Acoustic characteristics of seawater in the area of the coastal discharge front off the Guinean shore

Regularities in the structure and variability of the acoustic characteristics of Guinean shelf waters during the rainy season have been identified as a result of the generalization of the sound speed fields derived from temperature and salinity observations. Three areas with qualitatively different hydroacoustic properties have been revealed, namely, (i) near-shore shallow waters, where a near-surface haline acoustic channel occurs by virtue of intensive seawater freshening; (ii) a discharge front accommodating an intermediate acoustic waveguide in the temperature jump layer; and (iii) off-shore shelf areas displaying a characteristic alteration of the sound speed vertical gradient sign at thec(z) profile.Translated by Vladimir A. Puchkin.     

声波在水-多孔介质海底界面上的反射与透射

声波在海底界面的反射和透射是海底散射、海底混响、海底目标探测的重要问题。利用Biot多孔介质声传播理论对声波在水-多孔海底界面上的反射和透射进行了分析,具体给出反射声波的反射系数,3种透射声波的透射系数以及声能透射系数随入射波入射角和频率(10~40 kHz)的变化关系,分析了各种透射波对透射声能的贡献。多孔海底介质参数分别采用Stoll和Chotiros给出的2组参数进行理论计算。     

潮间带低速层中高速埋伏岩体计算模式的建立

在某些沿海潮间带区域的低速层中常存在一定数量的巨大高速滚石埋伏岩体。这些埋伏岩体会给工程地质勘察带来很大的困难 ,甚至无法进行工程地质勘察。根据浅层折射波方法原理利用浅层折射波相遇时距曲线与折射波射线路径关系建立了求取浅层高速埋伏岩体的埋深及其厚度的计算模式 ,利用这些公式可以较准确地确定高速埋伏岩体的位置、埋深及其厚度 ,对工程地质勘察是十分有利的。     

春季东海不同水域的表层叶绿素含量

利用１９９４年春季在东海及台湾海峡首次获得的表层水中绿素含量大面走航连续观测资料，结合温盐分布及以往的有关东海及台湾海峡的海流和上升流的结论，分析了春季东海表层叶绿素含量在不同水域的分布特征。结果表明，叶绿素含量分布与水文结构关系密切。叶绿素含量值随不同海流流域而变，但在各海流流域内基本不变，黑潮表层水的叶绿素含量最低，其次是台湾暖流表层水，长江冲淡水与江浙沿岸流域的叶绿素含量较高；黑潮西侧弱流剧     

冲绳海槽南段基底组成探讨

本文根据反射地震、折射地震、磁力等资料,结合周边地质,探讨冲绳海槽南段基底组成。在海槽周边的东海陆架盆地、台湾褶皱带和琉球岛弧褶皱带,均出露不同程度变质的晚古生代、中生代和早第三纪地层。多道反射地震表明,海槽南段沉积盖层由上第三系和第四系组成,声学基底由下第三系及更老地层构成。邻近海槽的折射地震揭示,除第四系-中新统速度层之外,还存在纵波速度分别为4．7～5．3km／s和6．3km／s的下第三系和中生界速度层。磁异常分析和正反演拟合计算结果表明,海槽磁性基底主要由变质岩系构成,次为燕山期中酸性岩浆岩和喜山期中基性岩浆岩,磁性基底大部分相当声学基底。综合分析表明,海槽南段基底主要由不同程度变质的下第三系、中生界和上古生界构成;在海槽某些构造部位,已有喜山期基性岩浆岩形成。     

The filtering and compressing of outer beams to multibeam bathymetric data

Some errors and noises are often present in multibeam swath bathymetric data. Echo detection error (EDE) is one of the main errors. It causes the depth error to become bigger in outer beams and looks like sound refraction. But depth errors due to EDEs have a trumpet-shaped appearance, instead of a curved appearance that is caused by the sound refraction errors. EDEs, including systematic acoustic signal detection errors and internal noises, cannot be removed during the correction of sound refraction. It causes depth inconsistencies between adjacent swaths and degrades precision of outer beams. Sometimes, the bathymetric errors caused by EDEs do not even meet the requirements of IHO (International Hydrographic Organization). Therefore, a post-processing method is presented to minimize the EDEs by filtering outliers and compressing outer beams of multibeam bathymetric data. The outliers caused by internal noises are removed by an automatic filter algorithm first. Then the outer beams are compressed to reduce systematic acoustic signal detection errors according to their depths, the calculated depth line and standard deviations (SDs). The automatic filter process is important for calculating the depth line. The selection of inner beams to calculate the average SD of beam depths is crucial to achieving compressing goals. The quality of final bathymetric data in outer beams can be improved by these steps. The method is verified by a field test.     

Acoustic estimations of porosity and thickness for thin soft surface layer of sea floor

Abstract

In some areas, the sea floor contains a surface layer with high porosity and a thickness of 10–30 cm. The characters of an explosive pulse reflected at such a sea floor are discussed. The thickness and porosity estimations for the surface layer by acoustic method are studied, and the estimated and measured results are listed.     

Organic matter of the North Atlantic

The areas that we studied in the North Atlantic (53 and 60°N) and in the Labrador Sea in the summer were characterized by a wide variability of the concentrations of dissolved and particulate organic matter and its elemental composition both in the surface and in the deep waters. The concentrations of dissolved and particulate C_org varied within 69–360 μM and 0.7–25.6 μM, respectively; the N_org and P_org contents varied within 1.4–22.2 μM and 0.02–0.86 μM, respectively. The maximal concentrations were registered in the photic layer and in the zones of mixing between the waters of different genesis. The particulate matter contribution to the total organic matter (OM) content varied from 0.5 to 15.4%. The waters of the photic layer contained more particulate C_org than those of the near-bottom layer. The values of the C/N molar ratios from the surface to the bottom over the entire aquatic area surveyed varied 5-to 6-fold; at that, the values of the C/P molar ratios varied more than tenfold. In the most productive waters, the values of the C/N ratios were close to the Redfield ratios (6–10). The values of the C/P molar ratios varied from 160 in the photic layer to 4831 in the deep waters. The pronounced non-uniformity in the spatial distribution of the OM and its elemental composition is caused not only by the penetration of the waters of different origins but also by the changes in the microplankton metabolism under mixing of these waters.     

Sio Guyot: A complex volcanic edifice in the western Mid-Pacific Mountains

Sio Guyot, in the westernmost edge of the Mid-Pacific Mountains, is a large, complex volcanic edifice rising to more than 1200 m below sea level. The summit is divided into two flat-topped areas by a WNW-trending sediment-filled trough. Seismic reflection profiles reveal three acoustic units: an upper transparent layer (pelagic cap), a lower opaque layer (reef- and lagoon-derived sediments), and an acoustic (volcanic) basement. Free-air gravity anomalies indicate three eruptive centers or conduits within the main edifice, which apparently was constructed during late Cretaceous time on a broad basement swell or plateau that today is more than 3400 m below sea level (1500 m above regional abyssal depths).     

南海叶绿素a浓度垂直分布的统计估算

分析整理了1993—2006年近10 a南海北部海域、南沙海域和南海其他海域的叶绿素a浓度历史航次调查资料,基于前人提出的全球叶绿素浓度垂直分布的统计分析模式,根据南海表层叶绿素a浓度大小的不同分级,对南海叶绿素a浓度进行了参数化处理,拟合估算了南海各水层剖面的叶绿素a浓度分布值,并结合不同海区的环境特征,分析了南海叶绿素a浓度垂直分布与其海水物理环境的关系。初步分析结果表明,叶绿素a浓度随深度垂直变化的拟合曲线呈一定倾斜的正态分布特征,当表层叶绿素a浓度较低时,作为南海深水海盆区的代表,拟合值更接近实测平均值的分布,叶绿素a浓度高值集中在次表层剖面上;当表层叶绿素a浓度较高时,作为近岸区和河口区的代表,高值多集中在表层海水,拟合误差偏大。该统计估算模式对于揭示南海叶绿素a浓度垂直分布结构进行了有益的尝试,为发展适合不同海区特点的模式以及校正参数奠定了基础。利用该模式与海洋水色卫星遥感数据有效结合,将对南海叶绿素a浓度时空分布格局的研究具有重要的意义。     

The distribution of oxygen and hydrogen sulfide in Black Sea waters during winter-spring period

Regularities of oxygen and hydrogen sulfide are examined, using the method of spatial isopycnic analysis. The contribution that ventilation of winter-time surface waters over the domes of cyclonic gyres makes to the transfer of O₂ towards the upper boundary of the constant pycnocline and to the oxicline layer is demonstrated. The paper provides spatial scales of this phenomenon and indicates the areas where the upper boundary of the anoxic layer in the Black Sea, relative to the conventional density, is located much higher compared with the rest of the sea. The suboxic zone is shown to be a specific feature of the O₂/H₂S distribution in the Black Sea waters, typical, at least, of the northern part of the basin. Analysis of the suboxic spatial variability in the vertical has been conducted. Translated by Vladimir A. Puchkin.     

Vertical distribution of the sound speed in the Gulf Stream system

Using archived historical data on the temperature/salinity distribution, this paper describes the structure of the mean seasonal and the actual field of the computed speed of sound in the Gulf Stream region. The formation of acoustic channels of large, medium, and small size is considered, depending on the vertical thermohaline structure of waters. The paper provides statistical characteristics of the sound speed field and acoustic channels of waters interacting in the Gulf Stream system. Translated by Vladimir A. Puchkin.     

Horizontal refraction modal tomography of the ocean with modeinteractions

The acoustical tomography scheme for inferring a three-dimensional sound-speed field within some area based on the measurements of horizontal refraction angles is reviewed. The numerical simulations made so far were based on the assumption of the adiabaticity of low-frequency mode propagation. In this paper, an inversion scheme is presented that accounts for the acoustic mode interaction. We found that, generally, the interaction weakly affects the horizontal refraction angle, and it can be accounted for by iterations. Numerical simulations for the case of an Atlantic “meddy” corresponding to a strong double channel stratification are presented. Only three iterations were required to retrieve the exact strong sound-speed-field inhomogeneity within an area of 500 km×500 km     

Dynamics of hypersaline coastal waters in the Great Barrier Reef

The coastal waters of the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) are hypersaline (salinity ∼37) during the dry season as a result of evaporation greatly exceeding rainfall, of shallow waters, and of the presence of numerous bays along the coast preventing rapid flushing. These hypersaline waters are not flushed out by salinity-driven baroclinic currents because these waters are vertically well-mixed. Instead these waters are transported by a longshore residual current and thus form a coastal boundary layer of hypersaline waters. As a result the hypersalinity distribution is 2-D with both cross-shelf and longshore gradients of salinity. The cross-shelf gradients are largely controlled by turbulent diffusion, while the longshore gradients are controlled by the residual currents that transport hypersaline waters longshore south ward in the central and southern regions of the GBR. Because every bay supplies hypersaline waters, the width of the coastal hypersaline layer increases southwards. Steady state is reached in about 100 days, which is the typical duration of the dry season. The dynamics of the GBR hypersaline coastal boundary layer thus differ from the classical inverse hypersaline systems, e.g. in Saloum River Estuary, Laguna San Ignacio, Mission Bay, Tomales Bay, San Diego Bay, Hervey Bay, Shark Bay, Coorong Coast Lagoon, Spencer Gulf, Gulf of California and many others where the salinity gradient is mainly 1-D with a dominant along-channel salinity gradient.     

河口底边界层座底支架稳定性实时监测技术

河口水文座底式观测中,如何确保支架的稳定性是一个关键问题。现有的方法是通过回收数据推测测量过程中支架的状况,缺乏观测期间支架状态的实时监测。利用声学原理设计了一套简单的实时通讯姿态监测仪,实验结果表明,监测仪可将座底支架的姿态信息从河床底部实时传送到测量船,提供支架姿态实时的时间序列信息,为获取高质量的观测数据提供了可靠的技术保障。     

Acoustic inversion of bottom reflectivity and bottom sound-speedprofile

This paper applies a full-field technique to invert bottom sound profile and bottom reflectivity from simulated acoustic data in a shallow water environment. Bottom sound-speed profile and bottom reflectivity have been traditionally estimated using seismic reflection/refraction techniques when acoustic ray paths and travel time can be identified and measured from the data. However, in shallow water, the many multipaths due to bottom reflection/refraction make such identification and measurement rather difficult. A full-field inversion technique is presented here that uses a broad-band source and a vertical array for bottom sound-speed and reflectivity inversion. The technique is a modified matched field inversion technique referred to as matched beam processing. Matched beam processing uses conventional beamforming processing to transform the field data into the beam domain and correlate that with the replica field also in the beam domain. This allows the analysis to track the acoustic field as a function of incident/reflected angle and minimize contamination or mismatch due to sidelobe leakage     

Hydrochemical variability in the surface mixed layer along the drift path of the North Pole 35 station

The variability of the phosphates, silicates, alkalinity, oxygen, CO₂ pressure, salinity, and temperature in the surface mixed layer (SML), as well as the variations of its thickness along the drift passage of the North Pole 35 station, are considered. The station drifted over the Nansen Basin mainly eastwards from ??105 to ??30° E. The surveys were performed from October of 2007 till June of 2008 at three-day intervals. The SML parameters are mainly determined by the advection and mixing with the underlying waters. The analysis of the hydrochemical variability shows that the surface waters at the eastern and western areas of the drift are of different origins. The waters of the eastern area were subjected to the impact of riverine runoff. These waters were spread westwards. The fraction of riverine waters in the eastern area amounts to 3%. In the western area of the drift, presumably transformed Atlantic waters were observed, which spread eastwards from the Fram Strait. The drift path of the station crosses the boundary of the water masses near 85° N and 45° E.     

The influence of underwater data transmission sounds on the displacement behaviour of captive harbour seals (Phoca vitulina)

To prevent grounding of ships and collisions between ships in shallow coastal waters, an underwater data collection and communication network (ACME) using underwater sounds to encode and transmit data is currently under development. Marine mammals might be affected by ACME sounds since they may use sound of a similar frequency (around 12 kHz) for communication, orientation, and prey location. If marine mammals tend to avoid the vicinity of the acoustic transmitters, they may be kept away from ecologically important areas by ACME sounds. One marine mammal species that may be affected in the North Sea is the harbour seal (Phoca vitulina). No information is available on the effects of ACME-like sounds on harbour seals, so this study was carried out as part of an environmental impact assessment program. Nine captive harbour seals were subjected to four sound types, three of which may be used in the underwater acoustic data communication network. The effect of each sound was judged by comparing the animals' location in a pool during test periods to that during baseline periods, during which no sound was produced. Each of the four sounds could be made into a deterrent by increasing its amplitude. The seals reacted by swimming away from the sound source. The sound pressure level (SPL) at the acoustic discomfort threshold was established for each of the four sounds. The acoustic discomfort threshold is defined as the boundary between the areas that the animals generally occupied during the transmission of the sounds and the areas that they generally did not enter during transmission. The SPLs at the acoustic discomfort thresholds were similar for each of the sounds (107 dB re 1 microPa). Based on this discomfort threshold SPL, discomfort zones at sea for several source levels (130-180 dB re 1 microPa) of the sounds were calculated, using a guideline sound propagation model for shallow water. The discomfort zone is defined as the area around a sound source that harbour seals are expected to avoid. The definition of the discomfort zone is based on behavioural discomfort, and does not necessarily coincide with the physical discomfort zone. Based on these results, source levels can be selected that have an acceptable effect on harbour seals in particular areas. The discomfort zone of a communication sound depends on the sound, the source level, and the propagation characteristics of the area in which the sound system is operational. The source level of the communication system should be adapted to each area (taking into account the width of a sea arm, the local sound propagation, and the importance of an area to the affected species). The discomfort zone should not coincide with ecologically important areas (for instance resting, breeding, suckling, and feeding areas), or routes between these areas.     

海底浅表层沉积物原位声学测量方法探讨

研究透射式和折射式两类海底沉积声学原位测量方法,通过分析10种海底浅表层沉积物声学原位测量仪器的特征,指出不同声学原位测量技术对沉积物声学特性测量结果的影响。比较黄海海底浅表层沉积声学原位测量数据与实验室测量结果的差异,分析原位声学测量数据普遍小于实验室测量数据的原因,指出原位测量的作用和重要性。探讨指出海底浅表层沉积物原位声学测量所需要配合发展的其他物理性质原位测量技术。     

Wave-tide-surge coupled simulation for typhoon Maemi

The main task of this study focuses on studying the effect of wave-current interaction on currents, storm surge and wind wave as well as effects of current induced wave refraction and current on waves by using numerical models which consider the bottom boundary layer and sea surface roughness parameter for shallow and smooth bed area around Korean Peninsula. The coupled system (unstructured-mesh SWAN wave and ADCIRC) run on the same unstructured mesh. This identical and homogeneous mesh allows the physics of wave-circulation interactions to be correctly resolved in both models. The unstructured mesh can be applied to a large domain allowing all energy from deep to shallow waters to be seamlessly followed. There is no nesting or overlapping of structured wave meshes, and no interpolation is required. In response to typhoon Maemi (2003), all model components were validated independently, and shown to provide a faithful representation of the system’s response to this storm. The waves and storm surge were allowed to develop on the continental shelf and interact with the complex nearshore environment. The resulting modeling system can be used extensively for prediction of the typhoon surge. The result show that it is important to incorporate the wave-current interaction effect into coastal area in the wave-tide-surge coupled model. At the same time, it should consider effects of depth-induced wave breaking, wind field, currents and sea surface elevation in prediction of waves. Specially, we found that: (1) wave radiation stress enhanced the current and surge elevation otherwise wave enhanced nonlinear bottom boundary layer decreased that, (2) wind wave was significantly controlled by sea surface roughness thus we cautiously took the experimental expression. The resulting modeling system can be used for hindcasting (prediction) the wave-tide-surge coupled environments at complex coastline, shallow water and fine sediment area like areas around Korean Peninsula.