The 3D Oceanic Mixed Layer Response to Hurricane Gilbert

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Abstract
Upper-ocean heat and mass budgets are examined from three snapshots of data acquired during and after the passage of Hurricane Gilbert in the western Gulf of Mexico. Measurements prior to storm passage indicated a warm core eddy in the region with velocities of O(1) m s−1. Based upon conservation of heat and mass, the three-dimensional mixed layer processes are quantified from the data. During and subsequent to hurricane passage, horizontal advection due to geostrophic velocities is significant in the eddy regime, suggesting that prestorm oceanic variability is important when background flows have the same magnitude as the mixed layer current response. Storm-induced near-inertial currents lead to large vertical advection magnitudes as they diverge from and converge toward the storm track. Surface fluxes, estimated by reducing flight-level winds to 10 m, indicate a maximum wind stress of 4.2 N m−2 and a heat flux of 1200 W m−2 in the directly forced region. The upward heat flux after the passage o... Abstract Upper-ocean heat and mass budgets are examined from three snapshots of data acquired during and after the passage of Hurricane Gilbert in the western Gulf of Mexico. Measurements prior to storm passage indicated a warm core eddy in the region with velocities of O(1) m s−1. Based upon conservation of heat and mass, the three-dimensional mixed layer processes are quantified from the data. During and subsequent to hurricane passage, horizontal advection due to geostrophic velocities is significant in the eddy regime, suggesting that prestorm oceanic variability is important when background flows have the same magnitude as the mixed layer current response. Storm-induced near-inertial currents lead to large vertical advection magnitudes as they diverge from and converge toward the storm track. Surface fluxes, estimated by reducing flight-level winds to 10 m, indicate a maximum wind stress of 4.2 N m−2 and a heat flux of 1200 W m−2 in the directly forced region. The upward heat flux after the passage o...

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