Also shown is the sea surface height field which is associated with the interior ocean flow field. The contour increment is 20 cm and the range extends from -180 cm in the southern part to 95 cm off Japan. See text for details. Ocean state estimation is gaining increasing national and international attention and will be an essential element in future large-scale and climate experiments. Its role in SIO teaching and education is therefore increasing, and this field offers exciting research topics for students with interests in technical issues, theory, or data analysis.
Applications range from the global scale down to regional high-resolution approaches.
And in the near future coastal applications will gain importance as well.