A Two-Layer Frictional Model of the Oceanic Circulation. I. Wind-Driven Motion in a Rectangular Basin.

摘要

A study is made of the circulation in a two-layer ocean with rectangular boundaries, driven by a zonal wind. The dynamics is linear, with bottom and interface stresses included, but a non-linearity arises from finite variations in layer depth. The solution gives a directly wind-driven gyre in the upper layer; in the lower layer a recirculating boundary current arises that intensifies the transport at the coast. Numerical examples are worked out for a sinusoidal wind stress. (Author)