9314140, PI-Flierl: This proposal is directed to the study of the meandering and eddy production of western boundary currents, both in the case when they flow in mid-ocean (i.e. the Gulf Stream) and when they follow the coast (i.e. The East Australian Current). While these motions are generally ascribed to instabilities of the flow, they generally occur in the form of pulses and develop both in space and time. This project will address the linear and non-linear dynamics of pulses and other perturbations on jets. The work will combine a number of analytical and numerical techniques. The different perspectives offered by the various process models will complement each other to provide a more detailed picture of the dynamics. The results will suggest new approaches for analyzing the oceanic data on meandering and eddy processes.
