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The coastal sea is the primary reciever of nutrients and suspended particulate matter (SPM) from the land-based sources. Their further transport to the open sea takes place through complex exchange processes between the coastal area and the open sea. The existing investigations of the shelf - open ocean interactions indicate to mesoscale physical processes and structures playing a major role in the water and mass exchange. The main aim of the current project is to identify, describe and analyse the physical processes and structues responsible for the water and mass exchange in the southern part of the Gulf of Finland, to explain the mechanism of the key processes, and to give quantitative estimate of the water and mass exchange. The project is planned to carry out using combined hydrographic measurements, high resolution satellite remote sensing, general circulation models and Lagrangian particle models. Remote sensing algorithms for interpretation of satellite signals, originating from the coastal waters of complex composition, are site-specific. Terefore the development of a respective algorithm for the Estonian coastal waters is planned as a part of the current project. The results of the project will contribute to the understanding of processes of the coastal-open sea exchange and their dynamics. Also, a toolkit for processing remote sensing images of Estonian coastal waters will be developed as a project outcome. The coupled application of the circulation and particle transport models as well as of the remote sensing data will facilitate the enhanced monitoring of the coastal sea and tracking of the contaminant and toxic blue-green algae distribution.. |