The vertical structure of baroclinic eddies: theory and primitive equation numerical tests

A scaling theory which predicts the steady-state energies, scales and vertical structure of baroclinic midocean eddies, previously tested in a homogeneous, stratified quasigeostrophic turbulence model, is reviewed and compared to results from an isopycnic coordinate primitive equation idealized channel model. The theory, valid in the strongly unstable limit, utilizes the neutral stratification modes, and the projection of the mean shear onto these modes, and applies equally to systems with stratification ranging from uniform to surface-intensified. The magnitude and vertical structure of the eddy potential vorticity flux is also specified by the theory, and in a way which automatically conserves momentum. Finally, a method by which the theory could be applied in an eddy parameterization scheme is suggested.