Grant Number: N000149810158 LONG-TERM GOALS My long-term goal is improved understanding of how physical processes affect material property distributions on continental shelves. These include biological (red-tide algae and fish larvae), chemical (nutrients), and geological (sediment resuspension/transport) measures, and the physical responses of the currents and sea level. OBJECTIVES To achieve this goal I must accomplish a related set of objectives. In logical order, these are. 1) I am describing of the West Florida Continental Shelf (WFS) circulation on tidal, synoptic, seasonal, and inter-annual time scales. 2) I am determining the relative influences of local and deep-ocean momentum and buoyancy fluxes in driving the WFS circulation. 3) I am describing how local and deep-ocean forcing functions affect along-shelf and across-shelf material transports, with emphasis on the inner-shelf. 4) I am determining how these physical factors are related to biological (primary productivity), chemical (nutrient distributions), and geological (sediment resuspension) processes. 5) I am developing diagnostic/prognostic information for WFS experimentation and for contributing toward an Autonomous Ocean Sampling Network for Navy purposes. 6) I am developing capabilities for real-time reporting of environmental fields to support AUV operations, test sensors, develop prognostic physical and biological models, improve regional weather forecast models, and provide information for emergency managers. 8) I am observing the responses of the near bottom log-layer region to assess sediment resuspension events and their effects upon water column IOPs. APPROACH My approach combines in situ measurements and numerical circulation modeling. Along with colleagues, I marshaled resources from several projects. The measurements consist of a moored array complemented by monthly hydrographic cruises. The array uses bottom and surface mounted acoustic Doppler current profilers (ADCP) for currents. The bottom moorings include temperature/salinity (T/S), and pressure sensors, and a smaller subset of these include shorter term deployments of sediment resuspension packages (near bottom acoustic current meters and optical instruments). The surface moorings include surface meteorological instruments and a vertically distributed set of T/S.
Abstract. The response of the west Florida continental shelf circulation to monthly mean climatological wind forcing is investigated by using the three-dimensional, primitive equation Princeton Ocean Model. Two basic seasonal patterns of circulation and sea surface elevation occur under a barotropic setting: a winter pattern from October to March and a summer pattern from April to September. An interesting finding in winter is an anticyclonic gyre over the northeastern (Florida Big Bend) region that merges with a northwestward flow from the south. The Big Bend Gyre is caused by a convergence of two separate flows: a nearshore along-shelf southeastward flow and an offshore northwestward flow. Winter circulation characteristics also include offshore surface transport, coastal upwelling, and relatively low coastal sea level. The summer pattern features a continuous northwestward directed flow, onshore surface transport, coastal downwelling, and relatively high coastal sea level. Transitions between the two seasonal patterns show either a development or rela,xation of the Big Bend Gyre. These three-dimensional circulation patterns result from wind-driven Ekman transports and their resulting surface-slope-induced geostrophic flows. Qualitative agreement exists in some respects with recent in situ observations, historical drift bottle retrievals, and tide gauge data. However, climatological wind stress forcing alone does not account for the seasonally varying southeastward currents observed at midshelf. Thus it may be concluded that for depths less than 50m the seasonal winds rnay play a dominant role in the seasonal varia, tion of the shelf circulation; and beyond this limit seasonal density related effect must also be a factor in the seasonally varying circulation on the West Florida Shelf.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.