Developments in ocean climate modelling

Griffies, Stephen M.; Böning, Claus W.; Bryan, Frank O.; Chassignet, Eric P.; Gerdes, Rüdiger; Hasumi, Hiroyasu; Hirst, Anthony C.; Tréguier, Anne‐Marie; Webb, D. J.

doi:10.1016/s1463-5003(00)00014-7

Cited by 323 publications

(225 citation statements)

References 294 publications

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“…The background of this question forms the widespread assumption of trapped or reflected kinetic energy at those boundaries in adaptive mesh ocean models (Griffies et al, 2000). However, in accordance with Popinet and Rickard (2007) we found the main reason for this problem to be the formulation of the discrete spatial operators, i.e., their accuracy and smoothness, across the resolution boundaries.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 55%

The circulation of Icelandic waters – a modelling study

et al. 2013

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Abstract. The three-dimensional flow, temperature and salinity fields of the North Atlantic, including the Arctic Ocean, covering the time period 1992 to 2006 are simulated with the numerical ocean model CODE. The simulation reveals several new insights and previously unknown structures which help us to clarify open questions on the regional oceanography of Icelandic waters. These relate to the structure and geographical distribution of the coastal current, the primary forcing of the North Icelandic Irminger Current (NIIC) and the path of the Atlantic Water south-east of Iceland. The model's adaptively refined computational mesh has a maximum resolution of 1 km horizontal and 2.5 m vertical in Icelandic waters. CTD profiles from this region and the river discharge of 46 Icelandic watersheds, computed by the hydrological model WaSiM, are assimilated into the simulation. The model realistically reproduces the established elements of the circulation around Iceland. However, analysis of the simulated mean flow field also provides further insights. It suggests a distinct freshwater-induced coastal current that only exists along the south-west and west coasts, which is accompanied by a counter-directed undercurrent. The simulated transport of Atlantic Water over the Icelandic shelf takes place in a symmetrical system of two currents, with the established NIIC over the north-western and northern shelf, and a hitherto unnamed current over the southern and southeastern shelf, which is simulated to be an upstream precursor of the Faroe Current (FC). Both currents are driven by barotropic pressure gradients induced by a sea level slope across the Greenland-Scotland Ridge. The recently discovered North Icelandic Jet (NIJ) also features in the model predictions and is found to be forced by the baroclinic pressure field of the Arctic Front, to originate east of the Kolbeinsey Ridge and to have a volume transport of around 1.5 Sv within northern Denmark Strait. The simulated multi-annual mean Atlantic Water transport of the NIIC increased by 85 % during 1992 to 2006, whereas the corresponding NIJ transport decreased by 27 %. Based on our model results we propose a new and further differentiated circulation scheme of Icelandic waters whose details may inspire future observational oceanography studies.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 55%

The circulation of Icelandic waters – a modelling study

et al. 2013

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“…The Boussinesq approximations [Boussinesq, 1903], based on the incompressible approximations of seawater, have been used in many existing ocean models [e.g., Griffies et al, 2000]. These models calculate ocean flow while conserving water volume, instead of water mass, and sea-surface elevation is a prognostic variable, instead of ocean bottom pressure.…”

Section: Model Predictionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ocean bottom pressure waves predicted in the tropical Pacific

Song

Zlotnicki

2004

Geophysical Research Letters

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Using a mass‐conserving (non‐Boussinesq) Pacific Ocean model and TOPEX/POSEIDON sea‐surface height measurements, we document previously unreported bottom pressure waves (BPWs), associated with large‐amplitude eddies (vortices) both north and south of the Equator. The bottom pressure signals, defined as the vertically integrated water‐mass anomalies, are found to propagate westward across the Pacific Ocean with an approximate 4‐mbar amplitude (1 mbar = 100 Newton/m2, approximately equivalent to 1 cm of sea surface height), continuously interacting with topographic features. Their wavelength is about 1100 kilometers, phase speed is about 0.5 m/s, and period is about 30‐days, all consistent with the known properties of tropical instability waves (TIWs). These results suggest that the constantly evolving tropical instability eddies might have strong bottom pressure signals, therefore, likely alias the U.S.‐German Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) measurements, which have a monthly‐sampling period.

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“…The only exception is the spectral element ocean model (SEOM) (Iskandarani et al, 1995). In a recent review of the OGCMs, Griffies et al (2001) pointed out that in addition to algorithmic complexity there are two general problems one would encounter in using unstructured grids. First, it is difficult to represent the geostrophic balance on the unstructured grid.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A finite-element ocean model: principles and evaluation

2004

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We describe a three-dimensional (3D) finite-element ocean model designed for investigating the largescale ocean circulation on time scales from years to decades. The model solves the primitive equations in the dynamical part and the advection-diffusion equations for temperature and salinity in the thermodynamical part. The time-stepping is implicit. The 3D mesh is composed of tetrahedra and has a variable resolution. It is based on an unstructured 2D surface mesh and is stratified in the vertical direction. The model uses linear functions for horizontal velocity and tracers on tetrahedra, and for surface elevation on surface triangles. The vertical velocity field is elementwise constant. An important ingredient of the model is the Galerkin least-squares stabilization used to minimize effects of unresolved boundary layers and make the matrices to be inverted in time-stepping better conditioned. The model performance was tested in a 16-year simulation of the North Atlantic using a mesh covering the area between 7°and 80°N and providing variable horizontal resolution from 0.3°to 1.5°.

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Developments in ocean climate modelling

Cited by 323 publications

References 294 publications

The circulation of Icelandic waters – a modelling study

The circulation of Icelandic waters – a modelling study

Ocean bottom pressure waves predicted in the tropical Pacific

A finite-element ocean model: principles and evaluation

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