Numerical Study on the Influence of Tropical Cyclone Characteristics on the Sea State and Sea Surface Roughness inside the Tropical Cyclones

Abstract

The development of wind wave (i.e., sea state) inside an intense tropical cyclone (TC) is the dominant contributor to the sea surface roughness and thus significantly impacts the air–sea interaction. The sea state is known to vary with TC characteristics (intensity, size, and translation speed); however, comprehensive knowledge of the influence of TC characteristics on the sea state and sea surface roughness is quite limited, largely because of the lack of observations. In this study, numerical experiments are performed to investigate the influence of TC characteristics on the sea state and the sea surface roughness under a range of idealized TCs. The numerical results indicate that the sea states are systematically younger for a more intense or smaller TC, and their azimuthal variation is predominantly determined by the TC translation. The dependence of the sea surface roughness on wind speed shows systematic variations with the TC characteristics, which are most significant for a moderately moving TC.