Ocean Observing and Climate
OVAC Theme 1 - Observations of Planetary Waves
Construction of a longitude-time diagram showing sea surface height observations of westward-propagating Rossby waves
Planetary waves are huge perturbations inside the depths of the ocean with a very long wavelength (hundreds or thousands kilometres from the top of a wave to the next one). At the surface they appear as a tiny undulation of a few centimetres in height - invisible to the naked eye as the wavelength is so long. These waves are important for climate. For instance, they can push the ocean currents off their due course and wreak havoc on weather patterns. And they always tend to travel from east to west, crossing the ocean basins in months, or even years, due to their low speed (just a few centimetres per second). One instrument that can be used to observe them is a satellite-borne sensor called an altimeter that maps the level of the sea surface very accurately, revealing westward-propagating planetary wave crests and troughs at the surface (see figure above).
Links to OVAC Theme 1 Research
North Atlantic Agulhas Current Model Investigations Planetary Waves Observations Planetary Waves Theories
