TY - JOUR
T1 - Statistical properties of the surface velocity field in the northern Gulf of Mexico sampled by GLAD drifters
AU - Mariano, A.J.
AU - Ryan, E.H.
AU - Huntley, H.S.
AU - Laurindo, L.C.
AU - Coelho, E.
AU - Ozgokmen, TM
AU - Berta, M.
AU - Bogucki, D
AU - Chen, S.S.
AU - Curcic, M.
AU - Drouin, K.L.
AU - Gough, M
AU - Haus, BK
AU - Haza, A.C.
AU - Hogan, P
AU - Iskandarani, M
AU - Jacobs, G
AU - Kirwan Jr., A.D.
AU - Laxague, N
AU - Lipphardt Jr., B.
AU - Magaldi, M.G.
AU - Novelli, G.
AU - Reniers, Ad
AU - Restrepo, J.M.
AU - Smith, C
AU - Valle-Levinson, A.
AU - Wei, M.
PY - 2016
Y1 - 2016
N2 - The Grand LAgrangian Deployment (GLAD) used multiscale sampling and GPS technology to observe time series of drifter positions with initial drifter separation of O(100 m) to O(10 km), and nominal 5 min sampling, during the summer and fall of 2012 in the northern Gulf of Mexico. Histograms of the velocity field and its statistical parameters are non-Gaussian; most are multimodal. The dominant periods for the surface velocity field are 1–2 days due to inertial oscillations, tides, and the sea breeze; 5–6 days due to wind forcing and submesoscale eddies; 9–10 days and two weeks or longer periods due to wind forcing and mesoscale variability, including the period of eddy rotation. The temporal e-folding scales of a fitted drifter velocity autocorrelation function are bimodal with time scales, 0.25–0.50 days and 0.9–1.4 days, and are the same order as the temporal e-folding scales of observed winds from nearby moored National Data Buoy Center stations. The Lagrangian integral time scales increase from coastal values of 8 h to offshore values of approximately 2 days with peak values of 3–4 days. The velocity variance is large, O(1)m2/s2, the surface velocity statistics are more anisotropic, and increased dispersion is observed at flow bifurcations. Horizontal diffusivity estimates are O(103)m2/s in coastal regions with weaker flow to O(105)m2/s in flow bifurcations, a strong jet, and during the passage of Hurricane Isaac. The Gulf of Mexico surface velocity statistics sampled by the GLAD drifters are a strong function of the feature sampled, topography, and wind forcing
AB - The Grand LAgrangian Deployment (GLAD) used multiscale sampling and GPS technology to observe time series of drifter positions with initial drifter separation of O(100 m) to O(10 km), and nominal 5 min sampling, during the summer and fall of 2012 in the northern Gulf of Mexico. Histograms of the velocity field and its statistical parameters are non-Gaussian; most are multimodal. The dominant periods for the surface velocity field are 1–2 days due to inertial oscillations, tides, and the sea breeze; 5–6 days due to wind forcing and submesoscale eddies; 9–10 days and two weeks or longer periods due to wind forcing and mesoscale variability, including the period of eddy rotation. The temporal e-folding scales of a fitted drifter velocity autocorrelation function are bimodal with time scales, 0.25–0.50 days and 0.9–1.4 days, and are the same order as the temporal e-folding scales of observed winds from nearby moored National Data Buoy Center stations. The Lagrangian integral time scales increase from coastal values of 8 h to offshore values of approximately 2 days with peak values of 3–4 days. The velocity variance is large, O(1)m2/s2, the surface velocity statistics are more anisotropic, and increased dispersion is observed at flow bifurcations. Horizontal diffusivity estimates are O(103)m2/s in coastal regions with weaker flow to O(105)m2/s in flow bifurcations, a strong jet, and during the passage of Hurricane Isaac. The Gulf of Mexico surface velocity statistics sampled by the GLAD drifters are a strong function of the feature sampled, topography, and wind forcing
UR - http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:3e84d4aa-2f38-4895-b7a0-8bf8bc763e2e
U2 - 10.1002/2015JC011569
DO - 10.1002/2015JC011569
M3 - Article
SN - 2169-9275
VL - 121
SP - 5193
EP - 5216
JO - Journal Of Geophysical Research-Oceans
JF - Journal Of Geophysical Research-Oceans
IS - 7
ER -