Evaluation of the long-term variability of seawater salinity and temperature in response to natural and anthropogenic stressors in the Arabian Gulf.

Evaluating the long-term variability of the seawater salinity and temperature due to climate change is a limiting economical and operational factor in planning the design of new and expansion of existing desalination plants. This need is amplified in the Arabian Gulf due to the natural arid climate and anthropological stresses related to energy exploration and ongoing major developments. The lack of data in this region further adds additional dimension to the problem.

Temperature-salinity modeling for Ruwais coastal area in United Arab Emirates.

A three dimensional rectangular grid model is applied to resolve the temperature-salinity dynamics of Ruwais, a segment of the UAE coast which is well known as dense water formation zone. The model employs a heat flux module and a turbulence closure scheme that facilitate realistic calculation of temperature-salinity dynamics. A field survey campaign is carried out to support the modeling study, involving measurements of tide, currents, temperature, and salinity.