Ocean tidal effects on Earth rotation

Tidal forces due to the tide-raising potential deform the solid and fluid regions of the Earth, causing the Earth's inertia tensor to change, and hence causing the Earth's rate of rotation and length-of-day to change. Because both the tide-raising potential and the solid Earth's elastic response to the tidal forces caused by this potential are well-known, accurate models for the effects of the elastic solid body tides on the Earth's rotation are available. However, models for the effect of the ocean tides on the Earth's rotation are more problematic because of the need to model the dynamic response of the oceans to the tidal forces. Hydrodynamic ocean tide models that have recently become available are evaluated here for their ability to account for long-period ocean tidal signals in length-of-day observations. Of the models tested here, the older altimetric data-constrained model of Kantha et al. (1998) is shown to still do the best job of accounting for ocean tidal effects in length-of-day, particularly at the fortnightly tidal frequency. The model currently recommended by the IERS is shown to do the worst job.     

Tides and Earth Rotation

A short general explanation of tidal forces and tidal effects is given. The influences of Earth tides and ocean tides on the Earth's rotation vector are presented. Today, the theoretical models for periodic variations in the Earth's rotation and in polar motion can be compared with precise measurements done by modern space techniques. Secular changes of the Earth's rotation due to interactions within the Earth-Moon-system are also discussed.     

地球自转周期、极移和章动与全球强震关联分析

目前,人们还无法准确地预报地震。找到地震和某种物理量之间的关系,积极地研究地震的触发因素具有非常深远的意义。漂浮在软流层上的地球板块随地球一起转动,地球自转变化可能对强震有一定的触发作用。统计2000年以后全球M_W7.9以上强震和地球自转周期、极移以及章动的关系,发现全球强震和大约13～15天的日长变化、大约一年周期极移变化以及十几天左右不规则章动有很强的关联性。通过贝叶斯公式分析,强震发生在日长变化拐点处的概率为随机概率的3倍,发生在极移X方向拐点处的概率为随机概率的6倍,发生在极移Y方向拐点处的概率为随机概率的3倍,发生在章动拐点处的概率为随机概率的2倍。这种拐点不是固定周期,它受到各种摄动因素而发生不规则漂移,全球强震往往发生在上述周期变化的拐点处。希望以上结论能对大地震预报提供有益的参考信息。     

Unipolar induction as the origin of generation of electric fields and currents in plasmaspheres of planets

We study the generation of plasmaspheric electric fields and currents caused by differential rotation of inhomogeneously conducting plasma envelope together with a magnetized planet (a planetary generator model). The solution of the first considered model problem describing a plasmasphere flow with a discontinuity in the angular rotation velocity reveals that regions of strongly non-uniform rotation of a plasma envelope play an essential role in the generation of currents in the plasmasphere. Within the framework of the second problem we analyze the planetary generator operation under the conditions of the Earth's plasmasphere. The approximation of an abrupt decrease of the effective conductivity at ionospheric heights is used. The calculation results compared to experimental data show that the considered mechanism of current generation may be important when analyzing current systems in lower layers of the Earth's ionosphere.     

The length of day since 1656

Observed values of the difference between the time determined using the rotation of the Earth and a uniform time scale are available since 1627, with useful observations becoming available in 1656. These early data were recorded with low precision and must be smoothed numerically in order to be useful for the derivation of estimates of the difference between the actual length of the day and the standard 24 h, known as excess length of day, or the Earth's rotational speed. Modern data requires no smoothing. The observational data have been adjusted to be consistent with one estimate of the lunar acceleration and smoothed so that the internal and external precision of the observations are approximately equal. The final values along with the derived excess length of day are presented and their spectra are discussed.     

地球引潮力极大值和强潮汐周期性指数的建立与定性分析

日、月对地球表层海水的引潮力导致潮汐的周期性变化是一种成熟理论.地球除具有日、月、年潮汐规律外,还具有明显的准1800年、200年、50~70年、18.6年、9.3年和2.5~7年不同尺度的周期.本文通过将地球赤道半径和月球轨道半径投影到黄道面上,标定二者矢量半径之和的模的极值状态,创建了引潮力极大值和强潮汐的周期性指数KSEM.这对探讨和预测潮汐的时间分布和推断地球自转角速度变化规律提供了一种新途径.行星系统中木星和金星对地球的摄动影响最突出,但目前还没有一个行之有效的模型将日、地、月、木星、金星作为一个统一整体,对地球潮汐极值状态进行刻画.通过辨析这五大天体运动预设的位置关系的结构特征,进而考察KSEM指数与月球升交点和月球近地点会合周期的对应关系,以及对月球轨道运动不同的特征周期的叠加和定性分析,这对探讨强潮汐周期、厄尔尼诺现象和地震的时间分布规律提供了重要参考.     

Simulation of tides in hydrocarbon lakes on Saturn’s moon Titan

Numerous hydrocarbon lakes have recently been detected on Saturn’s largest moon Titan, representing the only known large bodies of liquids on a planetary surface outside the Earth. In the context of comparative oceanography, tides and tidal currents in two representative lakes on Titan (Kraken Mare and Ontario Lacus) are simulated by a three-dimensional baroclinic ocean circulation model. Since the tide-generating force on Titan is an order of magnitude larger than on Earth and the gravitational acceleration is small, tides and currents are substantially larger than in Earth’s lakes and are more comparable with those in Earth’s oceans. The predicted maximum tidal range in Kraken Mare is 4 m. The tidal wave propagates around the basin of Kraken Mare, while a nearly standing tidal wave is excited in Ontario Lacus. Titan’s rotation is too slow to affect the tidal flow in any Titan’s lake. The tidal current velocity in Kraken Mare amounts to a few centimeters per second except in the vicinity of a narrow strait, where it is enhanced by an order of magnitude. In summer, when the lake is stratified, internal tides can develop. Seiches cannot be caused by tide. In the largest lakes, atmospheric tide may cause additional lake surface displacements.     

The Dicke cycle: A ∼27-day solar oscillation

Measurements of solar EUV irradiance show, besides the ～11-year Schwabe cycle, a series of oscillations with a ～27-day period. They are generally explained by the passage of active regions across the solar surface resulting from the Sun's rotation, but the calculated amplitude underestimates the observed long-term variation in irradiance (Lean 1991). The variant of this model proposed here is modulation of EUV emission from the corona by rotation of the Sun's radiative zone. The response would be immediate, raising the prospect of short-term forecasting of EUV effects on space weather and on the Earth's atmospheric circulation.     

Cycles in the scaling properties of length-of-day variations

Variations in the length-of-day (LOD) reflect the effects of several mechanisms in the Earth's rotation dynamics, including Earth–Sun and Earth–Moon line-up, geomagnetic effects and gravitational changes. Several studies showed that signatures of cycles occurring over a wide range of time scales are present in the LOD variations. The present work uses a fractal scaling study based on detrended fluctuation analysis (DFA) to study persistence of LOD variations and to provide insights in the different cycling mechanisms. The results showed that that the LOD variations are persistent over a wide range of time scales, meaning that an increment (resp., decrement) is more likely to be followed by an increment (resp., decrement). The temporal variation of the scaling exponent obtained from the DFA showed that several cycles already reported from the direct LOD variations analysis are inherited by the scaling properties. Inter-annual cycles, including 4.3 and 18.6 years cycles, are linked to the variations of the stochastic dynamics of LOD fluctuations. In this way, the 18.6 years cycle attains a period where variations are mostly affected by white noise effects, reducing the predictability of the LOD anomalies. The results are discussed in terms of the different lunar tidal and core–mantle mechanisms and related to recent results in the literature.     

On the effect of oceanic tides on the inertial coupling between the liquid core and the mantle

The amplitudes and phases of forced nutation and diurnal earth tides depend significantly on the moment of forces between the liquid core and mantle of the Earth, resulting from the differential rotation of the core. The solution to the dynamic problem of rotation of an imperfectly elastic mantle with an imperfectly liquid core and an ocean indicates that the predominant role is played by the so-called core-mantle inertial coupling (related to the effect of hydrodynamic pressure in the liquid core on the ellipsoidal core-mantle boundary). The magnitude of this coupling depends significantly not only on the dynamic flattening of the liquid core but also on the elastic and inelastic properties of the mantle, as well as on the amplitudes and phases of oceanic tides. In this paper, the effects of oceanic tides on the magnitude of inertial coupling between the liquid core and the mantle and on the period and damping decrement of free nearly diurnal nutation are estimated.     

Complex demodulation in VLBI estimation of high frequency Earth rotation components

The spectrum of high frequency Earth rotation variations contains strong harmonic signal components mainly excited by ocean tides along with much weaker non-harmonic fluctuations driven by irregular processes like the diurnal thermal tides in the atmosphere and oceans. In order to properly investigate non-harmonic phenomena a representation in time domain is inevitable. We present a method, operating in time domain, which is easily applicable within Earth rotation estimation from Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI). It enables the determination of diurnal and subdiurnal variations, and is still effective with merely diurnal parameter sampling. The features of complex demodulation are used in an extended parameterization of polar motion and universal time which was implemented into a dedicated version of the Vienna VLBI Software VieVS. The functionality of the approach was evaluated by comparing amplitudes and phases of harmonic variations at tidal periods (diurnal/semidiurnal), derived from demodulated Earth rotation parameters (ERP), estimated from hourly resolved VLBI ERP time series and taken from a recently published VLBI ERP model to the terms of the conventional model for ocean tidal effects in Earth rotation recommended by the International Earth Rotation and Reference System Service (IERS). The three sets of tidal terms derived from VLBI observations extensively agree among each other within the three-sigma level of the demodulation approach, which is below 6 μas for polar motion and universal time. They also coincide in terms of differences to the IERS model, where significant deviations primarily for several major tidal terms are apparent. An additional spectral analysis of the as well estimated demodulated ERP series of the ter- and quarterdiurnal frequency bands did not reveal any significant signal structure. The complex demodulation applied in VLBI parameter estimation could be demonstrated a suitable procedure for the reliable reproduction of high frequency Earth rotation components and thus represents a qualified tool for future studies of irregular geophysical signals in ERP measured by space geodetic techniques.     

Nonlinear internal waves in ideal rotating basins

Abstract

Starting from Euler's equations of motion a nonlinear model for internal waves in fluids is developed by an appropriate scaling and a vertical integration over two layers of different but constant density. The model allows the barotropic and the first baroclinic mode to be calculated. In addition to the nonlinear advective terms dispersion and Coriolis force due to the Earth's rotation are taken into account. The model equations are solved numerically by an implicit finite difference scheme. In this paper we discuss the results for ideal basins: the effects of nonlinear terms, dispersion and Coriolis force, the mechanism of wind forcing, the evolution of Kelvin waves and the corresponding transport of particles and, finally, wave propagation over variable topography. First applications to Lake Constance are shown, but a detailed analysis is deferred to a second paper [Bauer et al. (1994)].     

The effect of anisotropic diffusivity on rotating magnetoconvection in the Earth's core

A thermal diffusive process in the Earth's core is principally enhanced by small-scale flows that are highly anisotropic because of the Earth's rapid rotation and a strong magnetic field. This means that a thermal eddy diffusivity should not be a scalar but a tensor. The effect of such anisotropic tensor diffusivity, which is to be prescribed, on dynamics in the Earth's core is investigated through numerical simulations of magnetoconvection in a rapidly rotating system. A certain degree of anisotropy has an insignificant effect on the character, like kinetic and magnetic energies, of magnetoconvection in a small region with periodic boundaries in the three directions. However, in a region with top and bottom rigid boundary surfaces, kinetic and magnetic energies of magnetoconvection can be altered by the same degree of anisotropy. This implies that anisotropic tensor diffusivity affects on dynamics in the core, in particular near the boundary surfaces.     

Local turbulence in the Earth's core

Abstract

It is shown that in the Earth's core, where the geodynamo is at work (and is supplied with energy by the prevailing unstable density stratification), a buoyancy instability of a local character exists which is highly supercritical. This instability results in fully developed turbulence dominated by small scale vortices. The influence of the Earth's rotation and of the magnetic field produced by the geodynamo makes this small scale turbulence highly anisotropic. A qualitative picture of this local anisotropic turbulence is devised and the main parameters characterizing it are estimated. Expressions for the turbulent diffusivity are developed and discussed.     

On the solution of the Molodenskii boundary value problem using successive approximations

Gravimetric methods of determining the figure of the Earth can be divided into two groups. The first employs an auxiliary surface—the geoid. The second employs the so-called quasigeoid as an auxiliary surface. Its main advantage is in that it only uses surface measurements and that it does not require knowledge of the structure of the Earth's crust. This method was treated in [1]. The results display an accuracy of the order of the Earth's flattening. The purpose of this paper is to show that this method can be applied theoretically to reach an arbitrary accuracy.     

湖泊流域生态系统演化对人类世研究的重要意义

人类世可能成为一个全新的地质时期,以描述人类活动对地球环境造成极为深远的影响,目前已被广泛讨论。湖泊及流域生态系统作为与人类社会最密切的地球单元之一,受到人类活动显著影响,相关研究成果能为理解人类世做出贡献。本文从湖泊流域生态系统和人类世本身特征为切入点,讨论了湖泊及流域生态系统演化对人类世研究的重要意义。我们认为,湖泊具有相对独立的整体,清晰的内部作用关系、完备的理论支持和时空数据支撑,能够为人类世地球各圈层交互作用提供研究框架。湖泊流域生态系统演化的稳态转换与地球环境进入新的地质时期具有诸多相似之处,相关研究成果能够更好地界定人类世开始时间、总体特征以及演变过程和机制。本文指出人类世湖泊及流域生态系统演化研究依然面临诸多挑战,并提出了对未来相关研究的展望。     

A Tikhonov regularization method to estimate Earth's oblateness variations from global GPS observations

Earth's oblateness is varying due to the redistribution of Earth's fluid mass and the interaction of various components in the Earth system. Nowadays, continuous Global Positioning System (GPS) observations can estimate Earth's oblateness (J₂) variations with the least squares method, but are subject to ill-conditioned equations with limited GPS observations and aliasing errors from truncated degrees. In this paper, a Tikhonov regularization method is used to estimate J₂ variations from global continuous GPS observations. Results show that the J₂ has been better estimated from GPS observations based on a Tikhonov regularization method than the usual least squares method when compared to SLR solutions. Furthermore, the amplitudes and phases of the annual and semi-annual J₂ variations are closer to the SLR results with truncated degrees from 2 to 5. Higher truncated degrees will degrade the J₂ estimate. Annual J₂ variations are best estimated from GPS observations with truncated degree 4 and semi-annual J₂ variations are best estimated with truncated degree 2.     

SNREI地球对表面负荷和引潮力的形变响应

基于PREM模型，利用非自转、球型分层、各向同性、理想弹性（SNREI）地球的形变理论，讨论了地球在不同驱动力作用下的形变特征．采用地球位移场方程的4阶Runge Kutta数值积分方法，解算了在表面负荷和日月引潮力作用下地球表面和内部形变和扰动位，并给出了地球表面的负荷Love数和体潮Love数．结果表明在固体内核中的形变很小，液核中低阶(n＜10)负荷位移随半径的变化非常复杂．当负荷阶数超过10时，地核中的形变和扰动位都很小，地球的响应主要表现为弹性地幔中的径向位移，且随深度增加急剧减弱，负荷阶数越高这种衰减的速度越快．SNREI地球的地表负荷Love数和体潮Love数与信号频率的依赖关系很弱．在计算体潮Love数的过程中，采用了SNREI地球的运动方程，同时考虑了由于地球自转和椭率引起的核幔边界附加压力，这一近似处理方法获得的结果能很好地符合地球表面重力潮汐实际观测结果．     

The historical acceleration of the earth

In this paper, we review the current state of knowledge about the acceleration of the Earth's spin, and about the closely related acceleration of the Moon. It is now established at a high confidence level that the acceleration of the Moon, when taken respect to Universal time, has changed by a large amount, and that it has even changed sign, within historic times. This almost certainly means that the acceleration of the Earth's spin has also changed by a large amount. At present we do not have enough information to say whether the changes have been in the contributions from tidal friction, in the contributions that do not arise from tidal friction, or both. Further, we do not know yet whether or not the variations in the Earth's rotation can account for the observed fluctuations in the longitudes of the Sun, the Moon, and the planets.