Publication Date:
2020-03-30
Description:
High-resolution, four-dimensional mapping of currents in tidally dominated coastal settings can be conducted with a range of instrumentation. Here, we assess four approaches to data collection: an X-band radar, a stationary (bottom mounted) acoustic Doppler current profiler (ADCP), a mobile (vessel based) ADCP, and a swarm of Lagrangian floats. Using the output from a hydrodynamic simulation, a virtual field campaign was performed at 24 locations in Admiralty Inlet, Puget Sound, Washington, during spring and neap tidal exchanges. A reconstruction of the volumetric currents was generated for each platform every 15 min and evaluated against the true currents to assess accuracy over a horizontal extent of 400 m × 500 m at 5 m resolution and vertically through the entire water column (20–80 m) at 2 m resolution. Results demonstrate that, for this survey extent and resolution, a vessel-based ADCP survey is most accurate, followed closely by the float swarm. The overall performance hierarchy persists over most locations and times. Thus, if mapping currents at high resolution (
Print ISSN:
0739-0572
Electronic ISSN:
1520-0426
Topics:
Geography
,
Geosciences
,
Physics
Permalink