On the determination of the 3D velocity field in terms of conserved variables in a compressible ocean

Abstract

Explicit expressions of the 3D velocity field in terms of the conserved quantities of ideal fluid thermocline theory, namely Bernoulli function, density, and potential vorticity, are generalised here to a compressible ocean with a realistic nonlinear equation of state. The most general such expression is the `inactive wind' solution, an exact nonlinear solution of the inviscid compressible Navier-Stokes that satisfies the continuity equation as a consequence of Ertel's potential vorticity theorem. Such expressions are shown to be non-unique due to the non-uniqueness of the choice of Bernoulli function and in general approximately differ by the magnitude of their vertical velocity component. Due to the thermobaric nonlinearity of the equation of state, the expression of the 3D velocity field for a compressible ocean is found to resemble its ideal fluid counterpart only if constructed in terms of the available form of Bernoulli function as per Lorenz theory of available potential energy (APE). APE theory also naturally defines a quasi-material approximately neutral density variable called Lorenz reference density, which in turn defines a potential vorticity variable minimally affected by thermobaric production, thus providing all necessary tools for extending most results of ideal fluid thermocline theory to a compressible ocean.