CSP - Frontiers in ocean-atmosphere exchange: Air sea interface and fluxes of mass and energy
Abstract
Ocean-atmosphere fluxes of momentum, heat, freshwater, gases, and aerosols play a crit- ical role in the regulation of climate. The"" problem of adequately describing air-sea fluxes is complex, and simplistic parameterizations are not sufficient to represent the fl"uxes in models. Uncertainties in air-sea exchanges constrain our ability to understand and model our changing climate.It is therefore necessary to come to a mechanistic understanding of the processes affecting exchange of mass and energy across the air-sea int"erface from nano-to-global scales. Al- though there has been significant research carried out over the past decades, there remain k"ey outstanding questions:~ How can the turbulence-controlling processes be incorporated into parameterization schemes describing the air-sea fluxes of mass and energy?~ What are the biogeochemical mechanisms that influence fluxes across the air-sea inter- face?~ What are the feedbacks between processes governing air-sea fluxes and climate?This proposal seeks funds to support the organization of a workshop whose overarching scientific rationale is based on the role of air-sea fluxes in the climate system. The scientific motivation underpinning this is based on the fact that without accurate knowledge of the processes controlling air-sea f"luxes, we cannot properly evaluate ocean-atmosphere coupled models thus enabling accurate predictions from weather to climate time s"cales.The proposed workshop - ~Frontiers in ocean-atmosphere exchange: Air sea interface and fluxes of mass and energy~ - will be" held at the Institut d~E~ tudes Scientifiques de Carg`ese (IESC) in Corsica, which is a unique facility for the hosting of scientif""ic workshops and summer schools. It provides auditoria for lectures, as well as accommodation, and a restaurant for the 50 att"endees of this workshop. Therefore the week in Cargese will provide a unique environment where the scientific group will not only wo"rk in a typical lecturing environment, but it will also allow continued discussions and interactions during the remainder of the day".It is envisaged that this workshop will identify key research themes and directions in order to better consolidate the role of the ocean-atmosphere coupled system within the understanding of our changing climate. Some of the key questions which will be addre"ssed by this workshop are:~ What is the influence of wave characteristics (e.g. steepness, breaking, swell, direction)on ocean-a""tmosphere fluxes?~ How does the presence of surfactants impact waves, and therefore air-sea exchange?~ How can surfactants be qua"ntified and how necessary is it to distinguish the different types of surfactant material?~ How does turbulence scale at the air-sea interface and how well can this be modeled in the absence of direct measurements?~ How can surface ocean turbulence be upscaled for inclusion in global models of air-sea fluxes?The success of this proposal will enable new directions in the research underpin"ning ocean- atmosphere exchange, thereby enabling new discoveries to be made which will lead to a better understanding of the impact"s of future climate change.
Document Details
- Document Type
- DoD Grant Award
- Publication Date
- Jun 09, 2017
- Source ID
- N629091712078
Entities
People
- Brian J. Ward
Organizations
- National University of Ireland
- Office of Naval Research
- United States Navy