12.701: Classic Papers in Physical Oceanography
Spring 2024
Instructor: Michael Spall
Overview
The objective of this course is to create a forum for the reading, discussion, and understanding of some of the fundamental papers in physical oceanography. The course will cover 3 main themes with four weeks spent on each area. Primary topics for this semester are: the Southern Ocean, the Arctic Ocean, and topographic effects. Within each topic, the selection of papers will highlight key advances or new ideas with both theoretical and observational papers.
Structure
The class will meet once a week, for one and a half hours, to discuss the selected paper (papers if appropriate). The paper's content will be presented to the class by one pre-assigned student (on a rotational basis). The setting is very informal and group discussion is expected throughout. The presentation should address the technical aspects of the paper (what, why, how it was done) as well as the implications of the results and the structure and clarity of the paper. All students are expected to read the paper in question prior to class and come with questions. The presenting student is expected to read one or more related papers. They are also welcome/encouraged to seek the help of the instructor, other faculty members, or the authors of the paper for clarification. The discussion should end with by addressing how this paper has influenced the field since its publication, maybe by way of subsequent papers addressing the same subject, or through the introduction of a new idea or technique that has had broader influence.
The course is graded as Pass/Fail based on class preparation and participation.
Goals
The primary goal of this course is to provide a complementary perspective on some of the fundamental problems in our field by considering some of the individual works which, when pieced together, contribute to the more cohesive description of how the ocean works. The `discussion format' of the class is meant to encourage students to consider the many different aspects of the work in question including motivation, approach utilized, and implications for the broader context. The course is also intended to help students develop basic analytical and critical skills in paper reading and, therefore, writing. Finally, students will benefit from the practice in synthesizing information and making oral presentations.
Discussion Topics
Topographic Effects
Lecture 1: 2/13/24 Hydraulic controls |
Pratt, L. J. and P. A. Lundberg, 1991: Hydraulics of rotating strait and sill flow. Ann Rev. Fluid. Mech., 23, 81-106. |
Lecture 2: 2/27/24 Overflows |
Price, J. F., and M. O'Neil Barringer, 1994: Outflows and deep water production in marginal seas. Prog. Oceanogr., 33, 161-200. |
Lecture 3: 3/5/24 Abyssal mixing |
Ferrari, R., A. Mashayek, T. J. McDougall, M. Nikurashin, J.-M. Campin, 2016: Turning ocean mixing upside down. J. Phys. Oceanogr., 46, 2239-2261.
Polzin,K. L., J. M. Toole, J. R. Ledwell, R. W. Schmitt, 1997: Spatial Variability of Turbulent Mixing in the Abyssal Ocean. Science, 276, 93-96. |
Lecture 4: 3/12/24 Bottom pressure torque |
Jackson, L., C. W. Hughes, R. G. Williams, 2006: Topographic control of basin and channel flows: The role of bottom pressure torque and friction. J. Phys. Oceanogr., 36, 1786-1805.
Hughes, C. W., and B. A. de Cuevas, 2001: Why western boundary currents in realistic oceans are inviscid: A link between form stress and bottom pressure torques. J. Phys. Oceanogr., 31, 2871-2885. |
Southern Ocean
Lecture 5: 3/19/24 Southern Ocean and the MOC |
Marshall, J. and K. Speer, 2012: Closure of the meridional overturning circulation through Southern Ocean upwelling. Nature Geoscience, 5, 171-180. |
Lecture 6: 4/2/24 Linear models of the ACC |
LaCasce, J. H. and P. E. Isachsen, 2010: Progress in Oceanography. doi:10.1016/j.pocean.2009.11.002 |
Lecture 7: 4/9/24 Eddies and form stress in the ACC |
Thompson, A. F., 2008: The atmospheric ocean: eddies and jets in the Antarctic Circumpolar Current. Phil. Trans. R. Soc. A, 366, 4529-4541.
Munk, W. H., and E. Palmen, 1051: Note on the dynamics of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current. Tellus, 3, 53-55. |
Lecture 8: 4/16/24 Eddy saturation and compensation |
Munday, D. H., H. Johnson, and D. Marshall, 2013: Eddy saturation of equilibrated circumpolar currents. J. Phys. Oceanogr., doi:10.1175/JPO-D-12-095.1 |
Arctic Ocean
Lecture 9: 4/23/24 Closed f/h contours |
Nost, O. A. and P. E. Isachsen, 2003: The large-scale time-mean ocean circulation in the Nordic Seas and Arctic Ocean estimated from simplified dynamics. J. Mar. Res., 61, 175-210. |
Lecture 10: 4/30/24 Exchanges with lower latitudes |
Haine et al., 2015: Arctic freshwater export: Status, mechanisms, and prospects. Global and Planetary Change. 125, 13-35. |
Lecture 11: 5/7/24 The halocline |
Aagaard, K., L. K. Coachman, and E. Carmack, 1981: On the halocline of the Arctic Ocean. Deep-Sea Res., 28A, 529-545. |
Lecture 12: 5/14/24 The Beaufort Gyre |
Manucharyan, G., M. A. Spall, and A. F. Thompson, 2016: A theory of the wind-driven Beaufort Gyre variability. J. Phys. Oceanogr., 46, 3263-3278, https://doi.org/10.1175/JPO-D-16-0091.1.
Meneghello, G., E. Doddridge, J. Marshall, J. Scott, J.-M. Campin, 2020: Exploring the Role of the Ice-Ocean Governor and Mesoscale Eddies in the Equilibration of the Beaufort Gyre: Lessons from Observations. J. Phys. Oceanogr., 50, 269-277 |