Rich Pawlowicz

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Rich Pawlowicz is a physical oceanographer whose field research occurs primarily in the coastal waters and inland lakes of British Columbia. His research includes both fundamental and applied questions. Fundamental research has included investigations of the propagation and interaction of large internal waves in the Strait of Georgia, investigations of shear instabilities in the Fraser river salt wedge, and a project investigating double- diffusive convection in Powell Lake. In addition, he is interested in developing a theoretical understanding of the factors affecting electrical conductivity in natural waters, and in using this understanding to develop better procedures for determining the salt content of fresh and salt waters by measuring their electrical conductivity. This may lead to better estimates of the physical properties of seawater in coastal areas.

Applied questions that are currently being pursued include development of techniques for long-term monitoring of fish and zooplankton using multi-frequency acoustics (using equipment that is part of the NEPTUNE observatory), and determining the degree to which large-scale transport mechanisms provide a physical control on biological productivity in fjord systems (with a long-standing interest in the Strait of Georgia, as well as past projects in Rivers Inlet and in inlets on the West Coast of Vancouver Island). In his work in the Strait of Georgia, he has developed and used monitoring systems mounted on BC ferries, but is currently involved in a project attempting to understand the near-surface circulation and variability in the Strait using observations from ferry instrumentation mounted by the VENUS observatory.

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