Wave-driven ocean currents: how the conservative effects of Stokes transport induce large-scale currents

Abstract Stokes drift associated with surface waves induces mass transport, which interacts with ocean currents to modify dynamics from situations without waves. The effect of Stokes drift can be parameterized through “Stokes forcing” terms derived from wave–current interaction theory, and an increasing number of regional and global ocean models incorporate these terms to represent wave effects on ocean currents. While the mixed layer scale currents’ response to Stokes drift has been actively st