So...some of the heat/energy/waves goes thru while some bounces back??? I see. So, for the whole set of waves, the main direction seems to be from the right of the screen to the left, but there are some clots or blockages so to speak...or checkpoints where the energy meets resistance and has to wait to join the flow.
Actually there are different dynamical processes that coexist. At the equator the so called planetary waves are dominant. The huge amount of energy that the Rossby waves carry from east to west doesn't simply pass through. When they reach the continental slope they can't go further. So part of them are reflected back as faster Kelvin waves and the rest is deflected along the continents, strengthening the major western boundary currents at the sub-tropics.
Sometimes one can see trapped waves at the equatorial Pacific. This happens probably due to the East Pacific Rise. Maybe if you take a look at the bathymetry of the oceans at Wikipedia you can see some correlation.
These lines are probably the signature of the so called equatorial Rossby waves. They take for as long as one year to cross the whole ocean basin. If you look carefully, at some times one can see that this signal is reflected as fast eastward moving waves, the Kelvin waves, going from the Philipines back to Mexico/Panama.
So...some of the heat/energy/waves goes thru while some bounces back??? I see. So, for the whole set of waves, the main direction seems to be from the right of the screen to the left, but there are some clots or blockages so to speak...or checkpoints where the energy meets resistance and has to wait to join the flow.
tbrown55 3 years ago
It is important to note that the illustrated data doesn't simply show the behaviour of the water surface but almost the whole water column.
regeirknaitsabes 3 years ago
Actually there are different dynamical processes that coexist. At the equator the so called planetary waves are dominant. The huge amount of energy that the Rossby waves carry from east to west doesn't simply pass through. When they reach the continental slope they can't go further. So part of them are reflected back as faster Kelvin waves and the rest is deflected along the continents, strengthening the major western boundary currents at the sub-tropics.
regeirknaitsabes 3 years ago
Sometimes one can see trapped waves at the equatorial Pacific. This happens probably due to the East Pacific Rise. Maybe if you take a look at the bathymetry of the oceans at Wikipedia you can see some correlation.
regeirknaitsabes 3 years ago
cool. I'm seeing the line that goes from Mexico/Panama to the Philipines. Which one is that?
tbrown55 3 years ago
Hi Tom!
These lines are probably the signature of the so called equatorial Rossby waves. They take for as long as one year to cross the whole ocean basin. If you look carefully, at some times one can see that this signal is reflected as fast eastward moving waves, the Kelvin waves, going from the Philipines back to Mexico/Panama.
Cheers!
regeirknaitsabes 3 years ago