Nicolas Rascle

Observation and estimation of Lagrangian, Stokes and Eulerian currents induced by wind and waves at the sea surface

Abstract The surface current response to winds is analyzed in a 2-yr time series of a 12-MHz (HF) Wellen Radar (WERA) off the west coast of France. Consistent with previous observations, the measured currents, after filtering tides, are on the order of 1.0%–1.8% of the wind speed, in a direction 10°–40° to the right of the wind, and with systematic trends as a function of wind speed. This Lagrangian current can be decomposed as the vector sum of a quasi-Eulerian current UE, representative of the top 1 m of the water column and part of the wave-induced Stokes drift Uss at the sea surface. Here, Uss is estimated with an accurate numerical wave model using a novel parameterization of wave dissipation processes. Using both observed and modeled wave spectra, Uss is found to be very well approximated by a simple function of the wind speed and significant wave height, generally increasing quadratically with the wind speed. Focusing on a site located 100 km from the mainland, the wave-induced contribution of Uss ...

Explicit wave-averaged primitive equations using a Generalized Lagrangian Mean

The generalized Langrangian mean theory provides exact equations for general wave-turbulence-mean flow interactions in three dimensions. For practical applications, these equations must be closed by specifying the wave forcing terms. Here an approximate closure is obtained under the hypotheses of small surface slope, weak horizontal gradients of the water depth and mean current, and weak curvature of the mean current profile. These assumptions yield analytical expressions for the mean momentum and pressure forcing terms that can be expressed in terms of the wave spectrum. A vertical change of coordinate is then applied to obtain glm2z-RANS equations (55) and (57) with non-divergent mass transport in cartesian coordinates. To lowest order, agreement is found with Eulerian-mean theories, and the present approximation provides an explicit extension of known wave-averaged equations to short-scale variations of the wave field, and vertically varying currents only limited to weak or localized profile curvatures. Further, the underlying exact equations provide a natural framework for extensions to finite wave amplitudes and any realistic situation. The accuracy of the approximations is discussed using comparisons with exact numerical solutions for linear waves over arbitrary bottom slopes, for which the equations are still exact when properly accounting for partial standing waves. For finite amplitude waves it is found that the approximate solutions are probably accurate for ocean mixed layer modelling and shoaling waves, provided that an adequate turbulent closure is designed. However, for surf zone applications the approximations are expected to give only qualitative results due to the large influence of wave nonlinearity on the vertical profiles of wave forcing terms.

Surface Roughness Imaging of Currents Shows Divergence and Strain in the Wind Direction

Images of sea surface roughness—for example, obtained by synthetic aperture radars (SAR) or by radiometers viewing areas in and around the sun glitter—at times provide clear observations of meso- and submesoscale oceanic features. Interacting with the surface wind waves, particular deformation properties of surface currents are responsible for those manifestations. Ignoring other sources of surface roughness variations, the authors limit their discussion to the mean square slope (mss) variability. This study confirms that vortical currents and currents with shear in the wind direction shall not be expressed in surface roughness images. Only divergent currents or currents with no divergence but strained in the wind direction can exhibit surfaceroughnesssignatures. Morespecifically,nondivergentcurrentsmightbetracedwitha458sensitivityto the wind direction. A simple method is proposed in order to interpret high-resolution roughness images, where roughness variations are proportional to ›u/›x 1 a›y/›y, a linear combination of the along-wind and crosswind current gradients. The polarization parameter a depends upon the sensor look direction and the directional properties of the surface waves selected by the sensor. The use of multiple look directions or possible acquisitions with different wind directions shall thus help to retrieve surface currents from surface roughness observations.

Small‐scale open ocean currents have large effects on wind wave heights

Tidal currents and large-scale oceanic currents are known to modify ocean wave properties, causing extreme sea states that are a hazard to navigation. Recent advances in the understanding and modeling capability of open ocean currents have revealed the ubiquitous presence of eddies, fronts, and filaments at scales 10–100 km. Based on realistic numerical models, we show that these structures can be the main source of variability in significant wave heights at scales less than 200 km, including important variations down to 10 km. Model results are consistent with wave height variations along satellite altimeter tracks, resolved at scales larger than 50 km. The spectrum of significant wave heights is found to be of the order of 70〈Hs〉2/(g2〈Tm0,−1〉2) times the current spectrum, where 〈Hs〉 is the spatially averaged significant wave height, 〈Tm0,−1〉 is the energy-averaged period, and g is the gravity acceleration. This variability induced by currents has been largely overlooked in spite of its relevance for extreme wave heights and remote sensing.

Analysis of Dual-Frequency Ocean Backscatter Measurements at Ku- and Ka-Bands Using Near-Nadir Incidence GPM Radar Data

Global colocalized ocean surface measurements using the Global Precipitation Measurement near-nadir dual-frequency Ku- and Ka-band microwave measurements are analyzed and compared. Focusing on the Ka and Ku cross-sections fall-off with incidence angles, the contemporaneous measurements enable to more precisely document differing ocean scattering characteristics for both microwave frequencies. Sensitivity with wind speed and significant wave height is further reported using global comparisons with numerical estimates. As demonstrated, the bifrequency capability can provide direct means to efficiently separate short-scale wave contributions, between mean squared slope and curvature characteristics, and to further gain valuable insights concerning near-nadir instruments onboard future ocean satellite missions including the China-France Oceanography Satellite and the Surface Water Ocean Topography Mission.

Surface roughness changes by fine scale current gradients: Properties at multiple azimuth view angles

AbstractAt times, high-resolution images of sea surface roughness can provide stunning details of submesoscale upper-ocean dynamics. As interpreted, transformations of short-scale wind waves by horizontal current gradients are responsible for those spectacular observations. Those observations could prove particularly useful to validate numerical ocean models that reach increasingly high resolutions. Focusing on surface roughness at optical wavelengths, two steps have recently been performed in that direction. First, it was shown in a previous paper by Rascle et al. that surface roughness variations not only trace surface current divergence but also other characteristics of the current gradient tensor, mainly the strain in the wind direction. The wind direction with respect to the current gradient thus stands out as an important interpretative parameter. The second step is the purpose of the present paper, where the effect of the viewing direction is investigated. To this end, the authors discuss pairs of ...

Sea Surface Roughness Manifestations Around Ocean Fronts

Ocean fronts are often visible at the ocean surface as well-marked choppy rough water or, contrarily, as anomalously smooth sea surface. As such, high-resolution satellite images—e.g., obtained by synthetic aperture radars (SARs) or by radiometers viewing areas in and around the sun glitter—at times can provide clear observations of mesoscale and submesoscale oceanic fronts. These observations have thus a powerful potential to monitor the upper ocean dynamics, by providing essential information on oceanic fronts. In that perspective, we review recent advances in the qualitative and quantitative interpretation of satellite surface roughness anomalies.