SeaSoar CTD Observations from the Central Oregon Shelf, Cruise W9907C, 13-31 Jul 1999. A Component of Prediction of Wind-Driven Coastal Circulation Project.

摘要

This report summarizes observations taken with a conductivity- temperature-depth (CTD) instrument aboard the towed, undulating vehicle SeaSoar during the 1999 National Oceanographic Partnership Program (NOPP)-sponsored Prediction of Wind-Driven Coastal Circulation project. The general goal of this project was to develop nowcast and forecast systems for wind-driven coastal ocean flow fields. The approach was to combine modeling and data assimilation with a coordinated observational program off central Oregon. The major focus was on wind-driven mesoscale processes (2-50 km) as influenced by the temporal and spatial variability of the atmospheric forcing, by spatial variability of the continental margin, and by internal mixing related to small-scale turbulence. Time scales for these mesoscale processes are generally in the 2-10 day band. Mesoscale variability typically involves the most energetic motion over the shelf and includes the physical processes associated with alongshore coastal jets, upwelling and downwelling fronts, and eddies. The Wind-Driven Coastal Circulation project included both a high-resolution coastal ocean model and a high-resolution coastal atmospheric model, the latter forced by an operational large-scale weather prediction model. The partnership involved modelers, data assimilation experts and observationalists from Oregon State University, fisheries scientists from NOAA NMFS Newport, radar specialists from NOAA environmental Technology Laboratory Boulder, and industrial partners using satellite (Ocean Imaging) and radar (CODAR Ocean Sensors) remote sensing techniques.