Clayson
Carol A.
Clayson
Carol A.
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ArticleUncertainties in ocean latent heat flux variations over recent decades in satellite-based estimates and reduced observation reanalyses(American Meteorological Society, 2020-08-31) Robertson, Franklin R. ; Roberts, Jason B. ; Bosilovich, Michael G. ; Bentamy, Abderrahim ; Clayson, Carol A. ; Fennig, Karsten ; Schröder, Marc ; Tomita, Hiroyuki ; Compo, Gilbert P. ; Gutenstein, Marloes ; Hersbach, Hans ; Kobayashi, Chiaki ; Ricciardulli, Lucrezia ; Sardeshmukh, Prashant ; Slivinski, LauraFour state-of-the-art satellite-based estimates of ocean surface latent heat fluxes (LHFs) extending over three decades are analyzed, focusing on the interannual variability and trends of near-global averages and regional patterns. Detailed intercomparisons are made with other datasets including 1) reduced observation reanalyses (RedObs) whose exclusion of satellite data renders them an important independent diagnostic tool; 2) a moisture budget residual LHF estimate using reanalysis moisture transport, atmospheric storage, and satellite precipitation; 3) the ECMWF Reanalysis 5 (ERA5); 4) Remote Sensing Systems (RSS) single-sensor passive microwave and scatterometer wind speed retrievals; and 5) several sea surface temperature (SST) datasets. Large disparities remain in near-global satellite LHF trends and their regional expression over the 1990–2010 period, during which time the interdecadal Pacific oscillation changed sign. The budget residual diagnostics support the smaller RedObs LHF trends. The satellites, ERA5, and RedObs are reasonably consistent in identifying contributions by the 10-m wind speed variations to the LHF trend patterns. However, contributions by the near-surface vertical humidity gradient from satellites and ERA5 trend upward in time with respect to the RedObs ensemble and show less agreement in trend patterns. Problems with wind speed retrievals from Special Sensor Microwave Imager/Sounder satellite sensors, excessive upward trends in trends in Optimal Interpolation Sea Surface Temperature (OISST AVHRR-Only) data used in most satellite LHF estimates, and uncertainties associated with poor satellite coverage before the mid-1990s are noted. Possibly erroneous trends are also identified in ERA5 LHF associated with the onset of scatterometer wind data assimilation in the early 1990s.
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ArticleShear turbulence in the high-wind Southern Ocean using direct measurements(American Meteorological Society, 2022-09-19) Ferris, Laur ; Gong, Donglai ; Clayson, Carol A. ; Merrifield, Sophia T. ; Shroyer, Emily L. ; Smith, Madison M. ; St. Laurent, Louis C.The ocean surface boundary layer is a gateway of energy transfer into the ocean. Wind-driven shear and meteorologically forced convection inject turbulent kinetic energy into the surface boundary layer, mixing the upper ocean and transforming its density structure. In the absence of direct observations or the capability to resolve subgrid-scale 3D turbulence in operational ocean models, the oceanography community relies on surface boundary layer similarity scalings (BLS) of shear and convective turbulence to represent this mixing. Despite their importance, near-surface mixing processes (and ubiquitous BLS representations of these processes) have been undersampled in high-energy forcing regimes such as the Southern Ocean. With the maturing of autonomous sampling platforms, there is now an opportunity to collect high-resolution spatial and temporal measurements in the full range of forcing conditions. Here, we characterize near-surface turbulence under strong wind forcing using the first long-duration glider microstructure survey of the Southern Ocean. We leverage these data to show that the measured turbulence is significantly higher than standard shear-convective BLS in the shallower parts of the surface boundary layer and lower than standard shear-convective BLS in the deeper parts of the surface boundary layer; the latter of which is not easily explained by present wave-effect literature. Consistent with the CBLAST (Coupled Boundary Layers and Air Sea Transfer) low winds experiment, this bias has the largest magnitude and spread in the shallowest 10% of the actively mixing layer under low-wind and breaking wave conditions, when relatively low levels of turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) in surface regime are easily biased by wave events.
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ArticleThe observed state of the water cycle in the early twenty-first century(American Meteorological Society, 2015-11-01) Rodell, Matthew ; Beaudoing, Hiroko K. ; L’Ecuyer, Tristan S. ; Olson, William S. ; Famiglietti, James S. ; Houser, Paul R. ; Adler, Robert ; Bosilovich, Michael G. ; Clayson, Carol A. ; Chambers, Don P. ; Clark, Edward A. ; Fetzer, Eric J. ; Gao, X. ; Gu, Guojun ; Hilburn, K. A. ; Huffman, George J. ; Lettenmaier, Dennis P. ; Liu, W. Timothy ; Robertson, Franklin R. ; Schlosser, C. Adam ; Sheffield, Justin ; Wood, Eric F.This study quantifies mean annual and monthly fluxes of Earth’s water cycle over continents and ocean basins during the first decade of the millennium. To the extent possible, the flux estimates are based on satellite measurements first and data-integrating models second. A careful accounting of uncertainty in the estimates is included. It is applied within a routine that enforces multiple water and energy budget constraints simultaneously in a variational framework in order to produce objectively determined optimized flux estimates. In the majority of cases, the observed annual surface and atmospheric water budgets over the continents and oceans close with much less than 10% residual. Observed residuals and optimized uncertainty estimates are considerably larger for monthly surface and atmospheric water budget closure, often nearing or exceeding 20% in North America, Eurasia, Australia and neighboring islands, and the Arctic and South Atlantic Oceans. The residuals in South America and Africa tend to be smaller, possibly because cold land processes are negligible. Fluxes were poorly observed over the Arctic Ocean, certain seas, Antarctica, and the Australasian and Indonesian islands, leading to reliance on atmospheric analysis estimates. Many of the satellite systems that contributed data have been or will soon be lost or replaced. Models that integrate ground-based and remote observations will be critical for ameliorating gaps and discontinuities in the data records caused by these transitions. Continued development of such models is essential for maximizing the value of the observations. Next-generation observing systems are the best hope for significantly improving global water budget accounting.
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ArticleDeveloping an Observing Air–Sea Interactions Strategy (OASIS) for the global ocean(Oxford University Press, 2022-09-27) Cronin, Meghan F. ; Swart, Sebastiaan ; Marandino, Christa A. ; Anderson, C. ; Browne, Philip ; Chen, S. ; Joubert, W. R. ; Schuster, U. ; Venkatesan, R. ; Addey, Charles I. ; Alves, O. ; Ardhuin, F. ; Battle, S. ; Bourassa, M. A. ; Chen, Z. ; Chory, Margaret ; Clayson, Carol A. ; de Souza, R. B. ; du Plessis, Marcel ; Edmondson, M. ; Edson, J. B. ; Gille, S. T. ; Hermes, Juliet ; Hormann, Verena ; Josey, S. A. ; Kurz, M. ; Lee, T. ; Maicu, F. ; Moustahfid, E. H. ; Nicholson, Sarah-Anne ; Nyadjro, Ebenezer S. ; Palter, Jaime ; Patterson, Ruth G. ; Penny, Stephen G. ; Pezzi, L. P. ; Pinardi, N. ; Reeves Eyre, J. E. Jack ; Rome, N. ; Subramanian, A. C. ; Stienbarger, C. ; Steinhoff, T. ; Sutton, A. J. ; Tomita, Hiroyuki ; Wills, Samantha M. ; Wilson, C. ; Yu, LisanThe Observing Air–Sea Interactions Strategy (OASIS) is a new United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development programme working to develop a practical, integrated approach for observing air–sea interactions globally for improved Earth system (including ecosystem) forecasts, CO2 uptake assessments called for by the Paris Agreement, and invaluable surface ocean information for decision makers. Our “Theory of Change” relies upon leveraged multi-disciplinary activities, partnerships, and capacity strengthening. Recommendations from >40 OceanObs’19 community papers and a series of workshops have been consolidated into three interlinked Grand Ideas for creating #1: a globally distributed network of mobile air–sea observing platforms built around an expanded array of long-term time-series stations; #2: a satellite network, with high spatial and temporal resolution, optimized for measuring air–sea fluxes; and #3: improved representation of air–sea coupling in a hierarchy of Earth system models. OASIS activities are organized across five Theme Teams: (1) Observing Network Design & Model Improvement; (2) Partnership & Capacity Strengthening; (3) UN Decade OASIS Actions; (4) Best Practices & Interoperability Experiments; and (5) Findable–Accessible–Interoperable–Reusable (FAIR) models, data, and OASIS products. Stakeholders, including researchers, are actively recruited to participate in Theme Teams to help promote a predicted, safe, clean, healthy, resilient, and productive ocean.
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ArticleEffects of rainfall on the atmosphere and the ocean during spurs-2(Oceanography Society, 2019-06-14) Clayson, Carol A. ; Edson, James B. ; Paget, Aaron ; Graham, Raymond ; Greenwood, BenjaminThe salinity variability of the upper ocean is influenced by surface heat, momentum, and freshwater fluxes, which are in turn affected by atmospheric conditions. It is necessary to accurately measure these surface fluxes within their atmospheric environment to understand the linkages between rain events and the resulting upper-ocean salinity balance that occurs at cloud scales. We describe a comprehensive set of atmospheric and oceanic data collected during the second Salinity Processes in the Upper-ocean Regional Study (SPURS-2) experiment in the tropical eastern Pacific Ocean. These measurements included direct estimates of heat, moisture, and momentum fluxes using direct covariance flux systems on R/V Roger Revelle and a 3 m discus buoy. These are the first successful direct measurements of evaporation from a buoy over an extended period. The atmospheric moisture budget is estimated from a combination of data, including measured freshwater fluxes, upper air sounding data, and satellite data. This analysis reconfirms the important role of moisture convergence beneath the Intertropical Convergence Zone in this region. We perform an analysis of the near-surface vertical salinity structure and its relationship to these surface fluxes, highlighting the roles of stabilization by solar insolation and precipitation and the effects of rainfall on mixing of the upper ocean.
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ArticleNovel and flexible approach to access the open ocean: Uses of sailing research vessel Lady Amber during SPURS-2.(Oceanography Society, 2019-06-14) Rainville, Luc ; Centurioni, Luca R. ; Asher, William E. ; Clayson, Carol A. ; Drushka, Kyla ; Edson, James B. ; Hodges, Benjamin A. ; Hormann, Verena ; Farrar, J. Thomas ; Schanze, Julian J. ; Shcherbina, Andrey Y.SPURS-2 (Salinity Processes in the Upper-ocean Regional Study 2) used the schooner Lady Amber, a small sailing research vessel, to deploy, service, maintain, and recover a variety of oceanographic and meteorological instruments in the eastern Pacific Ocean. Low operational costs allowed us to frequently deploy floats and drifters to collect data necessary for resolving the regional circulation of the eastern tropical Pacific. The small charter gave us the opportunity to deploy drifters in locations chosen according to current conditions, to recover and deploy various autonomous instruments in a targeted and adaptive manner, and to collect additional near-surface and atmospheric measurements in the remote SPURS-2 region.
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ArticleImproving near-surface retrievals of surface humidity over the global open oceans from passive microwave observations(American Geophysical Union, 2019-06-25) Roberts, J. Brent ; Clayson, Carol A. ; Robertson, Franklin R.Ocean evaporative fluxes are a critical component of the Earth's energy and water cycle, but their estimation remains uncertain. Near‐surface humidity is a required input to bulk flux algorithms that relate mean surface values to the turbulent fluxes. Several satellite‐derived turbulent flux products have been developed over the last decade that utilize passive microwave imager observations to estimate the surface humidity. It is known, however, that these estimates tend to diverge from one another and from in situ observations. Analysis of current state‐of‐the‐art satellite estimates provided herein reveals that regional‐scale biases in these products remain significant. Investigations reveal a link between the spatial coherency of the observed biases to atmospheric dynamical controls of water vapor vertical stratification, cloud liquid water, and sea surface temperature. This information is used to develop a simple state‐dependent bias correction that results in more consistent ocean surface humidity estimates. A principal conclusion is that further improvements to ocean near‐surface humidity estimation using microwave radiometers requires incorporation of prior information on water vapor stratification and sea surface temperature.
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ArticleFluxSat: measuring the ocean-atmosphere turbulent exchange of heat and moisture from space(MDPI, 2020-06-03) Gentemann, Chelle L. ; Clayson, Carol A. ; Brown, Shannon ; Lee, Tong ; Parfitt, Rhys ; Farrar, J. Thomas ; Bourassa, Mark A. ; Minnett, Peter J. ; Seo, Hyodae ; Gille, Sarah T. ; Zlotnicki, VictorRecent results using wind and sea surface temperature data from satellites and high-resolution coupled models suggest that mesoscale ocean–atmosphere interactions affect the locations and evolution of storms and seasonal precipitation over continental regions such as the western US and Europe. The processes responsible for this coupling are difficult to verify due to the paucity of accurate air–sea turbulent heat and moisture flux data. These fluxes are currently derived by combining satellite measurements that are not coincident and have differing and relatively low spatial resolutions, introducing sampling errors that are largest in regions with high spatial and temporal variability. Observational errors related to sensor design also contribute to increased uncertainty. Leveraging recent advances in sensor technology, we here describe a satellite mission concept, FluxSat, that aims to simultaneously measure all variables necessary for accurate estimation of ocean–atmosphere turbulent heat and moisture fluxes and capture the effect of oceanic mesoscale forcing. Sensor design is expected to reduce observational errors of the latent and sensible heat fluxes by almost 50%. FluxSat will improve the accuracy of the fluxes at spatial scales critical to understanding the coupled ocean–atmosphere boundary layer system, providing measurements needed to improve weather forecasts and climate model simulations.
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ArticleDiurnal surface flux variability over western boundary currents(American Geophysical Union, 2019-07-17) Clayson, Carol A. ; Edson, James B.An analysis of a satellite ocean surface turbulent flux product demonstrated that, as expected, the western boundary current regions dominate the seasonal cycle amplitude. Surprisingly, our analysis of the global ocean diurnal flux variability also demonstrated a regional maximum in the winter over the western boundary current regions. We conducted comparisons with in situ data from several buoys located in these regions. The buoy data were in general agreement with the relative magnitude, timing, and importance of each of the bulk parameters driving the latent and sensible heat fluxes. Further analysis demonstrated that the strength and timing of the diurnal signal is related to the location of the buoy relative to the region of maximum heat flux and sea surface temperature gradient. In both regions, the timing of the higher winds coincides with the moistest surface layer, indicating that surface fluxes rather than entrainment mixing play a key role in this phenomenon.
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ArticleSuper sites for advancing understanding of the oceanic and atmospheric boundary layers(Marine Technology Society, 2021-05-01) Clayson, Carol A. ; Centurioni, Luca R. ; Cronin, Meghan F. ; Edson, James B. ; Gille, Sarah T. ; Muller-Karger, Frank E. ; Parfitt, Rhys ; Riihimaki, Laura D. ; Smith, Shawn R. ; Swart, Sebastiaan ; Vandemark, Douglas ; Villas Bôas, Ana B. ; Zappa, Christopher J. ; Zhang, DongxiaoAir‐sea interactions are critical to large-scale weather and climate predictions because of the ocean's ability to absorb excess atmospheric heat and carbon and regulate exchanges of momentum, water vapor, and other greenhouse gases. These exchanges are controlled by molecular, turbulent, and wave-driven processes in the atmospheric and oceanic boundary layers. Improved understanding and representation of these processes in models are key for increasing Earth system prediction skill, particularly for subseasonal to decadal time scales. Our understanding and ability to model these processes within this coupled system is presently inadequate due in large part to a lack of data: contemporaneous long-term observations from the top of the marine atmospheric boundary layer (MABL) to the base of the oceanic mixing layer. We propose the concept of “Super Sites” to provide multi-year suites of measurements at specific locations to simultaneously characterize physical and biogeochemical processes within the coupled boundary layers at high spatial and temporal resolution. Measurements will be made from floating platforms, buoys, towers, and autonomous vehicles, utilizing both in-situ and remote sensors. The engineering challenges and level of coordination, integration, and interoperability required to develop these coupled ocean‐atmosphere Super Sites place them in an “Ocean Shot” class.
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ArticleThe observed state of the energy budget in the early twenty-first century(American Meteorological Society, 2015-11-01) L’Ecuyer, Tristan S. ; Beaudoing, Hiroko K. ; Rodell, Matthew ; Olson, William S. ; Lin, B. ; Kato, S. ; Clayson, Carol A. ; Wood, Eric F. ; Sheffield, Justin ; Adler, Robert ; Huffman, George J. ; Bosilovich, Michael G. ; Gu, Guojun ; Robertson, Franklin R. ; Houser, Paul R. ; Chambers, Don P. ; Famiglietti, James S. ; Fetzer, Eric J. ; Liu, W. Timothy ; Gao, X. ; Schlosser, C. Adam ; Clark, Edward A. ; Lettenmaier, Dennis P. ; Hilburn, K. A.New objectively balanced observation-based reconstructions of global and continental energy budgets and their seasonal variability are presented that span the golden decade of Earth-observing satellites at the start of the twenty-first century. In the absence of balance constraints, various combinations of modern flux datasets reveal that current estimates of net radiation into Earth’s surface exceed corresponding turbulent heat fluxes by 13–24 W m−2. The largest imbalances occur over oceanic regions where the component algorithms operate independent of closure constraints. Recent uncertainty assessments suggest that these imbalances fall within anticipated error bounds for each dataset, but the systematic nature of required adjustments across different regions confirm the existence of biases in the component fluxes. To reintroduce energy and water cycle closure information lost in the development of independent flux datasets, a variational method is introduced that explicitly accounts for the relative accuracies in all component fluxes. Applying the technique to a 10-yr record of satellite observations yields new energy budget estimates that simultaneously satisfy all energy and water cycle balance constraints. Globally, 180 W m−2 of atmospheric longwave cooling is balanced by 74 W m−2 of shortwave absorption and 106 W m−2 of latent and sensible heat release. At the surface, 106 W m−2 of downwelling radiation is balanced by turbulent heat transfer to within a residual heat flux into the oceans of 0.45 W m−2, consistent with recent observations of changes in ocean heat content. Annual mean energy budgets and their seasonal cycles for each of seven continents and nine ocean basins are also presented.
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ArticleAir-sea fluxes with a focus on heat and momentum(Frontiers Media, 2019-07-31) Cronin, Meghan F. ; Gentemann, Chelle L. ; Edson, James B. ; Ueki, Iwao ; Bourassa, Mark A. ; Brown, Shannon ; Clayson, Carol A. ; Fairall, Christopher W. ; Farrar, J. Thomas ; Gille, Sarah T. ; Gulev, Sergey ; Josey, Simon A. ; Kato, Seiji ; Katsumata, Masaki ; Kent, Elizabeth ; Krug, Marjolaine ; Minnett, Peter J. ; Parfitt, Rhys ; Pinker, Rachel T. ; Stackhouse, Paul W., Jr. ; Swart, Sebastiaan ; Tomita, Hiroyuki ; Vandemark, Douglas ; Weller, Robert A. ; Yoneyama, Kunio ; Yu, Lisan ; Zhang, DongxiaoTurbulent and radiative exchanges of heat between the ocean and atmosphere (hereafter heat fluxes), ocean surface wind stress, and state variables used to estimate them, are Essential Ocean Variables (EOVs) and Essential Climate Variables (ECVs) influencing weather and climate. This paper describes an observational strategy for producing 3-hourly, 25-km (and an aspirational goal of hourly at 10-km) heat flux and wind stress fields over the global, ice-free ocean with breakthrough 1-day random uncertainty of 15 W m–2 and a bias of less than 5 W m–2. At present this accuracy target is met only for OceanSITES reference station moorings and research vessels (RVs) that follow best practices. To meet these targets globally, in the next decade, satellite-based observations must be optimized for boundary layer measurements of air temperature, humidity, sea surface temperature, and ocean wind stress. In order to tune and validate these satellite measurements, a complementary global in situ flux array, built around an expanded OceanSITES network of time series reference station moorings, is also needed. The array would include 500–1000 measurement platforms, including autonomous surface vehicles, moored and drifting buoys, RVs, the existing OceanSITES network of 22 flux sites, and new OceanSITES expanded in 19 key regions. This array would be globally distributed, with 1–3 measurement platforms in each nominal 10° by 10° box. These improved moisture and temperature profiles and surface data, if assimilated into Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP) models, would lead to better representation of cloud formation processes, improving state variables and surface radiative and turbulent fluxes from these models. The in situ flux array provides globally distributed measurements and metrics for satellite algorithm development, product validation, and for improving satellite-based, NWP and blended flux products. In addition, some of these flux platforms will also measure direct turbulent fluxes, which can be used to improve algorithms for computation of air-sea exchange of heat and momentum in flux products and models. With these improved air-sea fluxes, the ocean’s influence on the atmosphere will be better quantified and lead to improved long-term weather forecasts, seasonal-interannual-decadal climate predictions, and regional climate projections.
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ArticleThe effect of diurnal sea surface temperature warming on climatological air–sea fluxes(American Meteorological Society, 2013-04-15) Clayson, Carol A. ; Bogdanoff, Alec S.Diurnal sea surface warming affects the fluxes of latent heat, sensible heat, and upwelling longwave radiation. Diurnal warming most typically reaches maximum values of 3°C, although very localized events may reach 7°–8°C. An analysis of multiple years of diurnal warming over the global ice-free oceans indicates that heat fluxes determined by using the predawn sea surface temperature can differ by more than 100% in localized regions over those in which the sea surface temperature is allowed to fluctuate on a diurnal basis. A comparison of flux climatologies produced by these two analyses demonstrates that significant portions of the tropical oceans experience differences on a yearly average of up to 10 W m−2. Regions with the highest climatological differences include the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal, as well as the equatorial western and eastern Pacific Ocean, the Gulf of Mexico, and the western coasts of Central America and North Africa. Globally the difference is on average 4.45 W m−2. The difference in the evaporation rate globally is on the order of 4% of the total ocean–atmosphere evaporation. Although the instantaneous, year-to-year, and seasonal fluctuations in various locations can be substantial, the global average differs by less than 0.1 W m−2 throughout the entire 10-yr time period. A global heat budget that uses atmospheric datasets containing diurnal variability but a sea surface temperature that has removed this signal may be underestimating the flux to the atmosphere by a fairly constant value.
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ArticleImproving wave‐based air‐sea momentum flux parameterization in mixed seas(American Geophysical Union, 2023-03-07) Sauvage, César ; Seo, Hyodae ; Clayson, Carol Anne ; Edson, James B.In winter, the Northwest Tropical Atlantic Ocean can be characterized by various wave age‐based interactions among ocean current, surface wind and surface waves, which are critical for accurately describing surface wind stress. In this work, coupled wave‐ocean‐atmosphere model simulations are conducted using two different wave roughness parameterizations within COARE3.5, including one that relies solely on wind speed and another that uses wave age and wave slope as inputs. Comparisons with the directly measured momentum fluxes during the ATOMIC/EUREC4A experiments in winter 2020 show that, for sea states dominated by short wind waves under moderate to strong winds, the wave‐based formulation (WBF) increases the surface roughness length in average by 25% compared to the wind‐speed‐based approach. For sea states dominated by remotely generated swells under moderate to strong wind intensity, the WBF predicts significantly lower roughness length and surface stress (≈15%), resulting in increased near‐surface wind speed above the constant flux layer (≈5%). Further investigation of the mixed sea states in the model and data indicates that the impact of swell on wind stress is over‐emphasized in the COARE3.5 WBF, especially under moderate wind regimes. Various approaches are explored to alleviate this deficiency by either introducing directional alignment between wind and waves or using the mean wave period instead of the wave period corresponding to the spectral peak to compute the wave age. The findings of this study are likely to be site‐dependent, and mostly concern specific regimes of wind and waves where the original parameterization was deficient.
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ArticleObservations of the upper ocean from autonomous platforms during the passage of extratropical Cyclone Epsilon (2020)(Oceanography Society, 2024-03-18) Zimmerman, Michael T. ; Jayne, Steven R. ; Rainville, Luc ; Lee, Craig M. ; Toole, John M. ; Edson, James B. ; Clayson, Carol Anne ; Ekholm, Alexander K. ; Densmore, Casey R.Hurricane Epsilon (2020) was a late-season, category-3 tropical cyclone that underwent extratropical transition and became Extratropical Cyclone Epsilon on October 26. The upper ocean response to the passage of the storm was observed by three types of autonomous platforms: an eXpendable Spar buoy, an Air-Launched Autonomous Micro-Observer profiling float, and two Seagliders. Taken together, this array enabled the rare collection of contemporaneous observations of the upper ocean, air-sea interface, and atmospheric boundary layer before, during, and after the passage of the storm. The evidence presented suggests that Extratropical Cyclone Epsilon contributed to breaking down the residual North Atlantic summer stratification regime and accelerated the shift to the prolonged ocean cooling associated with winter. The synergistic capabilities of the observational array are significant for two reasons: (1) by enabling the comparison of complementary atmosphere and ocean observations, taken from different platforms, they permit a comprehensive approach to better understand how storm-induced momentum, heat, and moisture fluxes alter upper ocean structure, and (2) they demonstrate the ability of future, targeted deployments of similar observational arrays to assess the fidelity of coupled ocean-atmosphere-wave numerical prediction models.