Modelling Estuarine Exchange through Boundary Pass
Presentation Abstract
Estuarine circulation in the Strait of Georgia consists of a surface brackish outflow (the freshwater predominantly from the Fraser River) and a deeper return flow that varies in depth seasonally. Transport to and from the open ocean is mainly to the south through Boundary Pass and Haro Strait. We have configured a regional implementation of the NEMO model for the Salish Sea. It is baroclinic, forced by hourly 2.5 km resolution winds, sea-surface height at the mouth of Juan de Fuca Strait, daily Fraser River flows, and climatology for another 149 rivers. We model 8 tidal constituents. We will discuss model evaluation against observations. As a southern boundary to the Strait of Georgia we focus on a vertical cross-section across Boundary Pass. We will present depth profiles of fluxes of freshwater through this cross-section as a function of tides, river flow, Juan de Fuca density, winds and in addition, as a function of various modelling parameters.
Session Title
Salish Sea Estuarine Circulation
Conference Track
Habitat
Conference Name
Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference (2016 : Vancouver, B.C.)
Document Type
Event
Start Date
2016 12:00 AM
End Date
2016 12:00 AM
Location
2016SSEC
Type of Presentation
Oral
Genre/Form
conference proceedings; presentations (communicative events)
Contributing Repository
Digital content made available by University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University.
Subjects – Topical (LCSH)
Estuarine oceanography--Boundary Pass (B.C. and Wash.; Ocean circulation--Boundary Pass (B.C. and Wash.; Oceanic mixing--Boundary Pass (B.C. and Wash.
Geographic Coverage
Salish Sea (B.C. and Wash.); Boundary Pass (B.C. and Wash.)
Rights
This resource is displayed for educational purposes only and may be subject to U.S. and international copyright laws. For more information about rights or obtaining copies of this resource, please contact University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA 98225-9103, USA (360-650-7534; heritage.resources@wwu.edu) and refer to the collection name and identifier. Any materials cited must be attributed to the Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference Records, University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University.
Type
Text
Language
English
Format
application/pdf
Modelling Estuarine Exchange through Boundary Pass
2016SSEC
Estuarine circulation in the Strait of Georgia consists of a surface brackish outflow (the freshwater predominantly from the Fraser River) and a deeper return flow that varies in depth seasonally. Transport to and from the open ocean is mainly to the south through Boundary Pass and Haro Strait. We have configured a regional implementation of the NEMO model for the Salish Sea. It is baroclinic, forced by hourly 2.5 km resolution winds, sea-surface height at the mouth of Juan de Fuca Strait, daily Fraser River flows, and climatology for another 149 rivers. We model 8 tidal constituents. We will discuss model evaluation against observations. As a southern boundary to the Strait of Georgia we focus on a vertical cross-section across Boundary Pass. We will present depth profiles of fluxes of freshwater through this cross-section as a function of tides, river flow, Juan de Fuca density, winds and in addition, as a function of various modelling parameters.
