A meso-scale model of the central and southern North Sea: Consequences of an improved resolution

摘要

Results of a meso-scale model with a resolution of approximately 3 km of the central and southern North Sea are presented. The effect of the meso-scale resolution is depicted by comparing these results with data obtained from a 20 km resolution model. The validation of the model by means of observed SST data and of temperature data from a hydrographic transect demonstrates that the meso-scale model is able to reproduce the observations reasonably well. A comparison of the 3 km resolution results with 20 km results additionally shows that the large-scale model is not able to reproduce all the observed features of the SST with the same accuracy, in particular in the near-coastal areas along the Dutch and German coast. The parameters, which are investigated in more detail in this study, are temperature and salinity as well as the mean and eddy kinetic energy of the residual flow. The comparison between meso-scale and large-scale results demonstrates that not only the temperature and salinity distribution but also the kinetic energy is strongly affected by the chosen grid resolution.