Mixed Layer Processes Research Articles

Slow response of surface water temperature to fast atmospheric variability reveals mixing heterogeneity in a deep lake

Slow and long-term variations of sea surface temperature anomalies have been interpreted as a red-noise response of the ocean surface mixed layer to fast and random atmospheric perturbations. How fast the atmospheric noise is damped depends on the mixed layer depth. In this work we apply this theory to determine the relevant spatial and temporal scales of surface layer thermal inertia in lakes. We fit a first order auto-regressive model to the satellite-derived Lake Surface Water Temperature (LSWT) anomalies in Lake Garda, Italy. The fit provides a time scale, from which we determine the mixed layer depth. The obtained result shows a clear spatial pattern resembling the morphological features of the lake, with larger values (7.18± 0.3 m) in the deeper northwestern basin, and smaller values (3.18 ± 0.24 m) in the southern shallower basin. Such variations are confirmed by in-situ measurements in three monitoring points in the lake and connect to the first Empirical Orthogonal Function of satellite-derived LSWT and chlorophyll-a concentration. Evidence from our case study open a new perspective for interpreting lake-atmosphere interactions and confirm that remotely sensed variables, typically associated with properties of the surface layers, also carry information on the relevant spatial and temporal scales of mixed-layer processes.

Assessing the impact of suppressing Southern Ocean SST variability in a coupled climate model

The Southern Ocean exerts a strong influence on global climate, regulating the storage and transport of heat, freshwater and carbon throughout the world’s oceans. While the majority of previous studies focus on how wind changes influence Southern Ocean circulation patterns, here we set out to explore potential feedbacks from the ocean to the atmosphere. To isolate the role of oceanic variability on Southern Hemisphere climate, we perform coupled climate model experiments in which Southern Ocean variability is suppressed by restoring sea surface temperatures (SST) over 40°–65°S to the model’s monthly mean climatology. We find that suppressing Southern Ocean SST variability does not impact the Southern Annular Mode, suggesting air–sea feedbacks do not play an important role in the persistence of the Southern Annular Mode in our model. Suppressing Southern Ocean SST variability does lead to robust mean-state changes in SST and sea ice. Changes in mixed layer processes and convection associated with the SST restoring lead to SST warming and a sea ice decline in southern high latitudes, and SST cooling in midlatitudes. These results highlight the impact non-linear processes can have on a model’s mean state, and the need to consider these when performing simulations of the Southern Ocean.

Dynamics of Eddies Generated by Sea Ice Leads

AbstractInteraction between the atmosphere and ocean in sea ice–covered regions is largely concentrated in leads, which are long, narrow openings between sea ice floes. Refreezing and brine rejection in these leads inject salt that plays a key role in maintaining the polar halocline. The injected salt forms dense plumes that subsequently become baroclinically unstable, producing submesoscale eddies that facilitate horizontal spreading of the salt anomalies. However, it remains unclear which properties of the stratification and leads most strongly influence the vertical and horizontal spreading of lead-input salt anomalies. In this study, the spread of lead-injected buoyancy anomalies by mixed layer and eddy processes are investigated using a suite of idealized numerical simulations. The simulations are complemented by dynamical theories that predict the plume convection depth, horizontal eddy transfer coefficient, and eddy kinetic energy as functions of the ambient stratification and lead properties. It is shown that vertical penetration of buoyancy anomalies is accurately predicted by a mixed layer temperature and salinity budget until the onset of baroclinic instability (~3 days). Subsequently, these buoyancy anomalies are spread horizontally by eddies. The horizontal eddy diffusivity is accurately predicted by a mixing-length scaling, with a velocity scale set by the potential energy released by the sinking salt plume and a length scale set by the deformation radius of the ambient stratification. These findings indicate that the intermittent opening of leads can efficiently populate the polar halocline with submesoscale coherent vortices with diameters of ~10 km, and they provide a step toward parameterizing their effect on the horizontal redistribution of salinity anomalies.

Seasonal and interannual variabilities of chlorophyll across the eastern equatorial Indian Ocean and Bay of Bengal

Seasonal and interannual variabilities of surface and subsurface chlorophyll (Chl) in the eastern equatorial Indian Ocean (IO) and Bay of Bengal were examined based on vertical Chl inferred from satellite data. Four biotic zones were identified by Empirical orthogonal function analysis, which represented different types of mixed layer processes. The areas south of Sri Lanka indicated the most significant Chl increase in the surface and subsurface during summer due to coastal upwelling. Surface Chl highs in the Sri Lanka Dome occurred every summer during the time series. Chl increases were also recorded in the southwestern Bay of Bengal during fall–winter in response to wind-induced divergence and convective mixing. The other two zones in south IO basin between 5 and 15°S exhibited seasonal surface Chl highs in summer and subsurface Chl maximum during fall–winter. Wind-induced divergence plays a major role in the maintenance of this upwelling zone year-round; however, stratification inhibited the surface Chl increase in winter and results in enhanced Chl in the subsurface. The Chl interannual variability was related with Indian Ocean dipole (IOD) associated physical field oscillations. In positive IOD, wind divergence increased significantly along the eastern equatorial IO coast that contributed to Chl enhancement there, it decreased in Bay of Bengal and South IO and acted to reduce the Chl in these regions. In negative IOD, reversals in the forcing anomalies drove increasing Chl in Bay of Bengal and South IO and decreasing of that in the eastern equator. This resulted in significant correlations between IOD index and Chl confined in these regions. There are pronounced variance of phytoplankton carbon biomass in the Bay of Bengal in IOD events, however, less changes of that were seen over the South IO during IOD. Our findings imply that physiological changes in cellular pigmentation are the dominant cause of satellite-observed interannual variations in Chl in the South IO. Our results highlight the role of physiological processes in regulating Chl distributions, and support the use of Chl-based indices as indicators of climatic feedbacks.

Evaluating temporal and spatial variability and trend of aerosol optical depth (550 nm) over Iran using data from MODIS on board the Terra and Aqua satellites

Our knowledge of the temporal-spatial variations of atmospheric aerosols is necessary because they can affect public health and air quality. This paper studied Collection 6, the product of Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD 550 nm), using the Deep Blue algorithm of moderate-resolution imaging spectroradiometer (MODIS) on board the Terra and Aqua satellites over Iran from 2003 to 2017. Long-term data of the dust using synoptic stations were also used. The results showed that the southwestern Iran, the Persian Gulf coast from Bushehr to Bandar Abbas, and the Makran coastal area in southeastern Iran have the highest seasonal means of Aerosol optical depth (AOD > 0.3) and that they are among the aerosol hotspot areas in southwestern Asia. Other regions in Iran, especially the northwest and the Zagros Mountains, have the lowest aerosol optical depth (AOD < 0.04). The highest AOD amount of Terra (0.144) and Aqua (0.156) occurs in the spring, and the lowest amount occurs in the autumn season (0.094 and 0.101 Terra and Aqua, respectively). The heights act as a barrier on the particle transport pathway and, as a result, will affect the release of dust on local and regional scales. AOD increase in Iran is more related to aerosol loading in deserts and arid areas around the country. The AOD increase during the cold period of the year in industrial cities is due to the combustion of fossil fuels and the reduction of the boundary layer height (BLH). It is because most atmospheric pollutants are released in the boundary layer and are homogenized through turbulent mixed layer processes. The most prominent active dust sources around Iran, which are the main source of aerosol increase, can be categorized into four sources: (1) Mesopotamian, (2) Northern Arabian Peninsula, (3) Elrob Elkhali desert, and (4) East Arabian Peninsula. The AOD seasonal trend showed that the most significant increasing trend occurs in autumn on the TERRA (42.82%) and Aqua (32.32%) satellites. The largest decreasing trend of AOD in Iran is observed in winter in Kermanshah province (− 0.0011 year−1) in western Iran and in other seasons in southeastern Iran for which meteorological changes play a major role.

On the Superposition of Mean Advective and Eddy-Induced Transports in Global Ocean Heat and Salt Budgets

AbstractOcean thermal expansion is a large contributor to observed sea level rise, which is expected to continue into the future. However, large uncertainties exist in sea level projections among climate models, partially due to intermodel differences in ocean heat uptake and redistribution of buoyancy. Here, the mechanisms of vertical ocean heat and salt transport are investigated in quasi-steady-state model simulations using the Australian Community Climate and Earth-System Simulator Ocean Model (ACCESS-OM2). New insights into the net effect of key physical processes are gained within the superresidual transport (SRT) framework. In this framework, vertical tracer transport is dominated by downward fluxes associated with the large-scale ocean circulation and upward fluxes induced by mesoscale eddies, with two distinct physical regimes. In the upper ocean, where high-latitude water masses are formed by mixed layer processes, through cooling or salinification, the SRT counteracts those processes by transporting heat and salt downward. In contrast, in the ocean interior, the SRT opposes dianeutral diffusion via upward fluxes of heat and salt, with about 60% of the vertical heat transport occurring in the Southern Ocean. Overall, the SRT is largely responsible for removing newly formed water masses from the mixed layer into the ocean interior, where they are eroded by dianeutral diffusion. Unlike the classical advective–diffusive balance, dianeutral diffusion is bottom intensified above rough bottom topography, allowing an overturning cell to develop in alignment with recent theories. Implications are discussed for understanding the role of vertical tracer transport on the simulation of ocean climate and sea level.

The Role of Salinity in the Southeastern Arabian Sea in Determining Monsoon Onset and Strength

AbstractIn this study, we examine the role of freshwater transported from the Bay of Bengal into the southeastern Arabian Sea (SEAS) in determining both the timing of monsoon onset and the strength of the ensuing monsoon. To do this, we use a combination of satellite‐derived salinity data and reanalysis products from 1980 to 2016 in order to discuss seasonal, interannual, subdecadal, and long‐term decadal variability in various atmospheric and oceanic contributors such as ocean heat content, freshwater transport, ERA5 instantaneous moisture flux, mixed layer depth, and barrier layer thickness. The salt budget in the SEAS reveals the dominance of meridional freshwater advective transport that brings in variability in salinity and thus in salinity stratification, as well as in mixed layer processes. We find that these parameters exhibit the prevalence of a long‐term decadal variability (with trends of increasing/decreasing phases over a 15‐year duration) over which interannual (3‐year trend) and intradecadal (7‐year trend) variability trends are superimposed. The patterns of both the 3‐ and 7‐year trends follow each other closely, and relatively high amplitudes are seen in the 3‐year trends. The long‐term decrease in moisture flux and freshwater transport into the SEAS along with a rise in ocean heat content over a 15‐year duration after 1994 contributed to a lack of strong monsoons in recent years; the prevailing interannual and intradecadal variability in these parameters associated with the Indian Ocean Dipole and El Niño Southern Oscillation events favored weaker and normal monsoons after 1994.

Variability of Intraseasonal Oscillations and Synoptic Signals in Sea Surface Salinity in the Bay of Bengal

Abstract Intraseasonal oscillations (ISOs) significantly impact southwest monsoon precipitation and Bay of Bengal (BoB) variability. The response of ISOs in sea surface salinity (SSS) to those in the atmosphere is investigated in the BoB from 2005 to 2017. The three intraseasonal processes examined in this study are the 30–90-day and 10–20-day ISOs and 3–7-day synoptic weather signals. A variety of salinity data from NASA’s Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) and the European Space Agency’s (ESA’s) Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity (SMOS) satellite missions and from reanalysis using the Hybrid Coordinate Ocean Model (HYCOM) and operational analysis of Climate Forecast System version 2 (CFSv2) were utilized for the study. It is found that the 30–90-day ISO salinity signal propagates northward following the northward propagation of convection and precipitation ISOs. The 10–20-day ISO in SSS and precipitation deviate largely in the northern BoB wherein the river runoff largely impacts the SSS. The weather systems strongly impact the 3–7-day signal in SSS prior to and after the southwest monsoon. Overall, we find that satellite salinity products captured better the SSS signal of ISO due to inherent inclusion of river runoff and mixed layer processes. CFSv2, in particular, underestimates the SSS signal due to the misrepresentation of river runoff in the model. This study highlights the need to include realistic riverine freshwater influx for better model simulations, as accurate salinity simulation is mandatory for the representation of air–sea coupling in models.

Vertical distribution of chlorophyll in dynamically distinct regions of the southern Bay of Bengal

Abstract. The Bay of Bengal (BoB) generally exhibits surface oligotrophy due to nutrient limitation induced by strong salinity stratification. Nevertheless, there are hotspots of high chlorophyll in the BoB where the monsoonal forcings are strong enough to break the stratification; one such region is the southern BoB, east of Sri Lanka. A recent field programme conducted during the summer monsoon of 2016, as a part of the Bay of Bengal Boundary Layer Experiment (BoBBLE), provides a unique high-resolution dataset of the vertical distribution of chlorophyll in the southern BoB using ocean gliders along with shipboard conductivity–temperature–depth (CTD) measurements. Observations were carried out for a duration of 12–20 days, covering the dynamically active regions of the Sri Lanka Dome (SLD) and the Southwest Monsoon Current (SMC). Mixing and upwelling induced by the monsoonal wind forcing enhanced surface chlorophyll concentrations (0.3–0.7 mg m−3). Prominent deep chlorophyll maxima (DCM; 0.3–1.2 mg m−3) existed at intermediate depths (20–50 m), signifying the contribution of subsurface productivity to the biological carbon cycling in the BoB. The shape of chlorophyll profiles varied in different dynamical regimes; upwelling was associated with sharp and intense DCM, whereas mixing resulted in a diffuse and weaker DCM. Within the SLD, open-ocean Ekman suction favoured a substantial increase in chlorophyll. Farther east, where the thermocline was deeper, enhanced surface chlorophyll was associated with intermittent mixing events. Remote forcing by the westward propagating Rossby waves influenced the upper-ocean dynamics and chlorophyll distribution in the southern BoB. Stabilizing surface freshening events and barrier-layer formation often inhibited the generation of surface chlorophyll. The pathway of the SMC intrusion was marked by a distinct band of chlorophyll, indicating the advective effect of biologically rich Arabian Sea waters. The region of the monsoon current exhibited the strongest DCM as well as the highest column-integrated chlorophyll. Observations suggest that the persistence of DCM in the southern BoB is promoted by surface oligotrophy and shallow mixed layers. Results from a coupled physical–ecosystem model substantiate the dominant role of mixed layer processes associated with the monsoon in controlling the nutrient distribution and biological productivity in the southern BoB. The present study provides new insights into the vertical distribution of chlorophyll in the BoB, emphasizing the need for extensive in situ sampling and ecosystem model-based efforts for a better understanding of the biophysical interactions and the potential climatic feedbacks.

Frontolysis by surface heat flux in the eastern Japan Sea: importance of mixed layer depth

Frontolysis mechanisms by which surface heat flux relaxes the sea surface temperature (SST) front in the eastern Japan Sea (JS) are investigated in detail using observational datasets. On the warm southern side of the front, larger air–sea specific humidity and temperature differences induce stronger turbulent heat release compared to the cool northern side. As a result, stronger wintertime cooling and weaker summertime warming occur south of the front, and the meridional gradient in the surface net heat flux (NHF) tends to relax the SST front throughout the year. In the mixed-layer deepening phase (September–January), a higher entrainment velocity occurs on the warm southern side because of weaker stratification. Since the resulting thicker mixed layer on the southern side is less sensitive to surface cooling, the mixed layer depth (MLD) gradient damps the frontolysis by the NHF gradient. In the shoaling phase (April–June), a deeper mixed layer south of the front is caused by the weaker warming and reduced sensitivity of the thicker mixed layer to a shoaling effect by shortwave radiation. Owing to weaker sensitivity of the thicker mixed layer on the southern side to surface warming, the MLD gradient enhances the frontolysis by the NHF gradient. Therefore, it is shown that the mixed layer processes cause seasonality of weaker (stronger) frontolysis by surface heat fluxes, damping (enhancing) the frontolysis by the NHF gradient in winter (summer). This study reveals unique features of the frontolysis in the eastern JS compared with the Agulhas Return Current and Kuroshio Extension regions.

Processes Controlling Arctic and Antarctic Sea Ice Predictability in the Community Earth System Model

AbstractSea ice predictability is a rapidly growing area of research, with most studies focusing on the Arctic. This study offers new insights by comparing predictability between the Arctic and Antarctic sea ice anomalies, focusing on the effects of regional differences in ice thickness and ocean dynamics. Predictability in simulated regional sea ice area and volume is investigated in long control runs of an Earth system model. Sea ice area predictability in the Arctic agrees with results from other studies, with features of decaying initial persistence and reemergence because of ocean mixed layer processes and memory in thick ice. In pan-Arctic averages, sea ice volume and the area covered by thick ice are the best predictors of September area for lead times greater than 2 months. In the Antarctic, area is generally the best predictor of future area for all times of year. Predictability of area in summer differs between the hemispheres because of unique aspects of the coupling between area and volume. Generally, ice volume only adds to the predictability of summer sea ice area in the Arctic. Predictability patterns vary greatly among different regions of the Arctic but share similar seasonality among regions of the Antarctic. Interactive ocean dynamics influence anomaly reemergence differently in the Antarctic than the Arctic, both for the total and regional area. In the Antarctic, ocean dynamics generally decrease the persistence of area anomalies, reducing predictability. In the Arctic, the presence of ocean dynamics improves ice area predictability, mainly through mixed layer depth variability.

A multi-column vertical mixing scheme to parameterize the heterogeneity of oceanic conditions under sea ice

The heterogeneity of ocean surface conditions associated with a spatially variable sea ice cover needs to be represented in models in order to represent adequately mixed layer processes and the upper ocean density structure. This study assesses the sensitivity of the ocean-sea ice model NEMO-LIM to a subgrid-scale representation of ice-ocean interactions. The sea ice component includes an ice thickness distribution, which provides heterogeneous surface buoyancy fluxes and stresses. A multi-column ocean scheme is developed to take them explicitly into account, by computing convection and turbulent vertical mixing separately in the open water/lead fraction of grid cells and below each ice thickness category. For the first time in a three-dimensional simulation, the distinct temperature and salinity profiles of the ocean columns are allowed to be maintained over several time steps. It is shown that the model response is highly sensitive to the homogenization time scale between the columns. If the latter are laterally mixed with time scales shorter than 10 h, subgrid-scale effects exist but the mean state is practically unaffected. For longer mixing time scales, in both hemispheres, the main impacts are reductions in under-ice mean mixed layer depths and in the summer melt of sea ice, following decreased oceanic heat flux at the ice base. Large changes in the open water temperature in summer suggest that the scheme could trigger important feedback processes in coupled simulations.

Spatial heterogeneity of ocean surface boundary conditions under sea ice

The high heterogeneity of sea ice properties implies that its effects on the ocean are spatially variable at horizontal scales as small as a few meters. Previous studies have shown that taking this variability into account in models could be required to simulate adequately mixed layer processes and the upper ocean temperature and salinity structures. Although many advanced sea ice models include a subgrid-scale ice thickness distribution, potentially providing heterogeneous surface boundary conditions, the information is lost in the coupling with a unique ocean grid cell underneath. The present paper provides a thorough examination of boundary conditions at the ocean surface in the NEMO-LIM model, which can be used as a guideline for studies implementing subgrid-scale ocean vertical mixing schemes. Freshwater, salt, solar heat and non-solar heat fluxes are examined, as well as the norm of the surface stress. All of the thermohaline fluxes vary considerably between the open water and ice fractions of grid cells. To a lesser extent, this is also the case for the surface stress. Moreover, the salt fluxes in both hemispheres and the solar heat fluxes in the Arctic show a dependence on the ice thickness category, with more intense fluxes for thinner ice, which promotes further subgrid-scale heterogeneity. Our analysis also points out biases in the simulated open water fraction and in the ice thickness distribution, which should be investigated in more details in order to ensure that the latter is used to the best advantage.

Frontolysis by surface heat flux in the Agulhas Return Current region with a focus on mixed layer processes: observation and a high-resolution CGCM

Detailed mechanisms for frontogenesis/frontolysis of the Agulhas Return Current (ARC) Front, defined as the maximum of the meridional sea surface temperature (SST) gradient at each longitude within the ARC region (40°–50°E, 55°–35°S), are investigated using observational datasets. Due to larger (smaller) latent heat release to the atmosphere on the northern (southern) side of the front, the meridional gradient of surface net heat flux (NHF) is found throughout the year. In austral summer, surface warming is weaker (stronger) on the northern (southern) side, and thus the NHF tends to relax the SST front. The weaker (stronger) surface warming, at the same time, leads to the deeper (shallower) mixed layer on the northern (southern) side. This enhances the frontolysis, because deeper (shallower) mixed layer is less (more) sensitive to surface warming. In austral winter, stronger (weaker) surface cooling on the northern (southern) side contributes to the frontolysis. However, deeper (shallower) mixed layer is induced by stronger (weaker) surface cooling on the northern (southern) side and suppresses the frontolysis, because the deeper (shallower) mixed layer is less (more) sensitive to surface cooling. Therefore, the frontolysis by the NHF becomes stronger (weaker) through the mixed layer processes in austral summer (winter). The cause of the meridional gradient of mixed layer depth is estimated using diagnostic entrainment velocity and the Monin–Obukhov depth. Furthermore, the above mechanisms obtained from the observation are confirmed using outputs from a high-resolution coupled general circulation model. Causes of model biases are also discussed.

Predictive Skill for Regional Interannual Steric Sea Level and Mechanisms for Predictability*

Abstract Based on decadal hindcasts initialized every five years over the period 1960–2000, the predictive skill of annual-mean regional steric sea level and associated mechanisms are investigated. Predictive skill for steric sea level is found over large areas of the World Ocean, notably over the subtropical Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, along the path of the North Atlantic Current, and over the Indian and Southern Oceans. Mechanisms for the predictability of the thermosteric and halosteric contributions to the steric signal are studied by separating these components into signals originating from processes within and beneath the mixed layer. Contributions originating from below the mixed layer are further decomposed into density-related (isopycnal motion term) and density-compensated (spice term) changes. In regions of the subtropical Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, predictive skill results from the interannual variability associated with the contribution from isopycnal motion to thermosteric sea level. Skill related to thermosteric mixed layer processes is found to be important in the subtropical Atlantic, while the spice contribution shows skill over the subpolar North Atlantic. In the subtropics, the high predictive skill can be rationalized in terms of westward-propagating baroclinic Rossby waves for a lead time of 2–5 yr, as demonstrated using an initialized Rossby wave model. Because of the low Rossby wave speed in high latitudes, this process is not separable from the persistence there.

Assessment of the upper‐ocean mixed layer parameterizations using a large eddy simulation model

AbstractA large eddy simulation (LES) of the upper ocean mixed layer processes in the winter northwestern Pacific is carried out and compared with concurrent microstructure measurements. We find that dissipation rates of turbulent kinetic energy (ε) and temperature variance from LES agree well with field observations in the areas where the Ozmidov length scale, calculated from the modeled ε and buoyancy frequency, exceeds the grid size of LES. It is also found that, even though the Ozmidov length scale is less than the grid size of LES, model estimates of the vertical turbulent heat flux near the base of the mixed layer are very similar to observed values, suggesting that this LES model reproduces the intensity of entrainment well. This enables us to use the results from LES to assess the turbulence closure models of Mellor and Yamada [1982, MY] and Nakanishi and Niino [2009, NN] for several forcing scenarios consisting of strong winds, surface heating, and surface cooling. It is found that NN performs better than MY in reproducing the results from LES for each forcing scenario, particularly when the turbulent length scale is adjusted to be more restricted by density stratification.

Ocean Heat Uptake Processes: A Model Intercomparison

Abstract The quasi-equilibrium heat balances, as well as the responses to 4 × CO2 perturbation, are compared among three global climate models with the aim to identify and explain intermodel differences in ocean heat uptake (OHU) processes. It is found that, in quasi equilibrium, convective and mixed layer processes, as well as eddy-related processes, cause cooling of the subsurface ocean. The cooling is balanced by warming caused by advective and diapycnally diffusive processes. It is also found that in the CO2-perturbed climates the largest contribution to OHU comes from changes in vertical mixing processes and the mean circulation, particularly in the extratropics, caused both by changes in wind forcing and by changes in high-latitude buoyancy forcing. There is a substantial warming in the tropics: a significant part of which occurs because of changes in horizontal advection in extratropics. Diapycnal diffusion makes only a weak contribution to the OHU, mainly in the tropics, because of increased stratification. There are important qualitative differences in the contribution of eddy-induced advection and isopycnal diffusion to the OHU among the models. The former is related to the different values of the coefficients used in the corresponding scheme. The latter is related to the different tapering formulations of the isopycnal diffusion scheme. These differences affect the OHU in the deep ocean, which is substantial in two of the models, with the dominant region of deep warming being the Southern Ocean. However, most of the OHU takes place above 2000 m, and the three models are quantitatively similar in their global OHU efficiency and its breakdown among processes and as a function of latitude.

Mixed layer variability and chlorophyll &amp;lt;i&amp;gt;a&amp;lt;/i&amp;gt; biomass in the Bay of Bengal

Abstract. The mixed layer is the most variable and dynamically active part of the marine environment that couples the underlying ocean to the atmosphere and plays an important role in determining the oceanic primary productivity. We examined the basin-scale processes controlling the seasonal variability of mixed layer depth in the Bay of Bengal and its association with chlorophyll using a suite of in situ as well as remote sensing data. A coupling between mixed layer depth and chlorophyll was seen during spring intermonsoon and summer monsoon, but for different reasons. In spring intermonsoon the temperature-dominated stratification and associated shallow mixed layer makes the upper waters of the Bay of Bengal nutrient depleted and oligotrophic. In summer, although the salinity-dominated stratification in the northern Bay of Bengal shallows the mixed layer, the nutrient input from adjoining rivers enhance the surface chlorophyll. This enhancement is confined only to the surface layer and with increase in depth, the chlorophyll biomass decreases rapidly due to reduction in sunlight by suspended sediment. In the south, advection of high salinity waters from the Arabian Sea and westward propagating Rossby waves from the eastern Bay of Bengal led to the formation of deep mixed layer. In contrast, in the Indo–Sri Lanka region, the shallow mixed layer and nutrient enrichment driven by upwelling and Ekman pumping resulted in chlorophyll enhancement. The mismatch between the nitrate and chlorophyll indicated the inadequacy of present data to fully unravel its coupling to mixed layer processes.

California Niño/Niña

The present study shows the existence of intrinsic coastal air-sea coupled phenomenon in the coastal ocean off Baja California and California in boreal summer for the first time. It contributes significantly to the interannual sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies there. An initial decrease/increase in the equatorward alongshore surface winds weakens/strengthens the coastal upwelling and raises/lowers the coastal SSTs through oceanic mixed-layer processes. The resultant coastal warming/cooling, in turn, heats/cools the overlying atmosphere anomalously, decreases/increases the atmospheric pressure in the lower troposphere, generates an anomalous cross-shore pressure gradient, and thus reinforces or maintains the alongshore surface wind anomalies. The regional air-sea coupled phenomenon seems to be analogous to the well-known El Niño/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) in the tropical Pacific but with much smaller time and space scales, and may be referred to as California Niño/Niña in its intrinsic sense.

Cloud and boundary layer interactions over the Arctic sea ice in late summer

Abstract. Observations from the Arctic Summer Cloud Ocean Study (ASCOS), in the central Arctic sea-ice pack in late summer 2008, provide a detailed view of cloud–atmosphere–surface interactions and vertical mixing processes over the sea-ice environment. Measurements from a suite of ground-based remote sensors, near-surface meteorological and aerosol instruments, and profiles from radiosondes and a helicopter are combined to characterize a week-long period dominated by low-level, mixed-phase, stratocumulus clouds. Detailed case studies and statistical analyses are used to develop a conceptual model for the cloud and atmosphere structure and their interactions in this environment. Clouds were persistent during the period of study, having qualities that suggest they were sustained through a combination of advective influences and in-cloud processes, with little contribution from the surface. Radiative cooling near cloud top produced buoyancy-driven, turbulent eddies that contributed to cloud formation and created a cloud-driven mixed layer. The depth of this mixed layer was related to the amount of turbulence and condensed cloud water. Coupling of this cloud-driven mixed layer to the surface boundary layer was primarily determined by proximity. For 75% of the period of study, the primary stratocumulus cloud-driven mixed layer was decoupled from the surface and typically at a warmer potential temperature. Since the near-surface temperature was constrained by the ocean–ice mixture, warm temperatures aloft suggest that these air masses had not significantly interacted with the sea-ice surface. Instead, back-trajectory analyses suggest that these warm air masses advected into the central Arctic Basin from lower latitudes. Moisture and aerosol particles likely accompanied these air masses, providing necessary support for cloud formation. On the occasions when cloud–surface coupling did occur, back trajectories indicated that these air masses advected at low levels, while mixing processes kept the mixed layer in equilibrium with the near-surface environment. Rather than contributing buoyancy forcing for the mixed-layer dynamics, the surface instead simply appeared to respond to the mixed-layer processes aloft. Clouds in these cases often contained slightly higher condensed water amounts, potentially due to additional moisture sources from below.