Tropical ocean response to atmospheric forcing at kilometer scales with light precipitation

The response of the oceanic mixed layer to atmospheric forcing during a 6 day period of weakly precipitating tropical atmospheric convection is investigated. A simulation of a cloud-resolving model is used to provide ground level fields of atmospheric variables that drive the upper ocean model. The effect of kilometer scale oceanic variability on the area average air-sea heat flux is assessed and found negligible. Spatial wind variability is found to be the dominant factor leading to temperature anomalies at the sea surface. A simple parameterization of this effect for weakly precipitating conditions is suggested.