This dissertation investigates the dynamics of the tidally modulated outflow from the Columbia River mouth using high resolution measurements of velocity, density and turbulent microstructure. At high tide, flow through the river mouth reverses from flood (onshore) to ebb (offshore). During ebb, buoyant fluid issues from the river mouth and...
The mathematical and physical connections between three different ways of quantifying linear predictability in geophysical fluid systems are studied in a series of analytical and numerical models. Normal modes, as they are traditionally formulated in the instabilities theories of geophysical fluid dynamics, characterize the asymptotic development of disturbances to stationary...
Gray whales accomplish an annual migration which
spans as much as 50° of latitude in the northeast
Pacific Ocean. This migration links their summer high
latitude feeding grounds with winter calving and breeding
areas. The purpose of this study was to determine how
adult females apportion their stored lipid reserves...
The Oregon continental shelf waters are typically characterized by four to five major upwelling events that occur between May and October. The upwelled water is rich in nutrients, which fuels an increase in phytoplankton biomass. The onset of El Nino, however, can disrupt the normal physical processes along the Oregon...
Third order spectra computed from the rotary components of
winds and currents at the TOTEM buoy site off the Oregon coast provide
an insight to the nonlinear, quadratic interactions within and between
these vector fields. The topography of bispectra and cross-bispectra
as displayed on four tri-frequency planes shows that significant...
The continental terrace west of Oregon between 43° 50'N and
44° 40' N latitude is 50 to 55 miles wide. It consists of a continental
shelf, 16 to 35 miles wide, and a continental slope, 16 to 37 miles
wide. The eastern portion of the shelf is a smooth, sediment...