Bottom stress measurements on the inner shelf

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Abstract

Bottom stress shapes the mean circulation patterns, controls sediment transport, and influences benthic habitat in the coastal ocean. Accurate and precise measurements of bottom stress have proved elusive, in part because of the difficulty in separating the turbulent eddies that transport momentum from inviscid wave-induced motions. Direct covariance measurements from a pair of acoustic Doppler velocimeters has proved capable of providing robust estimates, so we designed a mobile platform coined the NIMBBLE for these measurements, and deployed two of them and two more conventional quadpods at seven sites on the inner shelf over a period of seven months. The resulting covariance estimates of stress and bottom roughness were lower than log-fit estimates, especially during calmer periods. Analyses of these data suggest the NIMBBLEs may provide an accurate and practical method for measuring bottom stress.

Publication type Conference Paper
Publication Subtype Conference Paper
Title Bottom stress measurements on the inner shelf
DOI 10.1142/9789814689977_0058
Year Published 2015
Language English
Publisher World Scientific
Contributing office(s) Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center
Larger Work Type Book
Larger Work Subtype Conference publication
Larger Work Title The Proceedings of the Coastal Sediments 2015
Conference Title Coastal Sediments 2015
Conference Location San Diego, CA
Conference Date May 11-15, 2015
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