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In this paper, the variability of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current system produced by purely intrinsic nonlinear oceanic mechanisms is studied through a sigma-coordinate ocean model, implemented in a large portion of the Southern Ocean at an eddy- permitting resolution under steady surface heat and momentum fluxes. The mean transport through Drake Passage and the structure of the main Antarctic Circumpolar Current fronts are well reproduced by the model. Intrinsic variability is found to be particularly intense in the Subantarctic Front and in the Argentine Basin, on which further analysis is focused. The low-frequency variability at interannual time scales is re10 lated to bimodal behavior of the Zapiola Anticyclone, with transitions between a strong and collapsed anticyclonic circulation in substantial agreement with altimeter observations. Variability on smaller time scales shows clear evidence of topographic Rossbymode propagation along the eastern and southern flanks of the Zapiola Rise and of mesoscale eddies, also in agreement with satellite altimeter observations. The analysis of the relationship between the low- and high-frequency variability suggests possible mechanisms of mutual interaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, X-band COSMO-SkyMed© synthetic aperture radar (SAR) wind field retrieval is investigated, and the obtained data are used to force a coastal ocean circulation model. The SAR data set consists of 60 X-band Level 1B Multi-Look Ground Detected ScanSAR Huge Region COSMO-SkyMed© SAR data, gathered in the southern Tyrrhenian Sea during the summer and winter seasons of 2010. The SAR-based wind vector field estimation is accomplished by resolving both the SAR-based wind speed and wind direction retrieval problems independently. The sea surface wind speed is retrieved by means of a SAR wind speed algorithm based on the azimuth cut-off procedure, while the sea surface wind direction is provided by means of a SAR wind direction algorithm based on the discrete wavelet transform multi-resolution analysis. The obtained wind fields are compared with ground truth data provided by both ASCAT scatterometer and ECMWF model wind fields. SAR-derived wind vector fields and ECMWF model wind data are used to construct a blended wind product regularly sampled in both space and time, which is then used to force a coastal circulation model of a southern Tyrrhenian coastal area to simulate wind-driven circulation processes. The modeling results show that X-band COSMO-SkyMed© SAR data can be valuable in providing effective wind fields for coastal circulation modeling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, X-band COSMO-SkyMed© SAR wind field retrieval is investigated to force coastal circulation modeling. The SAR data set consists of 60 X-band Level 1B Multi-Look Ground Detected ScanSAR Huge Region COSMO-SkyMed© SAR data, gathered in the Southern Tyrrhenian Sea during the Summer and Winter seasons of 2010. The SAR-based wind vector field estimation is accomplished by resolving both the SAR-based wind speed and wind direction retrieval problems independently. The sea surface wind speed is retrieved by means of a SAR wind speed algorithm based on the Azimuth cut-off procedure, while the sea surface wind direction is provided by means of a SAR wind direction algorithm based on the Discrete Wavelet Transform Multi-Resolution Analysis. The obtained wind fields are compared with ground truth data provided by both ASCAT scatterometer and ECMWF model wind fields. SAR-derived wind vector fields and ECMWF model wind data are used to construct a blended wind product regularly sampled in both space and time, which is then used to force a coastal circulation model of a Southern Tyrrhenian coastal area to simulate wind-driven circulation processes. The modeling results clearly show that X-band COSMO-SkyMed© SAR data can be valuable in providing effective wind fields for coastal circulation modeling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper a process study aimed at analyzing the low-frequency variability of intrinsically oceanic origin of the Gulf Stream (GS) and GS extension (GSE) is presented. An eddy-permitting reduced-gravity nonlinear shallow water model is implemented in an idealized North Atlantic Ocean, with schematic boundaries including the essential geometric features of the coastline and a realistic zonal basin width at all latitudes. The forcing is provided by a time-independent climatological surface wind stress obtained from 41 years of monthly ECMWF fields. The model response yields strong intrinsic low-frequency fluctuations on the interannual to decadal time scales. The modelled timeaveraged GS/GSE flows are found to exhibit several features that can also be deduced from satellite altimeter data, such as the Florida Current seaward deflection, the GS separation at Cape Hatteras, and the overall structure of the GSE. The intrinsic low-frequency variability yields two preferred states of the GSE differing in latitudinal location that also have their counterpart in the altimeter data. A preliminary analysis of the variability in terms of dynamical systems theory is carried out by using the lateral eddy viscosity as the control parameter. A complex transition sequence from a steady state to irregular low-frequency variability emerges, in which Hopf and global bifurcations can be identified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we provide a review of recent results targeted at the understanding of the low-frequency variability of the Kuroshio Extension. We provide the background and main arguments of two views which have recently been proposed to explain this variability. In the first view, wind-induced Rossby waves and the effects of mesocale eddies are crucial. The second view is based on low-dimensional equivalent-barotropic large-scale nonlinear dynamics, with neither Rossby wave dynamics nor baroclinic instability being important. Results from models supporting each view are discussed and confronted with results from available observations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]