Marine Science Faculty Publications
Modeling Rotating Stratified Turbulent Flows with Application to Oceanic Mixed Layers
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
1989
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
https://doi.org/10.1175/1520-0485(1989)019<0901:MRSTFW>2.0.CO;2
Abstract
Rotational effects on turbulence structure and mixing are investigated using a second-moment closure model. Both explicit and implicit Coriolis terms are considered. A general criterion for rotational effects to be small is established in terms of local turbulent Rossby numbers. Characteristic length scales are determined for rotational effects and Monin–Obukhov type similarity theory is developed for rotating stratified flows. A one-dimensional version of the closure model is then applied to simulate oceanic mixed layer evolution. It is shown that the effects of rotation on mixed layer depth tend to be small because of the influence of stable stratification. These findings contradict a hypothesis of Garwood et al. that rotational effects on turbulence are responsible for the disparity in the mixed-layer depths between the eastern and western regions of the equatorial Pacific Ocean. The model is also applied to neutrally stratified flows to demonstrate that rotation can either stabilize or destabilize the flow.
Was this content written or created while at USF?
No
Citation / Publisher Attribution
Journal of Physical Oceanography, v. 19, p. 901-916
Scholar Commons Citation
Galperin, B.; Kantha, L. H.; Mellor, G. L.; and Rosati, A., "Modeling Rotating Stratified Turbulent Flows with Application to Oceanic Mixed Layers" (1989). Marine Science Faculty Publications. 1475.
https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/msc_facpub/1475
