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Plume Dynamics of a Lateral River Tributary Influenced by River Discharge From the Estuary Head
Author(s) -
Gong Wenping,
Chen Lianghong,
Zhang Heng,
Yuan Lirong,
Chen Zhaoyun
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
journal of geophysical research: oceans
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2169-9291
pISSN - 2169-9275
DOI - 10.1029/2019jc015580
Subject(s) - plume , tributary , estuary , geology , advection , oceanography , head (geology) , hydrology (agriculture) , canyon , environmental science , geomorphology , meteorology , physics , cartography , geotechnical engineering , thermodynamics , geography
River plumes are important pathways for the transportation of terrigenous materials to coastal oceans. This study uses the Regional Ocean Modeling System to investigate the dynamics of a small river plume from a lateral river tributary discharging into an estuary. In particular, the plume is surface advected under buoyancy force alone, and the Earth's rotation helps to increase the plume's spread in a downstream‐biased pattern. Adding tides to the model changes the plume into a bottom‐advected one, and the plume is advected in an alongshore direction, with its spreading more upstream biased. Tide‐induced mixing and tidal advection are responsible for the changes in the plume structure, especially the tidal asymmetry between ebb and flood tides; the tidal residual circulation is insignificant. When river discharge from the estuary head is imposed, the plume is forced to propagate downstream extensively. This study offers insights into the transport and fate of riverine materials in tributaries that flow into semienclosed waterbodies.