Publications:
Modeling the effects of river discharge, windstress and sea ice on Arctic coastal circulation Jeremy Kasper, doctoral thesis

Project Summary

This project examines the dynamics of wind and buoyancy forced coastal currents on Arctic Ocean shelves. Simple, process type three-dimensional numerical models will be used to elucidate the effects on the coastal circulation of a (rapidly) time-varying freshwater discharge subject to a variety of surface stress distributions that mimic the effects of seasonally varying sea-ice distributions and alongshore winds. This research effort represents the first systematic effort to understand the unique physics of buoyancy-forced flows in the presence of a complex distribution of surface stresses associated with sea ice. The results will improve our understanding of potential contaminant pathways on arctic shelves. They will also guide the development of more sophisticated regional circulation models that might be used in predicting pollutant transport.