Definition
Tidal asymmetry is defined by the discrepancies in the duration of the falling and rising tides of water elevation. This duration asymmetry may be manifested as an inequality in flood/ebb tidal current magnitudes.
Description
Tidal asymmetry can produce two types of estuarine systems: flood dominant or ebb dominant. The system referred to as flood dominant occurs when the duration of the falling tide exceeds that of the rising tide leading to a larger peak flood current (Headquarters, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, 2002); when the duration of the falling tide is shorter than that of the rising tide, it leads to a stronger peak ebb current, and then the system is referred to as ebb dominant.
The sources behind the asymmetrical tides are the interactions of multiple tidal constituents (Boon and Byrne, 1981). Phase difference between constituents dictates the direction of asymmetry (i.e., flood or ebb dominance), while the ratio of constituent amplitudes reflects the degree of...
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Bibliography
Boon, J. D., and Byrne, R. J., 1981. On basin hypsometry and the morphodynamic response of coastal inlet systems. Marine Geology, 40(1–2), 27–48.
Friedrichs, C. T., and Aubrey, D. G., 1988. Non‐linear tidal distortion in shallow well‐mixed estuaries: a synthesis. Estuarine Coastal Shelf Science, 27(5), 521–545.
Headquarters, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, 2002. Tidal Velocity Asymmetry at Inlets. Washington, DC: ERDC/CHL CHETN-IV-47.
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© 2016 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht
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Cavalcante, G.H. (2016). Tidal Asymmetry. In: Kennish, M.J. (eds) Encyclopedia of Estuaries. Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-8801-4_183
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-8801-4_183
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