Sea surface temperature (SST) in color and surface wind speed in contours (thickened for values above 13 m/s) observed by the Tropical Rain Measuring Mission satellite in July 2000 over the Arabian Sea. Quasi-stationary eddies organize coastal upwelling into three cold filaments, which slows the Find later wind jet by as much as 4 m/s. This positive correlation between SST and surface wind speed on the ocean mesoscale is a ubiquitous pattern revealed by new satellite observations near major SST fronts in the world ocean. It occurs as the boundary layer is more unstable over warmer water, which mixes higher wind speed air down to the surface.

Image provided by Shang-Ping Xie, IPRC University of Hawaii