Current position: Professor of Physical Oceanography Contact details: School of Marine Science and Engineering University of Plymouth Drake Circus PLYMOUTH PL4 8AA United Kingdom Telephone: +44 (0) 1752 232431 Fax: +44 (0) 1752 584719 E-mail: dhuntley@plymouth.ac.uk Academic and research background: Please click here

Research interests:

The primary focus of my research is to try to understand and predict the behaviour of morphological systems in coastal seas and shorelines. It currently involves analysis of remote video measurements of the shoreline over timescales of days to decades and stochastic modelling of morphological changes using simple ‘abstracted’ approaches to the underlying physical processes. I have also begun some research into the processes responsible for mixing and dispersing plumes of brackish water which emanate from estuaries into coastal seas

• The role of 'defects' in changing bedform patterns. Sorted bedforms are a relatively recently recognised form of morphological system in coastal seas which consist of alternate bands of coarser and finer sediments lying transverse to a flow. ‘Abstracted’ models show that they can evolve from an initial well-mixed bed of sediment by a positive feedback mechanism. In collaboration with Dr Coco of NIWA in New Zealand, we have used such a model to show that once a bedform pattern develops in response to a set of wave and current conditions, its ability to change when those conditions change is dependent on the presence of ‘defects’ (joins, eyes or terminations) in the pre-existing pattern; in the extreme case where there is a complete absence of defects, no pattern changes can occur. This influence of defects is likely be present in other forms of bedform and we are currently developing other models to test this, as well as studying in more detail exactly how this sensitivity arises. There are important implications for predicting bedform scales and hence for predicting flow conditions in shallow water environments.

• Using video images to measure wave breaker heights. Land-based video imaging of the nearshore environment presents a unique opportunity to measure breaking wave heights over long periods (up to decades). Recent research, carried out in collaboration with the Met Office, shows that video estimates of breaking wave heights are accurate to at least ± 30%. They can therefore provide a valuable resource for monitoring and modelling shoreline conditions. This research has also, however, highlighted significant problems in the current modelling of breaking waves in the surf zone. Collaboration with researchers at Oregon State University, USA, has begun to try to resolve these problems through field and laboratory studies.

• Mixing in estuarine plumes. Coastal water quality depends upon the mixing and dispersion of run-off from the land and this run-off frequently reaches the sea in the form of plumes of brackish water emanating from estuaries. We are looking at how this brackish water mixes through detailed field measurements and modelling. An important result so far is that the mixing, at least in small tidally-dominated plumes, can be dominated by processes at the narrow front separating the brackish water from the surrounding sea water. The mixing is therefore dominated by intense narrow regions rather than distributed widely in the coastal sea, as is often assumed. Further work is being carried out, in collaboration with the Britannia Royal Naval College, to assess the generality of this result through further field measurements and detailed modelling.