CAREER: Airflow Separation Above Wind-Waves

该项目是一个研究和教育的综合项目，将提高我们对海洋表面波上方的气流分离对海气动量通量的影响的理解，并使少数民族高中生接触地球科学领域。智力优势：海气耦合边界层在海洋和大气之间的多重通量中起着重要作用。特别是海洋上的压力（阻力）？S表面是短期预测和长期全球气候趋势建模的关键参数。然而，气流分离的影响还没有得到很好的理解。例如，虽然飓风路径预测在过去几年中有了显著改善，但飓风强度预测自1970年以来基本没有变化。这部分是由于缺乏对气流分离时海气动量通量所涉及的复杂物理学的理解。建议的研究计划是关于气流分离的作用，影响海气动量通量。具体来说，研究人员将进行实验室和可能的现场实验，以检查波浪上方分离气流的详细结构，以确定哪些过程和因素（波长，斜率，相位，不对称性......）导致气流分离，并评估气流分离对海气动量平衡的影响。在受控实验室环境中获得关键的物理洞察力后，通过在波沿着上方采集PIV速度数据并结合表面速度和破碎波的热成像测量，对分离气流结构进行现场测量的可行性。还将部署一套辅助性涡动协方差通量包和测高系统。更广泛的影响：这项研究的更广泛影响将包括更好地了解海洋和大气的耦合，这将导致更好的天气和气候耦合模型。我们预测季节性波动和长期气候变化的能力对渔业、农业、能源工业和商品市场、建筑业和保险业以及备灾/威胁有着重要影响。这项研究的结果将在专业期刊出版物和会议上传播，并酌情通过更受欢迎的出版渠道传播。该项目的教育部分具有明显的更广泛的影响，通过在特拉华州大学的既定推广计划中由PI教授的课程开发，直接接触有前途的少数民族高中学生的物理科学领域。该材料将进一步发展成为海洋学的高中教学单元，并将通过网络界面和海洋与地球研究学院目前举办的年度讲习班分发给当地科学教师。在适当的情况下，这将与PI中正在进行的研究相结合？的实验室。.这些活动将为学生提供更好的科学感作为一个潜在的职业选择，以及提高他们的科学领域的一般知识。该项目还将形成一个研究生的博士研究的基础，并将提供材料，并在实验室本科项目和本科生暑期研究员提供设施。研究员将继续努力，通过实验室访问和向公众提供信息科学讲座，公开讲座的网络广播和特别活动，向更广泛的受众（K-12和公众）推广科学和研究。

This CAREER project is an integrated program of research and education that will improve our understanding of the effects airflow separation above the ocean surface waves on the air-sea flux of momentum, and expose minority high school students to geosciences fields.Intellectual Merit: The coupled air-sea boundary layers play an important role in the multiple fluxes between the ocean and the atmosphere. In particular the stress (drag) on the ocean?s surface is a crucial parameter for both short term forecasting and the modeling of long-term global climate trends. However, the effects of airflow separation are not well understood. For example, while hurricane track forecasts have significantly improved in the past few years, hurricane intensity forecasts are essentially unchanged since 1970. This is in part due to a lack of understanding of the complex physics involved in the air-sea fluxes of momentum when airflow separation is present. The proposed research program is concerned with the role of airflow separation in influencing the air-sea momentum flux. Specifically, the investigator will perform laboratory and possibly field experiments to examine the detailed structure of the separated airflow above the waves in order to determine what processes and factors (wavelength, slope, phase, asymmetry...) lead to airflow separation, and assess the impact of airflow separation on the air-sea momentum balance.After gaining critical physical insight in the controlled laboratory environment, the feasibility of making field measurements of the separated airflow structure by taking PIV velocity data above the waves along with thermographic measurements of surface velocity and breaking waves. A supporting eddy covariance flux package and altimetry systems will also be deployed. Broader Impact: The broader impact of this research will include an improved understanding of the coupling of the oceans and the atmosphere, which will lead to better coupled models of weather and climate. Our ability to predict seasonal fluctuations and secular climate change has an important impact on fisheries, agriculture, the energy industry and commodity markets, the construction and insurance industries, and disaster/threat preparedness. Results from this research will be disseminated in professional journal publications and conferences, and, where appropriate, more popular avenues of publication. The educational component of this project has obvious broader impacts with direct exposure to Physical Sciences fields for promising minority high school students through the development of a curriculum to be taught by the PI in an established outreach program at the University of Delaware. The material will be further developed into high school teaching modules in Oceanography which will be distributed to local science teachers via a web based interface and the annual workshop currently held by the College of Marine and Earth Studies. Where appropriate, this will be integrated with ongoing research in the PI?s laboratory. . These activities will provide students with a better sense of science as a potential career choice as well as improve their general knowledge of the scientific fields. The project will also form the basis for the doctoral research of a graduate student and will provide material and provide facilities for undergraduate projects and undergraduate summer fellows in the laboratory. The investigator will continue his efforts to promote science and research to a broader audience (K-12 and public) through laboratory visits and informational scientific talks to the public, web broadcasting of public lectures, and special events.