New paper led by Yadidya, the U-Michigan based NOPP-GIW IWR Modelling team postdoc!

Tidal flow over topographic features on the seafloor generates vertical displacements along the interfaces of ocean layers that have different densities. These vertical displacements at tidal frequencies are known as internal tides. Internal tide displacements are largest well below the sea surface, but also display a sea surface height (SSH) signature that is large enough to be measured by satellite altimeters. Removing internal tide signals from satellite altimeter SSH allows for a more accurate accounting of non-tidal features, including slowly evolving ocean currents and eddies, that are also measured by altimeters. Here, we show that supercomputer ocean forecast simulations of the global internal tide field are able to remove internal tide SSH from satellite altimeter measurements with a skill level that is comparable to the skill of internal tide SSH removal based upon analysis of the satellite altimeter data itself. Thus, forecast models offer a complementary method for this important task. In addition, forecast models provide information on the entire ocean water column, not just the sea surface. Finally, the hourly outputs of forecast models allow for a greater variety of tidal analysis record lengths than can be achieved with altimeter outputs, which report sea surface height fields much less frequently.

Check it out here: Yadidya, B.,  Arbic, B. K.,  Shriver, J. F.,  Nelson, A. D.,  Zaron, E. D.,  Buijsman, M. C., &  Thakur, R. (2024). Phase-accurate internal tides in a global ocean forecast model: Potential applications for nadir and wide-swath altimetry. Geophysical Research Letters,  51, e2023GL107232. https://doi.org/10.1029/2023GL107232