Master’s Thesis in Physical Oceanography
Stratification and circulation in Sognefjorden
0 1 2 3 4
0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 450 500
S N
Distance (km)
Depth (m)
U
0 2 4
S V N
Distance (km)
−0.2
−0.15
−0.1
−0.05 0 0.05 0.1 0.15 0.2
Sturla Winger Svendsen
Geophysical Institute, University of Bergen May, 2006
S S
S
E S E
E I TA
I I
B R
R
G N N U
V
UNIVERSITY OF BERGEN GEOPHYSICAL INSTITUTE
Acknowledgements
Many, many times I’ve been asked what I’m doing in life. Well, maybe it wasn’t that many times, but quite a few times, at least 20 or 15. Or maybe more like 5 times. Anyway, I tell that I’m studying oceanography. In most cases the person asking goesoceanowhat? For a while I tried to explain it by saying that I’m studying the ocean, which would in most often generates this responseOh, so you’re studying fishes and stuff like that? I’ve have also tried to say that I’m studying climate, but then I’m usually asked about when the new ice age will come, or how many times I have seen The Day After Tomorrow. Sometimes I have even told people that I study mathematics, but then I just get these strange looks and the question Isn’t that boring? At one occasion I decided to try something new. Q: What are you studying? A:Oceanography. Q:Then what will you do when you have finished your studies? A: I’ll be an oceanographer. Q:Yeah, but what does an oceanowhatever do? A: An oceanographer makes oceanographics, off course. However, this seemed to offend the person asking the questions, and the conversation ended.
There have been one occasion when this ’so, what are you doing’-conversation baffled me a little. I met an old acquaintance from way back in the days and the same old conversation starts up. How are you and all those things, fol- lowed by the question ’So, what are you doing these days?’. And I, being sick of trying to explain what oceanography is, reply that I’m writing my master thesis about Sognefjorden. I’m expecting some of the same old answers, but instead he asks me if I’m studying oceanography. I was stunned, until he told me that he worked at the IMR. The conclusion must be that oceanography is a brilliant conversation killer, unless you’re amongst your own kind. I bet that if I for some reason end up working with something completely different, and no longer call myself an oceanographer, I will come up with this superb way of making people understand what oceanography is all about. To be honest, I’m quite tired by this whole university business. You know, I never wanted to be an student. I always wanted to be... a lumberjack.
Thanks to supervisor Tor Gammelsrød for supervising, to Harald Svendsen and Lars Asplin for all input regarding fjords, to all people at UNIS for an unforgettable year, to the old folks(mum and Arthur, dad and AK, in randomly generated order) for all the free dinners, additional thanks to the old man for comments and discussions. Last, but not least, thanks to Hanna for listening to my endless whining and for keeping my spirits up.
To anyone who feel they should have been included in this acknowledg- ment, but has been left out, I can assure that this has probably most certainly been done on some kind of purpose, for some reason I at the moment can’t quite recall.
Abstract
The winter time stratification and circulation above sill depth in Sognefjor- den is studied from CTD and ADCP data from February 2002-2004. The year to year variability in distribution of temperature and salinity has been related to variations in Sognesjøen and offshore wind field, although the exact rela- tionship is unknown. The circulation in the fjord is correlated with the vertical distribution of temperature and salinity. The variability in flow structure fol- lows the variability in the vertical distributions. In 2004 there is a four layered circulation, while in 2002 there is a three layered circulation.
Both circulation and stratification show cross fjord variations, which most likely is due to rotational effects. The fjord is found to be wider than the baroclinic Rossby radius. From the cross fjord variations of the stratification, geostrophic flow has been calculated. The geostrophic flow is divided in simi- lar layers of inflow and outflow as the flow measured by ADCP, although the magnitudes are different.
Sognefjorden is statically stable, but velocity shear may induce turbulence where the stratification is weak.
Contents
1 Introduction 1
2 Sognefjorden 3
2.1 Geography . . . 3
2.2 Fjord features . . . 4
3 Data and methods 7 4 Results 9 4.1 General results . . . 9
4.2 Stratification above sill depth . . . 10
4.3 Individual profiles . . . 14
4.4 ADCP sections . . . 14
5 Discussion 22 5.1 Stability . . . 22
5.2 Temperature and salinity variability . . . 24
5.2.1 River runoff . . . 24
5.2.2 Sea ice . . . 28
5.2.3 Offshore windfield . . . 28
5.2.4 Variability in Sognesjøen . . . 30
5.3 Circulation . . . 30
5.3.1 Flow structure related to stratification . . . 30
5.3.2 Vertical distributions in Sognesjøen . . . 34
5.4 Cross fjord variations . . . 36
5.5 Sognesjøen . . . 41
5.5.1 Short-time variability . . . 41
5.5.2 Sill flow . . . 42
5.6 Short term variability . . . 45
5.7 Fjærlandsfjorden . . . 46
6 Conclusion 52
Chapter 1
Introduction
The nature of fjords have made them attracting since the early days of oceanog- raphy. Water mass exchange only occur at mouth of the fjord, and the sources of fresh water are typically rivers at the head of the fjord. The fjord mouth and the rivers are fairly easy to monitor. With knowledge of input and output to fjord, it is relatively easy to study the different the processes inside a fjord com- pared to the open ocean. When the variability at the boundaries are known, the effect of these variabilities on the fjord can be studied as well.
The Scandinavian fjords were the subjects of the earliest fjord investiga- tions, and the focuse was on the brakish outflow in the surface and the deeper compensation flow. Ekman(1875) and Helland-Hansen(1906) were some of those who first turned their attention to the fjords. Later efforts were made to make theoretical descriptions of fjord circulation(e.g. Stommel and Farmer, 1952).
Another approach to the fjords was initiated by Tully(1949), who started to investigate the influence of human activity in estuaries. Gade(1970) used this approach in his survey of Oslofjorden. Svendsen(1977) investigated a Nor- wegian fjord system to study the consequences of river regulation for hydro power purposes.
In the seventies the first models of fjord circulation appeared( Long, 1975, Gade and Svendsen, 1977). These models focused on the estuarine circula- tion, and computed the thickness and salinity of the brackish along the fjord axis. Since then numerical ocean models have been widely used in fjord re- search(e.g. Eliassen et al, 2001).
In the eigthies there were several reviews of the current knowledge of fjord processes, one of the most important work from this decade was done by Farmer and Freeland(1982)1.
In more recent time, the Arctic fjords of Svalbard have been subject for many investigations(e.g. Svendsen, 2002). The interest in these fjords are trig-
1Some of the historical references are obtained from Farmer and Freeland(1982)
1
2 CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION
gered by the concern of global warming.
The biological production in fjords has also been investigated. Aure and Stigebrandt(1989) studied the impact of fish farming on fjords, while Asplin(2004) has been studying the spreading of salmon lice in fjords. There has also been studies on how to increase the biological production in fjords by artificial up- welling(e.g. Aure et al, 2000 and Berntsen et al, 2002).
Despite all the efforts put into investigations of fjords, there are few publi- cations describing Sognefjorden. The master degree thesis of Hermansen(1974) and a technical report(Gade, 1971) seems to be the highlights. Although the main features and driving forces in fjords are well known, it is far from trivial to make an accurate description of physical oceanography of fjords. Increased understanding of processes in semi-closed environments such as fjords could contribute to a better understanding of processes outside fjords as well, and ultimately be of use for new parameterizations for modeling purposes.
This paper is based upon three sets of data from Sognefjorden. The data sets origins from field courses for students at the Geophysical Institute, Uni- versity of Bergen. The purpose of these field courses is typically to give the students an introduction to oceanographic field work, and the data sets is the result of rather random investigations. Thus the data has been gathered with- out any clear purpose, other than to get a general overview of Sognefjorden.
This paper attempts to describe the the stratification and circulation above sill depth in Sognefjorden. The data available was gathered in February 2002- 2004, and it is thus the winter time conditions which are discussed. The most important data gathered are temperature and salinity from CTD, and current profiles from ADCP. The first objective is to compare the stratification and the current profiles to see if these are related. Next objective is to find any mech- anisms causing any year-to-year variability in both stratification and circula- tion. This is done by studying offshore wind fields, flow at the bottom of the sill and variations in the coastal waters. As meteorological data from Sogne- fjorden is sparse, one fjord arm where there is a meteorological station located in the inner parts is studied to look for impact of atmospheric forcing. The effect of atmospheric forcing is also studied by looking at the short time varia- tion in the fjord.
Various calculations are also important. Both static stability and shear sta- bility is computed for some locations in the fjord for all three years, and in 2003 geostrophic flow will be studied.
In Chapter 2 there is a general description of Sognefjorden and descriptions of circulation and stratification of fjords in general. Chapter 3 is a description of data and the methods used for obtaining them. In Chapter 4 the various results are presented, and the discussions are found in Chapter 5.
Chapter 2
Sognefjorden
2.1 Geography
4oE 5oE 6oE 7oE 8oE
30’
45’
61oN
15’
30’
Bergen
Årdal
Lærdal Fjærland
Sogndal
Skjolden
Aurland Høyanger
Ytterøyane
Lusterfj
Årdalsfj.
Fjærlandsfj.
Sill
Figure 2.1: Overview map of Sognefjorden
Sognefjorden is the longest and deepest fjord in Norway, and is located on the west coast, see Fig.2.1. The greatest depth, 1308 meters, is found in main fjord just west of Høyanger. The distance from the sill to Skjolden, which is usually considered to be the head of the fjord, is about 175 km. In this paper the head of the fjord is chosen to be ˚Ardal. Usually ˚Ardalsfjorden is regarded as fjord arm, but choice is made because the data coverage of Lusterfjorden is
3
4 CHAPTER 2. SOGNEFJORDEN
insufficient for a study of the year to year variability.
The only sill in Sognefjorden is at the mouth of the fjord, and the sill depth is 165 meters. The details of the topography of the sill are not well known. The sill prevents free circulation for water masses below sill depth.
West of the sill is an area called Sognesjøen, which is sheltered by islands both in north and south. Sognesjøen is not sheltered by any sill and is in direct communication the open ocean.
Several of the rivers which ends up in Sognefjorden are regulated due to production of hydro electricity. The effect of the regulation is that the fresh wa- ter discharge is spread more even throughout the year. If the rivers were not regulated, the fresh water discharge would exhibit a very seasonal variability, with 92% of the discharge from May to October (Gade, 1971). The rivers typi- cally enters a fjord at the head. However, in Sognefjorden rivers may also enter the heads of the many fjord arms.
Most of Sognefjorden is flanked by steep mountains, especially in the inner parts. Due to the steep mountains, the wind direction is typically upfjord or downfjord.
The outer part of the fjord experiences a mild coastal climate, while the innermost part is dominated by inland climate. In the innermost parts of the fjord ice covers might be present for weeks in cold winters( Den norske los, 2001).
2.2 Fjord features
Water masses Fjords with some sort of sill at the mouth are usually assumed to contain three different water masses; brakish/estuarine water, intermediate water and basin water. The brackish water is a mixture of fresh water from river discharge and the intermediate water. The salinity of the brackish is low, but the variability through the year is large(Hermansen, 1974). This is due to the seasonality in the the runoff. In wintertime the runoff is relatively low, and salinity of the brakish water is quite high. In this paper water with salinity less than 32.5 psu is assumed to be brackish water.
The intermediate water is found between the brackish water and sill depth.
The intermediate water is coastal water. Because the intermediate water is found above sill depth, there is no obstacles for the circulation in this layer and it is generally well ventilated.
The basin water is found below sill depth. Basin water is the densest wa- ter in the fjord, and in order for this water to be replaced, water with greater density must cross the sill. In general replacement of basin water does not happen very often, and the basin water may become stagnant. Due to vertical mixing, the basin water gradually becomes less dense, increasing the possi- bility for replacement. In Sognefjorden replacement of the basin water occurs
2.2. FJORD FEATURES 5
Figure 2.2: Schematic view of the estuarine circulation approximately every8thyear(Hermansen, 1974).
Estuarine circulation The brackish water is part of what is known as the es- tuarine circulation. The brackish water is a result of the mixing fresh water and the intermediate water near river mouths. Due to the input of water to the fjords from rivers, the surface is raised from the geopotential level. This gives a barotropic pressure gradient, driving the brackish water downfjord.
The slope of the surface elevation due to the river discharge is typically 1 cm per 10 km (Farmer and Freeland, 1983). Due to the low salinity of the brack- ish water, there is a strong density gradient between the brackish water and the intermediate water. This density gradient is known as the pycnocline. If mixing due to wind and tides are small, there will be limited mixing across the pycnocline (Ellison and Turner, 1959). Still, there will be a small amount of mixing due to entrainment. Entrainment is a one way process which trans- ports mass from a less turbulent medium into a more turbulent one (Kundu, 2004). Due to the entrainment the salinity of the brackish water increases to- wards the mouth of the fjord. The amount brackish water increases as well, and the downfjord transport in the brackish layer can be between 5 to 10 times as large as the freshwater input to the fjord (AMAP,1998). Thus there is a con- siderable amount of fjord water which is transported out the fjord. This water has to be replaced, and there exists an upfjord flow just beneath the brackish
6 CHAPTER 2. SOGNEFJORDEN
layer. This is the idealized situation, shown in Fig.2.2.
Wind driven circulation Both local and offshore wind field influences the fjord circulation. Svendsen(1981) found that the mean surface flow in the fjord is mainly wind driven. The offshore wind field generates upwelling and downwelling events along the coast. The upwelling and downwelling are caused by Ekman transports due to winds along the coast. Wind towards south gives upwelling while wind towards north gives downwelling. Sætre et al(1987) found that upwelling on the west coast of Norway occurs within 2-5 days after the onset of winds towards south. They further report that such an upwelling causes strong downfjord flow in the upper layer in the larger fjords. The offshore wind field causes fluctuations in the offshore ocean pres- sure field(Aure, 1996). Changes in the pressure field will alter the cirulation in a fjord.
Chapter 3
Data and methods
Data presented in this paper was gathered during surveys in Sognefjorden.
In 2002 the survey was performed in the beginning of February(2nd -8th), in 2003 in the beginning of February as well(5th -11th), while in 2004 in the end of February(22nd -27th). The surveys were conducted by students during the field course taught at the Geophysical Institute at the University of Bergen.
The results from the each year has been described and discussed in reports by the participants of the field course (Field course report, 2002, Field course report, 2003, Field course report, 2004). These reports are available from the Geophysical Institute in Bergen. For details on the instruments in use and calibration of these instruments, the reader is referred to these reports.
Naming conventions The following convention is used to describe the fjord.
The fjord mouth is the intersection between the fjord and coastal waters. The sill is found at or close to the mouth. The head of the fjord is the innermost part of the fjord, furthest away from the open ocean. If wind or flow is said to be in downfjord direction, the direction of motion is toward the mouth of the fjord. If motion is upfjord, the direction of motion is toward the head of the fjord.
The shores of the fjord will be referred to as the northern and the southern side. When looking downfjord, the left hand side will be the southern side and the right hand side will be the northern side.
CTD CTD profiles were obtained with a Seabird Electronic Inc. SBE911plus sonde. The CTD were equipped with conductivity, temperature and pressure sensors. The measurements were processed by various versions of the SEA- SOFT data package by Seabird Electronic, which provided filters, averaging of the data and calculation of the salinity.
Water samples were obtained for calibration of the conductivity sensor. The water samples were analyzed with a Guideline Portasal Salinometer. In 2003
7
8 CHAPTER 3. DATA AND METHODS
and 2004 the conductivity sensors were calibrated a few months prior to the surveys, and no adjustment of the salinity values proved necessary. There are some confusion about the calibration from the 2002 survey. The cruise report from 2002 only states that water samples has been obtained for calibration purposes, but no values are mentioned. The files containing the conductivity and salinity from the water samples exists, but the files do not tell at which station the water samples were obtained. All files relating the water sample bottles to CTD stations are missing, and it is thus not possible to calculate any correction factor. However, small variations in salinity distributions are not an important issue in this report, and the data from 2002 will be assumed to have a sufficient accuracy for the purpose of this report.
ADCP An ADCP(Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler) was used to measure the flow at different depths. The ADCP in use was a vessel-mounted narrow- band ADCP(RD Instruments) on board R/V H˚akon Mosby.
The recordings are averaged over depth and time. The vertical axis has been divided into 8 meters thick cells and the center of the uppermost cell is at 16 meters. Flow above 12 meters depth is not resolved. The temporal averaging time is about 1 minute.
A vessel-mounted ADCP measures flow relative to the ship. On R/V H˚akon Mosby the ADCP is connected with the navigational system of the ship. When the movement of the ship is known, the absolute flow can be obtained.
RCM A recording current meter from Aanderaa Instruments, a RCM7, was deployed at the sill in February 2004 and retrieved in May. The deployment depth was approximately 150 meters. The pressure sensor was not function- ing, nor was the conductivity sensor. The RCM7 measures flow speed with a rotor, and direction with a vane. For speeds lower than 5 cm/s, the measure- ments of flow direction are not reliable (pers.com. Lars Asplin).
Chapter 4 Results
4.1 General results
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160
0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
Kilometer
Pressure (dbar)
5.5
6 6 6 6 6
6.5 6.5 6.5 6.5
7 7 7 7
7.5
7.5 7.5 7.5
7.5 7.5 7.5 7.5
8 8 8
8 8 8 8 8
8.5
8.5 8.5 8.5
8.5 9
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 Station number
In situ temperature (deg C), section1
(a) Temperature(◦C)
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160
0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
Kilometer
Pressure (dbar)
30 30
32 32 32 31 32
33 33 33 33
34 34 34 34
35 35 35
35
35
35
35
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 Station number
Salinity (psu), section1
(b) Salinity (psu)
Figure 4.1: Temperature and salinity distribution in Sognefjorden, February 2002
Fig.4.1 show the temperature and salinity distribution in Sognefjorden in 9
10 CHAPTER 4. RESULTS
February 2002 in the entire fjord. The density is mainly controlled by the salin- ity, and will not be discussed. Positions of all stations are shown in Fig.4.2a.
The two outermost stations, st. 2 and st. 3, are located outside the sill.
Close to the sill, at st. 4, the thermocline is found between 50 and 100 meters depth. Towards the head of the fjord the depth of the thermocline decreases, and the upper 30 meters becomes more stratified. The coldest water is found near the head of the fjord. Below the thermocline there is a layer of warm water. In the outer parts of the fjord, the temperature in this layer is around 8.2◦C, while in the inner parts the temperature is around 9.1◦C. Towards the head of the fjord the depth of the warm layer decreases. Below the warm layer the temperature decreases. The decrease is quite sharp from 8.0◦C to 7.6◦C.
Below the 7.5 isotherm the temperature decreases to about 7.1◦C at 500 meters depth. Below this the temperature is almost constant. Unlike the 8◦C isotherm, the 7.5◦C isotherm mostly horizontal.
The halocline is located at about the same depth as the thermocline. Above the halocline the salinity is almost constant. The layer above the halocline becomes more stratified towards the head of the fjord. The 33 psu isohaline is inclined. Below the halocline the salinity is increasing slowly with depth.
Close to the head the lowest salinity values are found. The salinity gradients are also strongest at the head. The 33.0 psu isohaline is inclined, but the 34.0 psu isohaline is horizontal. The depth of the 35.0 psu isohaline increases to- wards the head of the fjord. There is also a thin layer with salinity greater than 35.0 psu at around 200 meters depth in the outer part of the fjord.
4.2 Stratification above sill depth
Maps of the CTD surveys are presented in Fig.4.2. The best spatial resolution was obtained in 2002. In 2003 the innermost stations is in the intersection be- tween ˚Ardalsfjorden and Lusterfjorden, while the other years the innermost stations are found inside ˚Ardalsfjorden.
Fig.4.3 and Fig.4.4 show the temperature and salinity distribution in the upper 160 meters, respectively.
In all three years there are strong gradients in the surface close to the head.
These gradients are the boundary between the brackish and the intermediate water. Due to the low salinities of the brackish layer, the density is low, and the brackish water will stay in the surface. In 2002 the depth of the thermocline and halocline increases rapidly downfjord, and the isolines are inclined. In 2003 the thermocline and the halocline are horizontal in the inner half of the fjord, and the stratification does not change much. In the upper 50 meters in the outer part of the fjord the isolines are inclined and the stability decreases.
In 2004 the uppermost isolines are at constant depth along the whole length of the fjord. Some of the deeper isotherms are inclined, while the isohalines are
4.2. STRATIFICATION ABOVE SILL DEPTH 11
4oE 5oE 6oE 7oE 8oE
54’
61oN
6’
12’
18’
2 3 4 5
6 7 8 9 1011 12 13
14 1516 17 18
19 20212223242526
(a) Locations of CTD stations in February 2002
4oE 5oE 6oE 7oE 8oE
54’
61oN
6’
12’
18’
156
155 159166 172179154
128 129 130 131 132 133
134135
136 137 138 139
(b) Locations of CTD stations in February 2003
4oE 5oE 6oE 7oE 8oE
54’
61oN
6’
12’
18’
103 104105
106
107108 109 110
111112113 114115
116 117 118119
120
(c) Locations of CTD stations in February 2004
Figure 4.2: Maps of Sognefjorden and locations of CTD stations, 2002-2004
12 CHAPTER 4. RESULTS
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
160
Kilometer
Pressure (dbar)
5.5
6 6 6 6 6
6.5
6.5
6.5
6.5 6.5
7
7
7
7
7.5
7.5
7.5
7.5
8
8
8
8
8
8
8.5 8.5 8.5
8.5
8.5
8.5
9 9 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26
Station number
In situ temperature, section1, 2004
(a) Temperature (◦C), 2002
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
160
Kilometer
Pressure (dbar)
12
2 2.5
3 2.53 3
3.5 3.5 3.5
4 4 4
4.5
4.5 4.5
4.5
4.5
5
5
5
5
5.5
5.5
5.5 5.5
6
6
6 6
6.5
6.5
6.5
6.5
7
7
7
7
7.5 7.5
7.5
7.5
8 8
8 8 8
8 8
8
8.5
156 155 159 166 172 179 154 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 Station number
In situ temperature, section1, 2004
(b) Temperature (◦C), 2003
5 4.5
5 5
5.5 5.5
5.5 5.5
6 6 6 6
6.5
6.5 6.5 6.5
7
7
7 7
7.5
7.5
7.5
7.5
8
8 8
8
8
8
8
8
8
8.5 8.5
8.5 9
9
Kilometer
Pressure (dbar)
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
160
103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 Station number
In situ temperature, 2004
(c) Temperature (◦C), 2004
Figure 4.3: Temperature (◦C) distributions in the upper 160 meters along Sognefjorden, 2002-2004.
4.2. STRATIFICATION ABOVE SILL DEPTH 13
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
160
Kilometer
Pressure (dbar)
30 30.530 31.531
32 32 32
32.5 32.5
32.5
32.5
33
33
33
33
33.5
33.5 33.5
33.5
34
34 34 34
34.5
34.5 34.5 34.5
35
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 Station number
Salinity, section1, 2004
(a) Salinity (psu), 2002
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
160
Kilometer
Pressure (dbar)
29 30 3030.5 31 30.531
31.5 31.5
32
32 32 32
32 32.5
32.5
32.5 32.5
33
33
33 33
33.5
33.5
33.5 33.5
34
34 34
34
34.5
34.5
34.5
34.5 156 155 159 166 172 179 154 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139
Station number Salinity, section1, 2004
(b) Salinity (psu), 2003
26.526 27.52828.527 29 30 29.530.5
31 31
31.5
31.5 31.5
32 32.5 31.5 32 32.5 32 32.5
33 33
33 33
33.5 33.5
33.5 33.5
34
34
34
34
34.5
34.5 34.5 34.5
35
Kilometer
Pressure (dbar)
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
160
103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 Station number
Salinity, 2004
(c) Salinity (psu), 2004
Figure 4.4: Salinity distributions in the upper 160 meters along the fjord, 2002- 2004.
14 CHAPTER 4. RESULTS horizontal.
4.3 Individual profiles
Fig.4.5 and Fig.4.6 show some temperature and salinity profiled from individ- ual CTD stations. There are stations from the outer, the middle and the inner part of the fjord, with one station from each year. The temperature profiles are organized such that Fig.4.5 a, b and c are from the outer part of the fjord from 2002-2004. Fig.4.5 d, e and f is from the middle of the fjord while Fig.4.5 g., .h and .i is from the inner part. The salinity profiles are in the same order.
In the outer part of the fjord in 2002 the upper 50 meters are homogeneous in both temperature and salinity. In 2003 and 2004 the upper 50 meters are stratified. In 2002 and 2004 there is a layer with fairly constant temperature, 8.2◦C to 8.4◦C, from 70 meters down to about 200 meters. In 2003 the layer with these temperatures are much thinner than in the two other years. The surface is coldest in 2003 and the upper 160 meters are less saline.
In the middle part of the fjord, the upper 50 meters has become more strati- fied in 2002. The warmest water is found at shallower depths than in the outer part of the fjord.
In the inner part of the fjord the warmest water is much closer to the sur- face for all three years, but 2003 is still coldest, and the warm layer is found at greater depths. In 2002 and 2003 the warm water is contained in almost homo- geneous layers, but this is not the case in 2004, where there is a temperature maximum at 20 meters depth. There is more warm water in 2002 than in 2004.
At 50 meters depth the salinity was 33.85 psu in 2002, 34.03 psu in 2003 and 34.2 psu in 2004.
4.4 ADCP sections
The position of the ADCP sections are shown in Fig.4.7. The ADCP sections from 2002-2004 is shown in Fig.4.8, Fig.4.9 and Fig.4.10, respectively. The sec- tions are organized such that the outermost section is at the top and the inner- most at the bottom.
The ADCP surveys shows distinct layers with flow in different directions, either upfjord or downfjord.
In 2002, Fig.4.8, there is upfjord flow in the uppermost layer. In the second layer from the top there is outflow. Comparing the depths of flow layers to the salinity profiles, the uppermost layer covers depths corresponding to the lower parts of the homogeneous layer and the halocline. The second layer is found at similar depths as the warm layer. The strength and depth of the flow decreases upfjord. The depth of the halocline decreases towards the head of
4.4. ADCP SECTIONS 15
4 6 8
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
In situ temperature °C
Pressure (dbar)
31 33 35
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Salinity (psu)
24 25 26 27 28
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Density σθ (kg/m3) CTD station no. 6, 04−Feb−2002 17:57:47
(a) St. 6, 4/2/2002
4 6 8
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
In situ temperature °C
Pressure (dbar)
31 33 35
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Salinity (psu)
24 25 26 27 28
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Density σθ (kg/m3) CTD station no. 128, 06−Feb−2003 09:31:22
(b) St. 128, 6/2/2003
4 6 8
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
In situ temperature °C
Pressure (dbar)
31 33 35
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Salinity (psu)
24 25 26 27 28
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Density σθ (kg/m3) CTD station no. 106, 22−Feb−2004 17:07:40
(c) St. 106, 22/2/2004
4 6 8
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
In situ temperature °C
Pressure (dbar)
31 33 35
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Salinity (psu)
24 25 26 27 28
0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
Density σθ (kg/m3) CTD station no. 12, 04−Feb−2002 23:17:28
(d) St. 12, 4/2/2002
4 6 8
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
In situ temperature °C
Pressure (dbar)
31 33 35
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Salinity (psu)
24 25 26 27 28
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Density σθ (kg/m3) CTD station no. 130, 06−Feb−2003 12:13:56
(e) St. 130, 6/2/2003
4 6 8
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
In situ temperature °C
Pressure (dbar)
31 33 35
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Salinity (psu)
24 25 26 27 28
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Density σθ (kg/m3) CTD station no. 109, 22−Feb−2004 21:52:26
(f) St. 109, 22/2/2004
4 6 8 9
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
In situ temperature °C
Pressure (dbar)
31 33 35
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Salinity (psu)
24 25 26 27 28
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Density σθ (kg/m3) CTD station no. 24, 05−Feb−2002 10:16:04
(g) St. 24, 5/2/2002
4 6 8 9
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
In situ temperature °C
Pressure (dbar)
31 33 35
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Salinity (psu)
24 25 26 27 28
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Density σθ (kg/m3) CTD station no. 139, 06−Feb−2003 23:37:44
(h) St. 139, 6/2/2003
4 6 8 9
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
In situ temperature °C
Pressure (dbar)
31 33 35
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Salinity (psu)
24 25 26 27 28
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Density σθ (kg/m3) CTD station no. 118, 23−Feb−2004 11:38:10
(i) St. 118, 23/2/2004
Figure 4.5: Temperature profiles from the outer part of Sognefjorden(a, b and c), the middle part(d, e and f) and the inner part(g, h and i)
16 CHAPTER 4. RESULTS
4 6 8
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
In situ temperature °C
Pressure (dbar)
31 33 35
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Salinity (psu)
24 25 26 27 28
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Density σθ (kg/m3) CTD station no. 6, 04−Feb−2002 17:57:47
(a) St. 6, 4/2/2002
4 6 8
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
In situ temperature °C
Pressure (dbar)
31 33 35
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Salinity (psu)
24 25 26 27 28
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Density σθ (kg/m3) CTD station no. 128, 06−Feb−2003 09:31:22
(b) St. 128, 6/2/2003
4 6 8
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
In situ temperature °C
Pressure (dbar)
31 33 35
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Salinity (psu)
24 25 26 27 28
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Density σθ (kg/m3) CTD station no. 106, 22−Feb−2004 17:07:40
(c) St. 106, 22/2/2004
4 6 8
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
In situ temperature °C
Pressure (dbar)
31 33 35
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Salinity (psu)
24 25 26 27 28
0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
Density σθ (kg/m3) CTD station no. 12, 04−Feb−2002 23:17:28
(d) St. 12, 4/2/2002
4 6 8
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
In situ temperature °C
Pressure (dbar)
31 33 35
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Salinity (psu)
24 25 26 27 28
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Density σθ (kg/m3) CTD station no. 130, 06−Feb−2003 12:13:56
(e) St. 130, 6/2/2003
4 6 8
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
In situ temperature °C
Pressure (dbar)
31 33 35
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Salinity (psu)
24 25 26 27 28
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Density σθ (kg/m3) CTD station no. 109, 22−Feb−2004 21:52:26
(f) St. 109, 22/2/2004
4 6 8 9
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
In situ temperature °C
Pressure (dbar)
31 33 35
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Salinity (psu)
24 25 26 27 28
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Density σθ (kg/m3) CTD station no. 24, 05−Feb−2002 10:16:04
(g) St. 24, 5/2/2002
4 6 8 9
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
In situ temperature °C
Pressure (dbar)
31 33 35
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Salinity (psu)
24 25 26 27 28
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Density σθ (kg/m3) CTD station no. 139, 06−Feb−2003 23:37:44
(h) St. 139, 6/2/2003
4 6 8 9
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
In situ temperature °C
Pressure (dbar)
31 33 35
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Salinity (psu)
24 25 26 27 28
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Density σθ (kg/m3) CTD station no. 118, 23−Feb−2004 11:38:10
(i) St. 118, 23/2/2004
Figure 4.6: Salinity profiles from the outer part of Sognefjorden(a, b and c), the middle part(d, e and f) and the inner part(g, h and i)
4.4. ADCP SECTIONS 17
4oE 5oE 6oE 7oE 8oE
61oN 6’
12’
18’
24’
30’
017
015
010 006
(a) Location of the ADCP sections in 2002
4oE 5oE 6oE 7oE 8oE
61oN 6’
12’
18’
24’
30’
008010
018
032
(b) Location of the ADCP sections in 2003
4oE 5oE 6oE 7oE 8oE
61oN 6’
12’
18’
24’
30’
4oE 5oE 6oE 7oE 8oE
61oN 6’
12’
18’
24’
30’
031 030 003
010
(c) Location of the ADCP sections in 2004
Figure 4.7: Location of ADCP sections, 2002-2004.
the fjord as well. The warm layer behaves similar, the depth and thickness decreases towards the head of the fjord.
In the two outermost section in 2003, Fig.4.9a and b, the uppermost layer shows downfjord flow. In the second layer from the top the flow is upfjord.
The second layer is found at depths corresponding to the halocline, which in the outer part of the fjord is strongest at around 50 meters depth. In the third layer the flow is weaker than the flow at corresponding depth in 2002. There are large differences between the warm layer in 2002 and 2003. In the two innermost sections there is no clear structure below the uppermost layer, but the inflow in the uppermost layer is strong. The strong inflow corresponds to the depths above the maximum temperature.
In the two outermost sections in 2004, Fig.4.10a and b, a three layer struc- ture is seen. In the uppermost layer there is upfjord flow, in the second layer there is downfjord flow and in the third layer from the top there is upfjord
