A 38-day, 5990-cast microstructure study on the equator performed
during the onset of the 1991-1993 El Nino shows the effect on small-scale activity
at 140°W of an equatorial Kelvin wave. By using two ships, data were taken
continuously from November 4 to December 12, 1991, near the National Oceanic
and...
Our component of the TROPIC HEAT 1987 experiment was
designed to investigate a number of questions raised by our
TROPIC HEAT 1984 measurements (Park et al, 1985; Mourn and
Caldwell, 1985; Mourn et al, 1986; Chereskin et al, 1986; Mourn et
al; 1987). In particular, the goals of LEG 2...
Packets of nonlinear internal waves (NLIWs) in a small area of the Mid-Atlantic Bight were 10 times more energetic during a local neap tide than during the preceding spring tide. This counterintuitive result cannot be explained if the waves are generated near the shelf break by the local barotropic tide...
Turbulence controls the composition of river plumes through mixing and alters the plume's trajectory by diffusing its momentum. While believed to play a crucial role in decelerating river-source waters, the turbulence stress in a near-field river plume has not previously been observationally quantified. In this study, finely resolved density, velocity,...
From a comprehensive set of upper ocean measurements made during a moderate El Niño in boreal spring 1987, we reassess the role of turbulence in transporting momentum vertically at the equator. An examination of the terms in the vertically integrated zonal momentum equations indicates that on short time scales the...
Internal gravity waves, the subsurface analogue of the familiar
surface gravity waves that break on beaches, are ubiquitous in
the ocean. Because of their strong vertical and horizontal currents,
and the turbulent mixing caused by their breaking, they affect a
panoply of ocean processes, such as the supply of nutrients...
Repeated microstructure transects across filaments in the coastal transition zone (CTZ) have
Revealed fundamental structure and dynamics of the complicated features. The measurements allow
detailed momentum and vorticity analyses and provide a possible explanations for structural
asymmetry of the fronts. Observations made between July 2 and July 23, 1988, along...
The initial composition of a river plume depends on the cumulative turbulent
entrainment within the estuary and how this dilutes the supplied freshwater. Here we
examine the relative roles of turbulence and freshwater input using observations from the
Columbia River estuary and plume during two periods with contrasting river flow....
An experimental investigation of a two·dimensional turbulent jet in a quiescent environment has been
carried out to determine the structural characteristics of the outer, intermittent turbulent motion. An
overall picture of this motion was deduced from the results which indicate that, on the average, the
turbulent bulges are of the...