Ocean mixing: oceanography at a watershed

Ocean mixing exerts a fundamental influence across many elements of the Earth system, including circulation, planetary-scale climate and the ecosystem. Despite wide recognition of this importance today, research into ocean mixing only started developing rapidly in the 1960s; prior to then, concepts of the ocean were based on coarse observational snapshots that did not resolve the fine scales on which mixing operates. Subsequently, profound and rapid advances were made in the observation and simulation of ocean mixing, and in understanding its key dynamics and impacts. This introductory chapter presents a short overview of some of the critical breakthroughs that have led to today's state-of-the-art concerning ocean mixing, and presents a view on what the current major challenges are. The chapters in this book, each contributed by leading practitioners in the field of ocean mixing research, provide key details and insight into different aspects of mixing, and inform, complement and extend this view.

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