Estimation of the Black Sea upper layer thickness and its relationship with atmospheric forcing according to model calculations and in situ measurements

The results of the Black Sea uniform mixed layer (UML) thickness determination are presented in the article and based on using the vertical profiles of seawater temperature obtained by three-dimensional numerical model over a five-year period. The method of adjusting the parameters of automated algorithms to determine the UML depth is proposed with the help of which three known methods of determining this parameter were implemented. The obtained results were used to study the relationship between the UML depth and the changes in the parameters of the atmospheric boundary layer at night time. It is shown that the data of heat fluxes, short-wave solar radiation, wind stress and bulk Brunt-Vaisala frequency can explain of up to 65% UML depth dispersion on the basis of regression analysis by using factor models.