Sea-level variations on the north and northwest coasts of Spain

Abstract

Abstract García, M. J., Tel, E., and Molinero, J. 2012. Sea-level variations on the north and northwest coasts of Spain. – ICES Journal of Marine Science, 69: 720–727. An exhaustive analysis of historical sea-level records at three stations located along the northern and northwestern Spanish coast has permitted a description of the mean sea-level trend over the past 67 years. The analysis also produced results on the type, amplitude, and propagation of tides, as well as on the range of variation in the sea level, extreme values, and return periods. Once corrected for the Post Glacial Rebound, the rise in the mean sea level was estimated at 2.38, 2.45, and 2.65 mm year−1 in Santander, A Coruña, and Vigo, respectively. The meteorological contribution is evaluated by the winter North Atlantic Oscillation index, producing a correlation of −0.658 with the empirical orthogonal function mode 1, which explained 81.86% of the total variance of winter (from December to March) mean sea levels. Harmonic analysis evidenced the semi-diurnal nature of the tide and showed that the amplitude and propagation of the M2 tidal wave followed the North Atlantic regional pattern, with decreasing amplitudes and phases from east to west. Hourly height levels were run through an extreme analysis and resulted in maximum sea-level values over the respective mean sea levels (datum): 2.55, 2.48, and 2.51 m in Santander, A Coruña, and Vigo, respectively. The estimated extreme levels for a 120-year return period exceeded the observed maxima in the three locations by 0.25, 015, and 0.10 m, respectively.