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An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. [1] Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environments and are an example of an ecotone .
Estuarine water circulation is controlled by the inflow of rivers, the tides, rainfall and evaporation, the wind, and other oceanic events such as an upwelling, an eddy, and storms. Estuarine water circulation patterns are influenced by vertical mixing and stratification, and can affect residence time and exposure time.
Brackish water condition commonly occurs when fresh water meets seawater. In fact, the most extensive brackish water habitats worldwide are estuaries, where a river meets the sea. The River Thames flowing through London is a classic river estuary.
An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. [8] The residence time of water in an estuary is dependent on the circulation within the estuary that is driven by density differences due to changes in salinity and temperature.
Delaware Bay is the estuary outlet of the Delaware River on the northeast seaboard of the United States, lying between the states of Delaware and New Jersey.It is approximately 782 square miles (2,030 km 2) in area, [2] the bay's freshwater mixes for many miles with the saltwater of the Atlantic Ocean.
Water exchange occurs through Indian Pass, West Pass, East Pass and the Duer Channel. The lagoon has been designated as a National Estuarine Research Reserve and the Apalachicola River is the largest source of freshwater to the estuary. [2]
The Brazos River Estuary is the second of three minor estuaries located on the upper-mid Texas coast in Brazoria County between Matagorda Bay and Galveston Bay. It is a riverine estuary system consisting only of the lower reaches of the Brazos River, with no associated bay. [44]
Water quality is a fundamental indicator of the impacts from coastal watersheds and the health of estuarine ecosystems. Good water quality affects coastal habitat quality and human communities that rely on estuaries for recreation and livelihoods.