Hydrodynamical Numerical Modeling of Coastal Areas

Abstract

Coastal areas are important, due to the great population and activities that occur there. Oceanographic conditions in coastal waters differ in many aspects of those in the open ocean: In general, spatial and temporal variations are greater. Coastal management requires environmental monitoring, commonly done by direct measurements, remote sensing, and the processing of numerical models. This chapter deals with the hydrodynamical numerical modeling of coastal areas, presenting its basic concepts, implementation and use strategies, and examples of model outputs and practical applications. These models aim to reproduce the coastal circulation, by computing the time evolution of the spatial distribution of sea level, currents, temperature, salinity, and density—considering the respective forcing of tides, winds, ocean–atmosphere exchanges and river contributions. Several examples of model outputs and coupling are presented, with maps of the distribution of temperature and salinity, which are important seawater properties; waste discharges by submarine emissaries, giving support to public health service; fate of plastic debris in the ocean, among others. Despite the enormous feasibility and utility of modern high-resolution numerical models, some warning must be considered, such as checking all the inputs and comparing the results to reliable independent information before their dissemination.