They attract large-scale phenomena such as ocean currents, their attendant eddies and frictional boundary layers and upwelling filaments are driven from them. The NIWs of interest are large amplitude, short wavelength internal waves which are often found on continental shelves, within about 50 km of the break, propagating toward the coast in packets. Internal waves may significantly contribute to cross-shelf exchange. However, there appear to be no direct estimates of the contribution of NIWs to shelf-edge exchange through mass transport. It is possible that NIWs make an important contribution to mixing and exchange at the shelf edge but that, whilst they are relatively easy to measure, they are very difficult to model in general circulation models, requiring further work on the theoretical understanding of the waves.
Present work focuses on mass transport onto the shelf.
Estimation of mass transport by NIWs using nonlinear KdV type theory is developed and compared with observations. Given that, in general, most observations are made by in situ Eulerian instruments, the theory avoids terms involving the horizontal spatial derivative, which is not easy to measure in the sea. Resonant internal waves and their role in transport and accumulation of fine sediment in Eckernforde Bay, Baltic Sea. Ph.D. thesis, UCES, School of Ocean Sciences, University of Wales Bangor. Met mass transport by internal waves near the strait of Gibralter, Geophys.