Coastal Ocean Modeling and Dynamics

Abstract

The long-term goal of this research is to improve our ability to understand and predict environmental conditions in the coastal ocean. The central objective of the proposed research is to explore problems in coastal ocean modeling and dynamics, including Lagrangian trajectory analysis and the various roles played in coastal ocean predictability by basic physical elements of coastal ocean circulation. The research is being conducted by a graduate student, in collaboration with the PI. The central activity of the proposed research is the development and analysis of a set of high-resolution numerical simulations of the Oregon coastal ocean that extend the recent work of Rivas and Samelson (2011), Kim et al. (2009), Kim et al. (2011), and Springer et al. (2009). The simulations and analysis are being carried out by graduate research assistant Rodrigo Duran, who passed the COAS physical oceanography Ph.D. qualifying exam in July 2009, and has recently finished his third year in the COAS physical oceanography graduate program. The research is currently focused primarily on describing and analyzing the dynamics of the poleward undercurrent (PUC). The PUC is a basic, persistent feature of eastern boundary current circulation regimes, but remains poorly understood and is without an accepted dynamical explanation.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Sep 30, 2011
Accession Number
ADA557054

Entities

People

  • Roger M. Samelson

Organizations

  • Oregon State University

Tags

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Abstracts
  • Atmospheric Sciences
  • Boundaries
  • Dynamics
  • Electronic Mail
  • High Resolution
  • Information Operations
  • Military Research
  • Ocean Currents
  • Oceanography
  • Oceans
  • Physical Oceanography
  • Pressure Gradients
  • Simulations
  • Stratified Fluids
  • Terrain Following
  • Universities

Fields of Study

  • Environmental science

Readers

  • Atmospheric Science/Meteorology
  • Research Science/Academic Research
  • Systems Analysis and Design