Wind-SST Coupling in the Coastal Upwelling: An Empirical Numerical Simulation

Xin Jin, Changming Dong, James C. McWilliams

Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics, University of California, Los Angeles

Dudley B. Chelton

College of Oceanic and Atmospheric Sciences, and Cooperative Institute
for Oceanographic Satellite Studies, Oregon State University


Observations have shown that there is a relationship between the sea surface wind and underlying SST gradient, quantified by Chelton etal (2001, 2007). In present study, the empirical wind-SST relationship
is implemented into the Regional Oceanic Model System (ROMS) to couple the wind field and modeled SST. The empirical coupling scheme is applied to an idealized coastal upwelling problem to examine its evolutiooonary consequences. It is found the initially uniform wind field is adjusted to a cross-shore wind profile that is similar to realistic ones. The upwelling front and associated mesoscale eddies evolutions are significantly altered by the modified wind field. The physical processed involved in the coupling are discussed.