Arabian Sea Mixed Layer Response to 1994-95 Operational Wind Products

The evolution of the upper ocean in the strong seasonally forced Arabian sea, as observed by a mooring deployed from 1994 to 1995, is investigated using the Naval Research Laboratory Layered Ocean Model (NLOM). Model simulations were sensitive to the choice of surface wind products used for forcing,...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Rochford, Peter A, Kindle, John C, Gallalcher, Patrick C, Weller, Robert A
Format: Report
Language:English
Subjects:
ADVECTION
ARABIAN SEA
CLIMATOLOGY
COOLING
DEPTH
ECMWF(EUROPEAN CENTRE FOR MEDIUM-RANGE WEATHER FORECAST)
FNMOC(FLEET NUMERICAL METEOROLOGY AND OCEANOGRAPHY CENTER)
FORECASTING
GROUND LEVEL
HEAT
Meteorology
MIXED LAYER(MARINE)
MONSOONS
MOORING
NLOM(NAVAL RESEARCH LABORATORY LAYED OCEAN MODEL)
NUMERICAL ANALYSIS
OCEAN SURFACE
OCEANOGRAPHY
OCEANS
PE61153N
SIMULATION
SURFACE TEMPERATURE
SURFACES
WIND
WINTER
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Summary:The evolution of the upper ocean in the strong seasonally forced Arabian sea, as observed by a mooring deployed from 1994 to 1995, is investigated using the Naval Research Laboratory Layered Ocean Model (NLOM). Model simulations were sensitive to the choice of surface wind products used for forcing, and results are reported for simulations forced by monthly mean climatologies and 12-hourly 1994-95 wind products from two operational atmospheric forecast models, the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecast (ECMWF) model and the Navy Operational Global Atmospheric Prediction System (NOGAPS) model of the Fleet Numerical Meteorology and Oceanography Center (FNMOC). The NLOM yields the best prediction of sea surface temperature (SST) and mixed layer depth (MLD) when using FNMOC forcing. Surface cooling is found to be responsible for the seasonal SST minimum during the northeast (NE) monsoon. Heat advection is found to be important for supporting the surface cooling during the second half of the NE monsoon. Strong entrainment and appreciable advective cooling are responsible for the SST minimum of the southwest (5W) monsoon. The NLOM wind experiments strongly suggest that thermal convection may be important in the central Arabian Sea during the winter months. Prepared in collaboration with Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Wood Hole, MA.