Simulation of temperature and currents in Placentia Bay

Ma, Zhimin (2010) Simulation of temperature and currents in Placentia Bay. Masters thesis, Memorial University of Newfoundland.

[English] PDF - Accepted Version Available under License - The author retains copyright ownership and moral rights in this thesis. Neither the thesis nor substantial extracts from it may be printed or otherwise reproduced without the author's permission. Download (6MB)

Abstract

A three-dimensional circulation model is applied to better understand the circulation and physical processes in Placentia Bay. The model is based on the finite-volume coastal ocean model (FVCOM) with the vertical eddy viscosity calculated from a level 2.5 revised turbulence closure scheme with 21 unequally spaced vertical levels. The model is forced at the lateral open boundaries with 5 tidal constituents and at the surface with wind and heat flux based on meteorological observations at Argentia. The open boundary temperature and salinity and non-tidal sea level are derived from a larger-scale shelf model. Temperature and currents are hindcast for spring 1999. Simulated tidal elevations agree well with tide-gauge data. The Root Mean Square Difference of the model tidal currents was 40% relative to observations. The model temperature and non-tidal currents show reasonable agreement with moored measurements. The model simulates many features of the Bay, including the seasonal evolution of stratification, cyclonic circulation in the out bay and late-spring upwelling on the western side of the outer bay.

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