns in that region. The gap in understanding basic ocean physics is most acute in the northeastern Indonesia seas: the Halmahera Sea, Maluku Sea, the Seram Sea and the northern Banda Sea. These seas are exposed to the energetic Pacific western boundary currents that project into the region way of the Mindanao and Halmahera Eddies. The winds blowing through the gaps between the islands of the northeast seas locale is configured into a pattern of clockwise and counterclockwise wind stress featured that probably result in an energetic sub-mesoscale eddies of ocean circulation. The complex submarine topography coupled with the strong tidal dissipation and wind induced eddies lead to a vigorous turbulent environment, one that is poorly understood, yet it is necessary to develop a quantitative grasp of the associated small scale ocean processes to properly model the regional circulation, and its role in the climate and marine ecosystems.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Sep 30, 2010
Accession Number
ADA542674

Entities

People

  • Arnold L. Gordon

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Ground and Sea Platforms

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Abstracts
  • Archipelagoes
  • Carbon Dioxide
  • Coral Reefs
  • Data Sets
  • Ecosystems
  • Environment
  • Food Chains
  • Indonesia
  • Information Operations
  • Islands
  • Landforms
  • Ocean Currents
  • Oceans
  • Stratification
  • Topography
  • Wind Stress

Fields of Study

  • Environmental science

Readers

  • Coastal Oceanography
  • Ocean-Atmosphere Mesoscale Modeling, Data Assimilation, and Flux Boundary Layers
  • Oceanography.