HR: 11:35h
AN: OS52B-06    [Abstracts]
TI: Three-Dimensional Modeling of Air-Sea Interaction
AU: * Regis, J L
EM: regis@coastal.ufl.edu
AF: University of Florida Department of Civil and Coastal Engineering, 365 Weil Hall, Gainesville, FL 32611 United States
AU: Slinn, D N
EM: slinn@coastal.ufl.edu
AF: University of Florida Department of Civil and Coastal Engineering, 365 Weil Hall, Gainesville, FL 32611 United States
AB: Deep-water wave breaking is crucial in the transfer of heat, gases, and momentum between the ocean and the atmosphere. Observations of these events have provided qualitative support to this end, and yet accurate quantification of momentum transfer for strong winds and nonlinear waves has remained a challenge. In recent years, advances have been made in the development of numerous algorithms to capture and describe air-sea interaction. Most, however, are idealized and only capable of modeling fluid flow within the two-dimensional approximation. Thus, many important characteristics of the flow composition and breaking process are ignored, oversimplified, or remain unknown. We employ a three-dimensional, time-dependent, finite difference, volume of fluid model, including both the flow of air and water, entitled TRUCHAS, to address the issue of deep-water breaking waves. Our model utilizes the multidimensional piecewise linear interface calculation method to assess the volume fraction of each fluid material in every mesh cell. The model solves conservation equations for mass and momentum for multiple fluids within the domain and tracks the interfaces between them. A great many details of the flow development are available for analysis from the model output. These include wind and water velocities, pressure gradients in both the air and sea around a breaking wave, the development and evolution of wind-generated waves, and the corresponding transfer of momentum from the atmosphere to the ocean. Our results are correlated with laboratory experiments conducted at the University of Miami's Air-Sea Interaction Salt-water Tank that possesses both wind and wave generating capabilities. Preliminary model results show good qualitative agreement to laboratory data.
DE: 3339 Ocean/atmosphere interactions (0312, 4504)
DE: 4255 Numerical modeling
DE: 4504 Air/sea interactions (0312)
DE: 4560 Surface waves and tides (1255)
SC: Ocean Sciences [OS]
MN: 2004 AGU Fall Meeting