Modeling of internal waves in the Strait of Dardanelles

Abstract

The tectonic activities, sediment deposits and current erosion govern the particular meandering morphology of the Dardanelles Strait since thousands of years. Later on, invasion of deep Mediterranean waters gave rise to an elongated channel type two-layered water system. Constriction of the sharply bent Nara Passage at the central part could be an additional factor controlling hydraulic flow and mixing. Numerical solution of the corresponding two-dimensional fluid model predicts formation and propagation of internal waves in the form of solitons. They exhibit variability similar to the observed pcynocline (salinity) variations in the water column.