Variability of circulation and hydrodynamic connectivity over the eastern Canadian shelf

在过去50年中，加拿大东部大陆架的物理和生物条件发生了重大变化。 更好地了解环流，水文学，和相关的变化将是非常有用的有效和可持续的管理海洋资源在加拿大大西洋。该区域的环流和水文受到风、潮汐、地表热量和淡水通量以及拉布拉多海流和墨西哥湾流这两个大规模海流系统相互作用的强烈影响。过去三十年来，在根据该区域各种海洋学观测和数值模式结果确定一般平均环流方面取得了重大进展。然而，在量化该区域环流和水动力连通性的季节和年际变化方面取得的进展较少。该提案的长期目标是审查环流的季节性和年际变化，并评估物理过程对加拿大东部大陆架海洋生态系统动态的影响。该提案的短期目标是：（1）利用三维海洋环流模型研究过去50年的变化情况;（2）计算滞留/扩散和流体动力连通性;（3）为研究区域建立一个生物物理耦合数值模型。

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.