Validation of NCEP and OAFlux air-sea heat fluxes using observations from a Black Pearl wave glider

Mao, Huabin; Sun, Xiujun; Qiu, Chunhua; Zhou, Yusen; Liang, Hong; Sang, Hongqiang; Zhou, Ying; Chen, Ying

doi:10.1007/s13131-021-1816-0

Articles
Published: 01 December 2021

Validation of NCEP and OAFlux air-sea heat fluxes using observations from a Black Pearl wave glider

Huabin Mao^1,2,
Xiujun Sun^3,4,
Chunhua Qiu⁵,
Yusen Zhou⁵,
Hong Liang⁵,
Hongqiang Sang^6,7,
Ying Zhou⁸ &
Ying Chen¹

Acta Oceanologica Sinica volume 40, pages 167–175 (2021)Cite this article

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Abstract

Latent and sensible heat fluxes based on observations from a Black Pearl wave glider were estimated along the main stream of the Kuroshio Current from the East China Sea to the east coast of Japan, from December 2018 to January 2019. It is found that the data obtained by the wave glider were comparable to the sea surface temperature data from the Operational Sea Surface Temperature and Sea Ice Analysis and the wind field data from WindSat. The Coupled Ocean Atmosphere Response Experiment 3.0 (COARE 3.0) algorithm was used to calculate the change in air-sea turbulent heat flux along the Kuroshio. The averaged latent heat flux (LHF) and sensible heat flux (SHF) were 235 W/m² and 134 W/m², respectively, and the values in the Kuroshio were significant larger than those in the East China Sea. The LHF and SHF obtained from Objectively Analyzed Air-Sea Fluxes for the Global Oceans (OAFlux) were closer to those measured by the wave glider than those obtained from National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) reanalysis products. The maximum deviation occurred in the East China Sea and the recirculation zone of the Kuroshio (deviation of SHF >200 W/m²; deviation of LHF >400 W/m²). This indicates that the NCEP and OAFlux products have large biases in areas with complex circulation. The wave glider has great potential to observe air-sea heat fluxes with a complex circulation structure.

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Acknowledgements

The Black Pearl wave glider was provided by Ocean University of China and Tiangong University. We thank the NECP (https://www.ncep.noaa.gov/) and OAFlux (https://oaflux.whoi.edu/) for providing data.

Funding

Foundation item: The National Key R&D Program of China under contract Nos 2017YFC0305904, 2017YFC0305902 and 2017YFC0305804; the National Natural Science Foundation of China under contract No. 44006020; the Guangdong Science and Technology Project under contract No. 2019A1515111044; the Shandong Provincial Key Research and Development Program (Major Scientific and Technological Innovation Project) under contract No. 2019JZZY020701; the Wenhai Program of Pilot National Laboratory for Marine Science and Technology (Qingdao) under contract No. 2017WHZZB0101; the CAS Key Technology Talent Program under contract No. 202012292205.

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Authors and Affiliations

Ocean College, Zhejiang University, Zhoushan, 316021, China
Huabin Mao & Ying Chen
Key Laboratory of Science and Technology on Operational Oceanography, South China Sea Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, 510301, China
Huabin Mao
Key Laboratory of Physical Oceanography, Ministry of Education, Qingdao, 266100, China
Xiujun Sun
Pilot National Laboratory for Marine Science and Technology (Qingdao), Qingdao, 266237, China
Xiujun Sun
School of Marine Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, 510275, China
Chunhua Qiu, Yusen Zhou & Hong Liang
School of Mechanical Engineering, Tiangong University, Tianjin, 300387, China
Hongqiang Sang
Tianjin Key Laboratory of Advanced Mechatronic Equipment Technology, Tiangong University, Tianjin, 300387, China
Hongqiang Sang
Institute for Advanced Ocean Study, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, 266100, China
Ying Zhou

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Huabin Mao
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Xiujun Sun
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Chunhua Qiu
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Yusen Zhou
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Hong Liang
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Hongqiang Sang
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Ying Zhou
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Ying Chen
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Correspondence to Ying Chen.

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Mao, H., Sun, X., Qiu, C. et al. Validation of NCEP and OAFlux air-sea heat fluxes using observations from a Black Pearl wave glider. Acta Oceanol. Sin. 40, 167–175 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13131-021-1816-0

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Received: 25 October 2020
Accepted: 20 January 2021
Published: 01 December 2021
Issue Date: October 2021
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13131-021-1816-0

Key words

wave glider
air-sea heat flux
Kuroshio
observation