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Global Dynamics of the Stationary M2 Mode-1 Internal Tide
Samuel M Kelly1, Amy F Waterhouse2, Anna C Savage2
1Large Lakes Observatory and Physics & Astronomy Department University of Minnesota Duluth Duluth MN USA.
Abstract:
A reduced-physics model is employed at 1/25° to 1/100° global resolution to determine (a) if linear dynamics can reproduce the observed low-mode M2 internal tide, (b) internal-tide sensitivity to bathymetry, stratification, surface tides, and dissipation parameterizations, and (c) the amount of power transferred to the nonstationary internal tide. The simulations predict 200 GW of mode-1 internal-tide generation, consistent with a general circulation model and semianalytical theory. Mode-1 energy is sensitive to damping, but a simulation using parameterizations for wave drag and wave-mean interaction predicts 84% of satellite observed sea-surface height amplitude variance on a 1° × 1° grid. The simulation energy balance indicates that 16% of stationary mode-1 energy is scattered to modes 2-4 and negligible energy propagates onto the shelves. The remaining 84% of energy is lost through parameterizations for high-mode scattering over rough topography (54%) and wave-mean interactions that transfer energy to the nonstationary internal tide (29%).
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