On Solvability of a Parabolic System Arising in Physical Oceanography

Abstract

In physical oceanography, thermocline theories are to explain the phenomenon of strong, vertical density gradient in a relatively shallow layer of water where transition occurs from the ocean’s surface temperature to the colder abyss. We derive a nonlinear system of partial differential equations governing the motion of thermocline layer. Function spaces are set up to study properties of the solutions. By a local version of Banach’s fixed point theorem, the existence and smoothness of solutions are established.