Premium
The role of tidal forcing in the Gulf of Alaska's circulation
Author(s) -
Auad Guillermo,
Miller Arthur J.
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
geophysical research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.007
H-Index - 273
eISSN - 1944-8007
pISSN - 0094-8276
DOI - 10.1029/2007gl032727
Subject(s) - forcing (mathematics) , geostrophic wind , circulation (fluid dynamics) , oceanography , geology , submarine pipeline , current (fluid) , ocean general circulation model , ocean current , water column , general circulation model , water mass , climatology , climate change , physics , thermodynamics
High resolution (7 km) numerical simulations of the Gulf of Alaska circulation show an indirect effect induced by tidal forcing. Tides stir the water column more vigorously in the coastal ocean than in the Gulf's interior, leading to denser waters there than offshore. This horizontal gradient induces a geostrophic current that, in general and in most regions, flows against the mean general circulation.