A numerical study of the ocean circulation around the northern Antarctic Peninsula: Barotropic response to tidal forcing

• Main Authors: Dragani,Walter C., D'Onofrio,Enrique E., Speroni,Jorge O., Fiore,Monica E., Borjas,Roco
• Format: Report
• Language: English
• Published: Servicio de Hidrografa Naval and ESCM-INUN/Servicio de Hidrografa Naval and ESCM-INUN/Servicio de Hidrografa Naval and ESCM-INUN/Servicio de Hidrografa Naval and ESCM-INUN/Servicio de Hidrografa Naval and ESCM-INUN 2005
• Subjects: numerical model; tide; ocean circulation; Antarctic Strait; South Shetland Islands; Antarctic; The Antarctic; Antarctic Peninsula; Weddell Sea; Bransfield Strait; Weddell; Antarc*; Polar geoscience
• Online Access: https://nipr.repo.nii.ac.jp/?action=repository_uri&item_id=3152; http://id.nii.ac.jp/1291/00003152/; https://nipr.repo.nii.ac.jp/?action=repository_action_common_download&item_id=3152&item_no=1&attribute_id=18&file_no=1

A high-resolution shallow water model was implemented to study tidal propagation around the northern Antarctic Peninsula. Numerical experiments were done using a grid with 3.00′longitude and 1.05′latitude resolution. Amplitudes and phases of the four main tidal constituents (M_2, S_2, K_1 and O_1) were used to force the model. Modeled sea levels and currents were compared with observations. The modeled cotidal, corange and tidal ellipse axis obtained by harmonic analysis from model results are in good agreement with those of available observations. Given the good correspondence between harmonic constants obtained from model results and from observed hourly sea levels, the energy flux and dissipation by bottom friction were computed. The most intense energy fluxes are related to the semidiurnal constituents. The highest values are present in the Weddell Sea and the energy flux shows a relative maximum at the Antarctic Strait, flowing from the Weddell Sea to Bransfield Strait. Nearly all the dissipation occurs in the Antarctic Strait (maximum value ～0.25Wm^(-2)) and around the South Shetland Islands. The total tidal energy lost to bottom friction in our 4-constituent model is about 1.5GW, giving a domain-averaged value of ～0.002Wm^(-2).