P. C. Sinha

The simulation of a continuously deforming lateral boundary in problems involving the shallow water equations

A finite-difference method is given for the treatment of a continuously deforming lateral fluid boundary in computer simulations of systems involving the shallow water equations. The technique is described in the context of a numerical storm surge model for the east coast of India. Using a forcing wind-stress distribution representative of the 1977 Andhra cyclone, a comparison is made between simulations using models both with and without inland intrusion of water along the coast of Andhra Pradesh.

Extreme Sea Levels Associated With Severe Tropical Cyclones Hitting Orissa Coast of India

Extreme sea levels associated with severe cyclonic storms are common occurrences along the east coast of India. The coastal districts of Orissa have experienced major surges in the past. The recent Paradip super cyclone is one of the most severe cyclones, causing extensive damage to property and loss of lives. Extreme sea levels are major causes for coastal flooding in this region. Damages can be minimized if the extreme sea levels are forecast well in advance. In the present study, we develop a location specific, fine resolution model for the Orissa coast on the lines similar to that of IIT-D storm surge model (Dube et al. 1994). The model runs on a personal computer. The bathymetry for the model is extracted from very fine resolution naval hydrographic charts for the region extending from the south of Orissa to south of West Bengal. A simple drying scheme has also been included in the model in order to avoid the exposure of land near the coast due to strong negative sea surface elevations. An attempt was made in this study to simulate extreme sea levels along the Orissa coast using the data of past severe cyclones. The model results reported in the present study are in good agreement with available observations or estimates.Extreme sea levels associated with severe cyclonic storms are common occurrences along the east coast of India. The coastal districts of Orissa have experienced major surges in the past. The recent Paradip super cyclone is one of the most severe cyclones, causing extensive damage to property and loss of lives. Extreme sea levels are major causes for coastal flooding in this region. Damages can be minimized if the extreme sea levels are forecast well in advance. In the present study, we develop a location specific, fine resolution model for the Orissa coast on the lines similar to that of IIT-D storm surge model (Dube et al. 1994). The model runs on a personal computer. The bathymetry for the model is extracted from very fine resolution naval hydrographic charts for the region extending from the south of Orissa to south of West Bengal. A simple drying scheme has also been included in the model in order to avoid the exposure of land near the coast due to strong negative sea surface elevations. An attempt wa...

Sea Levels and Coastal Inundation Due to Tropical Cyclones in Indian Coastal Regions of Andhra and Orissa

Coastal inundation associated with extreme sea levels is the main factor which leads to the loss of life and property whenever a severe tropical cyclonic storm hits the Indian coasts. The Andhra and Orissa coasts are most vulnerable for coastal inundation due to extreme rise in sea levels associated with tropical cyclones. Loss of life may be minimized if extreme sea levels and associated coastal flooding is predicted well in advance. Keeping this in view, location specific coastal inundation models are developed and applied for the Andhra and Orissa coasts of India. Several numerical experiments are carried out using the data of past severe cyclones that struck these regions. The simulated inland inundation distances are found to be in general agreement with the reported flooding.Coastal inundation associated with extreme sea levels is the main factor which leads to the loss of life and property whenever a severe tropical cyclonic storm hits the Indian coasts. The Andhra and Orissa coasts are most vulnerable for coastal inundation due to extreme rise in sea levels associated with tropical cyclones. Loss of life may be minimized if extreme sea levels and associated coastal flooding is predicted well in advance. Keeping this in view, location specific coastal inundation models are developed and applied for the Andhra and Orissa coasts of India. Several numerical experiments are carried out using the data of past severe cyclones that struck these regions. The simulated inland inundation distances are found to be in general agreement with the reported flooding.

On the effect of bathymetry in numerical storm surge simulation experiments

Abstract A numerical model is described for the simulation of storm surges which uses a non-uniform off-shore grid-spacing adjacent to coastal boundaries. This permits an increased resolution near the coast in the models described in[1,2]. Using data on the 1977 Andhra cyclone, which struck the east coast of India, it is shown that the near-coastal bathymetry is critical in determining the coastal surge-induced sea-surface elevation. It is also shown that the coastal surge response is effectively independent of the depth of water in the deepest regions of the analysis area. Conclusions are drawn concerning the selection of an optimum resolution in the numerical scheme together with the proper representation of the bathymetry.

Numerical Simulation of Extreme Sea Levels Using Location Specific High Resolution Model for Gujarat Coast of India

Although the frequency of tropical cyclones is less in the Arabian sea compared to that of the Bay of Bengal, there are several severe tropical cyclones which caused extensive damage along the Gujarat coast. In view of the high tidal range in the funnel-shaped gulfs of the Khambhat and the Kachch, it is very useful to study the surge response in these regions. There is always a possibility of abnormal rise of sea level when the occurrence of surge coincides with high tide, which may eventually cause inundation of vast stretches of shallow coastal areas. In view of this, a location specific fine resolution model is developed for the Gujarat coast. The east-west and north-south grid distances for the model are 5.1 km and 5.2 km, respectively. Several numerical experiments are carried out to compute the extreme sea levels using the wind stress forcings representative of 1982, 1996, and 1998 cyclones, which crossed this region. The model-computed extreme sea levels are in good agreement with the available observations.Although the frequency of tropical cyclones is less in the Arabian sea compared to that of the Bay of Bengal, there are several severe tropical cyclones which caused extensive damage along the Gujarat coast. In view of the high tidal range in the funnel-shaped gulfs of the Khambhat and the Kachch, it is very useful to study the surge response in these regions. There is always a possibility of abnormal rise of sea level when the occurrence of surge coincides with high tide, which may eventually cause inundation of vast stretches of shallow coastal areas. In view of this, a location specific fine resolution model is developed for the Gujarat coast. The east-west and north-south grid distances for the model are 5.1 km and 5.2 km, respectively. Several numerical experiments are carried out to compute the extreme sea levels using the wind stress forcings representative of 1982, 1996, and 1998 cyclones, which crossed this region. The model-computed extreme sea levels are in good agreement with the available obs...

Modeling of circulation and salinity in Hooghly estuary

The circulation and salinity distribution in the Hooghly Estuary have been studied by developing a two‐dimensional depth‐averaged numerical model for the lower estuary, where the flow is vertically well mixed. This has been coupled with a one‐dimensional model for the upper estuary, where the flow is assumed to be unidirectional and well mixed over the depth and breadth. The Hooghly River receives high freshwater discharge during the monsoon season (June to September), which has significant effect on the salinity distribution in the estuary. The model‐simulated currents, elevations, and salinities are in good agreement with observations during the dry season. However, during the wet season the computed salinities seem to deviate slightly from the observed values.

Numerical Simulation of Extreme Sea Levels for the Tamil Nadu (India) and Sri Lankan Coasts

Numerical modeling of extreme sea levels associated with tropical cyclones in the Indian seas has been confined to the northern part of the Bay of Bengal (north of Tamil Nadu). However, limited attempts have been made for modeling of surges along the Tamil Nadu and Sri Lankan coasts. Although, very rarely, cyclones form south of 10°N, there are some instances of severe cyclonic storms hitting these areas and causing widespread destruction to life and property. Keeping this in view, a suitable location-specific, high-resolution, numerical model has been developed for the prediction of storm surges in these regions with a grid resolution of 3 km. Using the model, numerical experiments are performed to simulate the storm surge associated with the 1964 Rameswaram cyclone, the 1978 Batticaloa cyclone, the 1992 Tuticorin cyclone, the 1993 Karaikal cyclone, and the 1994 Madras cyclone. During the years 1964, 1978, and 1992, the cyclones struck both Sri Lanka and Tamil Nadu coasts, while in 1993 and 1994, the cyclones struck only the Tamil Nadu coast. It is found that the computed sea surface elevations are in close agreement with the available observations/estimates.

An observational perspective on tropical cyclone activity over Indian seas in a warming environment

The genesis of tropical cyclones (TCs) over Indian seas comprising of Bay of Bengal (BoB) and Arabian Sea (AS) is highly seasonal with primary maximum in postmonsoon season (mid-September to December) and secondary maximum during premonsoon season (April and May). The present study is focused to demonstrate changes in genesis and intensity of TCs over Indian seas in warming environment. For this purpose, observational data of TCs, obtained from the India Meteorological Department (IMD), are analyzed. The sea surface temperature (SST), surface wind speed, and potential evaporation factor (PEF), obtained from the International Comprehensive Ocean Atmosphere Data Set (ICOADS), are also analyzed to examine the possible linkage with variations in TC activities over Indian seas. The study period has been divided into two epochs: past cooling period (PCP, period up to 1950) and current warming period (CWP, period after 1950) based on SST anomaly (became positive from 1950) over the BoB and AS. The study reveals that the number of severe cyclones (SCS) increases significantly (statistically significant at 99% confidence level) by about 41% during CWP though no such significant change is observed in cyclonic disturbances (CDs) and cyclones (CS) over Indian seas. It is also observed that the rate of dissipation of CS and SCS over Indian seas has been decreasing considerably by about 63 and 71%, respectively, during CWP. The analysis shows that the BoB contributes about 75% in each category of TCs and remaining 25% by the AS towards total of Indian seas. A detailed examination on genesis and intensity of TC over both the basins and the seasons illustrates that significant enhancement of SCS by about 65% during CWP is confined to the postmonsoon season of the BoB. Further, the BoB is sub-divided into northern, central, and southern sectors and the AS into western and eastern sectors based on genesis of TCs and SST gradient. Results show that in postmonsoon season during CWP, the number of SCS increases significantly by about 71% in southern BoB and 300% over western AS.

A Breadth-Averaged Model for Tidal Circulation and Sediment Transport in the Gulf of Khambhat, West Coast of India

Abstract A multilevel breadth-averaged numerical model has been developed and applied it to the Gulf of Khambhat to study the tidal circulation, salinity, and suspended sediment transport. The model is fully nonlinear and uses a semiexplicit finite difference scheme to solve mass, momentum, and advection diffusion equations in a vertical plane. A turbulent kinetic-energy scheme is used to parameterize the vertical transfer of momentum, salinity, and suspended sediments. The model is forced by prescribing the tidal elevations along the open boundary of the analysis region. The tide in the gulf is mainly represented in the model by the semidiurnal M2 constituent. A freshwater discharge from the landward end is also considered for this study. The erosion and deposition are computed by empirically developed source and sink terms in the suspended sediment equation. Numerical experiments were carried out to simulate the tidal circulation, salinity intrusion, and suspended sediment transport in the gulf region. The computed M2 tide and salinity at two different sets of coastal stations were validated with the available observations.

Numerical Modeling of Suspended Sediment Transport in the Gulf of Kachchh Including Kandla Creek, West Coast of India

A depth-averaged numerical model has been developed to study tidal circulation and suspended sediment transport in the Gulf of Kachchh including Kandla creek, west coast of India. The resolution of the model is taken as 750 m × 750 m, which is found to be adequate for the gulf region. However, this resolution could not produce the realistic circulation pattern and suspended sediment concentration in the Kandla creek region. There is a major seaport at Kandla which serves as the sea gate to northwest India. Therefore, a 2-D fine resolution (75 m × 75 m) model for Kandla creek has been developed and coupled with the coarser gulf model to compute the flow features in the creek region. The model dynamics and basic formulation remain the same for both the gulf model and the creek model. The models are barotropic, based on shallow water equations, and neglect horizontal diffusion and wind stress terms in the momentum equations. The models are fully nonlinear and use a semiexplicit finite difference scheme to solve mass, momentum, and advection-diffusion equations in a horizontal plane. The tide in the gulf is represented in the model by the semidiurnal M2 constituent mainly. In this study, no fresh water discharge conditions have been considered so the results are appropriate for the dry season. Numerical experiments are carried out to study the circulation and suspended sediment concentrations in the gulf and the creek regions. The computed results are validated with the available observations.