Depth-dependent overtides from internal tide reflection in a glacial fjord

Abstract

Observations of current velocity profiles and hydrography over and near a tall sill in a Chilean glacial fjord are used to illustrate the interactions between barotropic and baroclinic tides. The character of the barotropic tide in the glacial fjord is mixed with semidiurnal dominance. The ratio of sill height to water column depth at the study site is ca. 0.95. Water column stratification appeared only in the upper 5 m of the water column. Current velocity variations in the stratified surface layer were quite different to those underneath. Below the pycnocline, nonlinear interactions between semidiurnal M₂ and diurnal K₁ oscillations yielded a third-diurnal distortion MK₃. Most interesting, surface layer currents were distortedby the superposition of semidiurnal M₂ and sixthdiurnal M₆ oscillations. The oscillations with M₆ variability were identified, through wave superposition approaches, as reflected internal tides linked to M₂ tidal variations. This was confirmed by theoretical results of stratified barotropic tidal flows interacting with abrupt bathymetry. Under the predominantly tidally mixed regime of the study area, the distortion to surface currents caused by the reflected wave was nearly symmetric during the large tidal ranges of the diurnal cycle. Nearly symmetric distortions resulted as the phase lag between incident and reflected wave-inducted currents was small (reflected currents developing a few minutes after maximum tidal flows). During the small ranges of the diurnal cycle, distortions were asymmetrical because of the relatively larger phase lags of the reflected signal (reflected currents developing tens of minutes after maximum tidal flows).