Locally Modified Winds Regulate Circulation in a Semi-Enclosed Shelf Sea



Akpinar, Anil, Palmer, Matthew R, Inall, Mark, Berx, Barbara and Polton, Jeff ORCID: 0000-0003-0131-5250
(2022) Locally Modified Winds Regulate Circulation in a Semi-Enclosed Shelf Sea. JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH-OCEANS, 127 (3).

Access the full-text of this item by clicking on the Open Access link.

Abstract

<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title><jats:p>Wind driven circulation in the North Sea is revisited with a specific focus on locally modified winds and their impacts. We show for the first time that local extrema of the wind stress curl (WSC), generated by orography and ocean‐atmosphere interactions, help regulate circulation in the northern North Sea. While calculated transports are strongly coupled with wind stress, which itself is driven by large‐scale forcing, transports through the Norwegian Trench have higher correlations with the WSC field due to local extrema. Such WSC extrema regulate the eddy activity around the Norwegian Trench. We conclude that orography and ocean‐atmosphere interaction are two important mechanisms contributing to the generation of the WSC extrema around the Norwegian coast. Ocean‐atmosphere interaction is considered a potential mechanism developing the WSC extrema. Our results show that local winds are more important than previously documented, with important implications for regional circulation likely to result from future changes to local surface gradients, such as may arise from changing meteorological or hydro‐climatic forcing. These are additional impacts on North Sea circulation that may not be accounted for from changes in wind stress alone.</jats:p>

Item Type: Article
Uncontrolled Keywords: 14 Life Below Water
Divisions: Faculty of Science and Engineering > School of Environmental Sciences
Depositing User: Symplectic Admin
Date Deposited: 14 Jun 2022 15:34
Last Modified: 17 Mar 2024 13:41
DOI: 10.1029/2021JC018248
Open Access URL: https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.102...
Related URLs:
URI: https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/3156475