Validation of NCEP and OAFlux air-sea heat fluxes using observations from a Black Pearl wave glider

Latent and sensible heat fluxes based on observations from a Black Pearl wave glider were estimated along the main stream of the Kuroshio Current from the East China Sea to the east coast of Japan, from December 2018 to January 2019. It is found that the data obtained by the wave glider were comparable to the sea surface temperature data from the Operational Sea Surface Temperature and Sea Ice Analysis and the wind field data from WindSat. The Coupled Ocean Atmosphere Response Experiment 3.0 (COARE 3.0) algorithm was used to calculate the change in air-sea turbulent heat flux along the Kuroshio. The averaged latent heat flux (LHF) and sensible heat flux (SHF) were 235 W/m(2) and 134 W/m(2), respectively, and the values in the Kuroshio were significant larger than those in the East China Sea. The LHF and SHF obtained from Objectively Analyzed Air-Sea Fluxes for the Global Oceans (OAFlux) were closer to those measured by the wave glider than those obtained from National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) reanalysis products. The maximum deviation occurred in the East China Sea and the recirculation zone of the Kuroshio (deviation of SHF >200 W/m(2); deviation of LHF >400 W/m(2)). This indicates that the NCEP and OAFlux products have large biases in areas with complex circulation. The wave glider has great potential to observe air-sea heat fluxes with a complex circulation structure.

Automated summary

Estimates of latent and sensible heat fluxes along the Kuroshio Current were conducted using observations from a wave glider, showing good agreement with sea surface temperature and wind data. The wave glider demonstrated potential for accurately measuring heat fluxes in areas with complex circulation patterns.