Session programme

Geophysical Fluid Dynamics (GFD) deals with various aspects of the mathematical descriptions of rotating stratified fluids starting from the physical laws of hydro-thermo-dynamics. Physicists and Mathematicians originating from various disciplines developed physical and numerical models with increasing complexity, adding to our fundamental understanding of such flows and thereby unifying these fields. Today GFD is a truly interdisciplinary field of its own, which encompasses multiscale flows of planetary atmospheres and oceans, their weather and climate, and the motions of 'the solid Earth'.

In this session we invite contributions expanding our understanding of the complex behavior of geophysical flows and Turbulence, presenting novel techniques that either facilitate a deeper understanding or improve the efficiency of numerical procedures involved, and/or reviewing major advances in a particular aspect of geophysical fluid dynamics. In these contexts, the role of waves (non-linear, inertial, internal, vorticity or helicity waves), turbulence and transport are an important factor in the understanding of GFD flows.

The interdisciplinary character of dynamical and computational aspects of this session encourages an exchange of ideas and contributions across various fields, such as meteorology, oceanography, astrophysics, geological fluid dynamics, applied mathematics, and computational fluid dynamics with applications to ocean and atmosphere and their Biological influences.
The recent improvements in Remote Sensing of the Earth and other Planets also allows comparison with Laboratory and Numerical Experiments involving Stratification, Rotation, Magnetic Fields, body forces, etc... Other NP6.x sessions address complementary aspects affecting Geo-Astrophysical Turbulence.

The multitude of processes of various scales occurring simultaneously under strong winds in the air and sea boundary layers presents a true challenge for nonlinear science. We want to understand the physics of these processes, their specific role, their interactions and how they can be probed remotely, how these processes differ from their counterparts under moderate/weak winds. We welcome theoretical, experimental and numerical works on all aspects of processes in turbulent boundary layers above and below the ocean surface. Although we are particularly interested in the processes and phenomena occurring under strong wind conditions, the works concerned with similar processes under weaker winds which might provide an insight for rough seas are also welcomed. We are also very interested in works on remote sensing of these processes.
The areas of interest include the processes at and in the vicinity of the interface (nonlinear dynamics of surface water, wave-current-turbulence interactions, , including wave and current stability, wave breaking, generation and dynamics of spray and air bubbles, thermodynamics of the processes in the boundary layers, heat and gas exchange), all the processes above and below the air/water interface, as long as they are relevant for strong wind conditions (such as, e.g. inertial waves generated by changing winds). Relevant nonlinear biological phenomena are also welcomed.

The main aims of the session is to initiate discussion of the multitude of processes active under strong winds across the narrow specializations as a step towards creating an integrated picture. Theoretical, numerical, experimental and observational works are welcomed.

Turbulence, reconnection and shocks are fundamental non-linear processes observed in solar, heliospheric, magnetospheric and laboratory plasmas. These processes are not separate, but rather appear to be interconnected. For instance, a close link exists between reconnection and turbulence. On the one hand the turbulence cascade favors the onset of magnetic reconnection between magnetic islands and, on the other hand, magnetic reconnection is able to trigger turbulence in the reconnection outflows and separatrices. Similarly, shocks may form in collisional and collisionless reconnection processes and can be responsible for turbulence formation, as for instance in the turbulent magnetosheath.

This session welcomes simulations, observational and theoretical works relevant for the study of these non-linear phenomena. Particularly welcome will be works focusing on the link between them in a range of scale going from fluid MHD to kinetic. The topic of this session is relevant for the understanding of solar atmosphere (from the photosphere to the solar wind), interaction of solar wind with planetary magnetospheres, planetary magnetospheric physics and particle acceleration and transport throughout the heliosphere. The session is also relevant to past and present space missions in plasma astrophysics such as Cluster, MMS and Parker Solar Probe.

Public information:
Julia E. Stawarz will give a solicited talk

The energy of a closed system is steady. It is not lost but rather converted into other forms, such as when kinetic energy is transferred into thermal energy. However, this fundamental principle of natural science is often still a problem for climate research. For example, in case of the calculation of ocean currents and circulation, where small-scale vortices as well as diapycnal mixing and the deep convection processes they induce, need to be considered, to compute how heat content is redistributed along the entire water column and how such processes may change in the future. Similarly, in the atmosphere, the conversion of available potential energy into kinetic energy is the key driver of atmospheric dynamics at a variety of scales, from the zonal-mean general circulation to mesoscale convection. Local turbulent processes can drive larger movements and waves on a larger scale can disintegrate into small structures. All these processes are important for the Earth’s climate and determine its evolution in the future.

How exactly the energy transfers between waves, eddies, local turbulence and mixing in the ocean and the atmosphere works, often remains unclear. This session wants to discuss this by inviting contributions from oceanographers, meteorologists, climate modelers, and mathematicians. We are particularly interested in coupled atmosphere-ocean studies, we are also aiming at filling a knowledge gap on deep ocean processes, as well as novel subgrid-scale parameterizations, and studies of the energy budget of the complex Earth system, including the predictability of the global oceanic thermohaline circulation and thus climate variability.

Invited speakers:
Martin Wild, ETH, Zürich, Switzerland
Raffaele Ferrari, MIT, USA
Robert Weller, WHOI and OOI Research Infrastructures, USA

Mesoscale and submesoscale structures such as fronts, meanders, eddies, and filaments are found worldwide, from the global ocean down to marginal seas. During the last years it has been shown that these features play a key role on the advection of heat, salt, biogeochemical properties, and on the enhancement of biological activity gathering all trophic levels. Due to their typical spatial and temporal scales, direct observations of these features remain currently an open challenge and their study requires a joint multi-platform effort combining in situ and remote sensing observations with theory and numerical models.

This session will provide a forum to properly address the new scientific advances associated with:
• Variability of (sub)mesoscale structures through observations (in situ and remote sensing), theory, and numerical simulations.
• 3D dynamics related to (sub)mesoscale features.
• Temporal and spatial interactions between different structures.
• Impact on mixing and transport of hydrographic properties.
• Physical and biogeochemical interactions.
• Limitations and improvements of the observational platforms and numerical simulations.
• A particular emphasis is put on challenges associated with the observation and numerical representation of subsurface (sub)mesoscale eddies.

Solicited speaker: Marina Levy et al., The role of submesoscale currents in structuring phytoplankton diversity