Modelling river discharge and sediments fluxes at sub-daily time-step: Insight into the CRUE-SIM project devoted to Mediterranean coastal flash floods

The CRUE-SIM project (2014-2017) is an interdisciplinary project that brings together atmosphere physicists, hydrologists and oceanographers to study and model flash floods across the Mediterranean region : it integrates water and sediment transport as a consequence of intense rainfall, from the catchment to the sea. The objectives of the project are (1) the coupling between atmosphere, ocean and sea with continental hydrological and hydrodynamic models and (2) the integration of the feedbacks and the forcing continuity from one compartment to the other along the brief but intense events that will be studied. Considering the 1400 km² Têt Mediterranean river basin (southwestern France) as a case-study, two hydrological models will be used at different time and spatial scales: the low resolution SWAT model outputs will be used as the inputs of the high resolution MARINE model, both using rainfall forcing from the Meso-NH atmospheric model. The feedback of the storm surge on the downstream part of the basin will be considered thanks to the SYMPHONIE ocean model. We will quantify the fluxes, at a sub-daily time-step, of water and of suspended particulate matter transported during floods from the soil to the river and from the river to the sea. The CRUE-SIM project is one of the research lines of the SEDILION project funded by RTRA-STAE focused on the transport of dissolved and sorbed matter during flash floods

Assessment of the amount of Cesium-137 released into the Pacific Ocean after the Fukushima accident and analysis of its dispersion in Japanese coastal waters

International audienceNumerical modeling was used to provide a new estimate of the amount of 137Cs released directly into the ocean from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant (NPP) after the accident in March 2011 and to gain insights into the physical processes that led to its dispersion in the marine environment during the months following the accident. An inverse method was used to determine the time-dependent 137Cs input responsible for the concentrations observed at the NPP's two liquid discharge outlets. The method was then validated through comparisons of the simulated concentrations with concentrations measured in seawater at different points in the neighborhood of the plant. An underestimation was noticed for stations located 30 km offshore. The resulting bias in the release inventory was estimated. Finally, the maximum 137Cs activity released directly to the ocean was estimated to lie between 5.1 and 5.5 PBq (Peta Becquerel = 1015 Bq) but uncertainties remain on the amount of radionuclides released during the first few days after the accident. This estimate was compared to previous ones and differences were analyzed further. The temporal and spatial variations of the 137Cs concentration present in the coastal waters were shown to be strongly related to the wind intensity and direction. During the first month after the accident, winds blowing toward the south confined the radionuclides directly released into the ocean to a narrow coastal band. Afterwards, frequent northward wind events increased the dispersion over the whole continental shelf, leading to strongly reduced concentrations

Diversity, structure and spatial distribution of megabenthic communities in Cap de Creus continental shelf and submarine canyon (NW Mediterranean)

The continental shelf and submarine canyon off Cap de Creus (NW Mediterranean) were declared a Site of Community Importance (SCI) within the Natura 2000 Network in 2014. Implementing an effective management plan to preserve its biological diversity and monitor its evolution through time requires a detailed character ization of its benthic ecosystem. Based on 60 underwater video transects performed between 2007 and 2013 (before the declaration of the SCI), we thoroughly describe the composition and structure of the main mega benthic communities dwelling from the shelf down to 400 m depth inside the submarine canyon. We then mapped the spatial distribution of the benthic communities using the Random Forest algorithm, which incor porated geomorphological and oceanographic layers as predictors, as well as the intensity of the bottom-trawling fishing fleet. Although the study area has historically been exposed to commercial fishing practices, it still holds a rich benthic ecosystem with over 165 different invertebrate (morpho)species of the megafauna identified in the video footage, which form up to 9 distinct megabenthic communities. The continental shelf is home to coral gardens of the sea fan Eunicella cavolini, sea pen and soft coral assemblages, dense beds of the crinoid Leptometra phalangium, diverse sponge grounds and massive aggregations of the brittle star Ophiothrix fragilis. The submarine canyon off Cap de Creus is characterized by a cold-water coral community dominated by the scleractinian coral Madrepora oculata, found in association with several invertebrate species including oysters, brachiopods and a variety of sponge species, as well as by a community dominated by cerianthids and sea urchins, mostly in sedimentary areas. The benthic communities identified in the area were then compared with habitats/biocenoses described in reference habitat classification systems that consider circalittoral and bathyal environments of the Mediterranean. The complex environmental setting characteristic of the marine area off Cap de Creus likely produces the optimal conditions for communities dominated by suspension- and filter-feeding species to develop. The uniqueness of this ecosystem and the anthropogenic pressures that it faces should prompt the development of effective management actions to ensure the long-term conservation of the benthic fauna representative of this marine area3,26

Diversity, structure and spatial distribution of megabenthic communities in Cap de Creus continental shelf and submarine canyon (NW Mediterranean)

The continental shelf and submarine canyon off Cap de Creus (NW Mediterranean) were declared a Site of Community Importance (SCI) within the Natura 2000 Network in 2014. Implementing an effective management plan to preserve its biological diversity and monitor its evolution through time requires a detailed characterization of its benthic ecosystem. Based on 60 underwater video transects performed between 2007 and 2013 (before the declaration of the SCI), we thoroughly describe the composition and structure of the main megabenthic communities dwelling from the shelf down to 400 m depth inside the submarine canyon. We then mapped the spatial distribution of the benthic communities using the Random Forest algorithm, which incorporated geomorphological and oceanographic layers as predictors, as well as the intensity of the bottom-trawling fishing fleet. Although the study area has historically been exposed to commercial fishing practices, it still holds a rich benthic ecosystem with over 165 different invertebrate (morpho)species of the megafauna identified in the video footage, which form up to 9 distinct megabenthic communities. The continental shelf is home to coral gardens of the sea fan Eunicella cavolini, sea pen and soft coral assemblages, dense beds of the crinoid Leptometra phalangium, diverse sponge grounds and massive aggregations of the brittle star Ophiothrix fragilis. The submarine canyon off Cap de Creus is characterized by a cold-water coral community dominated by the scleractinian coral Madrepora oculata, found in association with several invertebrate species including oysters, brachiopods and a variety of sponge species, as well as by a community dominated by cerianthids and sea urchins, mostly in sedimentary areas. The benthic communities identified in the area were then compared with habitats/biocenoses described in reference habitat classification systems that consider circalittoral and bathyal environments of the Mediterranean. The complex environmental setting characteristic of the marine area off Cap de Creus likely produces the optimal conditions for communities dominated by suspension- and filter-feeding species to develop. The uniqueness of this ecosystem and the anthropogenic pressures that it faces should prompt the development of effective management actions to ensure the long-term conservation of the benthic fauna representative of this marine area

Dynamique océanique et transport de la matière particulaire dans le Golfe du Lion (crue, tempête et période hivernale)

TOULOUSE3-BU Sciences (315552104) / SudocTOULOUSE-Observ. Midi Pyréné (315552299) / SudocSudocFranceF

Low-order pressure gradient schemes in sigma coordinate models: The seamount test revisited

International audienceThis paper revisits the classic seamount test used in numerous previous studies to evidence the sigma errors of the pressure gradient force (PGF) and their long-term effects on circulation. Two kinds of analysis are developed. We first consider the initial PGF errors. Then, the global level of erroneous kinetic energy is computed along a 180-day simulation. The long-term circulation appears to be better correlated to the initial vorticity errors than to the initial error diagnostics. The original feature of this study is to reconsider the currently admitted idea that Density-Jacobian type PGFs perform better than the primitive sigma formulation discretized in a straightforward way (hereafter Straightforward-Primitive PGF). Errors on the discrete hydrostatic pressure are actually closely related to the way the density field is initialized. If a mass conserving method is preferred to a straightforward initialization, the rectangular integral of the Straightforward-Primitive PGF is likely to be more accurate than the trapezoidal rule usually involved in Density-Jacobian PGFs. Errors on the vorticity field of the Straightforward-Primitive PGF depend on the discretization of the hydrostatic correction term. A modified version of the Straightforward-Primitive PGF is shown to be in better agreement with the concept of bottom torque consistency. The seamount tests show that this so-called Modified-Primitive PGF performs globally better than the current low-order Density-Jacobian PGFs

3D phase-resolved wave modelling with a non-hydrostatic ocean circulation model

International audienceA phase-resolved wave model is derived from an ocean circulation model for the purpose of studying wave-current effects in nearshore zones. One challenge is to adapt the circulation model to the specificities of wave physics. This mainly concerns the consideration of nonhydrostatic effects and the parametrization of wave breaking. The non-hydrostatic pressure is calculated using the artificial compressibility method (ACM). The ACM-induced errors on wave dispersion properties are examined in detail in the context of the linear theory using idealized test cases. The possible compromise between the precision achieved on nonhydrostatic physics and the adjustable CPU cost of the ACM method is looked at in detail. The modification of the wave characteristics by the bathymetric slope and the breaking of waves are then examined from a linear slope beach laboratory experiment. Finally the model is evaluated on the issue of rip currents and their feedback on the wave field using a laboratory experiment of a beach with a bar intersected by channels

Aspects of the seasonal variability of the Northern Current (NW Mediterranean Sea) observed by altimetry

International audienceAltimetry has become a powerful tool to understand the dynamics of the deep-sea ocean circulation. Despite the technical problems encountered in the coastal zone by this observational technique, resulting in large data gaps in those areas, solutions already exist to mitigate this issue and to allow the retrieval of coastal information from existing altimetric data. Using some of these solutions, we have reprocessed a new set of 14.5 years of the TOPEX/Poseidon and Jason-1 satellite altimeter data over the Northwestern Mediterranean Sea, leading to a significant increase in the quantity of available data near coastlines. Time series of geostrophic surface velocity anomalies have been computed from the along-track altimeter sea level anomalies. In this paper, we evaluate the ability of these altimeter-derived currents to capture the main surface circulation features and the associated seasonal variability in the area of interest. In-situ ADCP current measurements are used to estimate the accuracy of altimeter geostrophic surface velocity anomalies at different locations on the shelf edge. The results indicate good qualitative altimeter performances at seasonal time scales, confirming that altimetry is reliable to observe synoptic variations of the Liguro-Provençal-Catalan Current System. The seasonal evolution of the shelf edge flow is then documented using results from satellite altimetry and from sea surface temperature (SST). The regional picture of the shelf edge circulation that emerges agrees fairly well with previous knowledge (the flow is much stronger during winter than during summer) but also reveals interesting aspects of the coastal current system: (1) the characteristics of the seasonal cycle observed appear highly consistent along the Northwestern Mediterranean shelf break, suggesting a continuous current from the Tyrrhenian to the Balearic Seas, (2) the relationship with the Balearic Current appears somewhat more complex and suggests that its evolution is controlled by another inflow contribution, at least in spring, (3) the seasonal variations of the shelf edge flow over a particular year can show large discrepancies with the averaged picture presented in this study, since large year to year differences are observed

The penetration of the northern current over the Gulf of Lion (western Mediterranean Sea) as a downscaling problem

Coastal shelf models suffer from the difficulty of specifying both the initial field and the external circulation at the open boundary. Only basin scale models can have the right space-time variability to routinely provide such information. Do facto, such models have however a coarser resolution than the coastal model and the downscaling of the circulation to the high resolution grid is biased. Indeed the models are not necessarily based on the same physics and the interactions of the general circulation with the topography, in particular over the shelf break region, arc generally not correctly represented on the large-scale grid. Studying the response of the Northern Current to the atmospheric forcing in the region of Marseille (France) and its interactions with the continental shelf break, we evaluate in this paper the spurious consequences at short and medium range that can result from a crude interpolation of basin scale model outputs to initialize and force along its open boundaries a high resolution coastal model. We show how an analysis of these fields based on a 3D variational initialization technique can improve the results

Modélisation des écosystèmes planctoniques pélagiques en Méditerranée nord-occidentale (impact des eaux du Rhône à l'échelle du plateau du golfe du Lion et variabilité interannuelle à décennale au large)

TOULOUSE3-BU Sciences (315552104) / SudocSudocFranceF