Author(s): Yasmin Nassar; Roger Pieters; Gregory Lawrence
Linked Author(s): Gregory Lawrence
Keywords: No Keywords
Abstract: We explore the effect of spring winds on a small lake in northern Canada. Tailings Lake has a simple geometry with a maximum depth of 14 m, and is slightly brackish with a salinity of ～1 g/L. In spring, ice melt and freshet runoff form a relatively fresh surface layer that provides sufficient stratification to inhibit turnover. Data from three temperature chains were used to explore the first eleven days after ice-off, 07-17 Jun 2005, a period that includes a 36 hour wind storm. This storm deepened the thermocline by 1.5m, cooled the epilimnion by 6°C and warmed the hypolimnion by 0.2°C. We use DYRESM (DYnamic REservoir Simulation Model) as a tool to investigate the response to spring wind storms. DYRESM correctly models the basic features of the stratification after ice-off. However, the broadening of the metalimnion and the warming of the hypolimnion after the wind-storm are not reproduced. DYRESM was also run with increased wind speed, and spring turnover occurs when wind is increased by a factor of 1.65. This delayed turnover results in a warmer hypolimnion that persists through summer.
Year: 2009