C. Chris Chickadel

Infrared-Based Measurements of Velocity, Turbulent Kinetic Energy, and Dissipation at the Water Surface in a Tidal River

Thermal infrared (IR)-based particle image ve locimetry (PIV) is used to measure the evolution of velocity, turbulent kinetic energy (TKE), and the TKE dissipation rate at the water surface in the tidally influenced Snohomish River. Patterns of temperature variability in the IR imagery arise from disruption of the cool-skin layer and are used to estimate the 2-D velocity field. Comparisons of IR-based PIV mean velocity made with a colocated acoustic velocimeter demonstrate high cor relation (r² >; 0.9). Over a tidal period, surface TKE computed from the IR velocity varies from 10^-4 to 3 × 10^-3 J · kg^-1, with an average difference from the in situ measurements of 8%. IR-derived TKE dissipation rates vary from approximately 3 × 10^-6 to 2 × 10^-4 W · kg^-1 at peak ebb, agreeing on average to within 7% of the in situ velocimeter results. IR-based PIV provides detailed measurements of previously inaccessible surface velocities and turbulence statistics.

Estimating wave energy dissipation in the surf zone using thermal infrared imagery

Thermal infrared (IR) imagery is used to quantify the high spatial and temporal variability of dissipation due to wave breaking in the surf zone. The foam produced in an actively breaking crest, or wave roller, has a distinct signature in IR imagery. A retrieval algorithm is developed to detect breaking waves and extract wave roller length using measurements taken during the Surf Zone Optics 2010 experiment at Duck, NC. The remotely derived roller length and an in situ estimate of wave slope are used to estimate dissipation due to wave breaking by means of the wave-resolving model by Duncan (1981). The wave energy dissipation rate estimates show a pattern of increased breaking during low tide over a sand bar, consistent with in situ turbulent kinetic energy dissipation rate estimates from fixed and drifting instruments over the bar. When integrated over the surf zone width, these dissipation rate estimates account for 40–69% of the incoming wave energy flux. The Duncan (1981) estimates agree with those from a dissipation parameterization by Janssen and Battjes (2007), a wave energy dissipation model commonly applied within nearshore circulation models.

Surf zone bathymetry and circulation predictions via data assimilation of remote sensing observations

Bathymetry is a major factor in determining nearshore and surf zone wave transformation and currents, yet is often poorly known. This can lead to inaccuracy in numerical model predictions. Here bathymetry is estimated as an uncertain parameter in a data assimilation system, using the ensemble Kalman filter (EnKF). The system is tested by assimilating several remote sensing data products, which were collected in September 2010 as part of a field experiment at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Field Research Facility (FRF) in Duck, NC. The results show that by assimilating remote sensing data alone, nearshore bathymetry can be estimated with good accuracy, and nearshore forecasts (e.g., the prediction of a rip current) can be improved. This suggests an application where a nearshore forecasting model could be implemented using only remote sensing data, without the explicit need for in situ data collection.

Frontogenesis and Frontal Progression of a Trapping-Generated Estuarine Convergence Front and Its Influence on Mixing and Stratification

Estuarine fronts are well known to influence transport of waterborne constituents such as phytoplankton and sediment, yet due to their ephemeral nature, capturing the physical driving mechanisms and their influence on stratification and mixing is difficult. We investigate a repetitive estuarine frontal feature in the Snohomish River Estuary that results from complex bathymetric shoal/channel interactions. In particular, we highlight a trapping mechanism by which mid-density water trapped over intertidal mudflats converges with dense water in the main channel forming a sharp front. The frontal density interface is maintained via convergent transverse circulation driven by the competition of lateral baroclinic and centrifugal forcing. The frontal presence and propagation give rise to spatial and temporal variations in stratification and vertical mixing. Importantly, this front leads to enhanced stratification and suppressed vertical mixing at the end of the large flood tide, in contrast to what is found in many estuarine systems. The observed mechanism fits within the broader context of frontogenesis mechanisms in which varying bathymetry drives lateral convergence and baroclinic forcing. We expect similar trapping-generated fronts may occur in a wide variety of estuaries with shoal/channel morphology and/or braided channels and will similarly influence stratification, mixing, and transport.

Thermal Infrared Multipath Reflection from Breaking Waves Observed at Large Incidence Angles

The infrared signature of breaking waves at large incidence angles was investigated using laboratory experiments and a radiometric model. Infrared imagery of the water surface at incidence angles greater than 70 ° shows multipath reflections for both spilling and plunging waves generated using a programmable wave maker. For the spilling breakers, the multipath signature was initially distinct from the breaking wave front roller signature but then merged to create a single large bright distributed target. For the plunging breakers, the roller and multipath signatures overlapped from the inception of breaking. The radiance of the multipath reflection was higher than the surrounding water for simulated cold sky conditions and lower for a simulated warm sky. A specular double-reflection model successfully predicted the presence of multipath reflection but the magnitude was sensitive to small uncertainties in geometry, wave slope, and input temperatures. The results show that multipath reflection from breaking waves is characteristic of large incidence angle infrared measurements and increases the area and magnitude of the infrared signature of breaking waves compared to the background.

High-Resolution Non-Hydrostatic Modeling of Frontal Features in the Mouth of the Columbia River

Airborne data measured during the recent RIVET II field experiment has revealed that horizontally distributed thermal fingers regularly occur at the Mouth of Columbia River (MCR) during strong ebb tidal flows. The high-resolution, non-hydrostatic coastal model, NHWAVE, predicts salinity anomalies on the water surface which are believed to be associated with the thermal fingers. Model results indicate that large amplitude recirculation are generated in the water column between an oblique internal hydraulic jump and the North Jetty. Simulation results indicate that the billows of higher density fluid have sufficiently large amplitudes to interrupt the water surface, causing the prominent features of stripes on the surface. The current field is modulated by the frontal structures, as indicated by the vorticity field calculated from both the numerical model and data measured by an interferometric synthetic aperture radar.

Remote Measurements of Tides and River Slope Using an Airborne Lidar Instrument

AbstractTides and river slope are fundamental characteristics of estuaries, but they are usually undersampled due to deficiencies in the spatial coverage of water level measurements. This study aims to address this issue by investigating the use of airborne lidar measurements to study tidal statistics and river slope in the Columbia River estuary. Eight plane transects over a 12-h period yield at least eight independent measurements of water level at 2.5-km increments over a 65-km stretch of the estuary. These data are fit to a sinusoidal curve and the results are compared to seven in situ gauges. In situ– and lidar-based tide curves agree to within a root-mean-square error of 0.21 m, and the lidar-based river slope estimate of 1.8 × 10−5 agrees well with the in situ–based estimate of 1.4 × 10−5 (4 mm km−1 difference). Lidar-based amplitude and phase estimates are within 10% and 8°, respectively, of their in situ counterparts throughout most of the estuary. Error analysis suggests that increased measureme...

Influence of Subsurface Stratification on Turbulence and Aeration in a Tidal River

Thermal infrared (IR) imagery is combined with in situ flow measurements to examine the impact of subsurface stratification on boil activity in the tidally influenced Snohomish River. Boils at the rivers surface are an expression of bottom-generated turbulence, appearing as a disruption of the cool-skin surface layer in the IR imagery. Boil activity has previously been linked to the amount of aeration occurring in river systems. A synthesis of data across an ebb tide showed that when a tidal salinity intrusion retreated, turbulent kinetic energy and dissipation rapidly increased by 700% and 575%, respectively. Additionally, the mean boil area fraction in the IR field of view increased by almost 500% across the entire ebb tide time series, with approximately half of this change occurring during the period when the stratification ceased. Using an empirical method for estimating aeration, the change in areal fraction associated with the loss of density stratification is predicted to generate a more than 300% increase in the air-water gas flux.

The infrared sensor suite for SnowEx 2017

SnowEx is a winter airborne and field campaign designed to measure snow-water equivalent in forested landscapes. A major focus of Year 1 (2016–17) of NASAs SnowEx campaign will be an extensive field program involving dozens of participants from U.S. government agencies and from many universities and institutions, both domestic and foreign. Along with other instruments, two infrared (IR) sensors will be flown on a Naval Research Laboratory P-3 aircraft. Surface temperature is a critical input to hydrologic models and will be measured during the SnowEx mission. A Quantum Well Infrared Photodetector (QWIP) IR imaging camera system will be flown along with a KT-15 remote thermometer to aid in the calibration of the IR image data. Together, these instruments will measure surface temperature of snow and ice targets to an expected accuracy of <1°C.

Lobe‐cleft instability in the buoyant gravity current generated by estuarine outflow

Gravity currents represent a broad class of geophysical flows including turbidity currents, powder avalanches, pyroclastic flows, sea breeze fronts, haboobs, and river plumes. A defining feature in many gravity currents is the formation of three-dimensional lobes and clefts along the front and researchers have sought to understand these ubiquitous geophysical structures for decades. The prevailing explanation is based largely on early laboratory and numerical model experiments at much smaller scales, which concluded that lobes and clefts are generated due to hydrostatic instability exclusively in currents propagating over a nonslip boundary. Recent studies suggest that frontal dynamics change as the flow scale increases, but no measurements have been made that sufficiently resolve the flow structure in full-scale geophysical flows. Here we use thermal infrared and acoustic imaging of a river plume to reveal the three-dimensional structure of lobes and clefts formed in a geophysical gravity current front. The observed lobes and clefts are generated at the front in the absence of a nonslip boundary, contradicting the prevailing explanation. The observed flow structure is consistent with an alternative formation mechanism, which predicts that the lobe scale is inherited from subsurface vortex structures.