Importance of lake‐river interaction on seasonal patterns in the general circulation of Kamloops Lake, British Columbia

Abstract

The physical effects of a large river (Thompson River) entering a deep, intermontane lake (Kamloops Lake, British Columbia) suggest that, depending upon its temperature relative to that of lake water, river water moves through the lake as a surface overflow, an intermediate depth interflow, or a near‐bottom underflow. Circulation is further influenced by the earth’s rotation so that the incoming river flows preferentially along the right‐hand shoreline of the lake. Convective overturn in autumn and spring is influenced by cabbeling, which occurs whenever two parcels of water, one warmer than 4°C and one colder, combine to form a mixture whose temperature is at or near 4°C.