River discharge, storm surges and tidal interactions in the Meghna river mouth in Bangladesh

Abstract

Interactions among river discharge, storm surges and tides in the Meghna river estuary in Bangladesh have been studied by using a two-dimensional vertically integrated numerical model of the northern Bay of Bengal. The study considers the interactions mostly in terms of flow across the river mouth under the three forcings, individually and in different combinations of them. River discharge and tidal flow across the river mouth act both positively and negatively depending on the tidal phase, positively during high tide and negatively during low tide. This is also true for the combination of all the three forces. On the other hand, in most of the cases, river discharge acts in opposition to the storm surges. Under certain conditions and on rare occasions they act positively. The interactions between river discharge and storm surges, however, depend on their relative magnitudes. In respect of total elevation in the estuarial region, river discharge tends to increase the surge height. However, away from the estuary, the effect of river discharge is hardly discernible.