Articles | Volume 19, issue 1
https://doi.org/10.5194/os-19-77-2023
© Author(s) 2023. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/os-19-77-2023
© Author(s) 2023. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
24 Jan 2023
Research article |
| 24 Jan 2023
| 24 Jan 2023
Turbulent kinetic energy dissipation rate and associated fluxes in the western tropical Atlantic estimated from ocean glider observations
Centre for Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences, School of Environmental Science, University of East Anglia, Norwich, NR4 7TJ, United Kingdom
Gillian M. Damerell
Centre for Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences, School of Environmental Science, University of East Anglia, Norwich, NR4 7TJ, United Kingdom
Philip J. Leadbitter
Centre for Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences, School of Environmental Science, University of East Anglia, Norwich, NR4 7TJ, United Kingdom
Karen J. Heywood
Centre for Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences, School of Environmental Science, University of East Anglia, Norwich, NR4 7TJ, United Kingdom
Rob A. Hall
Centre for Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences, School of Environmental Science, University of East Anglia, Norwich, NR4 7TJ, United Kingdom
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Jack Giddings, Karen J. Heywood, Adrian J. Matthews, Manoj M. Joshi, Benjamin G. M. Webber, Alejandra Sanchez-Franks, Brian A. King, and Puthenveettil N. Vinayachandran
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Little is known about the impact of chlorophyll on SST in the Bay of Bengal (BoB). Solar irradiance measured by an ocean glider and three Argo floats is used to determine the effect of chlorophyll on BoB SST during the 2016 summer monsoon. The Southwest Monsoon Current has high chlorophyll concentrations (∼0.5 mg m−3) and shallow solar penetration depths (∼14 m). Ocean mixed layer model simulations show that SST increases by 0.35°C per month, with the potential to influence monsoon rainfall.
Jack Giddings, Adrian J. Matthews, Nicholas P. Klingaman, Karen J. Heywood, Manoj Joshi, and Benjamin G. M. Webber
Weather Clim. Dynam., 1, 635–655, https://doi.org/10.5194/wcd-1-635-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/wcd-1-635-2020, 2020
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The impact of chlorophyll on the southwest monsoon is unknown. Here, seasonally varying chlorophyll in the Bay of Bengal was imposed in a general circulation model coupled to an ocean mixed layer model. The SST increases by 0.5 °C in response to chlorophyll forcing and shallow mixed layer depths in coastal regions during the inter-monsoon. Precipitation increases significantly to 3 mm d-1 across Myanmar during June and over northeast India and Bangladesh during October, decreasing model bias.
Rob A. Hall, Barbara Berx, and Gillian M. Damerell
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Internal tides are subsurface waves generated by tidal flows over ocean ridges. When they break they create turbulence that drives an upward flux of nutrients from the deep ocean to the nutrient-poor photic zone. Measuring internal tides is problematic because oceanographic moorings are often
fished-outby commercial trawlers. We show that autonomous ocean gliders and acoustic Doppler current profilers can be used together to accurately measure the amount of energy carried by internal tides.
Reiner Onken, Heinz-Volker Fiekas, Laurent Beguery, Ines Borrione, Andreas Funk, Michael Hemming, Jaime Hernandez-Lasheras, Karen J. Heywood, Jan Kaiser, Michaela Knoll, Baptiste Mourre, Paolo Oddo, Pierre-Marie Poulain, Bastien Y. Queste, Aniello Russo, Kiminori Shitashima, Martin Siderius, and Elizabeth Thorp Küsel
Ocean Sci., 14, 321–335, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-14-321-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-14-321-2018, 2018
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In June 2014, high-resolution oceanographic data were collected in the
western Mediterranean Sea by two research vessels, 11 gliders, moored
instruments, drifters, and one profiling float. The objective
of this article is to provide an overview of the data set which
is utilised by various ongoing studies, focusing on (i) water masses and circulation, (ii) operational forecasting, (iii) data assimilation, (iv) variability of the ocean, and (v) new payloads
for gliders.
Peter M. F. Sheehan, Barbara Berx, Alejandro Gallego, Rob A. Hall, Karen J. Heywood, Sarah L. Hughes, and Bastien Y. Queste
Ocean Sci., 14, 225–236, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-14-225-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-14-225-2018, 2018
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We calculate tidal velocities using observations of ocean currents collected by an underwater glider. We use these velocities to investigate the location of sharp boundaries between water masses in shallow seas. Narrow currents along these boundaries are important transport pathways around shallow seas for pollutants and organisms. Tides are an important control on boundary location in summer, but seawater salt concentration can also influence boundary location, especially in winter.
Michael P. Hemming, Jan Kaiser, Karen J. Heywood, Dorothee C.E. Bakker, Jacqueline Boutin, Kiminori Shitashima, Gareth Lee, Oliver Legge, and Reiner Onken
Ocean Sci., 13, 427–442, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-13-427-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-13-427-2017, 2017
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Underwater gliders are useful platforms for monitoring the world oceans at a high resolution. An experimental pH sensor was attached to an underwater glider in the Mediterranean Sea, which is an important carbon sink region. Comparing measurements from the glider with those obtained from a ship indicated that there were issues with the experimental pH sensor. Correcting for these issues enabled us to look at pH variability in the area related to biomass abundance and physical water properties.
Imke Grefe, Sophie Fielding, Karen J. Heywood, and Jan Kaiser
Biogeosciences Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2017-73, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2017-73, 2017
Revised manuscript not accepted
Bastien Y. Queste, Liam Fernand, Timothy D. Jickells, Karen J. Heywood, and Andrew J. Hind
Biogeosciences, 13, 1209–1222, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-1209-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-1209-2016, 2016
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In stratified shelf seas, physical and biological conditions can lead to seasonal oxygen depletion when consumption exceeds supply. An ocean glider obtained a high-resolution 3-day data set of biochemical and physical properties in the central North Sea. The data revealed very high oxygen consumption rates, far exceeding previously reported rates. A consumption–supply oxygen budget indicates a localized or short-lived resuspension event causing rapid remineralization of benthic organic matter.
C. Heuzé, J. K. Ridley, D. Calvert, D. P. Stevens, and K. J. Heywood
Geosci. Model Dev., 8, 3119–3130, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-8-3119-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-8-3119-2015, 2015
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Most ocean models, including NEMO, have unrealistic Southern Ocean deep convection. That is, through extensive areas of the Southern Ocean, they exhibit convection from the surface of the ocean to the sea floor. We find this convection to be an issue as it impacts the whole ocean circulation, notably strengthening the Antarctic Circumpolar Current. Using sensitivity experiments, we show that counter-intuitively the vertical mixing needs to be enhanced to reduce this spurious convection.
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Short summary
We calculate the rate of turbulent kinetic energy dissipation, i.e. the mixing driven by small-scale ocean turbulence, in the western tropical Atlantic Ocean via two methods. We find good agreement between the results of both. A region of elevated mixing is found between 200 and 500 m, and we calculate the associated heat and salt fluxes. We find that double-diffusive mixing in salt fingers, a common feature of the tropical oceans, drives larger heat and salt fluxes than the turbulent mixing.
We calculate the rate of turbulent kinetic energy dissipation, i.e. the mixing driven by...
