A 2-DIMENSIONAL NUMERICAL-MODEL WHICH SIMULATES THE TEMPERATURE, SALINITY AND VELOCITY-FIELDS IN KNIGHT INLET, BRITISH-COLUMBIA

A two-dimensional laterally integrated model of Knight Inlet, British Columbia is used to simulate the time-varying temperature, salinity an d velocity fields. The model includes the influence of the wind, tides , solar heating and freshwater inflow. The level 2.5 turbulent closure scheme of Mellor and Yamada is used to parametrize the diffusion term s in the model. In this paper two turbulent kinetic energy boundary co nditions at the air-water interface are compared. One boundary conditi on is for an enhanced surface turbulent layer due to the filer of wind energy while the other is based on the Law of the Wall approach. The model is compared to data collected in the summer of 1989 from four mo ored vertical arrays. Salinity temperature, horizontal current velocit y and wind velocity were measured for about thirty days. Measurements were made throughout the water column so that the thin surface layer a nd deep water flows could be resolved. A moored array near the mouth o f the inlet was used to provide open boundary data for the model, whil e the remaining data were compared to the simulated data. The modelled salinity fields were very realistic particularly when the enhanced tu rbulent surface layer boundary condition was used. The temperature fie lds were well modelled as long as the surface temperature was prescrib ed. The simulated velocities were very similar to those produced by a numerical model which simulated density (with the pressure effect remo ved) directly instead of solving for temperature and salinity and then determining density via an equation of state.