Interface Exchange as an Indicator for Eddy Heat Transport
Abstract
The ocean contains many large-scale, long-lived vortices, called mesoscale eddies, that are believed to have a role in the transport and redistribution of salt, heat, and nutrients throughout the ocean. Determining this role, however, has proven to be a challenge, since the mechanics of eddies are only partly understood; a standard definition for these ocean eddies does not exist and, therefore, scientifically meaningful, robust methods for eddy extraction, characterization, tracking and visualization remain a challenge. In order to shed light on the nature and potential roles of eddies, we have combined our previous research on eddy identification and tracking, and have used those approaches as the basis for analysis-driven computational experiments on the nature of eddies. Based on the resulting visualizations of eddy behavior, we have devised a new metric to characterize the transfer of water into and out of eddies across their boundary, and have developed visualization methods for this new metric to provide clues about the role eddies play in the global ocean and, potentially, climate change.
- Authors:
-
- Los Alamos National Laboratory
- U of California Davis
- Publication Date:
- Research Org.:
- Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)
- Sponsoring Org.:
- DOE/LANL
- OSTI Identifier:
- 1043509
- Report Number(s):
- LA-UR-12-22099
TRN: US201214%%60
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC52-06NA25396
- Resource Type:
- Conference
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: EuroVis ; 2012-06-04 - 2012-06-08 ; vienna, Australia
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
- Subject:
- 54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES; HEAT; INDICATORS; INTERFACES; SEAS; TRANSPORT
Citation Formats
Petersen, Mark R, Williams, Sean J, Hecht, Matthew W, Maltrud, Mathew E, Hamann, Bernd, Patchett, John M, and Ahrens, James P. Interface Exchange as an Indicator for Eddy Heat Transport. United States: N. p., 2012.
Web.
Petersen, Mark R, Williams, Sean J, Hecht, Matthew W, Maltrud, Mathew E, Hamann, Bernd, Patchett, John M, & Ahrens, James P. Interface Exchange as an Indicator for Eddy Heat Transport. United States.
Petersen, Mark R, Williams, Sean J, Hecht, Matthew W, Maltrud, Mathew E, Hamann, Bernd, Patchett, John M, and Ahrens, James P. 2012.
"Interface Exchange as an Indicator for Eddy Heat Transport". United States. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1043509.
@article{osti_1043509,
title = {Interface Exchange as an Indicator for Eddy Heat Transport},
author = {Petersen, Mark R and Williams, Sean J and Hecht, Matthew W and Maltrud, Mathew E and Hamann, Bernd and Patchett, John M and Ahrens, James P},
abstractNote = {The ocean contains many large-scale, long-lived vortices, called mesoscale eddies, that are believed to have a role in the transport and redistribution of salt, heat, and nutrients throughout the ocean. Determining this role, however, has proven to be a challenge, since the mechanics of eddies are only partly understood; a standard definition for these ocean eddies does not exist and, therefore, scientifically meaningful, robust methods for eddy extraction, characterization, tracking and visualization remain a challenge. In order to shed light on the nature and potential roles of eddies, we have combined our previous research on eddy identification and tracking, and have used those approaches as the basis for analysis-driven computational experiments on the nature of eddies. Based on the resulting visualizations of eddy behavior, we have devised a new metric to characterize the transfer of water into and out of eddies across their boundary, and have developed visualization methods for this new metric to provide clues about the role eddies play in the global ocean and, potentially, climate change.},
doi = {},
url = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/1043509},
journal = {},
number = ,
volume = ,
place = {United States},
year = {Tue Jun 12 00:00:00 EDT 2012},
month = {Tue Jun 12 00:00:00 EDT 2012}
}