Numerical Experiments on Seasonal Variations of the Wind-Driven flow and its Mechanics

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To clarify mechanism and characteristics of observed seasonal variations in the wind-driven flow, numerical experiments were performed. We found that seasonal variations in the diurnal cycle of a surface heat flux play most significant roles in the variation of the wind-driven flow. A global distribution of the surface wind-driven flow is estimated by deriving analytical solutions of the wind-driven flow under the diurnal cycle. The global distribution indicates a large impact of the diurnal cycle at higher latitudes in winter. These results suggest diurnal cycle of surface heat flux should be taken into account for more accurate predictions of the wind-driven flow and surface drift