Читать книгу Tropical Marine Ecology - Daniel M. Alongi - Страница 31

The circulation patterns of the oceans are closely intertwined with the atmosphere. Most heat and precipitation occur in the tropics, and these factors are important drivers of tropical ocean circulation (Webster 2020). Indeed, sea surface temperatures (SSTs) are sufficiently high that deep atmospheric convection occurs over it. Small changes in SSTs result in movements of deep convection globally, underscoring the connection of the oceans to the atmosphere and vice versa. Circulation patterns in the tropics are complex, and much of this complexity occurs due to inherent thermal instability and mixing, which is a highly non‐linear function of the mean circulation such that it may vary considerably with seasonal and non‐seasonal circulation changes. There is evidence that global warming is weakening tropical ocean circulation (Vecchi and Soden 2007).

Tidal mixing and horizontal mixing are also non‐linear and research into them is still in its infancy. Below, we will describe both large‐scale oceanic and small‐scale coastal and estuarine circulation patterns and how the small‐scale processes fit into the scheme of oceanic processes which have major impacts on the ecology of the tropical ocean.