MESOSCALE NONLINEAR GRAVITATIONAL WAVES AND THEIR INTERACTION IN VERTICAL SHEAR FLOW*

Interaction equations of two nonlinear gravitational waves in baroclinic atmosphere are presented via multi-scale perturbation method,which can be classified into coupling nonlinear Schrodinger equations.In particular,the interaction course of two nonlinear gravitational waves of basic flow in vertical linear and quadratic shear is illustrated.Numerical calculation displays that wave amplitude enlarges and wave width narrows when two solitary gravitational waves meet and chase;that basic flow with single shear is more beneficial than that with quadratic shear to the interaction of two nonlinear wave packets;and that the interaction of two wave packets makes wave shape change more greatly and energy more dispersive,which contributes to the occurrence of changeable weather.Therefore,one of the probable mechanisms for the appearance of strong convection weather is the interaction between mesoscale nonlinear gravitational waves.     

南海北部孤立波对近岸波动的响应

On the basis of the time series observations from a temperature chain and an acoustic Doppler current profiler on the continental shelf of the northern South China Sea, a sequence of internal solitary waves （ISWs） and background waves （BWs, including internal tides and near-inertial waves） on the continental shelf were captured simultaneously after the transit of Typhoon Neast in October 2011. These measurementsprovided a unique opportunity to explore the influence of BWs on the ISWs. The BWs appeared a conversion on the current strength and vertical mode structure during the observational period. The BWs were dominated by weak and mode-one waves before October 2 and then turned to strong and high-mode waves after that time. Meanwhile, the ISWs displayed different wave structures before and after October 2, which was closely related to BWs＇ changes. According to the current profiles of BWs, the high-mode wave structure with strong current could significantly strengthen the vertical shear of ISWs in the near-surface layer and promote the breaking of ISWs, and thus it may play an important role in affecting the background current condition.     

南海北部中尺度涡与内波相遇的特征分析

基于2009年12月~2010年4月南海北部大陆坡上东沙岛以西的一套潜标资料,分析一个中尺度涡与内波相遇时海水温度的变化特征。根据潜标上的温压记录,利用功率谱分析,发现潜标布放处存在周期为20~30 min的内孤立波及全日和半日周期的内潮;结合海表面高度异常资料,描述此处一个中尺度涡的经过过程。利用天文潮大潮发生的时间规律,推断出中尺度涡与内波的相遇,从而解释了压力记录的异常变化。根据中尺度涡与内波各自引起的海流流向,分析在本次观测中两者相遇时的共同作用所引起的海水温度的垂向变化,即当两者引起的流向相反时,内波引起的日周期等温线波动由上凸型弧状变为下凹型弧状,短时震荡由向下振荡变化为向上振荡。     

Monthly variation of some parameters about internal solitary waves in the South China sea

In this paper, by non-dimensional analysis, it is found that finite-depth theory is more appropriate to the study of internal solitary waves (ISWs) in the South China Sea (SCS) than shallow-water theory. The 1-degree grid data of monthly mean temperature and salinity data at standard levels in the SCS are used to solve the linearized vertical eigenvalue problem. The nonlinear parameter and the wave phase speed are computed, then the nonlinear phase speed and the characteristic half-width of ISWs are calculated respectively by two different theories to investigate the difference between these two parameters in the SCS. The nonlinearity is the strongest near the continental slope of the SCS or islands where the bottom topography changes sharply, it is stronger in summer than that in winter; it increases (decreases) as pycnocline depth deepens (shallows), stratification strengthens (weakens) and pycnocline thickness thins (thickens). The nonlinear wave phase speed and the characteristic half-width are the largest in deep sea area, they then reduce peripherally in shallower water. The nonlinear wave phase speed in the SCS changes slightly with time, but the characteristic half-width changes somewhat larger with time. In most of the SCS basin, the nonlinear wave phase speed derived from shallow-water theory is very close to that derived from finite-depth theory, but the characteristic half-width derived from shallow-water theory is about 0.2–0.6 times larger than that derived from finite-depth theory. The ISW induced horizontal current velocity derived from shallow-water theory is larger than that derived from finite-depth theory. Some observed and numerical modeled ISW characteristic half-widths are compared with those derived from shallow-water and finite-depth theories, respectively. It is shown that, the characteristic half-widths derived from finite-depth theory agree better with observational and numerical modeled results than those derived from shallow-water theory in most cases, finite-depth theory is more applicable to the estimation of ISW characteristic half-widths in the northern SCS. It is also suggested that, to derive the precise ISW parameters in further study, the physical non-dimensional ratios which are related with ISW characteristic half-width, amplitude, thermocline and water depths should be calculated, so that an appropriate theory can be chosen for estimation.     

Laboratory Generation of Solitary Waves: An Inversion Technique to Improve Available Methods简

Solitary waves are often used in laboratory experiments to study tsunamis propagation and interaction with coasts. However, the experimental shape of the waves may differ from the theoretical one. In this paper, a correction technique aiming at minimizing the discrepancies between the two profiles is presented. Laboratory experiments reveal their effectiveness in correcting the experimental shape of solitary waves, mainly for low nonlinearities.     

利用SAR遥感卫星资料研究东海内孤立波时空分布特征

通过分析欧洲空间局的地球资源卫星(ERS-1/2)从1995—2010年的合成孔径雷达(SAR)图像,研究了东海内孤立波的时间分布特征,绘制了东海内孤立波的空间分布图,并且反演了个别海区内孤立波的传播速度。研究结果表明:东海内孤立波主要分布在两个海域,台湾东北部海域和长江口、杭州湾以及外舟山群岛附近海域。在这两个海域,大潮期间的强潮流有利于内孤立波的出现。在长江口及附近海域,跃层强时,内孤立波出现的概率相对较高。台湾东北部内孤立波波速约为0.6—0.8 m/s,长江口及附近海域内孤立波波速约为0.6 m/s左右。     

缓坡地形上内孤立波的破碎及能量分析

在大型重力式分层流水槽中对内孤立波沿缓坡地形的演化特征进行了实验研究,利用分层染色标识方法和多点组合探头阵列技术对其传播特性做了定性分析和定量测量。实验表明:下凹型内孤立波沿缓坡地形传播过程中的破碎先从波背部发生,继而演化出上凸型内孤立波;内孤立波破碎不仅与入射波波幅相关,而且受到地形坡度的强烈影响;入射波幅参数??0.4是内孤立波不稳定及破碎的实验判据,内孤立波能量损失出现跃升是其发生破碎的重要特征。研究进一步获得了内孤立波沿缓坡地形的三维演化结构、破碎发生条件和能量变化特性,对于复杂海洋环境中非线性内波传播特性认识及其动力学建模具有重要的科学意义。     

Internal solitary waves on the southwest shelf of Dongsha Island observed from mooring ADCP

Internal solitary waves(ISWs) are frequently observed in the area between Dongsha Island(DI) and Taiwan Island. However, there have been few in-situ observations southwest of DI. To improve our knowledge of ISWs in this area, we observed the ISWs over the continental shelf(115.4°E, 20.3°N) from Aug. 29 to Oct. 10, 2011 with temperature sensors and an acoustic Doppler current profiler(ADCP). The observations showed that the a fully developed ISW produced a current whose maximum westward velocity was 0.92 m/s and maximum northward velocity was 0.47 m/s. During the 41-day observation period the ISWs appeared for three periods with about 7-day gaps between each period. During each day, two types of ISWs were observed. The first type of wave arrived regularly diurnally at the same time each day, with a similar pattern to that of the type- a wave identified by Ramp et al.(2004). The second type arrived about 12 h after the first type and was delayed about 1 hour each day; this wave type was related to the type- b wave. Thus, our observations confirmed that both type- a and type- b waves can reach the area southwest of the DI. Moreover, the waves observed by the mooring propagated toward the directions of 270°–315° clockwise from true north, indicating obvious refraction from uneven topography around DI.     

基于调制不稳定性的吕宋海峡内孤立波生成机理探讨

The South China Sea (SCS) is a hot spot for oceanic internal solitary waves due to many factors, such as the complexity of the terrain environment. The internal solitary waves in the northern SCS mainl...     

内孤立波与海脊相互作用的模拟研究

A nonhydrostatic numerical model was developed and numerical experiments performed on the interaction of an internal solitary wave(ISW) with a sill, for a two-layer fluid with a diffusive interface. Based on the blocking parameter(Br), the flow was classified into three cases:(1) when bottom topography has little influence on the propagation and spatial structure of the ISW(Br0.5),(2) where the ISW is distorted significantly by the blocking effect of the topography(though no wave breaking occurs,(0.5Br0.7), and(3) where the ISW is broken as it encounters and passes over the bottom topography(0.7Br). The numerical results obtained here are consistent with those obtained in laboratory experiments. The breaking process of the incident ISW when Br≈0.7 was completely reproduced. Dissipation rate was linearly related to the blocking parameter when Br0.7, and the maximum dissipation rate could reach about 34% as Br raised to about 1.0. After that, instead of breaking, more reflection happened. Similarly, breaking induced mixing was also most effective during Br around 1.0, and can be up to 0.16.