A recent investigation utilizing satellite images and detailed climate model data challenges earlier beliefs and sheds light on the relationship between weather patterns in the atmosphere and the ocean. This fresh research uncovers unexpected ways in which atmospheric winds affect ocean currents, indicating that the ocean’s weather behaviors are influenced in more intricate ways than had been thought before.
Similar to the weather patterns that impact the Earth’s surface, the oceans possess their own unique weather systems. These systems, referred to as eddies, are circular water currents generally spanning around 100 kilometers in width.
Researchers at the University of Rochester conducted a new study using satellite data and advanced climate modeling that challenges prior assumptions about the interaction between surface and ocean weather. Historically, scientists thought that atmospheric winds lessened the intensity of the eddies, but the findings published in Nature Communications propose a new perspective that provides a deeper understanding of the intricate ways atmospheric winds affect these ocean features.
“The discoveries are actually more captivating than what was previously considered,” states Hussein Aluie, a professor affiliated with both the Department of Mechanical Engineering and the Department of Mathematics, who is also a senior scientist at the University’s Laboratory for Laser Energetics. “There’s a significant asymmetry in how these winds interact with ocean currents, which is dependent on the direction of the eddies’ spin.”
Aluie explains that dominant winds, such as the westerlies and trade winds that travel longitudinally across the globe, will decrease the energy of the eddies when moving against their direction, while simultaneously boosting their energy if the winds are aligned with the eddy’s spin.
Nested between the swirling eddies are complex configurations of ocean weather patterns referred to as strain. Though these strain patterns are harder to identify without special tools, Aluie points out that they make up nearly half of the ocean’s kinetic energy and are influenced by winds in ways similar to the eddies.
“The energy pathways we’ve uncovered between the atmosphere and ocean can enhance the design of ocean observation systems and augment climate models,” expresses Shikhar Rai ’23 PhD (mechanical engineering), who is the lead author of the study and a postdoctoral researcher at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. Additionally, improved predictions of ocean weather patterns could have significant benefits for fisheries and aid in optimizing the routes of commercial ships.
This research, supported by institutions such as the National Science Foundation, NASA, the Department of Energy, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, primarily examined the mechanical interactions that occur between the atmosphere and the ocean. Aluie plans to conduct further studies to explore the role of eddies in the energy exchange between the ocean and atmosphere.
