Reactive mercury in the eastern North Atlantic and southeast Atlantic

The vertical distribution of reactive mercury has been measured at two stations in the eastern North Atlantic and one station in the southeast Atlantic in conjunction with the IOC Open Ocean Baseline Survey. The average concentrations of reactive Hg in vertical profiles ranged from 0.70 to 1.07 pM with the highest values found at the northeast Atlantic stations and the lowest at the southeast station. No significant concentration gradients were found below the surface mixed layer at the two stations in the eastern North Atlantic. At station 7, in the southeast Atlantic, an increase in reactive Hg was noted in the water adjacent to the mixed layer (35–200 m) which was coincident with an oxygen depletion, down to 20% saturation at 200 m. The concentration of reactive Hg in the North Atlantic Deep Water (0.48–1.34 pM), the Antarctic Intermediate Water (0.47 pM), the Antarctic Bottom Water (0.67–1.25 pM), and the Mediterranean Outflow Water (0.83–1.06 pM) were noted. The trends in Hg concentration in the water masses between stations showed the concentration decreasing with distance from the water mass source except for Hg in the Antarctic Bottom Water. The increase noted in this water mass was attributed to mixing with North Atlantic Deep Water and or release from bottom sediments.     

The distribution and speciation of mercury in the South and equatorial Atlantic

Mercury concentration and speciation were measured in surface and deep ocean waters of the South and equatorial Atlantic. In the surface waters, total Hg was 2.9±1.7 pM on average, with a significant fraction present as reactive Hg (1.7±1.2 pM). The reactive Hg fraction consisted of elemental Hg (Hg°) as the dominant species (1.2±0.8 pM). Measurements in surface waters also showed that Hg partitioned to the “colloidal” phase (0.33±0.28 pM) and was associated with particulate matter (0.1±0.05 pM). No dimethylmercury (DMHg;<0.01 pM) or monomethylmercury (MMHg; <0.05 pM) was detected in mixed layer samples. The highest DMHg concentrations were found in recently formed deep waters – Antarctic Intermediate Water and Antarctic Bottom Water and in the equatorial sub-thermocline region. Higher concentrations of DMHg coincided with higher values of apparent oxygen utilization, indicative of a link between microbial activity and methylated Hg production. The lowest-deep water DMHg concentrations were found in the core of the North Atlantic Deep Water. Incubation experiments on-board demonstrated that light enhanced the decomposition of DMHg, with MMHg as the major product. In deep waters, Hg° was still an important constituent and is likely formed as a decomposition product from MMHg. These results suggest that methylated Hg production occurs primarily in regions of high biological activity, and that ionic Hg is strongly complexed to organic matter (colloidal material) in open ocean surface waters.     

A Zonal Pathway for NADW in the South Atlantic

Several large deployments of neutrally buoyant floats took place within the Antarctic Intermediate (AAIW), North Atlantic Deep Water (NADW), and the Antarctic Bottom Water (AABW) of the South Atlantic in the 1990s and a number of hydrographic sections were occupied as well. Here we use the spatially and temporally averaged velocities measured by these floats, combined with the hydrographic section data and various estimates of regional current transports from moored current meter arrays, to determine the circulation of the three major subthermocline water masses in a zonal strip across the South Atlantic between the latitudes of 19°S and 30°S. We concentrate on this region because the historical literature suggests that it is where the Deep Western Boundary Current containing NADW bifurcates. In support of this notion, we find that a net of about 5 Sv. of the 15–20 Sv that crosses 19°S does continue zonally eastward at least as far as the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Once across the ridge it takes a circuit to the north along the ridge flanks before returning to the south in the eastern half of the Angola Basin. The data suggest that the NADW then continues on into the Indian Ocean. This scheme is discussed in the context of distributions of dissolved oxygen, silicate and salinity. In spite of the many float-years of data that were collected in the region a surprising result is that their impact on the computed solutions is quite modest. Although the focus is on the NADW we also discuss the circulation for the AAIW and AABW layers.     

Depth distribution of radiolarians from the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas, western Arctic

The depth distributions of the radiolarian fauna in the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas, marginal seas of the western Arctic Ocean, were examined quantitatively in depth-stratified plankton tows from 4 or 5 intervals above 500 m and in surface sediments from various depths between 163 and 2907 m. The radiolarian assemblage from the water column in September 2000 was dominated by Amphimelissa setosa and followed by the Actinomma boreale/leptoderma group, Pseudodictyophimus gracilipes and Spongotrochus glacialis. These species are related to the Arctic Surface Water shallower than 150 m. This assemblage is similar to that in the Greenland Sea relating to the ice edge, but did not contain typical Pacific radiolarians in spite of the flow of water of Pacific origin in this region. The living depth of Ceratocyrtis historicosa was restricted to the relatively warm water between 300 and 500 m corresponding to the upper Arctic Intermediate Water (AIW) originating from the Atlantic Ocean. Radiolarian assemblages in the surface sediments are similar to those in the plankton tows, except for common Cycladophora davisiana in sediment samples below 500 m. C. davisiana is probably a deep-water species adapted to the lower AIW or the Canadian Basin Deep Water ventilated from the shelves.     

Changes in ocean ventilation during the 21st Century in the CCSM3

Changes in the ventilation rate of the global ocean during the 20th and 21st centuries, as indicated by changes in the distribution of ideal age, are examined in a series of integrations of the Community Climate System Model version 3. The global mean age changes little in the 20th Century relative to pre-industrial conditions, but increases in the 21st Century, by an amount that is independent of the range of climate forcings considered. The increase is primarily due to a decrease in the ventilation rate of Antarctic Bottom Water (AABW), and to a lesser degree, North Atlantic Deep Water (NADW). Changes in a regional volumetric census of age indicate that the changes in AABW are predominantly for waters that are already older than 100 years, so will likely have a moderate direct feedback on oceanic uptake of CO₂ and other tracers. On the other hand, the changes in NADW occur most strongly in waters that are a few decades old, so are more likely to have a feedback on the climate system. While the global mean age increases, the age does not increase everywhere in the ocean. Regions newly exposed to strong atmospheric forcing as sea ice retreats experience an increase in convection and decreasing age. Age also decreases over a large volume of the lower thermocline as the rate of upwelling of old deep water decreases with the weakening of the thermohaline circulation.     

Long-term trends and interannual variability of temperature in Drake Passage

Temperature data collected over the last 36 years (1969–2004) in Drake Passage are used to examine interannual temperature variation and long-term trends in the upper ocean. To reduce the effect of variation from different sampling locations and temporal variability introduced by meridional shifts in the Polar Front (PF), the data were divided into two sub-regions north (3800 temperature profiles) and south (3400) of the PF. Temperature anomalies were formed by removing a temporal mean field for each profile in each sub-region at 100 m depth intervals from the surface to 700 m. North of the PF, statistically significant warming trends of 0.02 °C yr⁻¹ were observed that were largely depth-independent between 100 and 700 m. A statistically significant cooling trend of −0.07 °C yr⁻¹ was observed at the surface south of the PF, which was smaller (−0.04 °C yr⁻¹) but still statistically significant when possible seasonal sampling biases were accounted for. The observed cooling at the surface and warming at depth is largely consistent with a poleward shift of the PF due to enhancement of westerly winds in the Southern Ocean, as recently suggested by models and observations. The observed annual temperature anomalies in the upper 400 m north of the PF and in the upper 100 m south of the PF are highly correlated to variability in sea ice, and also to climate indices of the Antarctic Oscillation and the El Niño Southern Oscillation. Variability in sea ice and temperature anomalies lag El Niño variability in the Pacific, with a phasing consistent with the observed cyclical patterns of sea ice and sea surface temperature associated with the Antarctic Circumpolar Wave or Antarctic Dipole Mode in the Southern Ocean. In contrast, the sea ice variability and temperature anomalies at all depths north of the PF and at 0–100 m depth south of the PF were primarily coincident with, or led the Antarctic Oscillation Index. No significant correlations were found with the large-scale climate variability indices in southern Drake Passage below 100 m depth, which is occupied by upper Circumpolar Deep Water (uCDW). This water mass is not formed locally, is largely isolated from the surface, and exhibits vertical and lateral homogeneity. Hence changes may be difficult to detect in the available measurements, and climate variation in the source water regions of uCDW may take a long time to reach Drake Passage.     

Dianeutral mixing,transformation and transport of Antarctic Intermediate Water in the South Atlantic Ocean

Recently obtained World Ocean Circulation Experiment (WOCE) sections combined with a specially prepared pre-WOCE South Atlantic data set are used to study the dianeutral (across neutral surface) mixing and transport achieving Antarctic Intermediate Water (AAIW) being transformed to be part of the North Atlantic Deep Water (NADW) return cell. Five neutral surfaces are mapped, encompassing the AAIW from 700 to 1100 db at the subtropical latitudes.Coherent and significant dianeutral upwelling is found in the western boundary near the Brazil coast north of the separation point (about 25°S) between the anticyclonic subtropical and cyclonic south equatorial gyres. The magnitude of dianeutral upwelling transport is 10^-3 Sv (1 Sv=10⁶ m³ s^-1) for 1°×1° square area. It is found that the AAIW sources from the southwestern South Atlantic and southwestern Indian Ocean do not rise significantly into the Benguela Current. Instead, they contribute to the NADW return formation by dianeutral upwelling into the South Equatorial Current. In other words, the AAIW sources cannot obtain enough heat/buoyancy to rise until they return to the western boundary region but north of the separation point. The basin-wide integration of dianeutral transport shows net upward transports, ranging from 0.25 to 0.6 Sv, across the lower and upper boundary of AAIW north of 40°S. This suggests that the equatorward AAIW is a slow rising water on a basin average. Given one order of uncertainty in evaluating the along-neutral-surface and dianeutral diffusivities from the assumed values, K=10³ m² s^-1 and D=10^-5 m² s^-1, the integrated dianeutral transport has an error band of about 10–20%. The relatively weak integrated dianeutral upwelling transport compared with AAIW in other oceans implies much stronger lateral advection of AAIW in the South Atlantic.Mapped Turner Angle in diagnosing the double-diffusion processes shows that the salty Central Water can flux salt down to the upper half of AAIW layer through salt-fingering. Therefore, the northward transition of AAIW can gain salt either through along-neutral-surface advection and diffusion or through salt fingering from the Central Water and heat through either along-neutral-surface advection and diffusion or dianeutral upwelling. Cabbeling and thermobaricity are found significant in the Antarctic frontal zone and contribute to dianeutral downwelling with velocity as high as −1.5×10^-7 m s^-1. A schematic AAIW circulation in the South Atlantic suggests that dianeutral mixing plays an essential role in transforming AAIW into NADW return formation.     

Dissolved organic matter cycling in the confluence of the Atlantic and Indian oceans south of Africa

The boundary between the Atlantic and Indian sectors of the Southern Ocean is a key spot of the thermohaline circulation, where the following water masses mix up: Indian Central water (ICW), South Atlantic Central Water (SACW), Antarctic Intermediate Water (AAIW), Circumpolar Deep Water (CDW), North Atlantic Deep Water (NADW), Weddell Sea Deep Water (WSDW) and Antarctic Winter Water (WW). An optimum multiparameter analysis based on the distributions of potential temperature, salinity, NO (=O₂+9.3×NO₃) and silicate during the GoodHope 2004 (GH04) cruise allowed us to (i) define the realms of these water masses; (ii) obtain the water mass proportion weighted-average (archetypal) apparent oxygen utilization (AOU) and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentrations of each water mass; and (iii) estimate the contribution of DOC to the oxygen demand of the study area. WW represented only 5.2% of the water volume sampled during GH04, followed by WSDW with 10.8%, NADW with 12.7%, SACW with 15.3%, AAIW with 23.1% and CDW with 32.8%. The distributions of DOC and AOU were mainly explained by the mixing of archetypal concentrations of these variables, 75±5% and 65±3% respectively, which retained the variability due to the basin-scale mineralization from the formation area to the barycentre of each water mass along the GH04 line. DOC accounted for 26±2% and 12±5% of the oxygen demand of the meso- and bathypelagic ocean, respectively. Conversely, local mineralization processes, retained by the residuals of the archetypal concentrations of DOC and AOU, did not contribute to improve significantly the mixing model of DOC.     

The mid-depth circulation of the northwestern tropical Atlantic observed by floats

A comprehensive analysis of velocity data from subsurface floats in the northwestern tropical Atlantic at two depth layers is presented: one representing the Antarctic Intermediate Water (AAIW, pressure range 600–1050 dbar), the other the upper North Atlantic Deep Water (uNADW, pressure range 1200–2050 dbar). New data from three independent research programs are combined with previously available data to achieve blanket coverage in space for the AAIW layer, while coverage in the uNADW remains more intermittent. Results from the AAIW mainly confirm previous studies on the mean flow, namely the equatorial zonal and the boundary currents, but clarify details on pathways, mostly by virtue of the spatial data coverage that sets float observations apart from e.g. shipborne or mooring observations. Mean transports in each of five zonal equatorial current bands is found to be between 2.7 and 4.5 Sv. Pathways carrying AAIW northward beyond the North Brazil Undercurrent are clearly visible in the mean velocity field, in particular a northward transport of 3.7 Sv across 16°N between the Antilles islands and the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. New maps of Lagrangian eddy kinetic energy and integral time scales are presented to quantify mesoscale activity. For the uNADW, mean flow and mesoscale properties are discussed as data availability allows. Trajectories in the uNADW east of the Lesser Antilles reveal interactions between the Deep Western Boundary Current (DWBC) and the basin interior, which can explain recent hydrographic observations of changes in composition of DWBC water along its southward flow.     

Hydrographic structure and circulation in the central area of the North Eastern Atlantic

On the basis of the hydrographic data observed within the Canary Basin in autumn 1985, temperature-salinity properties, distributions of water masses and barocltne flow field, as well as the volume transports in this area are described more detailly. The analyses indicate that the activity in the waters of the Canary Basin is mainly attributed to the interleaving and mixing between the originated water masses (e. g. Surface Water, North Atlantic Central Water, Mediterranean Water and Deep Water) and the modified water masses (Subpolar Mode Water, Labrador Sea Water and Antarctic Intermediate Water) from the outside of the study area and the variation of themselves. The east recirculation of the Subtropic Gyre in the North Atlantic consists of Azores Current and Canary Current.Azores Current is formed with several flow branches around the Azores Island, while the main flow lies at 35?N south of the Azores Island. It begins to diverge near the 15?W. The return flow found off the Portugal coast may be its     

Vertical and horizontal distribution of fluorescent dissolved organic matter in the Southern Ocean

The vertical and horizontal distribution of fluorescent dissolved organic matter (FDOM), determined by fluorescence intensity at 320 nm excitation and 420 nm emission, were clarified in nine stations on two transects at the Southern Ocean, including a subtropical, subantarctic, polar frontal and Antarctic zone. All vertical profiles of fluorescence intensity showed that levels were lowest in the surface waters, increased with increasing the depth in mid-depth waters ( 2000 m), and then stayed within a relatively narrow range from there to the bottom. Such vertical profiles of FDOM were similar to those of nutrients, but were adverse to dissolved oxygen. In water columns below the temperature-minimum subsurface water (dichothermal waters) in the Antarctic zone and below the winter mixed layer in the other zones, we determined the relationships of fluorescence intensity to concentrations of nutrients and apparent oxygen utilization (AOU) over the entire area of the present study, and found significant linear correlations between the levels of fluorescence intensity and nutrient concentrations (r =  0.70 and 0.71 for phosphate and nitrate + nitrite, respectively) and AOU (r = 0.91). From the strong correlation coefficient between fluorescence intensity and AOU, we concluded that FDOM in the Southern Ocean is formed in situ via the biological oxidation of organic matter. The regeneration of the nutrients/consumption of the oxygen/formation of FDOM was active in mid-depth waters. However, the correlations between fluorescence intensities and nutrients and AOU were different in the mid-depth water masses, Subantarctic Mode Water (SAMW), and Antarctic Intermediate Water (AAIW), indicating that the sources of organic matter responsible for FDOM formation were different. A considerable amount of FDOM in the SAMW is thought to be produced by the remineralization of DOM in addition to sinking particulate organic matter, while DOM is less responsible for FDOM formation in the AAIW.     

Kinematic elements of Antarctic Intermediate Water in the western South Atlantic

The northward flowing Antarctic Intermediate Water (AAIW) is a major contributor to the large-scale meridional circulation of water masses in the Atlantic. Together with bottom and thermocline water, AAIW replaces North Atlantic Deep Water that penetrates into the South Atlantic from the North. On the northbound propagation of AAIW from its formation area in the south-western region of the Argentine Basin, the AAIW progresses through a complex spreading pattern at the base of the main thermocline. This paper presents trajectories of 75 subsurface floats, seeded at AAIW depth. The floats were acoustically tracked, covering a period from December 1992 to October 1996. Discussions of selected trajectories focus on mesoscale kinematic elements that contribute to the spreading of AAIW. In the equatorial region, intermittent westward and eastward currents were observed, suggesting a seasonal cycle of the AAIW flow direction. At tropical latitudes, just offshore the intermediate western boundary current, the southward advection of an anticyclonic eddy was observed between 5^°S and 11°S. Farther offshore, the flow lacks an advective pattern and is governed by eddy diffusion. The westward subtropical gyre return current at about 28°S shows considerable stability, with the mean kinetic energy to eddy kinetic energy ratio being around one. Farther south, the eastward deeper South Atlantic Current is dominated by large-scale meanders with particle velocities in excess of 60 cm s^-1. At the Brazil–Falkland Current Confluence Zone, a cyclonic eddy near 40°S 50°W seems to act as injector of freshly mixed AAIW into the subtropical gyre. In general, much of the mixing of the various blends of AAIW is due to the activity of mesoscale eddies, which frequently reoccupy similar positions.     

Characterising the intermediate depth waters of the Pacific Ocean using δ13C and other geochemical tracers

Evidence from geochemical tracers (salinity, oxygen, silicate, nutrients, alkalinity, dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC), carbon isotopes (δ¹³C_DIC) and radiocarbon (Δ¹⁴C)) collected during the Pacific Ocean World Ocean Circulation Experiment (WOCE) voyages (P10, P15, P17 and P19) indicate there are three main water types at intermediate depths in the Pacific Ocean; North Pacific Intermediate Water (NPIW), Antarctic Intermediate Water (AAIW) and Equatorial Pacific Intermediate Waters (EqPIW). We support previous suggestions of EqPIW as a separate equatorial intermediate depth water as it displays a distinct geochemical signature characterised by low salinity, low oxygen, high nutrients and low Δ¹⁴C (older radiocarbon). Using the geochemical properties of the different intermediate depth waters, we have mapped out their distribution in the main Pacific Basin.From the calculated pre-formed δ¹³C_air–sea conservative tracer, it is evident that EqPIW is a combination of AAIW parental waters, while quasi-conservative geochemical tracers, such as radiocarbon, also indicate mixing with old upwelling Pacific Deep Waters (PDW). The EqPIW also displays a latitudinal asymmetry in non-conservative geochemical tracers and can be further split into North (NEqPIW) and South (SEqPIW) separated at ～2°N. The reason for this asymmetry is caused by higher surface diatom production in the north driven by higher silicate concentrations.The δ¹³C signature measured in benthic foraminifera, Cibicidoides spp. (δ¹³C_Cib), from four core tops bathed in AAIW, SEqPIW and NPIW, reflects that of the overlying intermediate depth waters. The δ¹³C_Cib from these cores show similarities and variations down-core that highlight changes in mixing over the last 30,000 yr BP. The reduced offset between the δ¹³C_Cib of AAIW and SEqPIW during the last glacial indicates that AAIW might have had an increased influence in the eastern equatorial Pacific (EEP) region at this time. Additional intermediate depth cores and other paleo-geochemical proxies such as Cd/Ca and radiocarbon are required from the broader Pacific Ocean to further understand changes in intermediate depth water formation, circulation and mixing over glacial/interglacial cycles.     

CMIP5地球系统模式溶解氧模拟结果分析

本文基于常用的统计方法,通过与WOA09观测的海洋溶解氧浓度数据进行比较,定量地评估了9个CMIP5地球系统模式在历史排放试验中海洋溶解氧气候态特征的模拟能力。在海表,由于地球系统模式均能很好地模拟海表温度（SST）,模式模拟的海表溶解氧浓度分布与观测一致,模拟结果无论是全球平均浓度偏差还是均方根误差均接近0,空间相关系数与标准偏差接近1。在海洋中层以及深层这些重要水团所在的区域,各模式的模拟能力则差异较大,尤其在溶解氧低值区（OMZs）所在的500m到1000m,各模式均出现全球平均偏差、均方根误差的极大值以及空间相关系数的极小值。在海洋内部,模式偏差的原因比较复杂。经向翻转环流和颗粒有机碳通量均对模式的偏差有贡献。分析结果表明物理场偏差对溶解氧偏差的贡献较大。一些重要水团,比如北大西洋深水,南极底层水以及北太平洋中层水在极大程度上影响了溶解氧在这些海区的分布。需要指出的是,虽然在海洋内部各模式模拟的溶解氧浓度偏差较大,但是多模式平均结果却能表现出与观测较好的一致性。     

理想化南极融冰方案的海洋边界条件初探

基于气候态的SODA(simple Ocean Data Assimilation)数据,比较了气候态意义下南极附近和南极绕极流区域的海洋层结,对南极融冰问题的合理海洋边界条件进行了初步探讨.结果表明:南极融冰所注入的淡水通量在大西洋东部和印度洋海区将沿着表层路径到达南极绕极流区,在大西洋西部和太平洋的经向运动路径视淡...     

The distribution and preferential biological uptake of cadmium at 6°W in the Southern Ocean

The spatial and temporal distribution of cadmium (Cd) and phosphate in the Southern Ocean are related to biology and hydrography. During a period of 18 days between transects 5/6 and 11, a phytoplankton spring bloom developed in the Polar Frontal region. Upper water Cd concentrations were not depleted and ranged from 0.2 to 0.8 nM at about 10 m depth. These relatively high Cd concentrations are attributed to upwelling of Upper Circumpolar Deep Water (0.5–1.2 nM in the core) in combination with low biological productivity (0.2 to 0.3 mg m⁻³ chlorophyll-a, 0.3 g C m⁻² d⁻¹). Total particulate Cd concentrations at 40 m depth were between 0.02 and 0.14 nM with the maximum in concentration in the Polar Frontal region. Most of the particulate Cd at this depth (85–94%) was detected in the first phase of a sequential chemical leaching treatment which includes adsorbed Cd as well as Cd incorporated in algae. The Polar Frontal region was characterized by minima in Cd concentration and Cd/phosphate ratio of seawater at both transects; values were the lowest at transect 11 after development of the spring bloom which was dominated by diatoms. This decreasing Cd/phosphate ratio in seawater during spring bloom development was attributed to preferential Cd gross uptake which more than compensated the process of preferential Cd recycling. Within the Upper Circumpolar Deep Water, Cd showed a maximum in concentration similar to that of the major nutrients. Both the Cd concentration and the Cd/phosphate ratio of the deeper water increased in southern direction, from 0.4 to 0.7 nM and from 0.2 to 0.3 nM/μM, respectively. Antarctic Intermediate Water has a Cd concentration of 0.21 nM with a Cd/phosphate ratio of 0.10 nM/μM. In Antarctic Bottom Water, Cd concentrations ranged from 0.60 to 0.82 nM.     

Phytoplankton community structures in shelf and oceanic waters off southeast Brazil (20°–25°S), as determined by pigment signatures

The influences of the hydrological features and environmental conditions in the phytoplankton community found in the Campos Basin area in the Atlantic Ocean (20° to 25°S; 42° to 38°W) were studied using HPLC/CHEMTAX pigment analysis. Samples were collected at 72 stations distributed along the 25–3000 m isobaths at two depths during two seasonal periods (rainy and dry). Seven taxonomic groups of phytoplankton were detected (diatoms, dinoflagellates, prasinophytes, cryptophytes, haptophytes, pelagophytes and cyanobacteria). Redundancy analysis showed that the spatial and temporal patterns observed in the distribution of the phytoplanktonic groups were primarily related to variations in the availability of light and nutrients. Nutrient variations were caused by South Atlantic Central Water seasonal intrusions over the continental shelf region. Cyanobacteria predominated in the rainy season, while diatoms, Haptophyceae and Prasinophyceae, were associated with higher nutrient availability in the dry season. In the inner shelf region, diatoms dominated and were associated with increased conditions of turbulence and nutrient availability. Haptophytes and prasinophytes were predominant on the outer shelf and shelf-break regions associated with high nutrient concentrations and availability of light. Prochlorococcus was related to oceanic waters (in both dry and rainy periods) or to low nutrient/strongly stratified shelf waters (rainy period). In contrast, Synechococcus was widely distributed in both the shelf and oceanic regions. Variation in the quality of light between coastal and oceanic waters was probably responsible for the distributions observed. Through HPLC/CHEMTAX pigment analysis we have developed a detailed picture of the influence of hydrological regime on the dynamics of the phytoplankton community in an under-studied shelf/ocean system in the tropical southern Atlantic Ocean.     

西北冰洋表层沉积物中的底栖有孔虫组合及其古环境意义

通过对中国第1~4次北极考察在西北冰洋采集的表层沉积物中底栖有孔虫丰度及其优势种分布特征与环境因素关系的综合研究发现,楚科奇海区低的底栖有孔虫丰度主要受较高的陆源物质输入的稀释作用影响;楚科奇海台和阿尔法脊较高的底栖有孔虫丰度主要受到暖而咸的大西洋中层水的影响;受碳酸钙溶解作用影响的门捷列夫深海平原和加拿大海盆底栖有孔虫丰度较低,并且水深3 597 m的站位出现了似瓷质壳的Pyrgo williamsoni和Quinqueloculina orientalis,说明该区的CCD深度大于3 600 m。根据底栖有孔虫7个优势属种的百分含量分布特征可以划分出5个区域组合:南楚科奇海陆架-白令海峡组合以优势种Elphidium excavatum和Buccella frigida为特征,可能反映受白令海陆架水影响的浅水环境;阿拉斯加沿岸-波弗特海组合以优势种Florilus scaphus和Elphidium albiumbilicatum为特征,可能反映受季节性海冰融化,低盐的阿拉斯加沿岸流以及河流淡水输入的低盐环境;大西洋中层水组合以优势种Cassidulina laevigata为特征,可能反映高温高盐的大西洋中层水影响的环境;北极深层水组合以优势种Cibicides wuellerstorfi为特征,可能反映水深大于1 500 m低温高盐的北极深层水环境;门捷列夫深海平原组合以优势种Oridorsalis umbonatus为特征,可能反映低营养的底层水环境。     

The deep waters from the Southern Ocean at the entry to the Argentine Basin

Hydrographic data from the World Ocean Circulation Experiment (WOCE) and South Atlantic Ventilation Experiment (SAVE) in the region of transition between the Scotia Sea and the Argentine Basin are examined to determine the composition of the deep water from the Southern Ocean that enters the Atlantic, and to describe the pathways of its constituents. The deep current that flows westward against the Falkland Escarpment is formed of several superposed velocity cores that convey waters of different origins: Lower Circumpolar Deep Water (LCDW), Southeast Pacific Deep Water (SPDW), and Weddell Sea Deep Water (WSDW).Different routes followed by the WSDW upstream of, and through, the Georgia Basin, lead to distinctions between the Lower-WSDW (σ₄>46.09) and the Upper-WSDW (46.04<σ₄ <46.09). The Lower-WSDW flows along the South Sandwich Trench, then cyclonically in the main trough of the Georgia Basin. Although a fraction escapes northward to the Argentine Basin, a comparison of the WOCE data with those from previous programmes shows that this component had disappeared from the southwestern Argentine Basin in 1993/1994. This corroborates previous results using SAVE and pre-SAVE data. A part of the Upper-WSDW, recognizable from different θ–S characteristics, flows through the Scotia Sea, then in the Georgia Basin along the southern front of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current. Northward leakage at this front is expected to feed the Argentine Basin through the northern Georgia Basin. The SPDW is originally found to the south of the Polar Front (PF) in Drake Passage. The northward veering of this front allows this water to cross the North Scotia Ridge at Shag Rocks Passage. It proceeds northward to the Argentine Basin around the Maurice Ewing Bank. The LCDW at the Falkland Escarpment is itself subdivided in two cores, of which only the denser one eventually underrides the North Atlantic Deep Water (NADW) in the Atlantic Ocean. This fraction is from the poleward side of the PF in Drake Passage. It also crosses the North Scotia Ridge at Shag Rocks Passage, then flows over the Falkland Plateau into the Atlantic. The lighter variety, from the northern side of the PF, is thought to cross the North Scotia Ridge at a passage around 55°W. It enters the Argentine Basin in the density range of the NADW.