Thickness-weighted averaging in tidal estuaries and the vertical distribution of the eulerian residual transport
Knut Klingbeil (Hamburg University of Technology, Leibniz Institute for Baltic Sea Research Warnemünde)
Johannes Becherer (Oregon State University)
Elisabeth Schulz (Leibniz Institute for Baltic Sea Research Warnemünde)
Huib E. de Swart (Universiteit Utrecht)
H. M. Schuttelaars (TU Delft - Mathematical Physics)
Arnoldo Valle-Levinson (University of Florida)
Hans Burchard (Leibniz Institute for Baltic Sea Research Warnemünde)
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Abstract
This paper presents thickness-weighted averaging (TWA) in generalized vertical coordinates as a unified framework for a variety of existing tidal-averaging concepts in seas and estuaries. Vertical profiles of resulting residual quantities depend on the specific vertical coordinate, which is held fixed during the averaging process. This dependence is demonstrated through the application to one-dimensional analytical tidal flow with sediment transport, to field observations from a tidal channel, and to model results from a two-dimensional estuary. The use of different coordinate systems provides complementary views on the residual dynamics and stresses the importance of a correct interpretation of residual quantities obtained by tidal averaging.