Assessing Dynamical Contributions to SWOT Sea Surface Height in an Internal Tide Hotspot
Abstract
The Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) mission has revealed high‐frequency sea surface height anomaly (SSHA) variability associated with internal gravity waves, yet comparison with in situ observations remains limited. Here, we analyze a mooring array beneath the swaths of SWOT Cal/Val south of New Caledonia, an internal tide (IT) hotspot in the southwestern tropical Pacific. SWOT agrees closely with mooring‐derived SSHA, exhibiting three times larger variance than gridded SSHA from nadir altimetry. This excess variance is mainly driven by coherent ITs, explicitly extracted from SWOT swaths, with amplitudes exceeding 10 cm. Comparison with mooring‐based estimates demonstrates centimeter‐level accuracy in the retrieved IT signal. SWOT‐derived ITs reveal substantial errors in empirical IT atlases, routinely used to correct SWOT. Particularly, absolute (relative) errors in SSHA‐derived current velocities exceed 15 cm (80%) in 10% of cases during SWOT Cal/Val, calling for improved methods to separate wave‐like and balanced motions.
Related
- Assessing processes and evidence for highest possible ambition in Nationally Determined Contributions under the Paris Agreement
- A framework for assessing human internal microplastic exposure through dataset alignment and quality screening
- Coupled Analytical Model for the Internal Boundary Layer Height, Wall Shear Stress and Mean Velocity Behind a Surface Roughness Transition in Boundary-Layer Flow
- A remote sensing-based surface thermal stress index for assessing urban heat dynamics in Greater Cairo
- Cloud vertical structure across China from a national Ka-band cloud radar network: thermodynamic, dynamical, and land-surface controls
BibTeX
@article{bendinger2026assessing,
title = {{Assessing Dynamical Contributions to SWOT Sea Surface Height in an Internal Tide Hotspot}},
author = {Arne Bendinger and Clement Vic and Michel Tchilibou and Sophie Cravatte and Lionel Gourdeau},
journal = {Geophysical Research Letters},
year = {2026},
month = nov,
doi = {10.1029/2026gl123239},
url = {https://hal.science/hal-05854084v1},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Assessing Dynamical Contributions to SWOT Sea Surface Height in an Internal Tide Hotspot
AU - Arne Bendinger
AU - Clement Vic
AU - Michel Tchilibou
AU - Sophie Cravatte
AU - Lionel Gourdeau
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/11/05
JO - Geophysical Research Letters
DO - 10.1029/2026gl123239
UR - https://hal.science/hal-05854084v1
AB - The Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) mission has revealed high‐frequency sea surface height anomaly (SSHA) variability associated with internal gravity waves, yet comparison with in situ observations remains limited. Here, we analyze a mooring array beneath the swaths of SWOT Cal/Val south of New Caledonia, an internal tide (IT) hotspot in the southwestern tropical Pacific. SWOT agrees closely with mooring‐derived SSHA, exhibiting three times larger variance than gridded SSHA from nadir altimetry. This excess variance is mainly driven by coherent ITs, explicitly extracted from SWOT swaths, with amplitudes exceeding 10 cm. Comparison with mooring‐based estimates demonstrates centimeter‐level accuracy in the retrieved IT signal. SWOT‐derived ITs reveal substantial errors in empirical IT atlases, routinely used to correct SWOT. Particularly, absolute (relative) errors in SSHA‐derived current velocities exceed 15 cm (80%) in 10% of cases during SWOT Cal/Val, calling for improved methods to separate wave‐like and balanced motions.
SN - 0094-8276
SN - 1944-8007
ER -