The University of Southampton
University of Southampton Institutional Repository

Reduced upper ocean turbulence and changes to bubble size distributions during large downward heat-flux events

Reduced upper ocean turbulence and changes to bubble size distributions during large downward heat-flux events
Reduced upper ocean turbulence and changes to bubble size distributions during large downward heat-flux events
During the Radiance in a Dynamic Ocean (RaDyO) field study south of Hawaii in September 2009, simultaneous observations of total heat flux, upper ocean turbulence and bubble size distributions suggest that large downward heat flux modulates the upper ocean turbulence dissipation rates and subsequently the upper ocean bubble field. The observations show that the turbulence dissipation rates near the ocean surface are reduced by a factor of 10 during periods with high downward heat flux (> 400 Wm-2). Simultaneously, the observations of bubble size distributions at a depth of 0.5 m show that there were significantly lower concentrations of bubbles with radii greater than 100 ?m than during a winter study in the Gulf of Mexico. Also, the number of bubbles with radii greater than 200 ?m is found to be dependent on the heat flux, with fewer such bubbles during stable (positive heat flux) conditions. The reduced number of larger bubbles reduces the effect of the bubble field on optical reflectance by up to a factor of 3 compared to other locations at similar wind speeds.
0148-0227
C00H16
Vagle, Svein
6954155f-51a2-4acf-9a5a-15cff574e910
Gemmrich, Johannes
3e7b87bd-77a6-4f69-a57d-4b34e6dbf2ba
Czerski, Helen
8704500e-b00f-41c0-bfa3-b5f08e7e39d6
Vagle, Svein
6954155f-51a2-4acf-9a5a-15cff574e910
Gemmrich, Johannes
3e7b87bd-77a6-4f69-a57d-4b34e6dbf2ba
Czerski, Helen
8704500e-b00f-41c0-bfa3-b5f08e7e39d6

Vagle, Svein, Gemmrich, Johannes and Czerski, Helen (2012) Reduced upper ocean turbulence and changes to bubble size distributions during large downward heat-flux events. Journal of Geophysical Research, 117, C00H16. (doi:10.1029/2011JC007308).

Record type: Article

Abstract

During the Radiance in a Dynamic Ocean (RaDyO) field study south of Hawaii in September 2009, simultaneous observations of total heat flux, upper ocean turbulence and bubble size distributions suggest that large downward heat flux modulates the upper ocean turbulence dissipation rates and subsequently the upper ocean bubble field. The observations show that the turbulence dissipation rates near the ocean surface are reduced by a factor of 10 during periods with high downward heat flux (> 400 Wm-2). Simultaneously, the observations of bubble size distributions at a depth of 0.5 m show that there were significantly lower concentrations of bubbles with radii greater than 100 ?m than during a winter study in the Gulf of Mexico. Also, the number of bubbles with radii greater than 200 ?m is found to be dependent on the heat flux, with fewer such bubbles during stable (positive heat flux) conditions. The reduced number of larger bubbles reduces the effect of the bubble field on optical reflectance by up to a factor of 3 compared to other locations at similar wind speeds.

This record has no associated files available for download.

More information

Accepted/In Press date: 11 December 2011
Published date: 2012
Organisations: Geology & Geophysics, Inst. Sound & Vibration Research

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 206217
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/206217
ISSN: 0148-0227
PURE UUID: a3fb7e09-6f6f-45bc-a2bf-9e30cc9999bf

Catalogue record

Date deposited: 22 Dec 2011 14:18
Last modified: 14 Mar 2024 04:36

Export record

Altmetrics

Contributors

Author: Svein Vagle
Author: Johannes Gemmrich
Author: Helen Czerski

Download statistics

Downloads from ePrints over the past year. Other digital versions may also be available to download e.g. from the publisher's website.

View more statistics

Atom RSS 1.0 RSS 2.0

Contact ePrints Soton: eprints@soton.ac.uk

ePrints Soton supports OAI 2.0 with a base URL of http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/cgi/oai2

This repository has been built using EPrints software, developed at the University of Southampton, but available to everyone to use.

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue without changing your settings, we will assume that you are happy to receive cookies on the University of Southampton website.

×