Book Description

Extrapolation of the data to the surface yields a stress that agrees very well with that calculated from a diagnostic application of the Deardorff parameterization scheme. The virtual heat flux profile, determined entirely from conventional measurements, is fairly consistent with that observed in the fair weather trade wind regime. From near-surface extrapolated momentum and virtual heat fluxes, a Monin-Obukov length is computed to indicate that the low-layer turbulence is principally shear-induced. This indication is substantiated by the budget of turbulence kinetic energy, which shows an overall predominance of shear over buoyancy production. In the lowest levels there is an approximate balance among shear production, convergence of the vertical transport, and viscous dissipation of the turbulence kinetic energy. At the upper mixed-layer levels, all of the calculable production terms are negligible in comparison with destruction through dissipation.