Entrainment of Antarctic euphausiids across the Antarctic Polar Front by a cold eddy

An unusual region of high meso-scale turbulence has been identified in the Indian Ocean sector of the Southern Ocean. It has been shown that this is the result of eddy shedding from the Antarctic Polar Front. These eddies may dramatically affect the local distribution of marine organisms. To investigate this, the euphausiid community structure and species composition in the region of a cold eddy within the Antarctic Polar Frontal Zone (APFZ) was investigated during April 2005. Water masses within the core of the eddy were typically Antarctic, showing they had come from south of the Antarctic Polar Front. Results of numerical analyses indicate that the euphausiid community within the survey area consisted of three distinct groups: those in APFZ waters, those at the edge of the eddy and those in the core of the eddy. These results indicate that eddies generated by the interaction of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current with the South-West Indian Ridge play an important role in transporting Antarctic euphausiid species equatorward, thus contributing to the spatial heterogeneity of the zooplankton community within the region.     

Large but variable particulate flux in the Antarctic Ocean and its significance for the chemistry of Antarctic water

Settling particles were collected at 1,460 m and 3,760 m depth in the Antarctic Ocean with sediment traps of time series type. The total deployment period of 40 days was divided into four terms of 10 days each. Seawater samples were collected both at deployment and retrieval of the traps at each site. During the 42 days the concentration of silicate in the surface water decreased by 32%, whereas those of nitrate and phosphate decreased by only 4–5%. The total particulate flux in the Antarctic Ocean is the largest among those hitherto observed in the world ocean. The time variation of the particulate flux at 1,460 m depth almost coincided with that at 3,760 m. The settling particles were comprised roughly of 80% biogenic silica, 15% organic matter and 5% other substances including sea salt. The clay fraction was only 0.05% at 1,460 m depth. The settling flux of biogenic silica agrees fairly well with the calculated rate of change in the concentration of silicate in the surface 100 m. Thus it is concluded that preferential propagation of diatoms reduces the concentration of silicate prior to other nutrients in the Antarctic Ocean.     

南极洲地壳和地幔的层面结构

以Ritzwoller为首的一批地球物理学家公布了新的表示南极洲和南大洋底上地幔结构的层面X射线照相图件。对南半球 ,特别是对南极洲的地壳和地幔的研究程度很低。然而 ,正是这个地域在大地构造方面特别重要 ,因为这是冰大陆中的最大的地壳省区 ,而该大陆周围裂谷 (断裂 )的形成过程在主要海洋盆地的形成中起到了显著的作用。除此之外 ,现代的火山作用和新裂谷的产生能影响冰盖的稳定性 ,而很多现代的气候、海洋学和气象学特征与其有关。在所有地震波速度资料的基础上构筑的图件表明 ,东南极洲的地幔是一个具有高速地震波的区域 ,因此这里的地…     

Calcium in the Antarctic Ocean

Calcium in sea water was determined of the samples taken from the Antarctic and Indian Oceans. Surface water commonly contains less calcium relative to chlorinity than does deep water. The tendency, however, is very faint in the Antarctic Ocean. In the surface waters, the Ca/Cl ratio is lower in the tropical and subtropical waters and the ratio well correlates with phosphate. The Ca/P ratio is calculated as 37 in atomic ratio. These may indicate that calcium is uptaken by organisms to make skeletal parts from surface water which is supersaturated with respect to calcite or aragonite. On the other hand, no definite correlationship between calcium and phosphate is found in subsurface water. This fact suggests that the regeneration process of calcium from organic debris is different from that of phosphate. The increase-rate of calcium in the abyssal water is estimated to be 0.18g at./(1 yr), which is due to the dissolution of calcium carbonate. The rate is about a half of total carbonate increase in the water.     

南极洲东方湖的融化和冻结

至今在南极洲的冰盖之下发现了 77个湖泊。其中最大的一个 (面积近 2万km2 )是前苏联科学家在“东方”站附近 4km厚的冰层之下发现的 ,并命名东方湖。这个呈半月形弯曲的淡水湖具有强烈切割的湖底 ,局部深度可达 10 0 0m。在 2 0 0 0年 ,英国布里斯托尔大学的MSiegert及其同事们对湖泊进行了 3次无线电测量工作。结果显示 ,在湖泊的西部和北部边缘 ,尽管温度很低 ,每年要融化几乎 1 0cm厚的冰层 (融解温度低于正常是由于上覆冰盾的巨大压力 )。由于融解水在冰盖底部重新冻结 ,使它的底部增厚 ,但这发生在相反的岸边。就这样 ,湖水缓慢地环…     

Intrusive layering of the Antarctic slope front

Cascading of cold Antarctic shelf water (ASW) initiates compensatory isopycnic upwelling of the warm Circumpolar Deep Water (CDW). The baroclinic/thermoclinic Antarctic slope front (ASF) is formed, and a mesoscale intrusive structure develops on the shelf edge and slope. Mesoscale processes when the ASF peaks are periodically accompanied by local baroclinic instability, which forms a smaller-scale intrusive structure. Therefore, the ASF is naturally subdivided into two layers according to the intrusion scales (vertical δН and horizontal L) and the horizontal parameters of the front (thermoclinity (T_L)_ρ and baroclinity γ_ρ). Analysis of ASF intrusive layering due to the baroclinic factor supports the following conclusion: the higher the (T_L)_ρ of the ASF, the greater the intrusion intensity |δθ| (temperature anomaly amplitude), while an increase in γ_ρ of the ASF leads to a decrease in intrusion scales δН and L. Frontal intrusions can be distinguished by a development degree. Regardless of the degree of development, all warm intrusions are characterized by vertical density stratification, while cold intrusions are characterized by density quasihomogeneity. According to field data, the ASF instability process is subdivided into four stages. When theASF is baroclinically unstable, the local baroclinic deformation radius Rd_L of the front is close in magnitude to the horizontal scale L of the intrusions that form, and their characteristic vertical scale δH is close to the typical vertical scale of front instability.     

A note on crustal structure between Antarctic Peninsula and East Antarctic craton across the shelf of southern Weddell Sea

Analysis of gravity data based on the Airy isostasy, magnetic depth estimates and few seismic refraction data taken together indicates a thinning of the crust between the Antarctic Peninsula and the East Antarctic craton below the Filchner and Ronne ice shelves.     

惊惧冰盖

<正>世人皆爱大海,一者由于景色壮美,一者因为胸怀开阔。烟波浩渺,滚滚奔流,朝阳晚霞,彩云飞鸥,红蓝交织,动静相宜,其景真正美不胜收。极目之处,茫茫无际,海天相接,     

南极海冰和陆架冰的变化特征

利用美国冰中心和雪冰中心提供的海冰资料和我国南极考察现场的海冰观测资料,对南极海冰的长期变化进行了研究.研究表明20世纪70年代后期是多冰期;80年代是少冰期;90年代南极海冰属于上升趋势,后期偏多,区域性变化差别大,东南极海冰偏多,西南极海冰即南极半岛两侧尤其是威德尔海区和别林斯高晋海的冰明显偏少.东南极和西南极海冰的变化趋势总是反相的.90年代后期普里兹湾的海冰明显偏多,南极大陆陆架冰外缘线总体没有明显的收缩,有崩解也有再生的自然变化现象.西南极威德尔海的龙尼冰架和罗斯海冰架东部崩解和收缩趋势明显,东南极的冰架也有崩解和收缩,但没有西南极明显.陆架冰崩解向海洋输送的冰山对全球海平面升高有一定的影响.目前南极冰盖断裂崩解形成的冰山,向海洋输入的水量可使全球海平面上升约14mm.南极海冰没有随着全球气候温暖化而明显减少,而是按照东南极和西南极反相的变化规律进行周期性的变化、调整和制约.     

Cyclone formation and development in the Antarctic Prydz Bay

Using meteorological data of field observation in 1990 - 2000, especially polar orbit high-resolution NOAA satellite cloud maps received from the Antarctic expedition vessel since 1997, the formation and development of the Prydz Bay cyclone are studied in this paper. Some new viewpoints are suggested such as: when surround-polar cyclone enters the Prydz Bay, it can also intensify and develop in summer; cyclone can also develop in the easterlies in this bay. These view points revise old uncom-plete view point that the Prydz Bay is a burial ground of cyclone, and also further consummate formation-development theory of surround-cyclone in the Antarctic westerlies and cyclone in the Antarctic easterlies. In this paper, the mechanism of ice-air-sea interaction in the Prydz Bay is studied, and the physical process of cyclone formation-development is explained. By use of wholly dynamic transportation method, an energy exchange case of a cyclone, which explosively developed after entering the Prydz Bay, is calcu     

Chaotic and regular trajectories in the Antarctic Circumpolar Current

Methods from chaos theory are applied to the analysis of the circulation in the Southern Ocean, using velocity fields produced by a realistic global ocean model. We plot the intersections of individual trajectories encircling Antarctica with a vertical plane in the Drake passage. This so-called Poincaré section shows a drastic difference between regular trajectories in a core region of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC), and chaotic, mixing trajectories in the surrounding region. It also shows that there is a region with overturning circulation of approximately 3.5 Sv in the ACC, with downwelling on the northern side and upwelling on the southern side, which may be related to the Deacon cell.     

寒冷气候条件下的古厄尔尼诺

厄尔尼诺—南方涛动 ,由起源于太平洋的东—西正常大气环流和大洋条件改变所致 ,对现代气候产生的急剧影响已为人所熟知。然而 ,人们对于其在古气候环境中的作用及其长期影响还知之甚少。2 0 0 2年 7月 1 2日《Ｓｃｉｅｎｃｅ》刊出的两篇文章提供了远至更新世的厄尔尼诺—南方涛动的证据。与早期观点不同 ,作者认为厄尔尼诺实际上出现在冰期和全球气温下降时期 ,而不是在间冰期。美国南加利福尼亚大学ＬｏｗｅｌｌＳｔｏｔｔ领导的研究小组负责西太平洋的研究 ,ＬａｍｏｎｔＤｏｈｅｒｔｙ地球观测站的ＡｔｈａｎａｓｉｏｓＫｏｕｔａｖａ…     

Hydrography and circulation of the West Antarctic Peninsula Continental Shelf

The water mass structure and circulation of the continental shelf waters west of the Antarctic Peninsula are described from hydrographic observations made in March–May 1993. The observations cover an area that extends 900 km alongshore and 200 km offshore and represent the most extensive hydrographic data set currently available for this region. Waters above 100–150 m are composed of Antarctic Surface Water and its end member Winter Water. Below the permanent pycnocline is a modified version of Circumpolar Deep Water, which is a cooled and freshened version of Upper Circumpolar Deep Water. The distinctive signature of cold and salty water from the Bransfield Strait is found at some inshore locations, but there is little indication of significant exchange between Bransfield Strait and the west Antarctic Peninsula shelf. Dynamic topography at 200 m relative to 400 m indicates that the baroclinic circulation on the shelf is composed of a large, weak, cyclonic gyre, with sub-gyres at the northeastern and southwestern ends of the shelf. The total transport of the shelf gyre is 0.15 Sv, with geostrophic currents of order 0.01 m s^-1. A simple model that balances across-shelf diffusion of heat and salt from offshore Upper Circumpolar Deep Water with vertical diffusion of heat and salt across the permanent pycnocline into Winter Water is used to explain the formation of the modified Circumpolar Deep Water that is found on the shelf. Model results show that the observed thermohaline distributions across the shelf can be maintained with a coefficient of vertical diffusion of 10^-4 m² s^-1 and horizontal diffusion coefficients for heat and salt of 200 and 1200 m² s^-1, respectively. When the effects of double diffusion are included in the model, the required horizontal diffusion coefficients for heat and salt are 200 and 400 m² s^-1, respectively.     

Antarctic fisheries: History and prospects

The historical development of the fisheries for seals, whales, finfish and krill in the Antarctic is outlined. Particular emphasis is given to the development of the Antarctic krill fishery, the continued exponential expansion of which is causing increasing concern among fishery biologists and economists. The main prospects for fisheries development in the Antarctic lie with Antarctic krill and the stocks of baleen whales that are now recovering satisfactorily. Because of their ecological coupling, the existing pattern of exploitation implies that trade-offs between krill and whales have already begun and may soon significantly affect the future economic benefits that could be derived from this ecosystem. Thus important management decisions that will affect the future size and shape of these two fisheries must be faced now.     

Antarctic sea ice and ENSO event

The characteristic low-frequency oscillation of the sea surface temperature anomaly (SSTA) of ENSO related regions, Nino 1 + 2, Nino 3, Nino 4 and Nino West, and the Southern Oscillation index (SOI) is analyzed with the method of maximum entropy spectrum. Antarctic sea ice is divided into 4 regions, i. e. East Antarctic is Region Ⅰ (0°-120° E), the region dominated by Ross Sea ice is Region Ⅱ (120° E-120° W), the region dominated by Ross Sea ice is Region Ⅲ (120° W-0°), and the whole Antarctic sea ice area is Region Ⅳ. Also, the month-to-month correlation series of the sea ice with ENSO from contemporary to 5-years lag is calculated. The optimum correlation period is selected from the series. The characteristics and the rules obtained are as follows.1. There are a common 4-years main period of the SSTA of Ninos 1 + 2,3 and 4, a rather strong 4-years secondary period and a quasi-8-years main period of that of Nino West. There are also 1. 5 and 2 to 3-years secondary periods of that of all 4 Nin     

The seasonal growth of ice in the Antarctic

Composite pictures of the areal extent of Antarctic sea ice derived from satellite photographs, show that the growth and the rate of growth of the pack ice compare favorably to the values previously estimated on other bases. Anomalous growth patterns are found in the Weddell Sea. Possible causes of this anomaly include surface and subsurface advection of ice crystals. The rate of retrogradation of the pack ice is found to exceed the rate of progradation.     

Phytoplankton chlorophyll stocks in the Antarctic Ocean

Phytoplankton chlorophyll stocks in the Indian sector of the Antarctic Ocean were estimated on the basis of published data collected from nine cruises of the Icebreaker,Fuji in 1965–1976, during routine observations of the Japanese Antarctic Research Expedition (JARE). Surface chlorophylla concentration, measured at 631 stations in waters south of 35°S, ranged from 0.01 to 3.01 mg m^–3, At about half of the stations the values were less than 0.24 mg and at only 29 stations were high values more than 1.00 mg m^–3 recorded. The levels of surface chlorophylla stocks were estimated in three groups; (1) data obtained on the southward leg through the eastern Indian sector (middle-late December), (2) those on the northward leg through the western Indian sector (late February–early March) and (3) those on the northward leg through the eastern Atlantic sector (late February–early March). Furthermore, mean values and standard deviations were calculated for each of six different water masses from north to south,i. e., subtropical water between 35°S and the Subtropical Convergence (STC) zone, water within the STC zone, Subantarctic Upper Water, water within the Antarctic Convergence (AC) zone, Antarctic Surface Water between the AC zone and 63°S, and Antarctic Surface Water south of 63°S. Mean values of surface chlorophylla concentrations for each of the six water masses on the three legs ranged from 0.15 to 0.58 mg m^–3 and were comparable to those reported by other workers previously. Seasonal periodicity of phytoplankton chlorophyll stock is discussed. The surface chlorophyll stock in the oceanic water of the Antarctic Ocean does not seem to be so high as previously believed.