Dynamics of a Buoyant Coastal Current Encountering Abrupt Changes in Coastline and Bathymetry

沿海浮力流沿许多大陆架输送淡水、热、溶解物质和颗粒物质，从而影响沿海环流和生态系统。人们对它们适应地形和海岸线变化的动力学知之甚少。PI将使用实验室和数值模型来研究通过一个简单通道的浮力海岸流。我们将考虑不触底的表面捕获流和由倾斜的底部引导的斜坡控制流。进入海峡和通过海峡的浮力通量将在其他变量中被量化。实验室和数值模型之间的协同作用将用于克服每种方法的困难和不确定性。最后，数值模式将应用于具有实际海岸线和水深的几个海洋地点，结果将与这些地点的现有观测结果和理想化模式的结果进行比较。更广泛的影响：作为这项研究的结果，更好地了解沿海浮力流将有助于其他研究工作，其中许多是跨学科的。研究结果将成为海岸物理海洋学研究生课程的一部分。实验室实验将向学校团体展示，并将作为激励和教学工具。

AbstractBuoyant coastal currents transport fresh water, heat, dissolved and particulate materials along many continental shelves and thereby impact coastal circulation and ecosystems. The dynamics by which they adjust to changes in topography and coastline are poorly understood. The PI's will use laboratory and numerical models to study a buoyant coastal current crossing a simple channel. Both surface-trapped currents, which do not feel the bottom, and slope-controlled currents which are steered by a sloping bottom will be considered. Buoyant fluxes into the channel and past the channel will be quantified among other variables. The synergy between laboratory and numerical models will be used to overcome the difficulties and uncertainties of each approach. Finally, the numerical model will be applied to several ocean locations with realistic coastlines and bathymetry and the results will be compared both to existing observations at these locations and to the results of idealized models.Broader Impacts: Better understanding of buoyant coastal currents as a result of this study will help other research efforts many of which are interdisciplinary. The results will become a part of a graduate course in coastal physical oceanography. The laboratory experiments will be displayed to school groups and will act as motivational and teaching tools.