Publication Date:
2022-05-25
Description:
Author Posting. © The Authors, 2004. This is the author's version of the work. It is posted here by permission of Elsevier B. V. for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Deep Sea Research Part I: Oceanographic Research Papers 52 (2005): 749-765, doi:10.1016/j.dsr.2004.12.004.
Description:
Surface Meteorology, upper ocean current, and hydrographic measurements, collected along a
repeated survey pattern and from a central mooring in the western equatorial Pacific during late
1992 to early 1993, were used to analyse upper ocean momentum balances on the intraseasonal
time scale. Wind stresses derived from meteorological measurements were compared with
numerical weather prediction products. Advection terms in the momentum equations were
estimated by planar fits to the current and hydrographic data. Pressure gradient terms were derived
from planar fits to the dynamic heights calculated from the hydrographic data, referenced by
balancing the momentum equation in a selected layer below the mixed layer. Under prevailing
westerly winds, westward pressure gradient forcings of 2x10-7 m s-2 were set up in the western
equatorial Pacific, countering the surface wind, while the total advection tended to accelerate the
eastward momentum in the surface layer. During both calm wind and westerly wind burst periods,
zonal turbulent momentum fluxes estimated from the ocean budgets were comparable with those
estimated from microstructure dissipation rate measurements and with zonal wind stresses, so that
the zonal momentum could be balanced within error bars. The meridional momentum balances
were noisier, which might be due to the fact that the short meridional length scale of the equatorial
inertial-gravity waves could contaminate the dynamic signals in the mixed temporal/spatial
sampling data, so that the meridional gradient estimates from the planar fits could be biased.
Description:
MF acknowledges the support of Strategic Research Fund for Marine Environment. RL and PH
were supported by NSF grant OCE-9525986. RW and AP were supported by NSF Grants OCE-
9110559 and OCE-9110554, respectively.
Repository Name:
Woods Hole Open Access Server
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