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 Wave Motions in the Ocean and Atmosphere  posted by  boym   on 2/8/2008  Add Courseware to favorites Add To Favorites  
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Abstract/Syllabus:

Flierl, Glenn, 12.802 Wave Motions in the Ocean and Atmosphere, Spring 2004. (Massachusetts Institute of Technology: MIT OpenCourseWare), http://ocw.mit.edu  (Accessed 12 Jul, 2010). License: Creative Commons BY-NC-SA

12.802 Wave Motions in the Ocean and Atmosphere

Spring 2004

An animated illustration of internal gravity waves.
 An animated illustration of internal gravity waves. (Image courtesy of Prof. Glenn Flierl.)

Course Highlights

This course includes detailed lecture notes.

Course Description

This course is an introduction to basic ideas of geophysical wave motion in rotating, stratified, and rotating-stratified fluids. Subject begins with general wave concepts of phase and group velocity. It also covers the dynamics and kinematics of gravity waves with a focus on dispersion, energy flux, initial value problems, etc. Also addressed are subject foundation used to study internal and inertial waves, Kelvin, Poincare, and Rossby waves in homogeneous and stratified fluids. Laplace tidal equations are applied to equatorial waves. Other topics include: resonant interactions, potential vorticity, wave-mean flow interactions, and instability.

Syllabus

 
 
Description

This course is an introduction to basic ideas of geophysical wave motion in rotating, stratified, and rotating-stratified fluids. Subject begins with general wave concepts of phase and group velocity. It also covers the dynamics and kinematics of gravity waves with a focus on dispersion, energy flux, initial value problems, etc. Also addressed are subject foundation used to study internal and inertial waves, Kelvin, Poincare, and Rossby waves in homogeneous and stratified fluids. Laplace tidal equations are applied to equatorial waves. Other topics include: resonant interactions, potential vorticity, wave-mean flow interactions, and instability.

Topics

  • Introduction - Kinematics: Frequency, Wavenumber, Phase, Phase Speed

  • Internal Gravity Waves
    • Dispersion and the initial value problem
    • Group velocity - wave packets and inhomogeneities
    • Energy, fields of motion, particle movements
    • WKB theory
    • Normal modes
    • Vertical propagation - steady flow and the radiation condition

  • Surface Gravity Waves
    • Equations of motion
    • Initial value problem
    • Shallow water

  • Rotation and Potential Vorticity - Small Scale
    • Inertial-internal gravity waves, Poincare' waves
    • Kelvin waves

  • Large-Scale Hydrostatic Motions
    • Geostrophic motion
    • Adjustment - Geostrophic and gravity waves
    • Rossby waves

  • Laplace Tidal Equations and The Vertical Structure Equation
    • Traditional approximation
    • Separable form - Horizontal and vertical structure equations
    • All kinds of waves

  • Equatorial ß-Plane and Equatorial Waves

  • Stratified Quasi-Geostrophic Motion and Instabilities
    • Topographic waves and boundary waves
    • Instabilities
    • Wave-mean interactions

Reference:

Joe Pedlosky has an excellent set of notes from his version of this course, which, I believe, will be published as a book.

Calendar

 
 
LEC # TOPICS
1 Basics
2 Boussinesq
3 Available Potential Energy
4 Internal Gravity Waves 
5 Surface Forced IGW's
6 Curvilinear Coordinates
7 Pressure-like Coordinates
8 Surface Waves
9 Shallow Water Equations
10 Thermodynamics
11 Laplace Tidal Equations
12 Laplace Tidal Equations (LTE)
13 Hough Functions
14 Laplace Tidal Equations (VSE)
15 Equatorial Beta Plane
16 Rotating Waves in a Channel
17 Leewaves in Compressible Fluid
18 Quasigeostrophy
19 WKB Approx. and Atmospheric Modes
20 Eady Problem



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