Larry Thomas Gulliver

Naval Postgraduate School | NPS · Department of Oceanography

This study presents numerical analogs of laboratory experiments designed to explore the interaction of broad geophysical flows with irregular small-scale bathymetry. The previously reported "sandpaper" theory offered a succinct description of the cumulative effect of small-scale topographic features on large-scale flow patterns. However, initial in...

This study explores the dynamics of intense coherent vortices in large-scale vertically sheared flows. We develop an analytical theory for vortex propagation and validate it by a series of numerical simulations. Simulations are conducted using both stable and baroclinically unstable zonal background flows. We find that vortices in stable westward c...

Plain Language Summary Swirls of circular currents tens to hundreds of kilometers in diameter known as ocean rings are critically important for transporting heat and nutrients throughout the ocean. Such structures usually reside in the upper ocean (top 1,000 m) and can last from months to several years. Ocean rings are often emitted by strong curre...

This study attempts to identify the equilibration mechanisms of baroclinic instability and investigate the effects of the orientation of the background flow and topography on eddy‐induced transport. The analysis is based on growth rate balance theory, which assumes that nonlinear equilibration occurs when the growth rate of the primary baroclinic i...