The influence of internal waves on the heat and salt transport in the ocean

An attempt is made to parametrically describe the impact of internal waves on heat and salt transport in the framework of large-scale models of ocean circulation. To do this, the transmission of high-frequency internal waves through the interface of two media with different Brunt-Vaisala frequencies is considered. It is shown analytically that if isopycnic surfaces are inclined with respect to the horizontal plane, mass transport across the interface occurs with a velocity of the same order as the large-scale vertical velocity obtained from numerical models of oceanic circulation.