The dependence of turbulent dissipation on stratification in a diffusively stable thermocline

To relate the viscous dissipation rate ϵ in the thermocline to internal waves, we operated the multiscale profiler (MSP) in the eastern North Pacific. The location is well removed from fronts and strong currents, and below 0.6 MPa the water column is diffusively stable. Hence internal wave breakdown is the only known source of turbulence. We found that shear levels were in close agreement with the Garrett and Munk model of internal waves and that dissipation rates were low, . This is the first report of > (previous observations indicated ) and agrees with predictions by McComas and Müller (1981 a ) and by Henyey et al. (1986), both based on calculations of energy transfer within the internal wave spectrum.