Litcius/Paper detail

Uncertainty Quantification of Ocean Parameterizations: Application to the K‐Profile‐Parameterization for Penetrative Convection

Andre N. Souza, Gregory LeClaire Wagner, Ali Ramadhan, Benjamin D. Allen, Valentin Churavy, Jennifer M. Schloss, Jean‐Michel Campin, Chris Hill, Alan Edelman, John Marshall, Glenn R. Flierl, Raffaele Ferrari

2020Journal of Advances in Modeling Earth Systems43 citationsDOIOpen Access PDF

Abstract

Abstract Parameterizations of unresolved turbulent processes often compromise the fidelity of large‐scale ocean models. In this work, we argue for a Bayesian approach to the refinement and evaluation of turbulence parameterizations. Using an ensemble of large eddy simulations of turbulent penetrative convection in the surface boundary layer, we demonstrate the method by estimating the uncertainty of parameters in the convective limit of the popular “K‐Profile Parameterization.” We uncover structural deficiencies and propose an alternative scaling that overcomes them.

Topics & Concepts

ConvectionTurbulenceBoundary layerConvective Boundary LayerStatistical physicsParametrization (atmospheric modeling)ScalingFidelityLarge eddy simulationLimit (mathematics)Scale (ratio)Environmental scienceMeteorologyMechanicsComputer sciencePhysicsPlanetary boundary layerMathematicsMathematical analysisGeometryRadiative transferQuantum mechanicsTelecommunicationsOceanographic and Atmospheric ProcessesClimate variability and modelsMeteorological Phenomena and Simulations