Quantifying the Energy Input Into the Ocean Due To Tropical Cyclones in the North Atlantic From 1994 to 2015

Abstract

In this study, composites of 207 tropical cyclones (TCs) between 1994 and 2015 are used to examine their impact on the surface and subsurface ocean temperature structure in the North Atlantic Ocean using the Hybrid Coordinate Ocean Model (HYCOM) reanalysis data set. Formation of the cold wake and warm subsurface anomalies vary depending on TC intensity, translation speed and ocean stratification. Overall we find a net annual energy addition of 0.03 0.02 PW due to North Atlantic TCs alone to the ocean. Contrary to previous studies, the temperature changes are evident up to, and beyond 150 days after the TC passage, with energy remaining both below the thermocline and in the mixed layer.