Lectures on Geophysical Fluid Dynamics offers an introduction to several topics in geophysical fluid dynamics, including the theory of large-scale ocean circulation, geostrophic turbulence, and Hamiltonian fluid dynamics. Since each chapter is a self-contained introduction to its particular topic, the book will be useful to students and researchers in diverse scientific fields.
Fluid dynamics is fundamental to our understanding of the atmosphere and oceans. Although many of the same principles of fluid dynamics apply to both the atmosphere and oceans, textbooks tend to concentrate on the atmosphere, the ocean, or the theory of geophysical fluid dynamics (GFD). This textbook provides a comprehensive unified treatment of atmospheric and oceanic fluid dynamics. The book introduces the fundamentals of geophysical fluid dynamics, including rotation and stratification, vorticity and potential vorticity, and scaling and approximations. It discusses baroclinic and barotropic instabilities, wave-mean flow interactions and turbulence, and the general circulation of the atmosphere and ocean. Student problems and exercises are included at the end of each chapter. Atmospheric and Oceanic Fluid Dynamics: Fundamentals and Large-Scale Circulation will be an invaluable graduate textbook on advanced courses in GFD, meteorology, atmospheric science and oceanography, and an excellent review volume for researchers. Additional resources are available at www.cambridge.org/9780521849692.
Introduction to Geophysical Fluid Dynamics provides an introductory-level exploration of geophysical fluid dynamics (GFD), the principles governing air and water flows on large terrestrial scales. Physical principles are illustrated with the aid of the simplest existing models, and the computer methods are shown in juxtaposition with the equations to which they apply. It explores contemporary topics of climate dynamics and equatorial dynamics, including the Greenhouse Effect, global warming, and the El Nino Southern Oscillation. - Combines both physical and numerical aspects of geophysical fluid dynamics into a single affordable volume - Explores contemporary topics such as the Greenhouse Effect, global warming and the El Nino Southern Oscillation - Biographical and historical notes at the ends of chapters trace the intellectual development of the field - Recipient of the 2010 Wernaers Prize, awarded each year by the National Fund for Scientific Research of Belgium (FNR-FNRS)
Covering a wide range of techniques, this book describes methods for the solution of partial differential equations which govern wave propagation and are used in modeling atmospheric and oceanic flows. The presentation establishes a concrete link between theory and practice.
This is a modern, introductory textbook on the dynamics of the atmosphere and ocean, with a healthy dose of geophysical fluid dynamics. It will be invaluable for intermediate to advanced undergraduate and graduate students in meteorology, oceanography, mathematics, and physics. It is unique in taking the reader from very basic concepts to the forefront of research. It also forms an excellent refresher for researchers in atmospheric science and oceanography. It differs from other books at this level in both style and content: as well as very basic material it includes some elementary introductions to more advanced topics. The advanced sections can easily be omitted for a more introductory course, as they are clearly marked in the text. Readers who wish to explore these topics in more detail can refer to this book's parent, Atmospheric and Oceanic Fluid Dynamics: Fundamentals and Large-Scale Circulation, now in its second edition.
This book grew out of lectures on geophysical fluid dynamics delivered over many years at the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology by the author (and, with regard to some parts of the book, by his colleagues). During these lectures the students were advised to read many books, and sometimes individual articles, in order to acquaint themselves with the necessary material, since there was no single book available which provided a sufficiently complete and systematic account (except, perhaps, the volumes on Hydrophysics of the Ocean, Hydrodynamics of the Ocean, and Geodynamics in the ten-volume Oceanology series published by Nauka Press in 1978-1979; these refer, however, specifically to the ocean, and anyway they are much too massive to be convenient for study by students). As far as we know, no text corresponding to our understanding of geophysical fluid dynamics has as yet been published outside the Soviet Union. The present book is designed to fill this gap. Since it is customary to write the preface after the entire book has been completed, the author has an opportunity there to raise some points of possible criticism by the reviewers and readers. First of all, note that this work presents the theoretical fundamentals of geophysical fluid dynamics, and that observational and experimental data (which in the natural sciences are always very copious) are referred to only rarely and briefly.
Buoyancy is one of the main forces driving flows on our planet, especially in the oceans and atmosphere. These flows range from buoyant coastal currents to dense overflows in the ocean, and from avalanches to volcanic pyroclastic flows on the Earth's surface. This book brings together contributions by leading world scientists to summarize our present theoretical, observational, experimental and modeling understanding of buoyancy-driven flows. Buoyancy-driven currents play a key role in the global ocean circulation and in climate variability through their impact on deep-water formation. Buoyancy-driven currents are also primarily responsible for the redistribution of fresh water throughout the world's oceans. This book is an invaluable resource for advanced students and researchers in oceanography, geophysical fluid dynamics, atmospheric science and the wider Earth sciences who need a state-of-the-art reference on buoyancy-driven flows.
This monograph presents a geometric theory for incompressible flow and its applications to fluid dynamics. The main objective is to study the stability and transitions of the structure of incompressible flows and its applications to fluid dynamics and geophysical fluid dynamics. The development of the theory and its applications goes well beyond its original motivation of the study of oceanic dynamics. The authors present a substantial advance in the use of geometric and topological methods to analyze and classify incompressible fluid flows. The approach introduces genuinely innovative ideas to the study of the partial differential equations of fluid dynamics. One particularly useful development is a rigorous theory for boundary layer separation of incompressible fluids. The study of incompressible flows has two major interconnected parts. The first is the development of a global geometric theory of divergence-free fields on general two-dimensional compact manifolds. The second is the study of the structure of velocity fields for two-dimensional incompressible fluid flows governed by the Navier-Stokes equations or the Euler equations. Motivated by the study of problems in geophysical fluid dynamics, the program of research in this book seeks to develop a new mathematical theory, maintaining close links to physics along the way. In return, the theory is applied to physical problems, with more problems yet to be explored. The material is suitable for researchers and advanced graduate students interested in nonlinear PDEs and fluid dynamics.
Mounting evidence that human activities are substantially modifying the Earth's climate brings a new imperative to the study of the ocean's large-scale circulation. This textbook provides a concise but comprehensive introduction to the theory of large-scale ocean circulation, as it is currently understood and established. Students and instructors will benefit from the carefully chosen chapter-by-chapter exercises. This advanced textbook is invaluable for graduate students and researchers in the fields of oceanic, atmospheric and climate sciences, and other geophysical scientists, as well as physicists and mathematicians with a quantitative interest in the planetary fluid environment.
