REPORT TITLE: Idealized Process Model Studies of Circulation in the Landfast Ice Zone of the Alaskan
BACKGROUND: Winds and river runoff influence the dynamics and circulation pathways over the innermost portion (water depths < ~ 20 m) of most continental shelves. While this is true for Arctic shelves as well, the effects of wind stress and buoyancy are substantially modulated by the annual freez...
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| Format: | Text |
| Language: | English |
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| Online Access: | http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.644.6913 http://www.arlis.org/docs/vol1/F/764754574/764754574sheet.pdf |
| Summary: | BACKGROUND: Winds and river runoff influence the dynamics and circulation pathways over the innermost portion (water depths < ~ 20 m) of most continental shelves. While this is true for Arctic shelves as well, the effects of wind stress and buoyancy are substantially modulated by the annual freeze/thaw cycle, which controls the phasing and duration of the landfast ice season and river discharge (Weingartner et al., 2009). Nearshore circulation processes on arctic shelves differ from ice-free seas because of the presence of landfast ice, which inhibits the transfer of momentum from the wind to the ocean and is frictionally coupled to the underice flow. Consequently, dynamical principles gleaned from ice-free shelves are not completely applicable to the landfast ice zones surrounding the Arctic Ocean. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this project is to develop a first order understanding of the circulation dynamics of the landfast ice zone of arctic shelves. It is hoped that the models are useful for response planning in the event of an oil spill under a landfast ice cover. DESCRIPTION: Idealized analytical and numerical models are used to illuminate the effect of a landfast ice cover on |
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