A Hydrodynamic Model of the Circulation within the South Arm of the Great Salt Lake

Abstract

The effects of surface heat flux and wind forcing on the temporal and spatial variations in flow patterns within the south arm of the Great Salt Lake are investigated numerically using the three-dimensional Estuary, Lake and Coastal Ocean Model (ELCOM) code. Results indicate that wind forcing over an isothermal lake results in nearly steady near-surface flow patterns directed to the right of the wind direction. Forcing through surface heat flux without wind stresses results in the formation of multiple, unsteady gyres. The sense of rotation of these gyres is generally cyclonic during the summer months. These cyclonic gyres are not observed when forcing due to both wind and surface heat fluxes are enforced simultaneously, even with the inclusion of atmospheric instability effects.