Revisiting the Definition of the Drag Coefficient in the Marine Atmospheric Boundary Layer

A new functional form of the neutral drag coefficient for moderate to high wind speeds in the marine atmospheric boundary layer for a range of field measurements as reported in the literature is proposed. This new form is found to describe a wide variety of measurements recorded in the open ocean, coast, fetch-limited seas, and lakes, with almost one and the same set of parameters. This is the result of a reanalysis of the definition of the drag coefficient in the marine boundary layer, which finds that a constant is missing from the traditional definition of the drag coefficient. The constant arises because the neutral friction velocity over water surfaces is not directly proportional to the 10-m wind speed, a consequence of the transition to rough flow at low wind speeds. Within the rough flow regime, the neutral friction velocity is linearly dependent on the 10-m wind speed; consequently, within this rough regime, the new definition of the drag coefficient is not a function of the wind speed. The magnitude of the new definition of the neutral drag coefficient represents an upper limit to the magnitude of the traditional definition.