Assessment and development of a sediment model within an operational system

Abstract

[1] The Medium Resolution Continental Shelf (MRCS) modeling system is a coupled hydrodynamic plus sediment (POLCOMS) and ecosystem (ERSEM) model covering the UK shelf region. It is run operationally at the Met Office providing daily analyses and 5-day forecasts for a variety of fields. The output of the sediment model within the MRCS system has been assessed against CEFAS SmartBuoy turbidity data and satellite-retrieved surface sediment concentration for the period 2008 to 2009. The results of the assessment showed poor variability throughout the year highlighted by low correlations and large differences in standard deviations between the model and observations. In light of these results, the sediment model parameterizations for the mechanisms of erosion, deposition and settling were modified and the model was further developed by incorporating an aggregation/disaggregation scheme. The initialization method was also reviewed and updated. Assessment of this collection of developments showed significant improvements in variability as well as improvements in the quantitative match to the observations. Improvements were seen in correlations, mean values, standard deviations and percent differences throughout the assessment period. As a result of sensitivity studies it was found that each of the model developments had different impacts on improving the model predictions. All the model developments had a quantitative impact on the predicted surface sediment concentration with the aggregation acting to constrain the increase in sediment brought about by the erosion and settling. The changes in erosion and settling predominantly accounted for the improvement in correlation between the model and satellite observations. Citation: Sykes, P. A., and R. M. Barciela (2012), Assessment and development of a sediment model within an operational system,

Observing and modelling phytoplankton community structure in the North Sea

“…NEMO-ERSEM uses the two-size class SPM model described by Sykes and Barciela (2012). This was implemented by Sykes and Barciela (2012) in the POLCOMS (Proudman Oceanographic Laboratory Coastal Ocean Modelling System; Holt and James, 2001;Holt et al, 2005) physical framework, in which it gave skilful results compared with observations. However, the model has not yet received the same degree of tuning and development since being implemented in NEMO-ERSEM, which may explain the consistent underestimation of SPM found in this study.…”

“…Photoinhibition is included as an additional parameterization in the photoacclimation method. SPM is simulated as per Sykes and Barciela (2012).…”

River runoff effect on the suspended sediment property in the upper Chesapeake Bay using MODIS observations and ROMS simulations

“…Therefore, the ROMS sediment model [ Haidvogel et al ., ; Marchesiello et al ., ; Shchepetkin and McWilliams , ; Warner et al ., ] is used to simulate the high discharge event, so that the detailed interaction of the river discharge with the tidal effect on the TSS variation can be studied. There were some previous studies that combined hydrological modeling and remote sensing of sediment in the Baltic Sea [ Seifert et al ., ], Irish Sea [ Amoudry et al ., ; Bowers et al ., ; Ellis et al ., ; Krivtsov et al ., ; Souza et al ., ], and North Sea [ Dobrynin et al ., ; Fettweis et al ., ; Holt and James , ; Stanev et al ., ; Sykes and Barciela , ]. Sykes and Barciela [] assessed the output of the operational sediment model of the UK Met Office against satellite‐retrieved surface sediment concentration and significantly improved the model prediction.…”

Validation of the NEMO-ERSEM operational ecosystem model for the North West European Continental Shelf

“…It consists of two user-defined sediment size classes described by characteristic settling velocities. Recently, the sediment size classes, settling velocities and critical erosion/deposition rates have been updated and equations to represent the sedimentary process of aggregation and disaggregation have been added (Sykes and Barciela, 2012).…”