Fluxes of latent heat over the oceans: climatological studies and application of satellite observations

A short review is given of the different methods by which latent heat fluxes (or evaporation) over oceans are determined. In more detail, the applicability of the bulk aerodynamical formula is discussed. This formula is mainly used for climatological studies of heat fluxes and for the application of satellite data. As an example, for climatological studies we selected the work of Isemer and Hasse, who did a re-processing of the so-called Bunker data set to determine heat fluxes over the North Atlantic Ocean. In order to check their results, Isemer and Hasse calculated the annual mean heat budget for each latitudinal delt and derived from it the required ocean heat transport. With the aid of inverse modelling, the derived ocean transport was compared with the observed ocean transport and some of the used coefficients (e.g. bulk coefficients for latent and sensible heat flux) were altered. Though the ocean heat transport is changed by a large amount (at the equator 0.3 PW, original Bunker data; 0 PW, Isemer and Hasse; 0.76 PW, after inverse modelling (all northwards)) the overall patterns of the fields of the energy fluxes remain almost unchanged. The bulk coefficient for latent heat flux for example is altered by 5.6%.The geophysical parameters necessary for the bulk aerodynamic method can be determined from satellite observations: SST, q₀, u₀. Studies are described which used data from a microwave radiometer on SEASAT and NIMBUS7 to determine latent heat flux. An error calculation shows that the obtained accuracy is between 26 and 35 W m⁻². This accuracy is adequate enough to allow reasonable estimates to be made of these fluxes. More satellites are planned for launch with microwave radiometers and scatterometers which will increase the possibility of determining geophysical parameters more accurately for use in the bulk aerodynamic formula. They will provide the database from which large-scale fieldsof latent heat flux (for time scales shorter than a month or even for actual situations) can be derived.