The coastal ocean off western North America has received considerable oceanographic study because of its fisheries and proximity to large human populations. The region is strongly influenced by the process of coastal upwelling, which occurs along eastern ocean margins when equatorward winds force surface water offshore, drawing deeper water to the surface. The characteristic signature of upwelling is a cool band along the coast, typically tens of kilometers wide, separating from warmer offshore waters by a series of fronts, plumes, and eddies that can extend more than 100 km offshore. In addition to these local features, the eastern Pacific upwelling system is also influenced remotely by the basin-scale circulation and variability, e.g., El Niño/La Niña and Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO).

The long-term objective of my research is to (1) develop a high-resolution physical model for the U.S. West Coast ocean; (2) nest this high-resolution regional model in a Pacific basin-wide model; (3) develop and refine data assimilation techniques; and (4) validate the model results with in situ and satellite observations. Both the basin-scale Pacific model (see Figure 1) and the high-resolution regional model (see Figure 2) will allow us to address the following scientific questions: What are the physical links between the El Niño/La Niña or PDO with the California upwelling system, and what are their characteristic time and space scales? What alternate physical processes affect the California upwelling system at these characteristic scales? What are the relative roles of local mesoscale eddies versus remote basin-scale variability in forcing the California upwelling system?

Caption:
Snapshots of sea surface temperature simulated by the Regional Ocean Modeling System (ROMS) at 50-km resolution over the Pacific Ocean (1s panel) and 5-km resolution off the coast of California.

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