Naslov
Response of the Adriatic Sea to the bora and sirocco forcing

Autori
Orlić, Mirko ; Kuzmić, Milivoj ; Pasarić, Zoran

Izvornik
Continental Shelf Research (0278-4343) 14 (1994), 1; 91-116

Vrsta, podvrsta i kategorija rada
Radovi u časopisima, članak, znanstveni

Ključne riječi
bora ; sea level ; sirocco ; surface currents ; wind forcing

Sažetak
The response of the Adriatic shelf waters to dominant winter winds is analysed: the bora, which is a cold, katabatic wind blowing from the northeast ; and the sirocco, which blows from the southeast and brings warm Mediterranean air. Currents and sea-level changes, caused by momentum exchange at the air-sea interface, are simulated using a three-dimensional numerical model. Numerical predictions are verified through comparison with data collected in the area. It is shown that the bora induces a rather complex response of the Adriatic Sea, with sea levels organized in several lows and highs and the current field dominated by the wind-curl effect. The currents are directed downwind under the bora maxima, upwind under the minima. Simulations of the bora-driven sea levels and currents are supported by results of in situ measurements carried out on the Adriatic shelf. Moreover, they are confirmed by an analysis of the Coastal Zone Color Scanner (CZCS) imagery, showing that during the bora episodes highly-productive Po-influenced waters extend from the river mouth in an offshore direction, due to advection by upwind currents. The sirocco piles up water in the North Adriatic and brings about the occurrence of storm surges along the northern shorelines. This process has been documented amply in the literature. According to the present model, the sirocco-driven currents are controlled by two different mechanisms: bottom slope, supporting the existence of a cyclonic and an anticyclonic gyre in the sea ; and wind curl, which is a source of cyclonic vorticity in the basin. The data show that the sirocco may reverse the current usually found along the western coast, when the wind-forced current component becomes stronger than buoyancy-driven residual flow.

Izvorni jezik
Engleski

Znanstvena područja
Geologija

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