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ORE 603 Oceanography for Ocean Engineers
Instructor: Eva‐Marie Nosal
Ocean Heat Budget
• Oceans are driven by
– internal density gradients: surface heat and salinity fluxes
– Surface wind stress
• Heat flow:
– Symbol Q
– Units W/m2
– Generally averaged over 24 hours of 1 year
• Heat budget components (+ into water, ‐ out of water)
– Insolation Qs : rate of inflow of solar energy through sea surface
– Net infrared radiation Qb : net rate of loss by sea as long‐wave radiation to atmosphere and space
– Latent heat flux Qe : rate of loss/gain by evaporation/condensation
– Sensible heat flux Qh : rate of loss/gain through surface by conduction
– Advection Qv : rate of loss/gain due to currents
• Other sources (earth’s interior, waves, chemical/nuclear reactions) are small and can be neglected
• Total heat gain or loss: QT = Qs + Qb + Qh + Qe + Qv
• Conservation of heat:
– Earth and oceans are in thermal equilibrium
– total heat in = total heat out (globally)
→ 0 = Qs + Qb + Qh + Qe (advection is internal & must sum to zero)
• Typical global values:
World Avg Annual Range Monthly Range
Qs: + 150 +80 to +200 0 to +300 always positive
Qb: -50 small small always negative
Qe: -90 -50 to –160 +20 to –240 generally negative
Qh: -10 0 to –40 +5 to -50 generally negative
Electromagnetic radiation
• Stefan’s Law:
– All bodies radiate energy at rate proportional to T4
(absolute temp oK)
• Concentration of energy peaks at a wavelength
given by Wien’s law:
– λm T = 2897 µm oK
– Body at high temperature → radiant energy at
short wavelengths
– Body at low temperature → radiant energy at long
wavelengths
• Sun radiation:
– T = 6000 oK → λm = 0.5 µm
– 50% is visible (0.35 – 0.7 µm), 99% shorter than 4 As the temperature decreases, the
µm peak of the black‐body radiation
– Source of short wave radiation, Qs curve moves to lower intensities
and longer wavelengths
• Ocean radiation:
– Ocean average: T ≈ 17 oC = 290 oK → λm = 10 µm
(infrared) Recall:
– 90% of ocean’s radiation: 3 to 80 µm Micrometer = µm = 10‐6 m
– long wave radiation, Qb Nanometer = nm = 10‐9m
Insolation Qs
• Solar constant
– Rate at which energy reaches the outside of the atmosphere
– Measured by satellites
– 1365‐1372 W/m2 (perpendicular to sun’s rays)
• Long term world averages:
– 29% lost to space by atmosphere and cloud scattering
– 19% absorbed by atmosphere
– 4% reflected by ocean
– 48% absorbed
Insolation Qs
• Determined primarily by latitude, season, time of day, cloud cover
• Important factors:
– Length of day (latitude and season)
– Absorption in the atmosphere
• Absorption coefficient due to gas, dust, water vapor (clouds), aerosols (volcanic and
marine)
• Elevation of sun
– Elevation of sun (at lower elevations, a beam of radiation hits the surface
obliquely and is distributed over a larger area)
– Reflectivity of sea surface (elevation of sun and roughness of surface)
– Ice cover
• Average annual insolation: 30 W/m2 < Qs < 260 W/m2
Insolation Qs
• Solar energy received varies
irregularly with wavelength due to
absorption by water vapor and
atmospheric gases (in particular
oxygen and hydrocarbons)
• Absorption in the sea reduces the
light level rapidly with depth
• At vertical light incidence (i.e.
most favorable conditions):
– 73% reaches 1 cm depth
– 44.5% reaches 1 m depth
– 22.2% reaches 10 m depth
– 0.53% reaches 100 m depth
– 0.0062% reaches 200 m depth
• Optimum conditions (absolutely
clear water, vertical input),
minimum energy for
photosynthesis: 220 m
Infrared radiation, Qb
• Difference between long‐wave energy radiated by the ocean and that
received by the sea from the atmosphere.
• Atmosphere is opaque to infrared radiation SO traps outgoing radiation:
greenhouse effect
• Outward radiation by ocean is always greater so Qb represents a net loss
from the ocean.
• Important factors:
– Cloud thickness (thicker → less heat escapes)
– Cloud height (high clouds are colder → radiate less heat)
– Atmospheric water‐vapor content (more humid → less heat escapes to space)
– Carbon dioxide & methane (also nitrous oxide, ozone, CFCs...)
– Water temperature
• Careful! Rise in sea‐surface temperature:
– causes increase in outward radiation
– BUT also an increase in humidity in the atmosphere above it
– Humidity increases more rapidly than temperature
→ atmospheric radiation increases more rapidly than ocean’s outward radiation
→ Net result: decrease of Qb
– SO tropical regions can lose less heat than polar regions
• Average annual : ‐60 W/m2 < Qb < ‐30 W/m2
Latent heat flux, Qe
• Heat of evaporation/condensation
• Difficult to estimate value
• Depends on:
– Wind velocity
– Atmospheric humidity
– Others: Sea state, salinity, temperature, cloud cover
• Generally represents a loss of heat from the ocean
– Usual case: Twater > Tair → evaporation, Qe <0, heat loss
– Unusual case: Twater < Tair + high humidity → condensation (fog), Qe >0, net gain (e.g. N.
California coast)
• Average annual : ‐130 W/m2 < Qe < ‐10 W/m2
Sensible heat flux, Qh
• Temperature decreases upward from sea surface → heat conducted away → Qh < 0
• Temperature increases upward from sea surface → heat conducted into sea → Qh > 0
• Qh proportional to temperature gradient dT/dz
• Convection:
– occurs for Qh < 0 since heated air expands, rises, & carries heat away rapidly →
for the same |dT/dz|, rate of heat loss is greater than rate of heat gain
– Depends on wind velocity
• Average annual: ‐42 W/m2 < Qh < ‐2 W/m2
Heat flux distribution
Total heat flux
- Zonal averages:
along lines of
constant latitude
- Terms should
sum to zero (don’t
because of errors)
Total heat flux by season
Advective heat flux, Qv
• Globally Qv= 0, but locally?
• Sun’s direct radiation dominant to about
50o latitude
– Low latitudes (< 30o): ocean gains heat
– High latitudes (> 30o): ocean loses heat to
atmosphere
• Thermal equilibrium → Ocean must advect
heat (Qv≠ 0)
• Qv proportional to velocity & water
temperature
Northward heat transport (1 PW = 1015 W)
Pacific: poleward
Indian: poleward
Atlantic: always northward
(North Atlantic Deep
Water formed off
Greenland)
Advective heat flux, Qv
• The oceans transport about one‐half of the heat needed to warm
higher latitudes, the atmosphere transports the other half.
• Oceanic heat transport exceeds atmospheric transport in some regions
Atmospheric wind systems
Hadley’s circulation model
• Heat supplied at low latitudes
• Temperatures steady at all latitudes → heat
must be transported polewards at all latitudes
• Simplest wind model: Hadley (18th century):
– equatorward winds at surface
– poleward winds at altitude
Atmospheric cells
• Coriolis is important
• Three circulation cells are formed
– Hadley cell: 0o and 30o lat
– Ferrel cell: 30o to 60o degrees
– Polar cell: N of 60o degrees
• Trade winds (easterlies)
– ~15oN and 15oS
– Equatorward surface winds deflected
to the west
• Westerlies
– ~45oN and 45oS
– Poleward surface winds deflected to
the east
Subtropical high & polar front
• Subtropical high:
– Intersection of the Hadley
& Ferrel cells
– ~30oN and 30oS
– Sinking, dry air → great
deserts, high ocean surface
salinity
– ‘Horse latitudes’
• Polar front (Subpolar low)
– Intersection of the Ferrel &
Polar cells
– ~60oN and 60oS
Intertropical convergence zone
• Near equator: Winds converge, air moves vertically
between the S and N Hadley cells→ Intertropical
convergence zone (ITCZ), doldrums
• Moist, rising air → heavy precipitation
• ITCZ varies seasonally
• Greatly affected by land/water T differences
• Distorted northwards over land in northern summer
Actual wind patterns
• Wind patterns complicated considerably by presence of continents and seasonal
variations
• Seasonal variations much greater in NH due to greater land mass
• Monsoons
– Seasonal prevailing wind that lasts several months
– Variation in land/ocean heating
– Africa and Asia monsoons associated with movement of ITCZ
• Storms
– Disturbed state of the atmosphere
– Wind speeds over 24.5 m/s
– Thunderstorm, snowstorm, gale…
– Mechanism for transporting large amounts of heat toward the poles
Cyclones
• Area of low atmospheric pressure → inward spiraling winds
• Spiral counterclockwise in the NH, clockwise in the SH
• 6 types
– different characteristics, mechanisms & geographic locations
– including tropical cyclones (tropical oceans, warm humid) and
extratropical cyclones (mid‐latitude, form at polar front)
Polar low over the Barents Sea