Velocity probability density functions for oceanic floats

Probability density functions (PDFs) of daily velocities from subsurface fl oats deployed in the North Atlantic and equatorial Atlantic Oceans are exam ined. In general, the PDFs are approximately Gaussian for small velocities, but with significant exponential tails for large velocities. Corresponding ly, the kurtoses of the distributions are greater than three. Similar PDFs are found in both western and eastern regions, above and below 1000-m depth , with more significant non-Gaussianity in the North Atlantic than at the e quator. Analogously, Lagrangian statistics in decaying two-dimensional turb ulence also display non-Gaussian velocity PDFs with approximately exponenti al tails, in the limit of large Reynolds number.