Abstract
Water levels on the coastline of Tanzania vary under the influence of meteorological conditions (winds and barometric pressure) and the East African Coastal Current, whose strength varies with the monsoon winds. Available tidal information is not enough to warrant statistical analysis for evaluating extreme water levels. The highest mean water springs occur at Bagamoyo and Pangani (3.93 m) and the lowest are found at Lindi (2.96 m). The highest astronomical tide is 3.7 m for Dar es Salaam and 4.6 m for Zanzibar, both of which occur during March/April and November. Measured highest water levels approach 4.80 m for Dar es Salaam and are about 1 metre above the highest astronomical tide. Meteorological conditions and the East African Coastal Current contribute significantly to the differences between predicted heights and the actual tide heights. Bagamoyo experiences the highest wind set-up to the order of 20 cm during the southerly monsoons and 10 cm during the northerly monsoons. Sea level increase due to atmospheric pressure shows a decreasing trend since 1972. The highest sea level above the mean level of all oceans is observed in January/February to the order of 10 cm and the lowest is observed during July to the order of 5 cm. Local peaks in sea level are observed.
Recommended Citation
Dubi, A. (2002). Evaluation of water LevEvaluation of Water Levels in Relation to the Design of Coastal Structures in Tanzaniaels in relation to the design of coastal structures in Tanzania. Tanzania Journal of Engineering and Technology (TJET), 25(1), 24-36. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.52339/tjet.v25i1.313
Publisher Name
University of Dar es Salaam
Included in
Civil Engineering Commons, Environmental Engineering Commons, Hydraulic Engineering Commons, Water Resources Engineering Commons