In tropical oceans, a combination of sunlight and weak winds drives up surface temperatures in the afternoon, increasing atmospheric turbulence, unprecedented new observational data collected by an Oregon State University researcher shows.
In tropical oceans, a combination of sunlight and weak winds drives up surface temperatures in the afternoon, increasing atmospheric turbulence, unprecedented new observational data collected by an Oregon State University researcher shows.
The new findings could have important implications for weather forecasting and climate modeling, said Simon de Szoeke, a professor in OSU’s College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences and the lead author of the study.
“The ocean warms in the afternoon by just a degree or two, but it is an effect that has largely been ignored,” said de Szoeke. “We would like to know more accurately how often this is occurring and what role it may play in global weather patterns.”
The findings were just published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters. Co-authors are Tobias Marke and W. Alan Brewer of the NOAA Chemical Sciences Laboratory in Boulder, Colorado.
Read more at: Oregon State University
Clouds form over the Indian Ocean as the sun sets. A new study has found that In tropical oceans, a combination of sunlight and weak winds drives up surface temperatures in the afternoon, increasing atmospheric turbulence. (Photo Credit: Derek Coffman, NOAA)
