Storm evolution characterization for analysing stone armour damage progression

Storm evolution is fundamental for analysing the damage progression of the different failure modes and establishing suitable protocols for maintaining and optimally sizing structures. However, this aspect has hardly been studied and practically the whole of the studies dealing with the subject adopt the Equivalent triangle storm. As against this approach, two new ones are proposed. The first is the Equivalent Triangle Magnitude Storm model (ETMS), whose base, the triangular storm duration, D, is established such that its magnitude (area describing the storm history above the reference threshold level which sets the storm condition), H_T, equals the real storm magnitude. The other is the Equivalent Triangle Number of Waves Storm (ETNWS), where the base is referred in terms of the real storm's number of waves, N_z. Three approaches are used for estimating the mean period, T_m, associated to each of the sea states defining the storm evolution, which is necessary to determine the full energy flux withstood by the structure in the course of the extreme event. Two are based on the Jonswap spectrum representativity and the other uses the bivariate Gumbel copula (H_s, T_m), resulting from adjusting the storm peaks. The representativity of the approaches proposed and those defined in specialised literature are analysed by comparing the main armour layer's progressive loss of hydraulic stability caused by real storms and that relating to theoretical ones. An empirical maximum energy flux model is used for this purpose. The agreement between the empirical and theoretical results demonstrates that the representativity of the different approaches depends on the storm characteristics and point towards a need to investigate other geometrical shapes to characterise the storm evolution associated with sea states heavily influenced by swell wave components.     

Field observations on hydrodynamic and coastal geomorphic processes off Harilaid Peninsula (Baltic Sea) in winter and spring 2006–2007

Investigations of multi-layer current regime, variations in sea level and wave parameters using a bottom-mounted RDCP (Recording Doppler Current Profiler) during 20 December 2006–23 May 2007 were integrated with surveys on changes of shorelines and contours of beach ridges at nearby Harilaid Peninsula (Saaremaa Island). A W-storm with a maximum average wind speed of 23 m s⁻¹ occurred on 14–15 January with an accompanying sea level rise of at least 100 cm and a significant wave height of 3.2 m at the 14 m deep RDCP mooring site. It appeared that in practically tideless Estonian coastal waters, Doppler-based “vertical velocity” measurements reflect mainly site-dependent equilibrium between resuspension and sedimentation. The mooring site, 1.5 km off the Kelba Spit of Harilaid, was located in the accumulation zone, where downward fluxes dominated and fine sand settled. As a result of storms in January and April, the distal part of the accumulative gravel spit advanced by 50 m, whereas a 30–50 m retreat of the shoreline in the western and northern parts occurred at Cape Kiipsaare. The location of the beach ridges shows that the development of the spit occurs through relatively short-period but infrequent storm events, roughly 2–3 times each decade.     

日照近岸海域春秋季虾蟹类的种类组成特征

作者根据2012年5月和2013年11月对日照近岸海域进行的底拖网调查资料,分析了该海域虾蟹类的种类组成、优势种和生物多样性。调查海域共捕获虾蟹类25种,根据相对重要性指数计算优势种为8种,其中经济价值较高的中大型虾蟹类5种,分别为:口虾蛄(Oratosquilla oratoria)、戴氏赤虾(Meraenaeopsis dalei)、鹰爪虾(Trachypenaeus curvirostris)、日本[虫寻](Charybdis japonica)和三疣梭子蟹(Portunus trituberculatus)。分别计算了日照近岸海域春、秋季虾蟹类群落的多样性指数(H')、丰富度指数(D)和均匀度指数(J)。该海域虾蟹类群落多样性整体处在较低的水平,在生物量和丰度上经济较高的中大型虾蟹类物种占据优势。     

Wave model predictions in the Black Sea: Sensitivity to wind fields

This paper evaluates the impact of using different wind field products on the performance of the third generation wave model SWAN in the Black Sea and its capability for predicting both normal and extreme wave conditions during 1996. Wind data were obtained from NCEP CFSR, NASA MERRA, JRA-25, ECMWF Operational, ECMWF ERA40, and ECMWF ERA-Interim. Wave data were obtained in 1996 at three locations in the Black Sea within the NATO TU-WAVES project. The quality of wind fields was assessed by comparing them with satellite data. These wind data were used as forcing fields for the generation of wind waves. Time series of predicted significant wave height (H_mo), mean wave period (T_m02), and mean wave direction (DIR) were compared with observations at three offshore buoys in the Black Sea and its performance was quantified in terms of statistical parameters. In addition, wave model performance in terms of significant wave height was also assessed by comparing them against satellite data.The main scope of this work is the impact of the different available wind field products on the wave hindcast performance. In addition, the sensitivity of wave model forecasts due to variations in spatial and temporal resolutions of the wind field products was investigated. Finally, the impact of using various wind field products on predicting extreme wave events was analyzed by focussing on storm peaks and on an individual storm event in October 1996. The numerical results revealed that the CFSR winds are more suitable in comparison with the others for modelling both normal and extreme events in the Black Sea. The results also show that wave model output is critically sensitive to the choice of the wind field product, such that the quality of the wind fields is reflected in the quality of the wave predictions. A finer wind spatial resolution leads to an improvement of the wave model predictions, while a finer temporal resolution in the wind fields generally does not significantly improve agreement between observed and simulated wave data.     

Storminess and surges in the South-Western Approaches of the eastern North Atlantic: the synoptic climatology of recent extreme coastal storms

The climatology of intense winter cyclone events in the eastern North Atlantic responsible for high magnitude surge generation (top 1% of events) within the region of the South-Western Approaches to northwest France and southwest England is extracted from daily sea-level and 500-hPa level atmospheric pressure analyses. Cluster analysis yields discrete cyclone track regimes linked to upper airflow patterns being responsible for the generation of intense storms (central pressure at sea-level ≤990 hPa) which promote severe surge events ≥60 cm along the French coast of the South-Western Approaches. Fluctuations in storminess are strongly influenced by the southward intrusion and strengthening of the jet stream in mid-Atlantic. These occurrences are often associated with negative sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies near Newfoundland and a strengthening of the thermal gradient across the Atlantic well to the south of its normal position. Resultant cyclogenesis promotes storms displaying a delay in minimum central pressure attainment until well east of 14°W, encouraging enhancement of surge flow. Stepwise multiple regression analysis indicates that the most influential variables in promoting severe surge events in the South-Western Approaches are trans-Atlantic sea surface temperature gradients. The most important influence is the prevailing west–east sea surface temperature gradient during the month of the storm, followed by that for the prior month of the storm and thirdly, the north–south sea surface temperature gradient prevailing during the month of the event. Other influential variables reflect the character of the cyclone, storm duration, mean deepening rate of storm central pressure, the value of the outermost closed isobar around the storm centre, and the longitudinal position of the outermost closed isobar to the right of the cyclone track. In contrast, the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) is not very effective as a discriminator of surge activity. This may reflect the greater intra-month volatility of parameters used to derive the NAO index than of other monthly variables considered in the study. The lack of resolvability at the individual storm level probably also arises because of the monthly detailing of the NAO against storms of 2–3 days duration. This behavioural model of extreme storminess in the South-Western Approaches to northwest France provides the basis by which extremes of coastal susceptibility can be calibrated.     

基于Argus图像的舟山东沙海滩对连续风暴的响应研究

海滩对风暴的响应是一个复杂的过程,尤其在连续风暴发生时。本研究利用Argus视频监测系统拍摄的连续图像,从海滩地貌、剖面、海滩滨线、海滩宽度等方面,定量分析了舟山东沙海滩对连续风暴"马勒卡"和"暹芭"的响应特征,并初步探讨了影响海滩地形地貌变化对连续风暴响应的因素。结果表明:(1)风暴"马勒卡"发生后海滩单宽体积变化量平均值为?73.75m3/m,风暴"暹芭"发生后海滩单宽体积变化量的平均值为?54.56m3/m,风暴"马勒卡"使整个海滩滨线平均后退14.75m,风暴"暹芭"使得海滩滨线相对于两次风暴前后退10.91m;(2)在海滩自身因素、外部动力因素以及人类活动等共同作用下海滩对连续风暴产生了复杂的响应。     

计算域的选取对风暴潮数值模拟的影响

作者以 72 0 3号台风过程中引起的黄海沿岸水文测站的风暴潮过程为例 ,选取不同计算域 ,模拟计算的同一测站的风暴潮增水值有很大差异。只有选取整个黄渤海海域 ,才能得到较精确的风暴潮增水结果。从而揭示在封闭或半封闭海域中由风暴过程激发的区域自由振荡 ,是风暴潮增水中不容忽视的量。说明该海域中的风暴潮过程是海域整体效应的响应 ,因此认为数值模拟中计算域应选取整个封闭或半封闭海域     

Effects of winds,tides and storm surges on ocean surface waves in the Sea of Japan

Ocean surface waves are strongly forced by high wind conditions associated with winter storms in the Sea of Japan. They are also modulated by tides and storm surges. The effects of the variability in surface wind forcing, tides and storm surges on the waves are investigated using a wave model, a high-resolution atmospheric mesoscale model and a hydrodynamic ocean circulation model. Five month-long wave model simulations are inducted to examine the sensitivity of ocean waves to various wind forcing fields, tides and storm surges during January 1997. Compared with observed mean wave parameters, results indicate that the high frequency variability in the surface wind filed has very great effect on wave simulation. Tides and storm surges have a significant impact on the waves in nearshores of the Tsushima-kaihyō, but not for other regions in the Sea of Japan. High spatial and temporal resolution and good quality surface wind products will be crucial for the prediction of surface waves in the JES and other marginal seas, especially near the coastal regions.     

Space-time variability of the field of mechanical energy transfer from the atmosphere to the Indian Ocean

An analysis of the spatial and temporal variability of the field of mechanical energy transfer (MET) from the atmosphere into the ocean is based on a separate numerical simulation of evolution for the terms of source function for a wind-wave model conducted in the Indian Ocean area for the period 1998 to 2009. The MET field is described by two integral values calculated per unit area: the total rate of energy flux from the wind to waves, I _E (x, t), and the rate of energy-loss flux for the wind waves, D _E (x, t). To solve this problem, the wind field W(x, t) is used, downloaded from the NCEP/NOAA archive [1], and the fields I _E (x, t) and D _E (x, t) were calculated using the numerical model WAM [2] with the modified source function proposed in [3]. Maps for the fields I _E (x, t) and D _E (x, t) were obtained by calculations with different scales of the space-time averaging, extreme and average values of the MET were found, seasonal and interannual variability was estimated, and the 12-year trend for several mean quantities was obtained.     

基于海气耦合模型的渤海两种类型风暴潮数值模拟与对比分析

渤海一年四季都易受到由温带风暴和热带气旋所致风暴潮的影响。为了缓解风暴潮灾害对海岸地区人员生命财产的影响，十分有必要了解大型风暴潮的发生过程和机制。目前大部分研究主要局限于单一的温带风暴潮或台风风暴潮。本文利用所构建的海气耦合数值模型研究了发生于渤海的两种类型的风暴潮，对发生在渤海的2次典型强风暴潮过程进行了模拟。由WRF模型模拟得到的风场强度和最低海平面气压与实测数据吻合较好，由ROMS模型模拟得到的风暴潮期间水位变化过程与潮位站观测结果也吻合较好。对两种类型风暴潮期间的风场结钩、海面风应力、海洋表面平均流场以及水位分布进行了分析对比，并将耦合模型结果与非耦合模型结果进行了对比。研究表明，渤海两种类型风暴潮期间的风场结钩、海面风应力、海洋表面平均流场以及水位分布等均存在巨大差异。渤海风暴潮的强度主要由海洋表面的驱动力所决定，但同时也受海岸地形地貌的影响。     

Numerical simulation of time-dependent beach and dune erosion

A computational procedure is developed for predicting the time-dependent, two-dimensional beach and dune erosion during severe storms due to elevated water levels and waves. The model employs the equation of sediment continuity and a dynamic equation governing the cross-shore sediment transport due to a disequilibrium of wave energy dissipation levels. These equations are solved numerically by an implicit, double-sweep procedure to determine the change in position of elevation contours in the profile. Given sufficient time, the profile will evolve to a form where the depth, h, in the surf zone is related to the distance seaward of the waterline by the relationship: $\text{h = Ax}{}^{\mathrm{<mtext>2</mtext><mtext>3</mtext>}}$, which is consistent with many natural profiles and in which A depends on sediment characteristics.The model is verified qualitatively and quantitatively through application to several idealized cases and through a preliminary simulation of erosion during Hurricane Eloise. In general, the time scales for shoreline response were found to be quite long relative to natural storm systems and erosion in the early response stages was found to be sensitive to storm surge height, but much less sensitive to wave height. The model response characteristics for simulation of erosion due to time-varying storm conditions show a lag between the maximum storm surge elevation and maximum erosion with the maximum erosion rate occurring at the time of the peak surge. For the simulated erosion due to Hurricane Eloise, reasonable agreement was found between the post-hurricane dune profiles and those calculated. However, the eroded volumes were in better agreement than the profile forms as the steepening of the natural dune profiles was not reproduced in the model.     

Benthic foraminifera for heavy metal pollution monitoring: A case study from the central Adriatic Sea coast of Italy

Benthic foraminifera are increasingly used as environmental bio-indicators of pollution in coastal and marginal marine settings. Their community structure provides information on the general characteristics of the environment and some species are sensitive to specific environmental parameters. Among various criteria, the occurrence of test abnormalities may represent a useful bioindicator for monitoring environmental impacts in coastal regions. A study of living benthic foraminifera was carried out in 42 sediment samples collected from the central Adriatic coast of Italy. Benthic foraminiferal assemblages from this area are rich, well preserved, and dominated by Ammonia parkinsoniana, and subordinately by Ammonia tepida, Aubignyna perlucida, Eggerella scabra, and Nonionella turgida. Heavy metal concentrations have been analysed which indicate low polluted environmental conditions. Foraminiferal species and heavy metal concentrations were investigated both with bivariate (correlation matrix) and multivariate techniques of principal component analysis (PCA) and cluster analysis. Statistical analysis shows a possible control of these pollutants both on the taxonomic composition of the benthic foraminiferal assemblages and the development of test malformations. Increasing heavy metal contents lead to an increase in relative abundance of A. tepida A. perlucida, N. turgida and E. scabra, and a relative concurrent decrease in relative abundance of A. parkinsoniana and higher percentages of deformed specimens (FAI) and species (FMI). Our results confirm that A. parkinsoniana prefers clean to low polluted environments and show that it is a very sensitive and un-tolerant species to heavy metal pollution being deeply affected by heavy metal content even at low concentrations. Our findings also confirm the capacity of the A. tepida to tolerate increasing heavy metal concentrations, and highlights that A. perlucida, N. turgida and E. scabra can be considered as tolerant species at least in low polluted environments. Following this, A. parkinsoniana and A. tepida can be reciprocally considered good bioindicator of heavy metal pollution over the surveyed area. The development of test abnormalities with a variety of malformations is a noticeable feature over the study area where the living deformed assemblages are largely dominated by a few species. The low percentages of deformed specimens (Foraminiferal Abnormality Index up to 4.7, with 2 on average) match well with the low concentrations of heavy metals that lead to low polluted environmental conditions. This study confirms and supports the suitability of studying benthic foraminifera as a technique for the in situ continuous bio-monitoring of heavy metal pollution of coastal marine sediments.     

Identifying storm impacts on an embayed, high-energy coastline: examples from western Ireland

Large sections of the western Irish coast are characterised by a highly compartmentalised series of headland-embayment cells in which sand and gravel beaches are backed by large vegetated dune systems. Exposure to modally high-energy swell renders most of these beaches dissipative in character. A mesotidal range (c. 3.5–4.5 m) exists along much of the coast. Analysis of instrumental wind records from three locations permitted the identification of a variety of storm types and the construction of storm catalogues. Few individual storms were recorded at all three stations indicating a lack of regional consistency in storm record. Of the total storms recorded, only a small percentage are potentially damaging (onshore directed) and even fewer span a high tide and thus potentially induce a measurable morphological response at the coast.

Through a combination of historical records, meteorological records, field observations and wave modelling we attempt to assess the impact of storms. Quantifiable records of coastal morphology (maps, air photos and beach profiles) are few in number and do not generally record responses that may be definitely attributed to specific storms. Numerical wave simulations and observations at a variety of sites on the west Irish coast, however, provide insights into instantaneous and medium term (decadal) storm responses in such systems.

We argue that beaches and dunes that are attuned to modally high-energy regimes require extreme storms to cause significant morphological impact. The varying orientation of beaches, a spatially nonuniform storm catalogue and the need for a storm to occur at high water to produce measurable change, impart site-specific storm susceptibility to these embayments. Furthermore, we argue that long-period wave energy attenuation across dissipative shorefaces and beaches reduces coastal response to distant storms whereas short-period, locally generated wind waves are more likely to cause major dune and beach erosion as they arrive at the shoreline unrefracted.

This apparently variable response of beach and dune systems to storm forcing at a decadal scale over a coastline length of 200 km urges caution in generalising regarding regional-scale coastal responses to climatic change.     

Some observational results of sea storm current

INTRODUCTIONDr. Hollister, a marine geologist of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, firstpointed out that there was ocean storm current in the ocean. He found out the wavy texture inthe seabed core samples, and suggested that this wavy texture was caused by the high speedsea current in remote antiquity. He then suggested a bold hypothesis that there existed a benthic storm current near the ocean bottom, and presented this hypothesis at the IUGG confer-ence held at San Francisco…     

黄、东海天气系统对渤海风暴潮影响

渤海沿岸是风暴潮多发区域。研究者多关心渤海局地风引起风暴潮变化,而忽略黄、东海天气系统对渤海风暴潮的影响。为研究外围天气系统对局地风暴潮的影响,本文采用实测资料对比和设计理想数值试验等方法,对黄、东海天气系统影响的渤海风暴潮进行了研究。结果表明:1、TY1814"摩羯"和TY1818"温比亚"台风风暴潮的实测资料呈现当黄、东海风力较大,而渤海风力较小时,渤海沿岸也会出现较大风暴潮现象; 2、从FVCOM(Finite-Volume Coastal Ocean Model)模拟的理想数值试验中发现,黄、东海风向是东南风时,引起渤海沿岸风暴增水极值最大;3、以入海气旋和登陆北上台风两种类型天气系统风向变化设计理想数值试验,发现黄、东海的东南风持续时间对渤海沿岸风暴潮极值大小和出现时间影响较大。理想试验获得的结论不仅能为渤海风暴潮预测和防灾减灾提供理论依据,还能够有效减少预警应急中漏报的现象,降低沿海经济损失。     

The effect of hydrodynamics on shell orientation and population density of Pinna nobilis in the Gulf of Oristano (Sardinia,Italy)

Pinna nobilis is the largest endemic bivalve of the Mediterranean Sea, declared protected since 1992. Although hydrodynamic stress induced by waves is known to influence density, size and orientation of P. nobilis, the effect of other hydrological features is unknown. This paper considers a P. nobilis population living within a Posidonia oceanica meadow in the Gulf of Oristano (Sardinia, Italy). We hypothesize that spatial differences in density and orientation of P. nobilis may be related to significant wave height (H_S), wave direction (D_W), bottom current direction (D_BC) and bottom current speed (S_BC). A population of P. nobilis was investigated at different sites and its distribution was correlated to hydrodynamics by means of a numerical modeling approach. The spatial distribution was patchy, with a density of 0.06–6.7 ind. 100 m^− 2. A non-uniform distribution of shell orientations (O_S) was demonstrated in 4 sites out of 6. D_BC and S_BC were the main factors affecting O_S, while waves had little influence. A S_BC of 0.07 m s^− 1 appears to be the threshold for inducing specimen directionality with shells aligned to the current and the ventral side exposed to the flow. This suggests that feeding strategy is a key factor in determining O_S, in addition to drag minimization. We also highlighted the role of adjacent lagoons in supporting high densities as a result of high food availability. These findings demonstrate the usefulness of modeling techniques in explaining the spatial distribution pattern of P. nobilis and in contributing to our knowledge of its ecological traits.     

A relationship to describe the cumulative impact of storm clusters on beach erosion

Estimation of erosion volumes for adequate dry beach buffer zones is commonly estimated on the basis of a single extreme event, such as the 1 in 100 year storm. However, the cumulative impact of several smaller, closely spaced storms can lead to equal, if not more, dry beach loss, but this is often not quantified. Here we use a calibrated model for dune erosion, XBeach, to hindcast the cumulative erosion impact of a series of historical storms that impacted the Gold Coast, Queensland region in 1967. Over a 6-month period, four named cyclones (Dinah, Barbara, Elaine, and Glenda) and three East Coast Lows caused a cumulative erosion volume greater than the predicted 1 in 100 year event. Results presented here show that XBeach was capable of reproducing the measured dry beach erosion volume to within 21% and shoreline retreat to within 10%. The storms were then run in 17 different sequences to determine if sequencing influenced final modeled erosion volumes. It is shown that storm sequencing did not significantly affect the total eroded volumes. However, individual storm volumes were influenced by the antecedent state of the beach (i.e. prior cumulative erosion). Power-law relationships between cumulative energy density (∑ E) and eroded volume (∆V) as well as cumulative wave power ((∑ P)) and eroded volume (∆V) both explained more than 94% of the modeled dry beach erosion for the 1967 storm sequences. When the relationship was compared with observed and modeled erosion volumes for similar beaches but different storm forcing, the inclusion of pre-storm beach swash slope (β_swash) in the parameterization was found to increase the applicability of the power-law relationship over a broader range of conditions.     

全球热带风暴时空分布特点

对全球三大洋热带风暴的统计分析表明,全球热带风暴在时空分布上具有明显的统计特性.各海域热带风暴都具有季节集中性.在太平洋和印度洋,风暴发生频繁的时间在地理位置上有沿逆时针移动的分布.全球风暴总数在8月、9月份明显偏多,在4月、5月份明显偏少.北半球风暴扩展范围和分布密度大于南半球,并以东北太平洋和西北太平洋风暴分布密度为最大.各海域热带风暴发生频数在统计长度(33a)内都表现年际和10年际“振荡”,不同程度地存在2～3a,6～7a,11～12a及21～23a的重复性变化.较强的风暴,往往寿命也较长.在月份之间比较,风暴在多发月份,一般平均寿命较长,强度也较大;而在年度之间比较,风暴在多发年度,平均寿命却往往较短,强度也较小.风暴在大尺度环境中较好地沿反气旋路径向高纬度运动.     

A generalized approach for long-term modelling of extreme crest-to-trough wave heights

This paper deals with the long-term modelling of high sea waves. The solution is given for the return period of sea storms during which an arbitrary chosen number of waves, with crest-to-trough heights exceeding a fixed threshold, occur. This return period is derived starting from the Equivalent Triangular Storm (ETS) model, which associates a triangle to each actual storm and thus represents a significant wave height time series at a fixed location by means of a sequence of triangular storms. The short-term statistics is then applied to investigate the occurrence of large crest-to-trough wave heights during a given storm. Finally, by combining the statistical distribution of significant wave heights, the ETS model and the short-term wave statistics, the solution is given for the return periods R_N and R_N of a sea storm in which N or at least N waves higher than a fixed threshold occur. The values of R_N are then calculated, starting from data of two buoys moored in the Pacific Ocean and in the Mediterranean Sea.