Variability of circulation and hydrodynamic connectivity over the eastern Canadian shelf

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Physical and biological conditions in the eastern Canadian shelf have undertaken significant changes in the last 50 years. Better knowledge of circulation, hydrography, and associated variability will be very useful for an effective and sustainable management of marine resources in Atlantic Canada. Circulation and hydrography in the region are affected strongly by wind, tides, surface heat and freshwater fluxes, and the interaction of two large-scale current systems: the Labrador Current and the Gulf Stream. Significant progress has been made in the last three decades in determining the general mean circulation from various oceanographic observations and numerical model results in the region. Less progress was made, however, in quantifying the seasonal and inter-annual variability of circulation and hydrodynamic connectivity in the region. The long-term objectives of this proposal are to examine the seasonal and inter-annual variability of circulation and assess the effects of physical processes on the marine ecosystem dynamics on the eastern Canadian shelf. The short-term objectives of the proposal are (1) to study the variability in the last 50 years using three-dimensional ocean circulation models, (2) to calculate the retention/dispersion and hydrodynamic connectivity; and (3) to develop a coupled bio-physical numerical model for the study region.