A Gaussian-surface-based approach to identifying oceanic multi-eddy structures from satellite altimeter datasets

摘要

This study presents multi-eddy structures from the sea level anomaly (SLA) maps. The SLA signals of an eddy are modeled by a two-dimensional anisotropic Gaussian surface. An identification criterion is introduced determine whether retain or split a multi-eddy structure. Detection result of a three-eddy structure from the SLA in the South China Sea (SCS) demonstrates the effectiveness of the identification . Comparison with a merger event previously reported about a multi-eddy structure in northern SCS reveals the advantage of this over simple splitting strategy, which may lose the eddy-eddy interaction details conveyed by real multi-eddy structures.