Irene Laiz

AVISO sea level anomaly weekely maps from radar altimetry were retrieved for the Gulf of Cadiz (GoC) (1997-2008), along with maps of Dynamic Atmospheric Correction (DAC), atmospheric pressure at sea level and satellite Sea Surface Temperature (SST). Data were averaged in time to obtain maps of monthly mean time series in order to analyze the seasonal variability of sea level and its main forcing agents along the GoC. Moreover, a very high resolution climatology for the region was combined with the SST maps to explore the steric contribution with enough spatial resolution near the coast. The AVISO sea level anomaly monthly maps were initially de-corrected using the DAC product and then corrected using the inverted barometer method. Atmospheric pressure explained more than 55% of the sea level variance offshore and between 35-45% within the continental shelf. The amplitude of the pressure-adjusted sea level semiannual signal was considerably reduced, confirming its meteorological orig...

ABSTRACT In the context of increased coastal hazards through storminess variability, the danger of coastal damages and/or morphological changes is related to the sum of mean sea level conditions, storm surge and maximum wave height and run up values. In order to better understand the physical processes that cause the interannual variability of the above parameters a reanalysis record (HIPOCAS) of the last 44 years was used. The HIPOCAS time-series was validated with real wind, wave and sea-level data using linear and vector correlation methods. In the present work changes in the duration, frequency, chronology and approach direction of the Atlantic storms over the Spanish Gulf of Cadiz (SW Iberian Peninsula) were identified by computing various storm characteristics such as maximum wave height, total energy per storm and storm groupiness. The obtained time-series were compared with large-scale atmospheric indices such as the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) and the East Atlantic pattern (EA). The results show a good correlation between negative NAO values and increased storminess over the entire Gulf of Cadiz. Furthermore, negative NAO values were correlated with high mean sea level values and westerly and south-westerly wind events, indicating higher probability of coastal risks. The above results were compared with coastal inundation events that took place over the last winter seasons in the province of Cadiz.

ABSTRACT Sea level anomaly maps from altimeter (AVISO) were retrieved for the Gulf of Cadiz (GoC) for the period 1997-2008, along with maps of Dynamic Atmospheric Correction (DAC), atmospheric pressure at sea level and satellite Sea Surface Temperature (SST). Data were averaged in time to obtain maps of monthly mean time series in order to analyze the seasonal variability of sea level and its main forcing agents along the GoC. Moreover, a very high resolution climatology for the region was combined with the SST maps to explore the steric contribution with enough spatial resolution near the coast. The AVISO sea level anomaly monthly maps were initially de-corrected using the DAC product and then corrected using the inverted barometer method. Atmospheric pressure explained more than 55% of the sea level variance offshore and between 35-45% within the continental shelf. The amplitude of the pressureadjusted sea level semiannual signal was considerably reduced, confirming its meteorological origin. The steric contribution on the pressure-adjusted sea level was addressed by considering local, open ocean, basin-wide and continental shelf steric effects. The open ocean contribution explained the highest percentage of variance all over the basin with the exception of the western shelf, where the best results were obtained with the local contribution. After correcting for the best steric contribution, the amplitude of the remaining offshore annual signal was negligible (0.5-1.0 ± 1 cm). As for the continental shelves, 2- 3 cm (± 0.5-1 cm) of the annual signal remained unexplained, probably due to local effects related with the shelves dynamics.

ABSTRACT Long-term time series (1997–2008) of gridded multi-mission near shore altimeter data and in-situ tide gauge records have been analyzed to investigate the seasonal variability of sea level along the Gulf of Cadiz continental shelf and the Strait of Gibraltar. The contribution of different forcing mechanisms including atmospheric pressure, wind, steric anomalies and river runoff was also addressed. Comparison between altimeter and ground-truth data showed that the former can be a valuable tool to study the sea level seasonal cycle near the coast as well as to detect anomalous data from neighboring tide gauges. Overall, both sets of time series presented a similar mean seasonal cycle along the coast, dominated by the annual component and, to a lesser extent, by the semiannual one. Low-frequency atmospheric pressure and steric anomalies were the main forcing factors affecting the sea level seasonal cycle, their effect diminishing toward the Strait of Gibraltar. The combined effect of both forcing factors accounted for 55–61%/62–63% of the observed sea level variance at the tide gauge stations/ altimeter points located outside the Strait of Gibraltar and for only 27%/48% at those placed within the Strait. The influence of local wind was small in all stations except for the westernmost tide gauges. The effect of large river discharges was notable at the tide gauge located within the Guadalquivir river mouth, with 18% of the pressure-adjusted sea level variance explained, and negligible (< 0.1%) at the one placed within the Tinto–Odiel rivers mouth, indicating that such effects only need to be taken into account when dealing with tide gauges located within major river estuaries. Moreover, the effect of river runoff seems to be confined within a small area near the river mouth, thus not affecting the altimeter measurements. A small but significant influence of the wintertime North Atlantic Oscillation on sea level was observed, its effect being mainly reflected through changes in the atmospheric pressure, wind and river discharge.

Time series (1997-2008) of near-shore altimetry data and in-situ tide gauge records have been analyzed to investigate the seasonal variability of sea level along the Gulf of Cadiz. A high level of agreement was obtained between altimeter and in-situ observations, indicating that altimeter data can be a valuable tool to study the sea level seasonal cycle near the coast. Harmonic analysis showed that more than 95% of the average seasonal cycle is explained by the annual and, to a lesser extent, semiannual components. The average seasonal cycle of sea level anomalies is very similar at the four coastal stations, with minimum values during winter and maximum during autumn. Atmospheric pressure accounts for 20-38% of the sea level variability, its effect diminishing toward the Strait of Gibraltar. The steric contribution is notable at the westernmost stations (32-37%) and it also decreases eastward (9-17%). River discharge explains about 15% of the sea level variability, indicating that its effects should be taken into account. The contribution of direct atmospheric forcing for a section of the sea level time series (1997-2001) has also been explored using the output of a barotropic oceanographic model (HIPOCAS project) forced with wind and atmospheric pressure, revealing that the contribution of wind is generally small (6-12%) at seasonal time scales. Small but significant correlations are found between the time series of winter-autumn mean sea level and the winter-autumn North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) indices. Analysis show that the effect of NAO is mainly reflected on atmospheric pressure, wind and river runoff.