Abstract
River-influenced areas are very important coastal ecosystems, due to
their influence on nutrients and the structure of planktonic and benthic
communities. Many studies have focused on the interaction between river
runoff, wind and river plume characteristics, by means of observations
and modeling. This study aimed to improve our understanding about the
circulation and seasonal pattern of river plumes in Central Chile, using
the Regional Ocean Modeling System (ROMS). Results were in reasonable
agreement with observations. The plumes exhibit a minimal area during
summer-fall, with a northwest orientation caused by southwesterly winds
and lower river discharges. A larger plume area is developed during
June-September, as result of higher winter precipitations. The
orientation of the plumes during winter is westward, driven by higher
river discharge and wind from the northwest. An interesting feature
reproduced by the model was the trend to coalesce as observed in
satellite imagery.