A Numerical Case Study of the Impact of Submesoscales Feedback on Mesoscale Eddies

A Numerical Case Study of the Impact of Submesoscales Feedback on Mesoscale Eddies | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article A Numerical Case Study of the Impact of Submesoscales Feedback on Mesoscale Eddies Yunlong Fei, Shaoqing Zhang, Gang Li, Kaidi Wang, Yangyang Yu, and 2 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7025290/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract This study designs a two-way downscaled framework that controls the feedback strength of submesoscales resolved by 1km resolution simulation to the 3km resolution mesoscale-resolved simulation. A mesoscale dipole with cold-warm eddies is observed in the simulation, but the dipole structure can’t be maintained without submesoscales feedback. When submesoscales feedback is allowed, the cyclonic eddy in the dipole becomes less susceptible to stretching. Then, the underlying dynamical mechanisms are thoroughly examined from the perspectives of spectral analysis and scale kinetic energy (KE) flux in five experiments with different feedback strength. The wavenumber and frequency-wavenumber spectra of KE show a significant improvement when submesoscales feedback is permitted, confirming the significance of submesoscales feedback in sustaining mesoscale eddies. Although submesoscales are mainly concentrated within the upper ocean, their influence can extend down to 200m underwater. The frequency-wavenumber spectra of normalized vertical relative vorticity and horizontal divergence further confirm those conclusions. Regarding the scale KE flux, the inverse cascade can extend to smaller scales accompanied by increased strength as submesoscales feedback is allowed. This suggests that the mesoscale eddies can be strengthened by submesoscales to make it more coherent and not quickly be dissipated. This finding helps deepen our understanding of multiscale interactions between mesoscales and submesoscales. Earth and environmental sciences/Ocean sciences Physical sciences/Physics A two-way downscaled framework with controllable feedback strength The roles of submesoscales in strengthening mesoscale eddies Submesoscales inverse kinetic energy cascade. Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-7025290","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":488982117,"identity":"24df053c-8474-4f34-9a34-0387650b036b","order_by":0,"name":"Yunlong Fei","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Ocean University of China","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Yunlong","middleName":"","lastName":"Fei","suffix":""},{"id":488982121,"identity":"f7ea09ef-e23f-4cfa-b74b-80aa8e40ce1d","order_by":1,"name":"Shaoqing 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submesoscales in strengthening mesoscale eddies, Submesoscales inverse kinetic energy cascade.","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7025290/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7025290/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eThis study designs a two-way downscaled framework that controls the feedback strength of submesoscales resolved by 1km resolution simulation to the 3km resolution mesoscale-resolved simulation. A mesoscale dipole with cold-warm eddies is observed in the simulation, but the dipole structure can\u0026rsquo;t be maintained without submesoscales feedback. When submesoscales feedback is allowed, the cyclonic eddy in the dipole becomes less susceptible to stretching. Then, the underlying dynamical mechanisms are thoroughly examined from the perspectives of spectral analysis and scale kinetic energy (KE) flux in five experiments with different feedback strength. The wavenumber and frequency-wavenumber spectra of KE show a significant improvement when submesoscales feedback is permitted, confirming the significance of submesoscales feedback in sustaining mesoscale eddies. Although submesoscales are mainly concentrated within the upper ocean, their influence can extend down to 200m underwater. The frequency-wavenumber spectra of normalized vertical relative vorticity and horizontal divergence further confirm those conclusions. 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