On the problem of the Neva river flood waves identification

Based on the analysis of the measurements of hydrometeorological characteristics, the identification is corroborated of the Neva River flood waves as the baroclinic topographic waves. It is demonstrated that during the formation and maximum development of the most significant sea level rises in the Neva Bay, the stratification in the Gulf of Finland still remains pronounced despite the storm conditions. The baroclinic nature of the flood wave is indicated by the significant changes in the dispersion of currents with depth with their direction changing to the reverse one as it occurs in the first baroclinic mode wave. Directions of major axes of the standard deviation ellipses are oriented not along the isobaths as it should be in case of long gravity waves (being the longitudinal ones) but are extended across the bottom topography contours that is typical of gradient-vorticity waves assigned to the class of horizontal transverse waves.     

Anemobaric low-frequency waves in the Chukchi Sea

The characteristics of currents and sea level wave perturbations of synoptic scale in the Chukchi Sea are compared with well-known dispersion relations of low-frequency waves of different types. This comparison allowed identifying the currents and sea level wave perturbations as internal Kelvin waves and barotropic and baroclinic topographic waves. Assessments of statistical relations between wave perturbations of currents and different meteorological characteristics showed that the energy supply of low-frequency waves is provided sporadically by various components of anemobaric (wind-induced) forces in the local areas of the Chukchi Sea and the Bering Strait.     

The influence of momentum advection on the Baltic Sea dynamics

Contribution of momentum advection to the formation of the low frequency fields of the Baltic Sea levels and currents is estimated using numerical experiments with a hydrodynamic model and statistical analysis of the experimental results. It is found that momentum advection has a significant influence on the formation of the mean level and its seasonal and synoptic variability in Neva Bay of the Gulf of Finland. The results show that nonlinear effects associated with advective accelerations can essentially contribute to the Neva River flood formation.     

On the spatiotemporal structure and mechanisms of the Neva River flood formation

A comparative contribution of the sea level oscillations of various time scales (long-term, seasonal, synoptic, and mesoscale) to the formation of the Neva River floods is estimated. The identification of the Neva River flood waves as the long gravity ones existing nowadays is called in question. The comparison of estimated characteristics of flood waves with the theoretical variance relations of different types of long waves is carried out. This comparison as well as the results of analysis of meteorological information and numerical experiments carried out before on the basis of the hydrodynamic model of the Baltic Sea demonstrate that the Neva River flood waves are identified as the forced baroclinic topographic waves generated as a result of the resonance between the anemobaric forces in atmospheric cyclones and low-frequency eigenmodes of the open Baltic Sea-Gulf of Finland system.     

Synoptic variability of the currents in the Gotland Basin of the Baltic Sea

The series of long-term observations of synoptic-scale currents obtained by instrumental measurements at the moorings in the Gotland Basin of the Baltic Sea are analyzed. The results of the statistical analysis of the currents reveal their wave structure. The characteristics of the low-frequency waves received on the basis of the cross-spectral analysis show that, in the range of periods from 2 to 20 days, they propagated in the southwestern, southeastern, and northwestern directions with phase speeds of 0.02–2.08 m/s and have lengths from 28 to 431 km. It is suggested that the distinguished wavelike perturbations of the synoptic-scale currents are related to topographic waves. The analysis of the meteorological conditions and the results of the numerical hydrodynamic modeling of the Baltic Sea free low-frequency fluctuations led us to conclude that the most possible mechanism of the generation of the intense wave-like oscillations of synoptic-scale currents in the Gotland Basin is the resonance between the anemobaric forces and the relatively slow-moving anticyclones over the open Baltic Sea and the eigenmode of the basin.     

On the resonance-wave mechanism of major Baltic inflows

The features of the spatiotemporal variability of the sea level in the North and Baltic seas during the periods of formation of major Baltic inflows are investigated using the analysis of satellite altimetry data. It is demonstrated that dramatic drops in the sea level between the Baltic and North seas are observed during a few weeks before major inflows. A process of intensive inflows of the North Sea water to the Baltic Sea is accompanied not only by horizontal motions but also by vertical ones manifested in the increase in convergent flows in the North Sea and divergent flows in the Baltic Sea. A pronounced feature of the low-frequency dynamics of water of the North and Baltic seas is its wave structure. In both seas, low-frequency waves with the periods of 14–36 days propagate with the eastern component of the phase velocity along the isobaths and are identified as barotropic topographic Rossby waves. Phase velocities and lengths of low-frequency waves in the Baltic Sea are smaller by several times than those in the North Sea. Using the data of the analysis of meteorological information, a resonance-wave mechanism of generation of major Baltic inflows is studied.     

The statistical structure of synoptic variability ocean currents at the continental slope of the Laptev Sea and features of their generation by anemobaric forces

Based on vector-algebraic analysis of random processes, we study the statistical structure of the synoptic variability of currents measured by an ADCP in the upper mixed layer in the central part of the continental slope of the Laptev Sea in 2006–2007. The results of statistical analysis show that in some cases the synoptic currents in the surface layer of the sea are signs of wind drift currents. This is indicated by the high correlation between the tangential friction of wind and currents, as well as the reversal of the depth of current vectors and the major axes of the ellipses of the mean-square deviation of the Ekman spiral. Due to the large variability of wind flows and stratification of water masses, the penetration depth of these currents is small and varies from 6 to 30 m, with pronounced seasonal variation. In deeper layers, no relationship between the currents and anemobaric forces is traced. It is concluded that the fluctuations of synoptic scale currents in the area of the continental slope of the Laptev Sea represent a superposition of Ekman drift currents and movements associated with free baroclinic Kelvin waves. These currents are the dominant contributor in the upper 30-m layer of the ocean, while waves play a key role in deeper waters.     

Dynamics of Hypoxic Zones in the Baltic Sea in the Late XX–Early XXI Century

Water Resources - The data of shipboard measurements of oxygen concentration at international monitoring stations in the Baltic Sea were used to assess the year-to-year variations of oxygen regime...