Simulation of the thermocline development in the Baltic Sea during the spring 1997

Temperature profiles obtained from simulations with the Baltic ocean circulation models RCO and BPOM are compared with observed profiles. The models are forced with meteorological data from the period 1 April - 10 June 1997. RCO successfully models the development of the thermocline in the central Baltic Sea, with an error of around 1°C or less at the end of the simulation period. The simulation with BPOM gives a much larger error, more than 3°C at the surface.