Effect of extracellular polymeric substances on the phosphorus adsorption characteristics of sediment particles

Extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) have a great impact on the characteristics of sediment particles and their environmental effects in hydro-environmental systems, yet little effort has been made to study the considerable variability in the element adsorption process of sediment particles caused by EPS. Understanding the variability of the adsorption characteristics of sediment particles associated with EPS and quantifying the scale of the adsorption isotherm parameters are important for understanding how EPS mediate sediment properties and environmental factors. In this paper, isothermal equilibrium adsorption experiments are done on phosphorus to study the influence of EPS on the adsorption characteristics of sediment particles, and the Langmuir adsorption isotherm is applied to analyze the adsorption rule of sediment particles under the impact of EPS. The current research demonstrates that significant differences will take place in the adsorption characteristics of sediments coated with EPS at different development phases and the phosphorus adsorption capacity of sediment particles increases with the growth of EPS. The difference in the adsorption percentage between sediment particles coated with EPS of 0 and 6 weeks growth time is about 42%–60% for different initial aqueous phosphorus concentration. A formula describing the adsorption isotherm parameter of the maximum material (element) adsorption capacity of sediment particles change over time is further proposed based on the experimental data. The current study provides some evidence for the interaction of sediment particles, EPS, and adsorbed elements in the water environment.     

基于探空火箭的朗缪尔探针方案设计

为研究中国低纬电离层垂直高度的精细结构,研发了一种以探空火箭为平台朗缪尔探针,用于就位测量电离层空间等离子体的特性参数及其扰动情况.本文分析了朗缪尔探针的任务需求和目标,并在朗缪尔探针基本测量原理的基础上,对朗缪尔探针基本测量方案进行了论证分析和设计,包括传感器形状、大小和表面镀层的选取设计,双探针的设计,扫描电压和工作模式的设计,及电子学测量电路的设计.本朗缪尔探针采用两路完全相同的球形探针,两路探针同步工作,各自独立完成测量.朗缪尔探针研制完成后,分别进行了信号模拟源测试和等离子体源测试:信号模拟源测试结果显示两路探针电子学工作状态良好,对微弱电流信号的响应具有很高的线性度;在等离子体模拟装置内对电子探针整机测试的初步结果表明该载荷可以正确测量等离子体的特性参数,能够满足科学探测的需求.     

The simulation of the Asian summer monsoon by general circulation models

Summary The monsoon simulations of four general circulation models are illustrated. Additional results from the Meteorological Office model showing factors that are important in determining its simulation are presented. The large-scale flow patterns of all the models reproduce the large-scale flow fairly realistically, but more detailed characteristics and, in particular, the rainfall, are poorly represented.     

全球变暖背景下春季Hadley环流与东亚夏季风环流年际对应关系的多模式预估

观测事实揭示,春季Hadley环流在年际时间尺度上与东亚夏季风环流和降水具有密切联系.在未来全球变暖背景下,春季Hadley环流与东亚夏季风环流和降水的这种年际关系是否会发生变化？针对该问题,本文在评估的基础上选取五个气候模式,分析了A1B排放情景下春季北半球Hadley环流年际变率的未来变化及其与东亚夏季风环流和降水的年际关系.多模式集合(MME)预估结果表明,在全球变暖背景下,与20世纪末期(1970—1999年)相比,到21世纪末期(2070—2099年),春季北半球Hadley环流的年际变率强度将减弱,减弱幅度达32%.随着春季Hadley环流年际变率的减弱,其与夏季西太平洋副热带高压和东亚夏季风强度的联系将变弱.MME模拟结果还显示,春季Hadley环流与夏季东亚西风急流和降水的关系也降低,但各单个模式间存在较大差异.     

Numerical study of three-dimensional shelf circulation on the Scotian Shelf using a shelf circulation model

A numerical shelf circulation model was developed for the Scotian Shelf, using a nested-grid setup consisting of a three-dimensional baroclinic inner model embedded inside a two-dimensional barotropic outer model. The shelf circulation model is based on the Princeton Ocean Model and driven by three-hourly atmospheric forcing provided by a numerical weather forecast model and by tidal forcing specified at the inner model's open boundaries based on pre-calculated tidal harmonic constants. The outer model simulates the depth-mean circulation forced by wind and atmospheric pressure fields over the northwest Atlantic Ocean with a horizontal resolution of 1/12°. The inner model simulates the three-dimensional circulation over the Gulf of St. Lawrence, the Scotian Shelf, and the adjacent slope with a horizontal resolution of 1/16°. The performance of the shelf circulation model is assessed by comparing model results with oceanographic observations made along the Atlantic coast of Nova Scotia and in the vicinity of Sable Island (on the Scotian Shelf) during two periods: October 2000–March 2001 and April–June 2002. Analysis of model results on Sable Island Bank indicates that tidal currents account for as much as ∼80% of the total variance of near-bottom currents, and currents driven by local winds account for ∼30% of the variance of the non-tidal near-bottom currents. Shelf waves generated remotely by winds and propagating into the region also play an important role in the near-bottom circulation on the bank.     

Analysis on observing optimization for the wind-driven circulation by an adjoint approach

The adjoint approach is a variational method which is often applied to data assimilation widely in meteorology and oceanography. It is used for analyses on observing optimization for the wind-driven Sverdrup circulation. The adjoint system developed by Thacker and Long (1992), which is based on the GFDL Byran-Cox model, includes three components, i. e. the forward model, the adjoint model and the optimal algorithm. The GFDL Byran-Cox model was integrated for a long time driven by a batch of ideal wind stresses whose meridional component is set to null and zonal component is a sine function of latitudes in a rectangle box with six vertical levels and 2 by 2 degree horizontal resolution. The results are regarded as a "real" representative of the wind-driven Sverdrup circulation, from which the four dimensional fields are allowed to be sampled in several ways, such as sampling at the different levels or along the different vertical sections. To set the different samples, the fields of temperature, salinity and velocities function as the observational limit in the adjoint system respectively where the same initial condition is chosen for 4D VAR data assimilation. By examining the distance functions which measure the misfit between the circulation field from the control experiment of the adjoint system with a complete observation and those from data assimilation of adjoint approach in these sensitivity experiments respectively, observing optimizations for the wind-driven Sverdrup circulation will be suggested under a fixed observational cost.     

组合型浮床生态系统的构建及其改善湖泊水源地水质的效果

研究开发了一种由水生植物、水生动物及微生物膜构建的组合型浮床生态系统.在野外条件下,考察了该浮床对富营养化湖泊水在静态条件下的净化效果.结果表明,20 d内TN、TP的去除率分别为83.7%和90.7%,透明度也有大幅提高.而且,组合型浮床系统对有机物尤其是难降解有机物的去除能力较强,在25 d内,对r-BHC、HE、DDE、DDD、DDT的去除率分别为25.2%、63.8%、42.1%、71.6%和27.6%,氯苯、阿特拉津的去除率达55.9%和72.1%.水生动物的代谢活动提高了有机物的生物可降解性和氮磷的植物可利用性.该新型浮床可用于水源地水质改善、污水净化生态工程、富营养水体的生态恢复等.     

A numerical model of the zonal mean circulation of the middle atmosphere

The annual cycle of the zonally averaged circulation in the middle atmosphere (16–96 km) is simulated using a numerical model based on the primitive equations in log pressure coordinates. The circulation is driven radiatively by heating due to solar ultraviolet absorption by ozone and infrared cooling due to carbon dioxide and ozone (parameterized as a Newtonian cooling). Since eddy fluxes due to planetary waves are neglected in the model, the computed mean meridional circulation must be interpreted as thediabatic circulation, not as the total eulerian mean. Rayleigh friction with a short (2–4 day) time constant above 70 km is included to simulate the strong mechanical dissipation which is hypothesized to exist in the vicinity of the mesopause due to turbulence associated with gravity waves and tides near the mesopause.Computed mean winds and temperatures are in general agreement with observations for both equinox and solstice conditions. In particular, the strong mechanical damping specified near the mesopause makes it possible to simulate the cold summer and warm winter mesopause temperatures without generating excessive mean zonal winds. In addition, the model exhibits a strong semiannual cycle in the mean zonal wind at the equator, with both amplitude and vertical structure in agreement with the easterly phase of the observed equatorial semiannual oscillation.Contribution No. 497, Department of Atmospheric Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle.     

Meso-scale circulation at the intermediate-depth east of Mindanao observed by Argo profiling floats

The meso-scale circulation at the intermediate depth east of Mindanao is studied using Argo profiling floats observations. The trajectories and the parking-depth velocities of Argo floats show that the intermediate-depth circulation east of Mindanao contains significant meso-scale features that are highly variable both in space and in time. Both cyclonic and anticyclonic eddies at the intermediate depth (1000–2000 m) are indicated by the trajectories east of Mindanao. The mean tangential velocities of these eddies are about 10 cm/s at 2000 m and over 20 cm/s at 1000 m, which indicates that the geostrophic calculation may contain large errors due to the vigorous eddy activity at the reference levels. The analyses also suggest that these eddies might play an important role in mass and vorticity balances of the intermediate-depth circulation east of Mindanao.     

Three-dimensional numerical modelling of wind-driven circulation in a homogeneous lake

A three-dimensional numerical model has been developed to study wind-induced circulation patterns in a shallow homogeneous lake with a complex bathymetry. The governing equations are the unsteady Reynolds-Averaged Navier–Stokes equations in which the non-hydrostatic pressure distribution has been included. The model was tested against analytical solutions and laboratory data for wind-induced currents and then applied to Esthwaite Water, a small lake in Cumbria, UK. The model was used to study the main model parameters and to generate typical circulation patterns for a variety of conditions in the lake. Simulations showed that a non-hydrostatic pressure distribution did not have any noticeable influence on the overall circulation pattern in the lake. However, comparisons with field data at some measurement stations in the near-shore region with sharply varying bottom topography showed that the hydrodynamic pressure component had some influence on the vertical velocity profile.     

An application of Mie's series to soft particles

Summary The scattering of electromagnetic radiation from soft particles has been studied by a new method which allows to transform the Mie series into a simplified form through the use of some auxiliary expansions derived in the Appendix of this article. This simplified form (eq. 1) converts into the Hulst and Rayleigh-Debye-Gans' formulae if the parameters of eq. I are properly restricted. A further simplified form (eq. II), improves the well-known Hulst approximation.     

Secondary circulation induced by flow curvature and Coriolis effects around headlands and islands

Previous studies have shown that flow curvature in river bends generates a secondary circulation in the plane normal to the mean flow direction. A similar circulation pattern is shown to exist in oceanic situations when flows are subject to curvature, mainly due to interaction with topographic features. However, it is shown that, due to differences between oceanic conditions and river bends, theory and prediction methods based on the assumptions for river bends are invalid for oceanic flows. Via scaling arguments based on the equations of motion, that include both the effects of flow curvature and the Coriolis force, parameters that govern the different flow regimes are identified. The maximum strength of the secondary flow is derived for each flow regime and is verified using a three-dimensional (3-D) numerical model applied to an idealized island. It is also shown that upwelling, due to the generation of secondary flow, occurs off the tips of the headland or island, and its influence can extend far downstream.Responsible Editor: Richard Signell     

Estimating trends of Atlantic meridional overturning circulation from long-term hydrographic data and model simulations

The ocean meridional overturning circulation (MOC) plays a central role for the climate in the Atlantic realm. Since scenarios for future climate change indicate a significant reduction of the MOC under global warming, an assessment of variations and trends of the real MOC is important. Using observations at ocean weather ship (OWS) stations and along oceanic sections, we examine the hydrographic information that can be used to determine MOC trends via its signature in water mass properties obtained from model simulations with the climate model ECHAM5/MPI-OM. We show that temperature trends at mid-latitudes provide useful indirect measure of large-scale changes of deep circulation: A mid-depth warming is related to MOC weakening and a cooling to MOC strengthening. Based on our model experiments, we argue that a continuation of measurements at key OWS sites may contribute to a timely detection of a possible future MOC slowdown and to separate the signal from interannual-to-multidecadal MOC variability. The simulations suggest that the subsurface hydrographic information related to MOC has a lower variability than the MOC trend measured directly. Based on our model and the available long-term hydrographic data, we estimate non-significant MOC trends for the last 80 years. For the twenty-first century, however, the model simulations predict a significant MOC decline and accompanied mid-depth warming trend.     

Rectification of the wind-driven ocean circulation on the beta plane

Abstract

A nonlinear Stommel model of the ocean circulation on the beta plane, driven by a time periodic wind stress, is investigated in order to study symmetry properties of the observed time-mean ocean gyres. Due to the presence of vorticity advection terms the model will have a steady or rectified response to fluctuating wind fields. In this paper a small inverse Ekman number, “the small beta regime”, is considered. It is demonstrated that for this case all qualitative features of the residual circulation, obtained numerically by Veronis (1970). are reproduced in an analytical way. They include the dipole character of the gyre, its maximum symmetry breaking around the north-south axis for intermediate Reynolds numbers, measuring the ratio of vorticity forcing and dissipation, and the maximum residual response for intermediate forcing frequencies.     

Seasonal variation of upper layer circulation in the northern part of the East/Japan Sea

Seasonal variation of upper layer circulation in the northern part of the East/Japan Sea and its mechanism were investigated using empirical orthogonal function (EOF) analysis with satellite sea surface heights over the northern East/Japan Sea and a three-dimensional circulation model. The spatial structure and temporal variation of first EOF mode, which explains about 64% of the total variance, indicate that a large cyclonic circulation in the northern East/Japan Sea shows a semi-annual variation with maximum strength in summer and winter. According to numerical model result, the Liman Cold Current, accepted as a major current in the northern East/Japan Sea, is well mixed vertically by the winter monsoon and the current in the upper layer has a relatively deep structure, with a maximum westward speed of about 20 cm/s in winter. On the other hand, in summer the current has a stronger baroclinic structure of velocity than in winter. Numerical experiments showed that in summer the temporal variation of upper layer circulation is controlled by thermal forcing, such as sea surface heat flux and inflow of heat transport into the East/Japan Sea through the Korea/Tsushima Strait. Moreover, the cyclonic circulation in the upper layer of the northern East/Japan Sea is also generated and strengthened by the positive wind stress curl occupying most of the East/Japan Sea during the winter. The seasonal variation of each forcing that drives the circulation is responsible for the strength or weakness of the upper layer circulation in the northern East/Japan Sea. The contribution of each forcing to the seasonal variation of the upper layer circulation is examined through sensitivity experiments. According to these numerical experiments, the upper layer circulation in the northern East/Japan Sea is strengthened twice a year, in winter and summer, and this semi-annual variation is determined by a combination of wind (winter) and thermal (summer) forcing.     

Some aspects of the monsoon circulation and monsoon rainfall

Summary The south Asian summer monsoon from June to September accounts for the greater part of the annual rainfall over most of India and southeast Asia. The evolution of the summer and winter monsoon circulations over India is examined on the basis of the surface and upper air data of stations across India. The salient features of the seasonal reversals of temperature and pressure gradients and winds and the seasonal and synoptic fluctuations of atmospheric humidity are discussed. The space-time variations of rainfall are considered with the help of climatic pentad rainfall charts and diagrams. The rainfall of several north and central Indian stations shows a minimum around mid-August and a maximum around mid-February which seem to be connected with the extreme summer and winter positions of the ITCZ and the associated north-south shifts in the seasonal circulation patterns. Attention is drawn to the characteristic features of the monsoon rainfall that emerge from a study of daily and hourly rainfall of selected stations. Diurnal variations of temperature, pressure, wind and rainfall over the monsoon belt are briefly treated.     

Changes in the mode of Southern Ocean circulation over the last glacial cycle revealed by foraminiferal stable isotopic variability

Benthic foraminiferal oxygen and carbon isotopic records from Southern Ocean sediment cores show that during the last glacial period, the South Atlantic sector of the deep Southern Ocean filled to roughly 2500 m with water uniformly low in δ¹³C, resulting in the appearance of a strong mid-depth nutricline similar to those observed in glacial northern oceans. Concomitantly, deep water isotopic gradients developed between the Pacific and Atlantic sectors of the Southern Ocean; the δ¹³C of benthic foraminifera in Pacific sediments remained significantly higher than those in the Atlantic during the glacial episode. These two observations help to define the extent of what has become known as the ‘Southern Ocean low δ¹³C problem’. One explanation for this glacial distribution of δ¹³C calls upon surface productivity overprints or changes in the microhabitat of benthic foraminifera to lower glacial age δ¹³C values. We show here, however, that glacial-interglacial δ¹³C shifts are similarly large everywhere in the deep South Atlantic, regardless of productivity regime or sedimentary environment. Furthermore, the degree of isotopic decoupling between the Atlantic and Pacific basins is proportional to the magnitude of δ¹³C change in the Atlantic on all time scales. Thus, we conclude that the profoundly altered distribution of δ¹³C in the glacial Southern Ocean is most likely the result of deep ocean circulation changes. While the characteristics of the Southern Ocean δ¹³C records clearly point to reduced North Atlantic Deep Water input during glacial periods, the basinal differences suggest that the mode of Southern Ocean deep water formation must have been altered as well.