Impacts of Post-Breach Tidal Circulation within Pleasant Bay, Massachusetts via Numerical Simulation
Abstract
The barrier island located off the coast of Chatham, Massachusetts, known as Nauset Beach, extends approximately 14.5 kilometers north to south terminating at Chatham Inlet. This inlet was formed during a major storm in 1987, and since then has been the only inlet into the Pleasant Bay estuary. This estuary exhibits a recurring process of breaching and closing, and in 2007 a large storm combined with low lying topography caused a breach in the barrier island approximately four kilometers north of the existing inlet. Since then this breach has deepened and widened significantly forming a new inlet into Pleasant Bay. Using a numerical model, as well as recent and historic data, this study explores what impacts this breach may have on the Pleasant Bay system in terms of water quality, tidal hydrodynamics and the overall stability of the system. Results of the breach include an increase in peak high tide on the order of 15 %, a decrease in the system residence time from 0.9 to 0.7 days, and decreases in the peak ebb and flood currents through the pre-existing inlet of approximately 10 %.
- Publication:
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AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts
- Pub Date:
- December 2008
- Bibcode:
- 2008AGUFMOS13D1231B
- Keywords:
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- 4534 Hydrodynamic modeling