Coastal Ocean Modeling & Dynamics

Abstract

Abstract : The long-term goal of this research is to improve our ability to understand and predict environmental conditions in the coastal ocean. The central objective of the proposed research is to explore problems in coastal ocean modeling and dynamics, including Lagrangian trajectory analysis and the various roles played in coastal ocean predictability by basic physical elements of coastal ocean circulation. The research is being conducted by a graduate student, in collaboration with the PI. The central activity of the proposed research is the development and analysis of a set of high-resolution numerical simulations of the Oregon coastal ocean that extend the recent work of Rivas and Samelson (2011), Kim et al. (2009), Kim et al. (2011), and Springer et al. (2009). The simulations and analysis are being carried out by graduate research assistant Rodrigo Duran, who passed the COAS physical oceanography Ph.D. qualifying exam in July 2009, and has recently finished his fourth year in the COAS physical oceanography graduate program. The research is currently focused primarily on describing and analyzing the dynamics of the poleward undercurrent (PUC). The PUC is a basic, persistent feature of eastern boundary current circulation regimes, but remains poorly understood and without an accepted dynamical explanation. Research progress by Duran has included a nearly complete basic Eulerian and Lagrangian kinematic description of the undercurrent circulation in simulations for the year 2005, using an improved model configuration with smoothed bathymetry to prevent the development of spurious pressure gradients over the upper continental slope. To supplement the direct, Eulerian analysis of model mean poleward flow as a function of time and location, Duran has used forward integrations of conserved Lagrangian label and tracer fields, in order to obtain complementary and potentially more complete information on fluid parcel motion.