Researchers at the University of Rochester have discovered that prevailing winds can energize ocean weather patterns like eddies, depending on their spin direction.
Much like the weather patterns we experience on land, our planet’s oceans have their own dynamic “weather” systems, known as eddies. These swirling currents, typically about 100 kilometers wide, play a crucial role in the ocean’s overall energy balance. However, new research from the University of Rochester reveals a surprising interaction between these ocean patterns and atmospheric winds, fundamentally changing our understanding of oceanic and atmospheric dynamics.
The study, published in Nature Communications, utilized satellite imagery and high-resolution climate model data to investigate how winds affect these oceanic patterns.
Scientists previously believed atmospheric wind had a damping effect, slowing down eddies. But the new findings reveal a more nuanced relationship.
“It’s actually more interesting than what people had previously thought,” corresponding author Hussein Aluie, a professor of mechanical engineering and mathematics at the University of Rochester and a senior scientist at the university’s Laboratory for Laser Energetics, said in a news release. “There’s a marked asymmetry in how the wind affects these motions, and it depends on the direction they spin.”
According to Aluie, prevailing winds — such as the westerlies and trade winds — will slow the eddies when moving in the opposite direction. However, if their spins align, these same winds can energize the eddies.
In addition to eddies, the study also delves into less visible but equally significant oceanic features known as strain patterns. Though not as easily distinguished by the naked eye, strain patterns account for about half of the ocean’s kinetic energy and are influenced by atmospheric winds in similar ways to eddies.
“The new energy pathways between the atmosphere and the ocean that we discovered can help design better ocean observation systems and improve climate models,” added first author Shikhar Rai, a former University of Rochester doctoral student in mechanical engineering and now a postdoctoral investigator at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.
These improved models have the potential to significantly enhance our understanding of climate phenomena. Additionally, better predicting the ocean’s weather patterns could provide practical benefits for industries such as fisheries, aiding in the development of more effective navigation and ship routing systems.
Looking ahead, Aluie plans to investigate the role eddies play in transporting energy between the oceans and the atmosphere.
This new research opens up exciting possibilities for a deeper understanding of the link between atmospheric conditions and oceanic behaviors, paving the way for advances that could have wide-reaching implications for both climate science and commercial enterprises.