Plotting individual heat fluxes

[dhruvbhagtani]

We discussed that similar to Saenko 2009, we should plot individual heat fluxes. However, I am not able to find the latent heat fluxes in the diagnostics.

What is its name? (Also could you cross check for the others too?)
Shortwave -> ocean-2d-swflx-1-monthly-mean-ym_1995_01.nc
Longwave -> ocean-2d-lw_heat-1-monthly-mean-ym_1995_01.nc
Sensible -> ocean-2d-sens_heat-1-monthly-mean-ym_1995_01.nc
Latent -> ? (Is it given by lprec or evap?)

Also, should I add frazil? (ocean-2d-frazil_3d_int_z-1-monthly-mean-ym_1995_01.nc) or it is somehow added in one of these diagnostics?

[rmholmes]

The latent heat flux is evap_heat.

There are actually a few other heat fluxes associated with surface volume fluxes, ice-ocean volume fluxes, frazil etc that aren't part of SW, LW, sensible and latent. The full list is summarized here . I don't think you need to plot them all. These four plus the total are probably sufficient.

[dhruvbhagtani]

I see. I'll just plot the four for now, and have a look.

[rmholmes]

@dhruvbhagtani for future reference to get the total external heat flux input into the ocean you should really be plotting net_sfc_heating+frazil_3d_int_z, not just net_sfc_heating (e.g. at https://github.com/dhruvbhagtani/varying-surface-forcing/issues/14#issuecomment-943215780). The differences should not be large as frazil is a relatively minor input.

[rmholmes]

@dhruvbhagtani when you calculate your zonally-summed, latitudinally resolved flux components (e.g. https://github.com/dhruvbhagtani/varying-surface-forcing/issues/14#issuecomment-943227303) you have to be careful with your units. The units at the end should be in either Watts per meter (Wm-1) or Watts per degrees latitude in order to properly interpret the results (otherwise the fact that there is more or less ocean at different latitudes because of land can lead you to the wrong conclusions). To get Wm-1 you'd do something like this:

dxt = ocn_grd.dxt
Qnet = net_sfc_heating.mean('time')+frazil_3d_int_z.mean('time')
Qnet_Wpermeter = (Qnet*dxt).sum('xt_ocean')