Dr. Robert Weisberg

Dr. Weisberg is an experimental physical oceanographer engaged in ocean circulation and ocean-atmosphere interaction studies in the tropics, on continental shelves, and in estuaries. He is an author on more than 100 refereed professional journal articles.

As director of the USF Ocean Circulation Group and co-director of the USF Coastal Ocean Modeling and Prediction System his research presently emphasizes real-time in-situ measurements, analyses, and models of the West Florida Shelf circulation and the interactions between the shelf and the deep-ocean and between the shelf and the estuaries.

He maintains a coordinated observing and modeling system through his Ocean Circulation Group. Observations consist of surface moorings for real time surface meteorology, water column ocean currents, and temperature/salinity (T/S), some inclusive of waves; subsurface moorings for currents; HF-radar for surface currents; profilers for T/S (in collaboration with the CMS-COT); analyses of satellite data for SST, SSH, and geostrophic currents; and occasionally surface drifters.

Models consist of WFS regional applications of ROMS nested in the 1/12th degree North Atlantic HYCOM (to study the WFS and deep-ocean interactions) and the FVCOM (to study the WFS and estuary interactions) and sub-regional FVCOM applications to individual estuaries. Additional FVCOM applications, making use of its high resolution and flooding/drying capabilities, is for coastal inundation by hurricane storm surge.