Wind-forced seiche events on Great Slave Lake: hydrologic implications for the Slave River Delta, NWT, Canada

A limited amount of research has focused on northern lacustrine deltas and the impacts of basin processes prevalent at these deltas. Wind-forced seiche events have received little focus in deltaic studies. The Slave River Delta, located on the south shore of Great Slave Lake (GSL), NWT, is an ideal environment to study the prevalence of wind-forced seiche events and the impact of seiche events on the hydrodynamics of the delta. This paper presents an historical analysis of seiche activity on GSL and the effect of seiches on water levels of the Slave River Delta. The seasonality, frequency, and magnitude of seiche events on the lake are quantified. A description of the wind characteristics that force these events is included. The radial distributary pattern of the delta suggests that water level response to seiche events within the delta may be particularly complex. Hydrologic data from delta distributaries illustrate the temporal and spatial dynamics of seiche response. During the open-water season, seiche response in the delta is affected by the seasonal hydrograph of the Slave River and wind conditions. Spatially, the slope of delta distributaries governs seiche response. Responses are most similar among zones in the delta rather than among different distributaries. Copyright (c) 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.