Exploring the role of estuarine circulation for transport of suspended particulate matter (SPM) in the Wadden Sea by means of field observations and numerical modelling. Acronym: ECOWS

这是本项目的目的是调查河口环流的悬浮颗粒物（SPM）在瓦登海运输的作用。主要的假设是：（i）河口环流与瓦登海SPM输送有关，（ii）潮汐应变（即水平密度梯度引起的潮汐不对称性引起的垂直切变和涡动粘性之间的相关）是影响河口环流的主要过程，以及（iii）风应变（即由表面风应力产生的潮下垂直切变）是河口环流的重要情景贡献。这些假设将通过在三个潮汐通道（Hörnum Deep，Jade Bay和Otzumer Balje）进行有针对性的现场观测，理想化的面向过程的数值模型模拟和对重点区域和整个瓦登海的现实后报模拟进行测试。这些假设的确认将导致一个范式转变，在了解瓦登海动力学，迄今已被广泛认为是不受密度梯度。

It is the aim of this project to investigate the role of estuarine circulation for suspended particulate matter (SPM) transport in the Wadden Sea. Major hypotheses are that (i) estuarine circulation is relevant to SPM transports in the Wadden Sea, that (ii) tidal straining (i.e. the correlation between vertical shear and eddy viscosity due to tidal asymmetry caused by horizontal density gradients) is the major process contributing to estuarine circulation, and (iii) that wind straining (i.e. the subtidal vertical shear generated by surface wind stress) is an important episodic contribution to estuarine circulation. These hypotheses will be tested by means of targeted field observations in three tidal channels (Hörnum Deep, Jade Bay and Otzumer Balje), idealised process-oriented numerical model simulations and realistic hindcast simulations for the focal areas and for the entire Wadden Sea. Confirmation of these hypotheses will lead to a paradigm shift in understanding Wadden Sea dynamics which so far has been widely assumed to be unaffected by density gradients.