Available online at www.springerlink.com Tidal Front and its Relation to the Biological Process in Coastal Water

Abstract − A tidal front is a unique structure in coastal waters where tidal mixing is dominant during the summer. Various indexes to define tidal fronts and their dynamics have been reviewed in coastal waters where tidal mixing is dominant. The classification of a front in coastal waters is determined by the freshwater inflow, heating/cooling, Ekman transport, and mixing intensity. The strength of mixing plays an important role, dynamically, in creating a tidal front. The hydrography and circulation around a tidal front are crucial in the biological processes leading to the cross-frontal transport of nutrients and phytoplankton blooms. Physical-biological cooperation is necessary to clearly assess the impact of a tidal front on the distribution of phytoplankton and chlorophyll a in the tidal front area. Key words − tidal mixing, cross-frontal transport, phytoplankton bloom, frontal wave, convergence zone 1