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On the inertial stability of coastal flows

University of British Columbia

This thesis investigates two separate but related problems. In Part I a study is made of the propagation of continental shelf waves and barotropic Rossby waves in a steady, laterally sheared current of the form V + Є W, where W is a centred random function and Є << 1. If the correlation length of W is small compared with the characteristic horizontal length scale of the system; for example, the shelf width or a channel width, the waves are unstable. Their growth rate is largely determined by the magnitude of the correlation length, while the phase speed is given by the sum of weighted averages of the mean current V and the lateral gradient of potential vorticity. Application of the theory to the Brooks and Mooers (1977a) model of the Florida Straits yields wave parameters that are in accord with those measured by Duing (1975). In Part II, an attempt is made to understand the dynamics governing observed low-frequency currents in the Strait of Georgia (GS). A simple two-layer model indicates that the mean currents in GS are probably baroclinically stable. A barotropic stability model implies that a shear instability might be of some importance. However, the analysis of current meter data shows that the velocity components of the fluctuations are either nearly in phase or close to 180° out of phase; this means that the motions are not due to the type of waves considered here. Analysis of the relationship between the winds and currents in both the frequency and time domains implies that the wind may play an indirect role in forcing GS motions. It is conjectured that the wind and tide interact with the Fraser River outflow to modulate the estuarine circulation in the system and force low-frequency currents. Direct nonlinear interaction between tidal constituents produces a coherent fortnightly variation in the currents, but cannot account for the observations.

Text

2010-03-19

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http://hdl.handle.net/2429/22172

Oceanography

University of British Columbia

Graduate