"Scale oriented" embedded modeling of the North-Western Mediterranean in the frame of MFSTEP.

An embedded forecasting system was developed for the North-Western Mediterranean including a regional model and a coastal model of the Gulf of Lion. The system is based on the Symphonie hydrodynamic free surface model and on the variational initialization and forcing platform VIFOP. It was shown that a pre-modeling period of 7 days before 5 beginning the forecast allows the growth of the small scales. The embedded forecasts have been compared to the MFS observing system. It was basically found that in the North-Western Mediterranean, the MFS basin-scale model and thus the regional model forecasts are characterized by large negative biases of salinity in the first 100m under the surface leading thus to too light subsurface waters. The underestimation of 10 temperature by the regional model just below the surface and its overestimation at 30m deep can be associated to an overestimation of the turbulent mixing. The regional and coastal models allow to represent a number of processes especially those induced by the wind as coastal upwelling under stratified conditions, dense water formation over the Gulf of Lion shelf, deep mixing in the convection zone or influence on the Northern 15 Current penetration in the Gulf of Lion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]