| The outputs from a submesoscale permitting hindcast simulation from 1990 to 2016 are used to investigate the interannual to decadal variations of submesoscale motions. The region we focus on is the subtropical Northwestern Pacific including the subtropical countercurrent. The submesoscale kinetic energy (KE) is characterized by strong interannual and decadal variability, displaying larger magnitudes in 1996, 2003, and 2015, and smaller magnitudes in 1999, 2009, 2010, and 2016. These variations are partially explained by those of the available potential energy (APE) release at submesoscale driven by mixed layer instability in winter. Indeed, this APE release depends on the mixed layer depth and horizontal buoyancy gradient, both of them modulated with the... |
