Multiscale Models in Geophysical Fluid Dynamics

Abstract

Geophysical fluid dynamics is inherently multiscale, with timescales from seconds to millenia and with space scales from millimeters to tens of thousands of kilometers. The most general models of the dynamics are single scale in the sense that there is one set of governing equations, for example, the Navier‐Stokes equations, that applies at all scales. Multiscale models, here taken to mean models with distinct sets of equations governing the dynamics at different scales, are useful for both theoretical investigations and numerical simulations. This review covers the main methods of constructing and simulating multiscale models in geophysical fluid dynamics, along with a review of multiscale models that appear in the literature.