Reconstruction of Oceanic Data Fields and data assimilation
Brasseur, P.; Brankart, J.-M. (1993). Reconstruction of Oceanic Data Fields and data assimilation, in: Progress in Belgian Oceanographic Research, Brussels, January 21-22, 1993. pp. 9-21
In: (1993). Progress in Belgian Oceanographic Research, Brussels, January 21-22, 1993. Royal Academy of Belgium. National Committee of Oceanology: Brussel. 287 pp., more
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Document type: Conference paper
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| Authors | | Top |
- Brasseur, P.
- Brankart, J.-M.
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| Abstract |
In the new generation of models conceived to understand and predict the evolution of marine systems, the assimilation of observations has an increasingly significant role to play. The reconstruction of data fields from scattered observations, or data analysis, appears as a key component of any complex data assimilation scheme. This strategy has promising implications, not only for physical, but also for biological, ecological and biogeochemical marine models. Among a variety of methods, the Variational Inverse Model (VIM) is a mathematical numerical analysis tool developed at the GHER with the aim of taking into account the peculiarities of oceanic data fields. The objectives of this new technique are multifold: on the one hand, it guides the interpretation of experimental data into their physical context; on the other hand, it provides the indispensable bodyguard that prevents primitive equation models from producing unrealistic results. The utility of the VIM in a global modelling perspective will be illustrated by three kinds of applications related to the modelling of the Mediterranean general circulation: (i) mathematical visualization of extensive sets of in situ observations (reconstruction of the hydrology at the climatological scale in the Mediterranean Sea); (ii) realistic initialization of primitive equation models designed to simulate dynamical processes (seasonal variability of the general circulation in the Western Mediterranean); (iii) optimal adjustment of boundary conditions (control of thermodynamic forcings in the Mediterranean); The possible extensions of the VIM to intermittent and continuous data assimilation schemes will be discussed briefly. |
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