A high resolution tidal model for the area around The Lofoten Islands, northern Norway

摘要

A depth-integrated numerical model with grid resolution 500 in has been used to simulate tides around the Lofoten Islands in northern Norway. The model spans more than 3degrees latitude and covers a sea area of approximately 1.2 x 10(5) km(2). The fine spatial resolution resolves the important fine scale features of the bottom topography on the shelf and the complex coastline with fjords and islands. Boundary conditions at the oceanic sides of the model domain are obtained by interpolation from a large-scale tidal model covering the Nordic Seas and implemented with the flow relaxation scheme (FRS). The semi-diurnal components M-2, S-2 and N-2 and the diurnal component K-1 are simulated. Harmonic constants for sea level are compared with observations from 21 stations. The best fit is found for the M2 component with a standard deviation between the observed and modelled amplitude and phase of 2.3 cm and 2.5degrees, respectively. The standard deviation for the other smaller components ranges between 1.5-2.8 cm and 5.3-16.7degrees. Current fields from the model are compared with observations in four locations: the Moskenes sound, the Gimsoy channel, the Tjeldsund channel and the Sortland channel. In the Sortland channel, the model predicts a dominant diurnal K-1 current in agreement with observations. (C) 2002 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. [References: 36]