Coupling coefficients and kinetic equation for Rossby waves in multi-layer ocean

Abstract. The kinetic description of baroclinic Rossby waves in multi-layer model ocean is analysed. Explicit analytical expressions for the coupling coefficients describing energy exchange intensity between different modes are obtained and their main properties are established for the three-layer model. It is demonstrated that several types of interactions vanish in the case of simple vertical structures of the ocean, e.g. when all layers have equal depth. These cases correspond to a zero component of the eigenvectors of the potential vorticity equations. The kinetic equation always possesses a fully barotropic solution. If energy is concentrated in the baroclinic modes, the barotropic mode will necessarily be generated. Motion systems consisting of a superposition of the barotropic and a baroclinic mode always transfer energy to other baroclinic modes.