Publication Abstract

Scanfish: A high performance towed undulator. A new PC controlled towed undulator is aid to understanding coupling between physical and biological processes

Scanfish: A high performance towed undulator. A new PC controlled towed undulator is aid to understanding coupling between physical and biological processes

J. Brown, K.M. Brander, L. Fernand and A.E. Hill

Effective and informed management of marine resources requires a sound knowledge of the controlling physics. On short time scales (up to five days), tides and wind-driven flow dominate water movement, but on periods of a week or more, density differences provide the driving mechanism for persistent and coherent flows.

The deep (greater than 100 metres) basin of the western Irish Sea is a region where flow is dominated by density differentials during spring and summer. Tidal flows are comparatively weak (under 30.0 centimeters/second^-1) in contrast to the surrounding areas where tidal velocities exceed 100.0 centimeters/second^-1 and the water is much shallower. Consequently, the combination of deep water and weak tides means the region stratifies during the spring and summer portion of the annual heating cycle when there is insufficient tidally generated turbulent energy to maintain mixing against the input of buoyancy through surface heating. Associated with the onset of stratification is a strong phytoplankton

bloom and the larvae of many species of fish enter the plankton. The area has extensive exploration for oil and gas and is adjacent to the heavily populated and industrialised northwest of England with the attendant demands on the marine environment.

Reference:

J. Brown, K.M. Brander, L. Fernand and A.E. Hill, 1996.Scanfish: A high performance towed undulator. A new PC controlled towed undulator is aid to understanding coupling between physical and biological processes. Sea Technology, 37(9): 23-27

J. Brown*, K.M. Brander*, L. Fernand* and A.E. Hill

Sea Technology, 37(9): 23-27