Quantifying the residual volume transport through a multiple-inlet system in response to wind forcing: The case of the western Dutch Wadden Sea

Wind significantly influences the residual volume transport through the western Dutch Wadden Sea, a multiple-inlet coastal system. The study reveals that each inlet responds anisotropically to wind, with sensitivity primarily from two preferential directions. Using realistic three-dimensional baroclinic numerical simulations spanning 2009–2011 (over 2000 tidal periods), researchers quantified the effect of wind on both short and long-term scales. The dominant wind direction in the region aligns with the highest conductance for wind-driven transport, opposing tidally driven flows. This results in substantial variability and long-term dominance of wind over residual volume transport, despite storms being episodic events.

Duran-Matute, M., Gerkema, T., & Sassi, M. G. (2016). Quantifying the residual volume transport through a multiple-inlet system in response to wind forcing: The case of the western Dutch Wadden Sea. Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans, 121(12), 8888–8903. Portico. https://doi.org/10.1002/2016jc011807