Cross-slope flow is critical for governing heat and material exchange, including pollutants and biota, between the coastal and deep ocean. This study focuses on characterizing the
variability of cross-slope near-bottom flow in the DeSoto Canyon region, where the BP's Macondo well exploded in April 2010, using a multi-decadal HYbrid Coordinate Ocean Model (HYCOM)
simulation of Gulf of Mexico circulation. Due to change in shelf orientation east and west of the canyon, wind-driven vertical motions are mostly related to a component of the local wind
vector along an angle that may deviate from the local isobaths, with smaller deviations from the along-isobath direction to the east of the canyon and bigger departures to the west. This
implies that upwelling is associated with along-isobath winds east of the canyon but shelf waves propagating from the eastern shelf, where northwesterly winds are upwelling favorable,
influence cross-slope flow to the west of the canyon. Beyond the shelf break, where the Loop Current and its eddies can directly impact the depth of isotherms, the isotherms are deepened
underneath the Loop Current and anticyclones but uplifted on their inshore periphery. The Loop Current also interacts with the west Florida shelf and generates a high pressure gradient that
extends northward along the continental slope into the study domain. Consequently, large-scale and persistent upwelling and downwelling events take place over the continental slope of the
domain. The vertical excursions mostly range from ±35 to ± 50 m for the shallow isopycnals but can reach to over ± 100 m. Most distinct upwelling and downwelling events are short duration on
the order of days, however there is a significant chance for persistent events, which can be induced by either remote or direct interaction of the Loop Current and/or eddies with the
slope. / A Thesis submitted to the Department of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Science in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of
Science. / Fall Semester, 2014. / September 24, 2014. / cross-slope flow, DeSoto Canyon region, Loop Current's impact, mesoscale circulation, upwelling and downwelling, wind-driven upwelling / Includes bibliographical references. / Eric Chassignet, Professor Directing Thesis; Dmitry Dukhovskoy, Committee Member; Markus Huettel, Committee Member; Steven Morey, Committee Member;
William Dewar, Committee Member.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_252867 |
| Contributors | Nguyen, Thanh Tam (authoraut), Chassignet, Eric P. (professor directing thesis), Dukhovskoy, Dmitry (committee member), Huettel, Markus (committee member), Morey, Steven L. (committee member), Dewar, William (committee member), Florida State University (degree granting institution), College of Arts and Sciences (degree granting college), Department of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Science (degree granting department) |
| Publisher | Florida State University, Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Language | English, English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text, text |
| Format | 1 online resource (79 pages), computer, application/pdf |
| Rights | This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s). The copyright in theses and dissertations completed at Florida State University is held by the students who author them. |
Page generated in 0.0017 seconds