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U.S. Department of Energy
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Modeling the Alaskan Continental Shelf waters. Final report

Technical Report ·
OSTI ID:5755342

This report describes a three-dimensional ocean circulation model and two dimensional stochastic weather model used to calculate hypothetical oil-spill trajectories over the Alaskan Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) areas. Special consideration is given to the movement of sea ice in areas characterized by the presence of seasonal ice, and to ice/water interaction under different current and wind conditions. Spreading, dispersion, and weathering of crude oil, and probable landfalls of trajectories are calculated under hypothetical scenarios of oil spills from tanker accidents and well blow-outs. The report also provides comparisons between simulated data on water and sea ice motion with available field observations.

Research Organization:
RAND Corp., Santa Monica, CA (USA)
OSTI ID:
5755342
Report Number(s):
PB-88-120837/XAB; R-3567-NOAA/RC
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English