Linking Submesoscale Frontal Dynamics to the Large Scale Background Environment (Online)

Abstract

Submesoscale density fronts (1s-10s km wide) are a common feature of the ocean’s surface layer and are thought to be important for mediating buoyancy, heat, and energy exchanges which in turn have a substantial impact on the biogeochemistry. These fronts are challenging to observe due to their fast time and short length scales, so to date observations on regional and global scales have been limited. To fill this gap, this study uses a global database of along-track salinity and temperature data in combination with satellite data to identify 250,000 submesoscale density fronts across the globe.  On average, frontal buoyancy gradients scale with the frontal width, which is consistent with the expected dynamics. The submesoscale frontal gradients also exhibit global geographic variability that is correlated with the large scale density gradient, and inversely correlated with the large scale horizontal Turner angle and the mixed layer depth. Potential future research trajectories that coul...