Two viscous stabilization methods, namely the spectral vanishing viscosity (SVV) technique and the entropy viscosity method (EVM), are applied to ows of interest in geophysics. First, following a study restricted to one space dimension [1], the spectral element approximation of the shallow water equations is stabilized using the EVM. Our recent advances are here carefully described. Second, the SVV technique is used for the large-eddy simulation of the spatial and temporal development of the turbulent wake of a sphere in a stratied uid [2]. We conclude with a parallel between these two stabilization techniques.