Seasonal Behavior of the Internal Tide and Associated Water Temperature in Genka Bay, Okinawa, Japan

Abstract

ABSTRACT Rouf, M.A. and Nakaza, E., 2014. Seasonal behavior of the internal tide and associated water temperature in Genka Bay, Okinawa, Japan. Sustainability of coastal aquatic resources is deeply associated with several hydrophysical processes, where internal tide is one of the key processes. Seasonal variation in the characteristics of the internal tidal currents and their associated change in water temperature was observed to take part in managing the coastal aquatic systems in Genka Bay, Okinawa, Japan. Profiling and mooring measurements were carried out in three sites of the study area during summer and winter. The study results show that the depth-averaged current flows nearly parallel to the coastline during summer and winter. There is also an existence of a cross-shore internal tidal current according to the vertical structure of the horizontal current in both seasons. This current influences the bottom water temperature transmission from offshore to nearshore bottom water and changes the vertica...