Abstract
AbstractD'Asaro et al. measured the dissipation of eddy kinetic energy at the Kuroshio ocean front, found it to be 1–2 orders of magnitude larger than the value predicted by the law of the wall, and suggested that the enhancement is due to sub‐mesoscales, SM. To assess their suggestion, we employ two SM models. In the first model, the buoyancy flux is based on baroclinic instabilities only and there is no momentum flux (Reynolds stresses). The model is unable to reproduce the Kuroshio data. The second model includes baroclinic instabilities, wind stress, and Reynolds stresses. It reproduces the data satisfactorily. The analytic formula for the dissipation that we present can be used in ocean general circulation models to parameterize dissipation at ocean fronts other than Kuroshio, for example, Gulf Stream and ACC, an extension that could improve the predictions of climate studies.
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