Articles | Volume 17, issue 15
https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-17-6083-2024
© Author(s) 2024. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-17-6083-2024
© Author(s) 2024. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
A simple approach to represent precipitation-derived freshwater fluxes into nearshore ocean models: an FVCOM4.1 case study of Quatsino Sound, British Columbia
Krysten Rutherford
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Institute of Ocean Sciences, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Sidney, British Columbia, Canada
Laura Bianucci
Institute of Ocean Sciences, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Sidney, British Columbia, Canada
William Floyd
British Columbia Ministry of Forests, Nanaimo, British Columbia, Canada
Department of Geography, Vancouver Island University, Nanaimo, British Columbia, Canada
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Laura Bianucci, Jennifer M. Jackson, Susan E. Allen, Maxim V. Krassovski, Ian J. W. Giesbrecht, and Wendy C. Callendar
Ocean Sci., 20, 293–306, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-20-293-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-20-293-2024, 2024
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While the deeper waters in the coastal ocean show signs of climate-change-induced warming and deoxygenation, some fjords can keep cool and oxygenated waters in the subsurface. We use a model to investigate how these subsurface waters created during winter can linger all summer in Bute Inlet, Canada. We found two main mechanisms that make this fjord retentive: the typical slow subsurface circulation in such a deep, long fjord and the further speed reduction when the cold waters are present.
Maartje C. Korver, Emily Haughton, William C. Floyd, and Ian J. W. Giesbrecht
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 14, 4231–4250, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-14-4231-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-14-4231-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
The central coastline of the northeast Pacific coastal temperate rainforest contains many small streams that are important for the ecology of the region but are sparsely monitored. Here we present the first 5 years (2013–2019) of streamflow and weather data from seven small streams, using novel automated methods with estimations of measurement uncertainties. These observations support regional climate change monitoring and provide a scientific basis for environmental management decisions.
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Short summary
Nearshore ocean models often lack complete information about freshwater fluxes due to numerous ungauged rivers and streams. We tested a simple rain-based hydrological model as inputs into an ocean model of Quatsino Sound, Canada, with the aim of improving the representation of the land–ocean connection in the nearshore model. Through multiple tests, we found that the performance of the ocean model improved when providing 60 % or more of the freshwater inputs from the simple runoff model.
Nearshore ocean models often lack complete information about freshwater fluxes due to numerous...