Early Student Support for a Process Study of Oceanic Responses to Typhoons
Abstract
Our long-term scientific goals are to understand the upper ocean dynamics, to understand the coupling between the ocean and atmosphere via air sea fluxes, and to quantify the mechanisms of air sea interactions. Our ultimate goal is to help develop improved parameterizations of air sea fluxes in ocean atmosphere models and parameterizations of small-scale processes in the upper ocean and the stratified interior. Tropical cyclones derive energy from the ocean via air sea fluxes. Oceanic heat content in the mixed layer and the air sea enthalpy flux play important roles in determining the storm s maximum potential intensity, structure, energy, trajectory, and dynamic evolution. The most energetic oceanic responses to tropical cyclone forcing are surface waves, wind-driven currents, shear and turbulence, and inertial currents. Quantifying the effect of these oceanic processes on air sea fluxes during tropical cyclone passage will aid understanding of storm dynamics and structure. The ocean s recovery after tropical cyclone passage depends upon small- and meso-scale oceanic processes in the storm s wake region. These processes are the least understood primarily because of the paucity of direct field observations under passing tropical cyclones; as a consequence, there are large uncertainties in air sea flux parameterizations in extreme wind regimes. The primary objective of this grant is to support a graduate student, Andy Hsu. He will pursue a Ph.D. degree with a focus on the process study of oceanic responses to tropical cyclones in the western Pacific observed during the ITOP intensive observation period using direct observations and numerical model simulations.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Sep 30, 2013
- Accession Number
- ADA599043
Entities
People
- Ren-Chieh Lien
Organizations
- University of Washington