Prolonged thermocline warming by near-inertial internal waves in the wakes of tropical cyclones.

ABSTRACT: Turbulence-enhanced mixing of upper ocean heat allows interaction between the tropical atmosphere and cold water masses that impact climate at higher latitudes thereby regulating air-sea coupling and poleward heat transport. Tropical cyclones (TCs) can drastically enhance upper ocean mixing and generate powerful near-inertial internal waves (NIWs) that propagate down into the deep ocean. Globally, downward mixing of heat during TC passage causes warming in the seasonal thermocline and pumps 0.15 to 0.6 PW of heat into the unventilated ocean. The final distribution of excess heat contributed by TCs is needed to understand subsequent consequences for climate; however, it is not well constrained by current observations. Notably, whether or not excess heat supplied by TCs penetrates deep enoug

SUBMITTER: Gutierrez Brizuela N 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10293854 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature