Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler Transects Research Articles

River suspended-sand flux computation with uncertainty estimation using water samples and high-resolution ADCP measurements

Abstract. Measuring suspended-sand fluxes in rivers remains a scientific challenge due to their high spatial and temporal variability. To capture the vertical and lateral gradients of concentration in the cross-section, measurements with point samples are performed. However, the uncertainty related to these measurements is rarely evaluated, as few studies of the major sources of error exist. Therefore, the aim of this study is to develop a method to determine the cross-sectional sand flux and estimate its uncertainty. This SDC (for sand discharge computing) method combines suspended-sand concentrations from point samples with ADCP (acoustic Doppler current profiler) high-resolution depth and velocity measurements. The MAP (for multitransect averaged profile) method allows obtaining an average of several ADCP transects on a regular grid, including the unmeasured areas. The suspended-sand concentrations are integrated vertically by fitting a theoretical exponential suspended-sand profile to the data using Bayesian modeling. The lateral integration is based on the water depth as a proxy for the local bed shear stress to evaluate the bed concentration and sediment diffusion along the river cross-section. The estimation of uncertainty combines ISO standards and semi-empirical methods with a Bayesian approach to estimate the uncertainty due to the vertical integration. The new method is applied to data collected in four rivers under various hydro-sedimentary conditions: the Colorado, Rhône, Isère, and Amazon rivers, with computed flux uncertainties ranging between 18 % and 32 %. The relative difference between the suspended-sand flux in 21 cases calculated with the proposed SDC method compared to the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 4363 standard method ranges between −40 % and +23 %. This method that comes with a flexible, open-source code is the first to propose an applicable uncertainty estimation that could be adapted to other flux computation methods.

Accuracy and sensitivity of radium mass balances in assessing karstic submarine groundwater discharge in the stratified Calanque of Port-Miou (Mediterranean Sea)

Submarine Groundwater Discharge (SGD) has received increased attention in recent years since it was recognized that it may be both volumetrically and chemically important. Around the Mediterranean Sea, 60% of the coastline is composed of karstic aquifers, and to properly estimate the hydrological budget of the Mediterranean Sea it is therefore necessary to better assess the karstic submarine groundwater discharges (KSGD). However, quantifying KSGD is still challenging. Among the methods recently developed to detect and quantify SGD, the mass balance method of the radium quartet 223Ra, 224Ra, 226Ra and 228Ra has proved to be a powerful technique. This approach requires characterizing all the contributing terms and sinks in the coastal water volume affected by SGD, the residence time of coastal waters, as well as a representative concentration of the tracers for both surface water and discharging groundwater. In this study we combine several approaches (223Ra, 224Ra, salinity profiles and Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP) measurements) to examine both the accuracy and sensitivity of the radium mass balance method in the case of the cove of Port-Miou (Mediterranean Sea, France) where the main karstic spring discharges locally at 10 m depth. This study benefits from the inland in-situ access to the main karst conduit discharging to the sea which provides a long time series to characterize the brackish submarine groundwater end-member. We show that the composition of the cove water is stratified, with two water bodies: a surface brackish layer and a deeper layer. The mean KSGD value obtained with 223Ra and 224Ra mass balances in the surface water body is precise but significantly lower (0.6 ± 0.1 m3/s) than the karstic spring discharge (4 ± 1 m3/s) estimated within the karst conduit with pressure sensors. The residence time of the cove water estimated using both 224Ra and 223Ra isotopes is very low (1 ± 1 day). Our study shows that the water residence time that we calculated using the Ra mass balance is the key parameter that may impact KSGD. In addition, based on ADCP transects, we suggest that the shape and geometry of the cove, as well as the location of the discharge point of the spring play a key role in explaining these discrepant results. We therefore recommend that in such stratified coves, estimations of KSGD based on short-lived radium isotopes require accurate and independent estimates of the water residence time as well as a good knowledge of the shallow and deep circulation patterns of the cove water.

Characterizing the Transition From Balanced to Unbalanced Motions in the Southern California Current

AbstractAs observations and models improve their resolution of oceanic motions at ever finer horizontal scales, interest has grown in characterizing the transition from the geostrophically balanced flows that dominate at large‐scale to submesoscale turbulence and waves that dominate at small scales. In this study we examine the mesoscale‐to‐submesoscale (100 to 10 km) transition in an eastern boundary current, the southern California Current System (CCS), using repeated acoustic Doppler current profiler transects, sea surface height from high‐resolution nadir altimetry and output from a (1/48)° global model simulation. In the CCS, the submesoscale is as energetic as in western boundary current regions, but the mesoscale is much weaker, and as a result the transition lacks the change in kinetic energy (KE) spectral slope observed for western boundary currents. Helmholtz and vortex‐wave decompositions of the KE spectra are used to identify balanced and unbalanced contributions. At horizontal scales greater than 70 km, we find that observed KE is dominated by balanced geostrophic motions. At scales from 40 to 10 km, unbalanced contributions such as inertia‐gravity waves contribute as much as balanced motions. The model KE transition occurs at longer scales, around 125 km. The altimeter spectra are consistent with acoustic Doppler current profiler/model spectra at scales longer than 70/125 km, respectively. Observed seasonality is weak. Taken together, our results suggest that geostrophic velocities can be diagnosed from sea surface height on scales larger than about 70 km in the southern CCS.

Fine-scale hydrodynamic metrics underlying predator occupancy patterns in tidal stream environments

Whilst the development of the tidal stream industry will help meet marine renewable energy (MRE) targets, the potential impacts on mobile marine predators using these highly dynamic environments need consideration. Environmental impact assessments (EIAs) required for potential MRE sites generally involve site-specific animal density estimates obtained from lengthy and costly surveys. Recent studies indicate that whilst large-scale tidal forcing is predictable, local hydrodynamics are variable and often result in spatio-temporal patchiness of marine predators. Therefore, understanding how fine-scale hydrodynamics influence animal distribution patterns could inform the placing of devices to reduce collision and displacement risks. Quantifying distributions requires animal at-sea locations and the concurrent collection of high-resolution hydrodynamic measurements. As the latter are routinely collected during tidal resource characterization at potential MRE sites, there is an untapped opportunity to efficiently collect information on the former to improve EIAs. Here we describe a survey approach that uses vessel-mounted ADCP (Acoustic Doppler current profiler) transects in combination with marine mammal surveys to collect high-resolution and concurrent hydrodynamic data in relation to pinniped (harbour seals Phoca vitulina, grey seals Halichoerus grypus) at-sea occupancy patterns within an energetic tidal channel (peak current magnitudes >4.5 ms−1). We identified novel ADCP-derived fine-scale hydrodynamic metrics that could have ecological relevance for seals using these habitats. We show that our local acoustic backscattering strength metric (an indicator for macro-turbulence) had the highest influence on seal encounters. During peak flows, pinnipeds avoided the mid-channel characterized by extreme backscatter. At-sea occupancy further corresponded with the increased shear and eddies that are strong relative to the mean flows found at the edges of the channel. Our approach, providing oceanographic context to animal habitat use through combined survey methodologies, enhances environmental management of potential MRE sites. The cost-effective collection of such data and the application of our metrics could streamline the EIA process in the early stages of the consenting process.

Morphodynamic change analysis of bedforms in the Lower Orinoco River, Venezuela

Abstract. The Orinoco River has the third largest discharge in the world, with an annual mean flow of 37 600 m3 s−1 at its outlet to the Atlantic Ocean. Due to the presence of the Guiana Shield on the right bank, the lower reach of the Orinoco has a plan form characterized by contraction and expansion zones. Typical 1–1.5 km wide narrow reaches are followed by 7–8 km wide reaches. A complex pattern of bed aggradation and degradation processes takes place during the annual hydrological regime. A series of Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP) transects were collected on an expansion channel in the Orinoco River, specifically over a fluvial island, representative of the lower Orinoco. In this study, temporal series of bathymetric cartography obtained by ADCP profiles combined with Differential Global Position System (DGPS) measurements (with dual-frequency), were used to recover the local displacement of bed forms in this island. The principal aims of this analysis were: (1) to understand the dynamics and evolution of sand waves and bars at this section and (2) to quantify the volume (erosion vs. accretion) of a mid-channel bar with dunes by applying DEM of Difference (DoD) maps on time series of bathymetric data. This required sampling with ADCP transects during the months of: May 2016; November 2016 and April 2017. Each bathymetric transect was measured twice, 1 day apart and on the same trajectory obtained by a GPS receptor. The spatial analysis of these ADCP transects is presented as a novel tool in the acquisition of time series of bathymetry for a relatively deep section (∼20 m) and under variable flow conditions.

Factors influencing the calculation of periodic secondary circulation in a tidal river: numerical modelling of the lower Sacramento River, USA

AbstractSecondary circulation is the component of three‐dimensional (3D) flow in river channels perpendicular to the primary flow direction. Secondary circulation calculated from acoustic Doppler current profiler (ADCP) transects is sensitive to the calculation method and is affected by the transect angle relative to the mean flow direction and variations in the flow direction along a transect. To quantify bounds on transect alignment relative to river flow for field data collection and examine tidal time‐scale variability in secondary circulation, the 3D hydrodynamic model UnTRIM was applied to simulate the hydrodynamics in the lower reach of the Sacramento River (CA, USA). Secondary circulation was calculated using the Rozovskii and the zero net discharge methods on repeated transects extracted from the model results in regions of both relatively uniform and complex flows. When the depth‐averaged flow direction along a transect varied by more than about 5 °, occurring when the transect was as little as 10 to 20 ° out of normal to the mean flow direction, the Rozovskii method produced more realistic secondary circulation than the zero net discharge method. Analysis indicated that ADCP transects should be within 20 ° of perpendicular to the mean flow direction when calculating secondary circulation. Secondary circulation strength around two tidally influenced bends generally increased with increasing flow and broke down near slack water. However, the strength of the secondary circulation was not only a function of the flow magnitude, but also depended on the direction of the water flow and the transect location relative to the river curvature, which varied with the tidal flow direction. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Using surface drifter observations to measure tidal vortices and relative diffusion at Aransas Pass, Texas

Tidal vortices play an important role in the flushing of coastal regions. At the mouth of a tidal inlet, the input of circulation by the ebb tide may force the formation of a starting-jet dipole vortex. The continuous ebb jet current also creates a periodic sequence of secondary vortices shed from the inlet mouth. In each case, these tidal vortices have a shallow aspect ratio, with a lateral extent much greater than the water depth. These shallow vortices affect the transport of passive tracers, such as nutrients and sediment from the estuary to the ocean and vice versa. Field observation of tidal vortices primarily relies on ensemble averaging over several vortex events that are repeatable in space and can be sampled by a fixed Eulerian measurement grid. This paper presents an adaptive approach for locating and measuring within tidal vortices that propagate offshore near inlets and advect along variable trajectories set by the wind-driven currents. A field experiment was conducted at Aransas Pass, Texas to measure these large-scale vortices. Locations of the vortices produced during ebb tide were determined using near real-time updates from surface drifters deployed near or within the inlet during ebb tide, and the paths of towed acoustic Doppler current profiler (ADCP) transects were selected by analysis of the drifter observations. This method allowed ADCP transects to be collected within ebb generated tidal vortices, and the paths of the drifters indicated the presence of both the starting-jet dipole and the secondary vortices of the unstable ebb tidal jet. Drifter trajectories were also used to estimate the size of each observed vortex as well as the statistics of relative diffusion offshore of Aransas Pass. The field data confirmed the starting-jet spin-up time (time until the vortex dipole begins to propagate offshore) measured in the laboratory by Bryant et al. [6] and that the Strouhal condition of \(St=0.2\) predicts the shedding of secondary vortices from the inlet mouth. The size of the rotational core of the vortex is also shown to be approximated physically by the inlet width or by \(0.02UT\), where U is the maximum velocity through the inlet channel and T is the tidal period, and confirms results found in laboratory experiments by Nicolau del Roure et al. [23]. Additionally, the scale of diffusion was approximately 1–15 km and the apparent diffusivity was between 2–130 \(m^2/s\) following Richardsons law.

Circulation on the West Antarctic Peninsula derived from 6 years of shipboard ADCP transects

Over the past 30 years, shelf circulation on the West Antarctic Peninsula (WAP) has been derived from hydrographic data with a reasonable level of confidence. However, with the exception of a very few drifter tracks and current-meter timeseries from moorings, direct velocity measurements have not previously been available. In this article, shelf and shelf-edge circulation is examined using a new velocity dataset, consisting of several years of acoustic Doppler current profiler transects, routinely collected along the ship tracks of the R/V Gould and the R/V Palmer since the fall of 1997. Initial processing and quality control is performed by Dr. Teresa Chereskin and Dr. Eric Firing, who then place the data in an archive accessible by public website, resulting in the broad availability of the data for a variety of uses. In this study, gridded Eulerian means have been calculated to examine circulation on the shelf and slope off the South Shetland Islands, in Bransfield Strait, and on the shelf and slope south of these regions, including Marguerite Bay and the adjacent shelf and shelf-edge. Shelf-edge flow is northeastward in the study area from the offshore of northern Alexander Island to Smith Island, while a southward flowing shelf-edge feature, probably the shallow component of the polar slope current, appears between Elephant Island and Livingston Island. The shallow polar slope current appears to turn shoreward to pass through Boyd Strait between Smith and Livingston Islands. In Bransfield Strait, there is cyclonic circulation. The previously identified northeastward-flowing South Shetland Island jet is strong and present in all seasons, with a large barotropic component not revealed by the hydrography-based velocities derived in the past. On the shelf seaward of Adelaide, Anvers and Brabant Islands, the strong along-shelf Antarctic Peninsula coastal current flows southwestward, with strongest velocities in winter (June–September) off Anvers and Brabant Islands, but stronger in summer (December–March) off Adelaide Island. Seaward of Marguerite Bay, there is seaward flow in the upper 400 m of the water column over the southwest bank of Marguerite Trough, strongest in summer, and shoreward flow near the northeast bank and adjacent shallower shelf areas.

Mapping Gulf Stream warm core rings from shipboard ADCP transects of the Oleander Project

The flow patterns of the Gulf Stream warm core rings and surrounding shelf break and slope water are constructed from shipboard acoustic Doppler current profiler (ADCP) transects of the Oleander Project. For each warm ring, consecutive ADCP transects are colocated to a common ring center and are mapped into a stream function. Methods to locate ring centers from the ADCP transect and advanced very high resolution radiometer image are developed and tested. Two warm rings in 1999, which have relatively complete data coverage, are examined to study the ring‐induced warm and cold streamers. For cold streamers, the estimated volume flux, based on more than 10 independent ADCP transects, is at least 1 × 106 m3 s−1. This result agrees well with the previous estimate in the Warm Core Ring Experiment. For warm streamers, the result is new. On the basis of a large number of ADCP transects, the estimated volume flux is about 2.5 × 106 m3 s−1. By pulling large transports associated with the cold/warm streamers, the warm rings likely play a fundamental role in the water exchange in the Slope Sea.

Measuring the Dispersion Coefficient with Acoustic Doppler Current Profilers

A method is evaluated for estimating the longitudinal dispersion coefficient K from velocities and bathymetry measured with an acoustic Doppler current profiler (ADCP). If shear dispersion controls the mixing, the dispersion coefficient can be estimated from measurements of velocity and depth in a cross section. The dispersion coefficient has typically been measured by costly and time-consuming tracer studies because the velocity field could not be resolved sufficiently before the flow changed. However, ADCP transects, which now are routinely used to measure discharge, provide detailed velocity and bathymetry data quickly. The dispersion coefficient is estimated from ADCP measurements from the United States Geological Survey and compared with estimates from dye studies. Half of the estimates of K fall within 50% of the values from tracer studies, and 85% are within a factor of 3. The ADCP method is at least as accurate as the best empirical formula considered. Both the comparison of field data and an anal...

Zooplankton spatial distributions in coastal waters of the northern Arabian Sea, August, 1995

Abstract The spatial distribution of zooplankton biomass was surveyed in coastal waters of the northern Arabian Sea during the 1995 Southwest Monsoon (August) on cruise MB 95-06 of the NOAA Ship Malcolm Baldrige . Vertical patterns of displacement volumes from a limited set of paired day–night MOCNESS tows suggest there was little diel vertical migration in the coastal waters off the southern Arabian Peninsula. Zooplankton biomass varied from 5.2 to 15.1 g dw m −2 (178–517 mM C m −2 ) in the upper 200–300 m of Omani coastal waters. Distributions of acoustic backscatter were mapped in eight daytime acoustic Doppler current profiler transects in coastal waters off Oman and Somalia. Several transects contained maxima in acoustic backscatter that coincided with cool, fresh surface features that were several tens of kilometers wide. Although there was considerable scatter in the relationship between acoustically determined biomass (ADB) of zooplankton and surface temperature, there was a trend of increased biomass in the cool surface temperatures of the Omani upwelling zone. Acoustic transects crossed two filaments that extended seaward from upwelling centers off Oman and Somalia. Estimated zooplankton ADB exported from the upwelling zones in the surface features was on the order of 300 kg dw s −1 . The physical and biological characteristics of filaments maintain zooplankton associated with upwelling areas, such as Calanoides carinatus , as they are advected offshore from coastal upwelling zones.

Remote Radar Measurement of Shelf Currents off Key Largo, Florida, U.S.A.

The coastal shelf of the Florida Keys is characterized by shallow and highly variable topography, where currents are influenced by tides, wind, and the very energetic offshore Florida Current system. The transient dynamics of variable scale are not easily captured with traditional fixed-mooring observation platforms. Consequently, an experiment combining moorings, Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP) transects and a shore-based High-Frequency (HF) radar system (OSCR) was conducted to monitor the spatial and temporal variability of the flow field over the shelf and off-shore deeper waters. Both the wind- and tide-driven flows in the middle to inner shelf, called Hawk Channel, and two offshore eddy events of the Florida Current were sampled during the experiment.Qualitative agreement between OSCR, current meter moorings and ADCP transects was good in the shelf, however, at the inshore edge of the Florida Current there were significant differences. The ADCP captured the strong horizontal shear at the shelf edge, whereas OSCR smoothed the front over two kilometres due to its measurement cell size. These differences in the spatial sampling resolution in the high shear region prevented direct quantitative comparisons. Although there were significant local variations linked to topography, a major portion of the subtidal flow in the shelf was related to wind. Within the shelf both cross-shelf and along-shelf flows were highly spatially correlated, with r=0·82 andr =0·86, respectively.Two sub-mesoscale eddies that had characteristics consistent with the spin-off eddies described by Lee (1975), were observed to advect at velocities ranging from 0·53ms−1to 0·80ms−1along the inshore edge of the Florida Current. The two eddies had along-shelf length scales from 19km to 47km and cross-shelf scales of 15km and 25km. Each eddy consisted of a single cyclonic vortex rotating with tangential velocities of 0·30ms−1and 0·50ms−1respectively. The eddies had a strong signature at the shelf break, however they did not have any observable influence on flows over the inner-shelf.