A vortex-implanted initialization scheme for the mesoscale eddy prediction: Real simulation and hindcast

Abstract

This study aims to assess the effectiveness of applying the vortex-implanted initialization scheme for the mesoscale eddy prediction (VISTMEP) proposed by Zhu et al. (2022) in the real ocean. Both the Observational System Simulation Experiments (OSSEs) with real daily forcings and the real hindcast for the prediction of oceanic mesoscale eddies in the Northwest Pacific Ocean (NWPO) are conducted using an eddy-resolved numeric ocean model based on Regional Ocean Modeling System (ROMS) along with the three dimensional variational assimilation (3DVAR) module. The results show that, compared to the traditional initialization, VISTMEP can significantly reduce the biases in the prediction of characteristic quantities of mesoscale eddies (including the track, sea surface relative vorticity (SSRV), sea surface eddy kinetic energy (SSEKE), and scale) in both the OSSEs and the real hindcast, through optimizing the three dimensional (3D) structures of mesoscale eddies in both their initial states and evolutions. This study suggests that VISTMEP has a great potential application in operational service of the oceanic mesoscale eddy prediction.