Investigating atmosphere-ocean-wave interactions in the Red Sea in response to strong mountain-gap wind jets

Abstract:

Intense mountain-gap wind jets blow across the Red Sea. Field measurements suggest that these wind jets can significantly impact the surface wave state as well as air-sea exchange of heat and freshwater. In this work, we use a recently developed high-resolution (<5 km grid spacing) regional coupled atmosphere-ocean-wave model, the SKRIPS model, in a set of 30-day hindcast experiments to investigate the air-sea interactions under the wind jets with and without wave coupling. By using the regional coupled model, we aim to improve our understanding of atmosphere-ocean-wave coupling mechanisms in the Red Sea, especially when Langmuir turbulence is parameterized in the coupling. We show how surface waves influence the upper ocean processes, modulating the sea surface temperature, mesoscale eddy dynamics, surface winds and fluxes. We will also describe how simulations using differing model configurations compare to in-situ observational data and reanalysis data.