A note on the overall vorticity balance in wind-driven ocean circulation |
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| Authors: | Pierre Welander |
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| Institution: | Department of Oceanography, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, U.S.A. |
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| Abstract: | Some constraints resulting from a required overall vorticity balance in an ocean forced by a net wind-stress curl are considered. It is pointed out that the Sverdrup balance holds for Ekman-geostrophic flow in an area-averaged sense even in the presence of topography. It is suggested that nonlinear stretching and twisting of vorticity in an inertial boundary current may provide a source of vorticity which may balance a net wind-stress curl, without help of frictional effects at the bottom or sides. It is also suggested that potential vorticity generated by the wind-stress curl can be balanced by other local potential vorticity sources in the top layer. At this stage no proof for the need of bottom or side friction in a generally stratified ocean exists, and a counterexample is also lacking, leaving the question open for further studies. |
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