Abstract's details
Frontiers in Estuary modeling with SWOT– the tidal Bore in the Severn Estuary revealed from satellite.
Event: 2025 SWOT Science Team Meeting
Session: Afternoon Plenary Session: Deltas, Estuaries and Coasts
Presentation type: Oral
The launch of the Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) satellite represents a monumental leap in the technology of satellite altimetry. With advanced high-resolution wide swath altimetry and innovative use of the phase difference between dual onboard antennas, SWOT drastically reduces the limitations of traditional radar altimeters. SWOT provides a 2D measurements grid with a detailed 50m grid spacing not degrading towards the coast. This marks a substantial enhancement compared to the 7-km across-track spacing along a 1D trajectory offered by conventional altimetry. This enhancement allows for the precise and detailed monitoring of dynamic coastal phenomena such as tides and tidal bores, even in estuaries. Something that was impossible using conventional 1D altimetry.
Tidal bores, characterized as sudden and powerful water surges against the river's current, are critical for local ecology, navigation, and flood management and exist in around 50 locations worldwide with extensive tidal range. Despite their importance, their dynamic and transient nature has made them challenging to study using conventional methods.
The Bristol Channel, with its extreme tidal range and the presence of the Severn Bore, presents an ideal case study to demonstrate SWOT's capabilities. The tidal Bore is largest during spring tide (march + September), but in April, a substantial tidal bore is also seen. We use SWOT 50-meter pixel cloud data during the 1-day fast sampling repeat period in April 2023 to study the high-resolution tidal signal in the Bristol Channel - Severn Estuary and the Severn tidal bore. The results demonstrate that SWOT can capture the tidal bore sweeping up the Severn River from the mouth of the river and some 20 km upstream. SWOT also reveals the dynamics of the tidal bore as details how the tidal energy is being dissipated during the progress up the Severn River.
SWOT pixel cloud data during the 1-day fast sampling repeat period in April 2023 has been used to study the high-resolution tidal signal in the Bristol Channel - Severn Estuary. The Severn Tidal bore is characterized by a sudden and powerful water surges against the river's current, are critical for local ecology, navigation, and flood management. The tidal bore which reached several meters of amplitude during the period sweeping more than 20 km up the Severn River. The results demonstrate that SWOT can capture the tidal bore sweeping up the Severn River from the mouth of the river and some 20 km upstream. SWOT also reveals the dynamics of the tidal bore as well as details how the tidal energy is being dissipated during the progress up the Severn River.
Back to the list of abstractTidal bores, characterized as sudden and powerful water surges against the river's current, are critical for local ecology, navigation, and flood management and exist in around 50 locations worldwide with extensive tidal range. Despite their importance, their dynamic and transient nature has made them challenging to study using conventional methods.
The Bristol Channel, with its extreme tidal range and the presence of the Severn Bore, presents an ideal case study to demonstrate SWOT's capabilities. The tidal Bore is largest during spring tide (march + September), but in April, a substantial tidal bore is also seen. We use SWOT 50-meter pixel cloud data during the 1-day fast sampling repeat period in April 2023 to study the high-resolution tidal signal in the Bristol Channel - Severn Estuary and the Severn tidal bore. The results demonstrate that SWOT can capture the tidal bore sweeping up the Severn River from the mouth of the river and some 20 km upstream. SWOT also reveals the dynamics of the tidal bore as details how the tidal energy is being dissipated during the progress up the Severn River.
SWOT pixel cloud data during the 1-day fast sampling repeat period in April 2023 has been used to study the high-resolution tidal signal in the Bristol Channel - Severn Estuary. The Severn Tidal bore is characterized by a sudden and powerful water surges against the river's current, are critical for local ecology, navigation, and flood management. The tidal bore which reached several meters of amplitude during the period sweeping more than 20 km up the Severn River. The results demonstrate that SWOT can capture the tidal bore sweeping up the Severn River from the mouth of the river and some 20 km upstream. SWOT also reveals the dynamics of the tidal bore as well as details how the tidal energy is being dissipated during the progress up the Severn River.