Wave simulation in the outer Río de la Plata estuary: an evaluation of SWAN model

WALTER DRAGANI; E. GARAVENTO; CLAUDIA SIMIONATO; MARIO N. NUÑEZ; PAULA MARTIN; MARIA INES CAMPOS

JOURNAL OF WATERWAY, PORT, COASTAL AND OCEAN ENGINEERING

American Society of Civil Engineers

Lugar: Reston, VA; Año: 2007

0733-950X

Abstract: This work discusses the implementation and validation of SWAN model, forced by NCEP/NCAR reanalyzed 10 m winds, in the outer Río de la Plata (RDP) and adjacent continental shelf which will be used to study the wave climate in the region. Thirteen month long in situ data series of wave parameters are used to validate the results from numerical simulations. A set of numerical experiments is carried out in order to find a suitable computational domain to generate realistic simulations in the mouth of the RDP estuary. Numerical experiments including current and sea level fields are run demonstrating that simulated wave parameters at the outer RDP are not significantly improved. A correction coefficient depending upon wind speed is applied to the wind drag factor in order to minimize the differences between simulated and observed wave parameters. The relatively low resolution wave model which satisfactorily simulates in situ wave heights and directions, but slightly underestimates periods, is a reliable tool for future applications and investigations.