On the evolution of the system of wind drift currents and Langmuir circulations in the ocean. Part 2. Structure of the Langmuir vortices

Abstract

Numerical solutions are presented for the detailed characteristics of the drift current and Langmuir circulation system produced according to a theory described in part 1 of this paper. The motions that develop are traced from an initially quiescent state, and the results are compared with field observations of currents in Langmuir circulations. Qualitative features of the phenomenon appear to be reproduced by the theory and, with the appropriate choice of an empirical parameter, the solutions seem to be quantitatively consistent with field data.