RESUMEN
Under the emerging features of interannual-to-decadal ocean variability, the periodical reversals of the North Ionian Gyre (NIG), driven mostly by the mechanism named Adriatic-Ionian Bimodal Oscillating System (BiOS), are known as impacting on marine physics and biogeochemistry and potentially influencing short-term regional climate predictability in the Eastern Mediterranean. Whilst it has been suggested that local wind forcing cannot explain such variability, aspects of the alternative hypothesis indicating that NIG reversals mainly arises from an internal ocean feedback mechanism alone remain largely debated. Here we demonstrate, using the results of physical experiments, performed in the world's largest rotating tank and numerical simulations, that the main observed feature of BiOS, i.e., the switch of polarity of the near-surface circulation in the NIG, can be induced by a mere injection of dense water on a sloping bottom. Hence, BiOS is a truly oceanic mode of variability and abrupt polarity changes in circulation can arise solely from extreme dense water formation events.
RESUMEN
The recent developments in pollutant measurement methods and techniques necessitate improvements in modelling approaches. The models used so far have been based on seasonally averaged data, which is insufficient for making short-term predictions. We have improved the existing modelling tools for pollutant transport and dispersion on three levels. We significantly refined the numerical grid; we used temporally and spatially non-uniform meteorological parameters for predicting pollutant dispersion and transformation processes; we used grid nesting in order to improve the open boundary condition. We worked on a typical contaminated site (The Gulf of Trieste), where mercury poses a significant environmental threat and where an oil-spill is a realistic possibility. By calculating evasion we improved the mass balance of mercury in the Gulf. We demonstrated that the spreading of river plumes under typical wind conditions is different than has so far been indicated by model simulations. We also simulated an oil-spill in real time. The improved modelling approaches and the upgraded models are now suitable for use with the state-of-the-art measurements technology and can represent an important contribution to the decision-making process.