ISSN:
1573-0956
Source:
Springer Online Journal Archives 1860-2000
Topics:
Geosciences
,
Physics
Notes:
Abstract The signal to noise ratio in tidal data in the diurnal and semidiurnal frequency bands is ordinarily so large that the noise contribution to the tidal harmonic constants is unimportant. However, as the observational locations are selected progressively closer to an amphidrome (point of no tide), the signal to noise ratio decreases, making the tidal harmonic constants less dependable. Standard deviations in amplitude of M2 and S2 obtained from 12 29-day analyses of a year of tide data obtained at a standard tide station, estimated to be 280 and 550 km away from the amphidromes for these constituents in the eastern Caribbean, are roughly one-third of the mean amplitudes for these constituents; the standard deviations in epoch are 38° and 30° respectively. Therefore, a program to locate an amphidrome precisely is self-defeating and the location can only be approximated by a grid of tide observations spanning the geographic position and/or by longer series of observations, using higher resolution to increase the signal to noise ratio. Amplitudes of 0.64 cm and 1.24 cm were calculated for M2 and S2 from a one-month series of pelagic observations obtained very close to an inferred position of the M2 amphidrome in the northeast Caribbean Sea.
Type of Medium:
Electronic Resource
URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/BF01449552
Permalink
