HYDRODYNAMICS OF A BAR IN A FLOOD CHANNEL - THE WESTERSCHELDE ESTUARY

Abstract

Several long-term current meter observations (30 days) over a complex flood shield, i.e. an estuarine bar, display major temporal and spatial variations in current asymmetry. The variations in current asymmetry indicate the presence of small-scale circulations of sediment that are induced by smaller channels that penetrate the bar. The current meter observations and depth-averaged current patterns obtained with an ADCP revealed processes of advective flow acceleration and deceleration, as well as flow convergence and divergence, over the bars in the small channels.