The tide-related parameters of the Delaware Bay are derived from space
shuttle time-series photographs. The water areas in the bay are measu
red from interpretation maps of the photographs with a CALCOMP 9100 di
gitizer and ERDAS Image Processing System. The corresponding tidal lev
els are calculated using the exposure time annotated on the photograph
s. From these data, an approximate function relating the water area to
the tidal level at a reference point is determined. Based on the func
tion, the water areas of the Delaware Bay at mean high water (MHW) and
mean low water (MLW), below 0 m, and for the tidal zone are inferred.
With MHW and MLW areas and the mean tidal range, we calculate the tid
al influx of the Delaware Bay, which is 2.76 x 10(9) m3. Furthermore,
the velocity of flood tide at the bay mouth is determined using the ti
dal flux and an integral of the velocity distribution function at the
cross section between Cape Henlopen and Cape May. The result is 132 cm
/s, which compares well with the data on tidal current charts.