Empirical eigenfunction analysis of sea surface temperatures in the Western North Atlantic
- The Rockefeller University, New York City, New York 10021-6399 (United States)
- Graduate School of Oceanography, University of Rhode Island, Narragansett Bay Campus, Narragansett, Rhode Island 02882-1197 (United States)
- Center for Fluid Mechanics, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island 02912-1966 (United States)
The Karhunen-Lo{grave e}ve decomposition is used to analyze time records of AVHRR sea surface temperature observations of the Western North Atlantic. A manually declouded dataset covering the spring of 1985 is analyzed. The majority (80{percent}) of the variance about the mean is accounted for by an empirical eigenfunction which is identified with seasonal warming. The empirical eigenfunction describes the rates of warming in different regions of the ocean. Additional eigenfunctions associated with the meandering of the Gulf Stream are found. Techniques to deal with missing and partially cloudy data are advanced and applied to relatively cloud-free data selected from the period 1985 to 1991. Again, the dominant effect is identified as seasonal warming. {copyright} {ital 1996 American Institute of Physics.}
- OSTI ID:
- 401104
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-950730--
- Journal Information:
- AIP Conference Proceedings, Journal Name: AIP Conference Proceedings Journal Issue: 1 Vol. 375; ISSN 0094-243X; ISSN APCPCS
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
On the middepth circulation and salinity field in the North Atlantic Ocean
A Reassessment of the Integrated Impact of Tropical Cyclones on Surface Chlorophyll in the Western Subtropical North Atlantic