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Research interest

I am a sea-going physical oceanographer interested in how physical processes shape ocean dynamics, ecosystems, and climate. My research spans scales from turbulent mixing to basin-wide circulation, with a recent focus on submesoscale dynamics and their role in vertical exchange, biogeochemical fluxes, and the ocean’s energy cascade.

I use a diverse set of observational tools, including shipboard measurements, moorings, Lagrangian drifters, and turbulence profilers, to capture ocean dynamics across scales. Using data from these platforms, I aim to isolate key processes and understand their interactions. I work closely with ocean modelers to connect observations with theory and improve our understanding of the ocean. As of October 2025, I joined the glider group at OSU, where my work increasingly focuses on glider-based observations.

Publications

• Körner, M., J. Cusack, J. Nash, K. Shearman, J. MacKinnon, L. Thomas, J. Liu, J. Taylor, F. Hsu: Flow instability drives exchange between surface and bottom waters in a coastal front, Science Advances, in press, 2026.
• Brandt, P., M. Körner, J. N. Moum, M. Roch, A. Subramaniam, R. Czeschel, G. Krahmann, M. Dengler, and R. Kiko: Synchronous drivers of equatorial Atlantic productivity, Nature Geoscience, 18, 84–90, doi:10.1038/s41561-024-01609-9, 2025.
• Körner, M., P. Brandt, and M. Dengler: Strength and timing of austral winter Angolan coastal upwelling, Scientific Reports, 14, 27400, doi:10.1038/s41598-024-77917-2, 2024.
• Aroucha, L. C., J. F Lübbecke, M. Körner, R. A. Imbol Kongue, and F. M. Awo: The Influence of Freshwater Input on the Evolution of the 1995 Benguela Niño, Journal of Geophysical Research: Ocean, 129, e2023JC020241, doi:10.1029/2023JC020241, 2024.
• Körner, M., P. Brandt, S. Illig, M. Dengler, A. Subramaniam, M. Bachèlery, and G. Krahmann: Coastal trapped waves and tidal mixing control primary production in the tropical Angolan upwelling system, Science Advances, 10, eadj6686, doi:10.1126/sciadv.adj6686, 2024.
• Brandt, P., G. Alory, F. M. Awo, M. Dengler, S. Djakouré, R. A. Imbol Koungue, J. Jouanno, M. Körner, M. Roch, and M. Rouault: Physical processes and biological productivity in the upwelling regions of the tropical Atlantic, Ocean Science, 19, 581–601, doi:10.5194/os-19-581-2023, 2023.
• Körner, M., P. Brandt, and M. Dengler: Seasonal cycle of sea surface temperature in the tropical Angolan Upwelling System, Ocean Science, 19, 121–139, doi:10.5194/os-19-121-2023, 2023.
• Körner, M., M. Claus, P. Brandt, and F. P. Tuchen: Sources and Pathways of Intraseasonal Meridional Kinetic Energy in the Equatorial Atlantic Ocean, Journal of Physical Oceanography, 52, 2445–2462, doi:10.1175/JPO-D-21-0315.1, 2022.
• Stevens, B., S. Bony, […], M. Körner, […]: EUREC4A, Earth System Science Data, 13, 4067–4119, doi:10.5194/essd-13-4067-2021, 2021.

Working with Jonathan Nash