Tsunami–tide interactions: A Cook Inlet case study

First, we investigated some aspects of tsunami–tide interactions based on idealized numerical experiments. Theoretically, by changing total ocean depth, tidal elevations influence the speed and magnitude of tsunami waves in shallow regions with dominating tidal signals. We tested this assumption by employing a simple 1-D model that describes propagation of tidal waves in a channel with gradually increasing depth and the interaction of the tidal waves with tsunamis generated at the channel's open boundary. Important conclusions from these studies are that computed elevations by simulating the tsunami and the tide together differ significantly from linear superposing of the sea surface heights obtained when simulating the tide and the tsunami separately, and that maximum tsunami–tide interaction depends on tidal amplitude and phase. The major cause of this tsunami–tide interaction is tidally induced ocean depth that changes the conditions of tsunami propagation, amplification, and dissipation. Interactions occur by means of momentum advection, bottom friction, and variable water flux due to changing total depth and velocity. We found the major cause of tsunami–tide interactions to be changing depth. Secondly, we investigate tsunami–tide interactions in Cook Inlet, Alaska, employing a high-resolution 2-D numerical model. Cook Inlet has high tides and a history of strong tsunamis and is a potential candidate for tsunami impacts in the future. In agreement with previous findings, we find that the impacts of tsunamis depend on basin bathymetries and coastline configurations, and they can, in particular, depend on tsunami–tide interactions. In regions with strong tides and tsunamis, these interactions can result in either intensification or damping of cumulative tsunami and tide impacts, depending on mean basin depth, which is regulated by tides. Thus, it is not possible to predict the effect of tsunami–tide interaction in regions with strong tides without making preliminary investigations of the area. One approach to reduce uncertainties in tsunami impact in regions with high tides is to simulate tsunamis together with tidal forcing.     

潮汐电站建库及运行方案分析

本文给出了几种要行的潮汐电站水库及运行方案，并就发电量，发电的连续性，发电量－价格比等指标进行了对比分析。对潮汐电站作调峰运行也进行了分析。     

我国潮汐潮流区域预报的发展

简要回顾了我国潮汐潮流区域预报的发展过程。1959—1964年期间按前苏联杜瓦宁方法编制的永久潮流表是第一代预报产品,该产品提供了我国近海若干站点5 m层潮流预报资料。1970—1978年期间按方国洪提出的方法而研制的永久预报图表集是第二代预报产品,提供了基本上覆盖我国近海的多层潮流预报资料;这两代产品均以纸质图表为载体。2005—2006年期间方国洪等研制了第三代预报产品,覆盖了我国近海各海区,分辨率达到5′×5′,垂向10层,并可自动内插到任意点和任意水层。同时介绍了三代产品的研发过程及基本原理。     

海洋潮汐模型在浅海区域的应用

海洋潮汐和大气、海洋、海冰之间存在复杂的相互作用,它对地球气候有复杂而深远的影响。海潮对流经大陆沿岸或大陆架的洋流有很强烈的作用。潮汐流产生混合湍动;潮汐耗散和内潮波效应对海洋环流的传输和循环也有一定的影响。1995年前后,使用TOPEX／POSEIDON测高卫星资料。建立了十多个海潮模型。研究表明,1994-1996年期间发展起来的正压波海潮模型在深海的精度为2—3cm,空间分辨率为50km量级,在浅海区域的精度显著下降。近年来运用更加成熟精细的流体动力学理论模型,在数据同化技术中使用时间跨度更长的测高资料,已经建立了一些改进的海潮模型。该文使用验潮站潮汐常数、测高资料以及交叉点资料,评估了6个海潮模型在浅海区域(包括中国海海域)的表现,以应用于今后对海平面的研究。初步分析表明,浅海区域的海平面高度的误差仍然相当显著。要发展海洋潮汐模型需要进一步减小潮汐混淆效应,提高长周期潮汐的精度,尤其在浅海区域。模型的改进必将增进对潮汐现象的认识,促进学科间进行相互融合和相互渗透的研究(例如潮汐摩擦引起的月球自转的长期缓慢减速、地球内部结构的物理学研究等)。     

月球引潮力振动与大气潮汐的周期变化

在天气学中,当复杂而开放的气候系统处于远离平衡的临界状态时,任何微小的外力扰动都有可能带来一场雪崩式的"蝴蝶效应";而天气系统的演变尽管错综复杂,其实质却主要是冷暖气团的强弱与进退,再就是月球引潮力的周期变化还能引发周期大气潮。据此推想,在月球的周期运行过程中,是交点月南、升、北、降水平引力拐点所产生的引潮力振动(方向、大小的改变),通过大气内部的动力过程,对不稳定气团可产生激发作用,从而引导冷暖空气南北进退和天气系统演变,便出现了周期大气潮和转折天气周循环。     

Estimation of return periods for extreme sea levels: a simplified empirical correction of the joint probabilities method with examples from the French Atlantic coast and three ports in the southwest of the UK

The joint probability method (JPM) to estimate the probability of extreme sea levels (Pugh and Vassie, Extreme sea-levels from tide and surge probability. Proc. 16th Coastal Engineering Conference, 1978, Hamburg, American Society of Civil Engineers, New York, pp 911–930, 1979) has been applied to the hourly records of 13 tide-gauge stations of the tidally dominated Atlantic coast of France (including Brest, since 1860) and to three stations in the southwest of the UK (including Newlyn, since 1916). The cumulative total length of the available records (more than 426 years) is variable from 1 to 130 years when individual stations are considered. It appears that heights estimated with the JPM are almost systematically greater than the extreme heights recorded. Statistical analysis shows that this could be due: (1) to surge–tide interaction (that may tend to damp surge values that occur at the time of the highest tide levels), and (2) to the fact that major surges often occur in seasonal periods that may not correspond to those of extreme astronomical tides. We have determined at each station empirical ad hoc correction coefficients that take into account the above two factors separately, or together, and estimated return periods for extreme water levels also at stations where only short records are available. For seven long records, for which estimations with other computing methods (e.g. generalized extreme value [GEV] distribution and Gumbel) can be attempted, average estimations of extreme values appear slightly overestimated in relation to the actual maximum records by the uncorrected JPM (+16.7 ± 7.2 cm), and by the Gumbel method alone (+10.3 ± 6.3 cm), but appear closer to the reality with the GEV distribution (−2.0 ± 5.3 cm) and with the best-fitting correction to the JPM (+2.9 ± 4.4 cm). Because the GEV analysis can hardly be extended to short records, it is proposed to apply at each station, especially for short records, the JPM and the site-dependent ad hoc technique of correction that is able to give the closest estimation to the maximum height actually recorded. Extreme levels with estimated return times of 10, 50 and 100 years, respectively, are finally proposed at all stations. Because astronomical tide and surges have been computed (or corrected) in relation to the yearly mean sea level, possible changes in the relative sea level of the past, or foreseeable in the future, can be considered separately and easily added to (or deduced from) the extremes obtained. Changes in climate, on the other hand, may modify surge and tide distribution and hence return times of extreme sea levels, and should be considered separately. Parts of this paper have been presented orally at the session “Geophysical extremes: scaling aspects and modern statistical approaches” of the EGU General Assembly, Vienna, 2–6 April 2006.     

Sea level change in Hong Kong from tide gauge measurements of 1954–1999

 Tide gauge records of Hong Kong covering the past 45 years (1954.0–1999.0) are adopted to analyze the basic features of sea level changes in the region. Data sets of atmospheric pressure, southern oscillation index and sea surface temperature during the same time span are also used to determine the possible link between the sea level changes in Hong Kong and local and global geophysical processes. Results indicate that the sea level of Hong Kong has a rising trend of 1.9 ± 0.4 mm per year, and that there is an upward offset of about 15 cm in the pre-1957.0 tide gauge records. The effect of local atmospheric pressure variations on the amplitude of the annual sea level change is about 30% of the amplitude that is calculated after the effect is corrected. It is also found that the interannual variations in the sea level of Hong Kong are related to El Ni?o and La Ni?a events that happen frequently in the tropical Pacific. Received: 27 October 1999 / Accepted: 15 August 2000     

水井含水层系统的潮汐响应函数

本文考虑井孔和含水层之间相互渗流的边界条件的固体潮效应、气压效应和海潮荷载效应的理论解，得出了水井含水层系统对三种不同机理的潮汐信号响应的内在联系－水井含水层系统的潮汐响应函数，其中包括水井含水层系统的幅度响应函数和位相滞后函数。本文还讨论了两种函数与水井含水层参数之间的关系及与不排水时的情况进行了比较。     

The tidal and wind induced hydrodynamics of the composite system Adriatic Sea/Lagoon of Venice

A shallow water hydrostatic 2D hydrodynamic numerical model, based on the boundary conforming coordinate system, was used to simulate aspects of both general and small scale oceanic features occurring in the composite system constituted by the Adriatic Sea and the Lagoon of Venice (Italy), under the influence of tide and realistic atmospheric forcing. Due to a specific technique for the treatment of movable lateral boundaries, the model is able to simulate efficiently dry up and flooding processes within the lagoon. Firstly, a model calibration was performed by comparing the results of the model, forced using tides and ECMWF atmospheric pressure and wind fields, with observations collected for a set of 33 mareographic stations uniformly distributed in the Adriatic Sea and in the Lagoon of Venice. A second numerical experiment was then carried out by considering only the tidal forcing. Through a comparison between the results obtained in the two experiments it was possible to assess the reliability of the estimated parameter through the composite forcing. Model results were then verified by comparing simulated amplitude and phase of each tidal constituent as well as tidal velocities simulated at the inlets of the lagoon and in the Northern Adriatic Sea with the corresponding observed values. The model accurately reproduces the observed harmonics: mean amplitude differences rarely exceed 1 cm, while phase errors are commonly confined below 15°. Semidiurnal and diurnal currents were correctly reproduced in the northern basin and a good agreement was obtained with measurements carried out at the lagoon inlets. On this basis, the outcomes of the hydrodynamic model were analyzed in order to investigate: (i) small-scale coastal circulation features observed at the interface between the adjoining basins, which consist often of vortical dipoles connected with the tidal flow of Adriatic water entering and leaving the Lagoon of Venice and with along-shore current fields connected with specific wind patterns; (ii) residual oscillations, which are often connected to meteorological forcing over the basin. In particular, it emerges that small-scale vortical features generated near the lagoon inlet can be efficiently transported toward the open sea, thus contributing to the water exchange between the two marine regions, and a realistic representation of observed residual oscillations in the area would require a very detailed knowledge of atmospheric as well as remote oceanic forcing.     

Sea level anomalies in straits of Malacca and Singapore

This paper studies sea level anomaly (SLA) behaviour in Malacca and Singapore straits which serve part of a major maritime trade route between Indian and Pacific Ocean using both observed data and numerical model. Spatio-temporal behaviour of SLA in the region is analyzed based on 15 years of in-situ and remote sensing data. Results show that SLA signatures can be distinctly different in the two straits, with vastly opposite behaviours during certain months. By further analyzing spatial dependency of observed SLA in the region, SLA in Malacca and Singapore straits are found to be under the influence of Indian Ocean and South China Sea, respectively. Based on this insight, a numerical model is built with the appropriate non-tidal forcing derived from meteorological model and satellite dataset to properly represent SLA in Malacca and Singapore straits with Root Mean Square Error of less than 10 cm. With this well calibrated model, the effect of different types of forcing on volume flux through the straits is investigated. Combined tidal and non-tidal forcing in the model gives 4 to 7 × 10¹¹ m³ of annual net westward volume flux through the straits which is four to seven times higher than that of tidal forcing alone. Furthermore with this combined forcing, a distinct seasonal trend with westward net flow during northeast monsoon (November to March) and eastward net flow during southwest monsoon (May to September) can be observed through the straits in the model which is not observed with tidal forcing. The findings of this paper highlight the importance of these non-tidal forcing in the model to obtain accurate SLA and flow representation in the straits that is vital to environmental fate and transport modelling during operational forecast.