Incorporating tides and internal gravity waves within global ocean general circulation models: A review

Highlights

• We review global ocean models with simultaneous tidal and atmospheric forcing.

• Tidal interactions with other earth system components can be studied in such models.

• Global internal wave models are used to plan field and satellite missions.

• Global internal wave models are used in operational oceanography.

• Global internal wave models are used to provide boundary forcing for regional models.

Abstract

Until recently, high-resolution global modeling of tides has been done separately from high-resolution global modeling of the atmospherically-forced oceanic general circulation. Here we review the emerging class of high-resolution global models that are simultaneously forced by both atmospheric fields and the astronomical tidal potential. Such models simulate barotropic (surface) tides, internal tides, near-inertial motions, the eddying general oceanic circulation, and a partially resolved internal gravity wave (IGW) continuum spectrum (Garrett-Munk spectrum) simultaneously. We review the technical aspects of such global models and their myriad applications, for example, in satellite oceanography, operational oceanography, boundary forcing of regional models, tidal-cryosphere interactions, and assessment of future coastal flooding hazards in a changing climate with altered tides.