Dynamical adjustment of quasi-synoptic data sets in the Eastern Mediterranean: testing a full basin coastal methodology

The availability of nearly synoptic basin-wide data sets, has provided the basis for the extension of a regional coastal methodology to full basin. The kinematic boundary conditions for a quasi-geostrophic model in an arbitrary domain, (partially) open or closed and simply- or multiply-connected, are briefly reviewed. A method for the implementation of these conditions with real ocean data is presented for the full Eastern Mediterranean and subregions, and the sensitivities are discussed. Objectively analyzed maps are produced for model initialization. Simulations of two-week duration are carried out in the Levantine and the full Eastern Mediterranean basins to determine the best domain-average amplitude for the barotropic mode and the best treatment of coastal constraint.