Abstract

Presenter Bio

Ryan Mulligan is a coastal engineer and oceanographer, with interests in the physical forces that cause changes to coastal regions and the ways in which coastal systems respond. Coastal processes act over a range in time scales from seconds (like surface waves) to hundreds of years (like sea level rise), but often it is timescales of days (like hurricanes and storm events) over which major changes such as erosion occurs that affect human populations. Coastal processes can also act over a wide range of spatial scales from sub-millimetre scale (like fluid turbulence) to thousands of kilometres (like tsunamis) and it is important to understand the interaction of many different processes to simulate and predict future changes to the coastal environment.

Dr. Mulligan's interests range from surface waves, ocean currents, transport of water and sediments and contaminants to changes in the geomorphology of the coastline and seabed. He uses field observations and numerical models to study coastal systems, and develop further understanding of the processes that affect oceans, estuaries and rivers. His particular interest is in coastal regions that are exposed to severe storms including hurricanes, with large waves and strong currents, and understanding coastal erosion and flooding.

He is also interested in marine renewable energy and its impacts on the marine environment, specifically as it relates to marine tidal current turbines (e.g., in the Bay of Fundy) and offshore wind turbines (e.g., in Lake Ontario).

Publication Date

12-15-2017

Document Type

Presentation

Share

COinS