Distribution and content of137+134Cs and90Sr in the water of the North Sea during the years 1982 to 1984

Summary In continuation of the investigations of previous years (Kautsky [1973, 1976, 1985]; Kautsky, Jefferies, and Steele [1980]), besides surface water samples, water samples were also taken at depth for the first time along the entire station grid northwards of 53° 30 N (1982) and 53° N (1984).The fundamental distribution pattern of the^137+134Cs in the North Sea, within certain limits was practically analogous with that of the previous years. In the South and westwards of Jutland, on the basis of steep activity concentration gradients, one can again clearly recognize the boundary between the water coming out of the Channel from the South and the water coming from the North along the English coast. In the surface water, this boundary between the two water masses — as in previous years — lies between 6° E and 7° E.However, in deep water westwards of Jutland, clear differences of the distribution are observed between the years 1982 and 1984. In August/September 1982, a clear front in the entire water column between surface and bottom is present (Fig. 11). A comparable pattern, in principle, is indicated by the salinity distribution (Fig. 13). In comparison with it, in May/June 1984, a clearly stronger advance of the deep water (on the basis of the activity concentration differences) in the direction of Jutland compared with the surface water is recognizable (Fig. 12). Here also this effect appeared in outline to a certain extent in the salinity distribution (Fig. 14). Altogether, the content of radio caesium in the water of the North Sea from 1982 to 1984 has decreased by 30%. In 1984, it totalled, approximately 2400 TBq^137+134Cs, only 0.5% of the circa 481000 TBq⁴⁰K present in nature in the North Sea.

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Verteilung und Gehalt von^137+134Cs und⁹⁰Sr im Wasser der Nordsee in den Jahren 1982 bis 1984

Zusammenfassung In Weiterführung der Untersuchungen vorhergehender Jahre (Kautsky [1973, 1976, 1985]; Kautsky, Jefferies, und Steele [1980]) wurden erstmalig neben Oberflächenwasserproben auf dem gesamten Stationsnetz nördlich von 53° 30 N (1982) und 53° N (1984) auch Tiefenwasserproben entnommen.Das grundsätzliche Verteilungsmuster des^137+134Cs in der Nordsee gleicht im Rahmen einer gewissen Variationsbreite praktisch dem der vorhergehenden Jahre. Im Süden und westlich von Jütland ist anhand der steilen Aktivitätskonzentrationsgradienten wieder deutlich die Grenze zwischen dem aus dem Kanal von Süden und dem entlang der englischen Küste von Norden kommenden Wasser zu erkennen. Im Oberflächenwasser leigt diese Grenze zwischen den beiden Wassermassen — wie auch in den Vorjahren — zwischen 6° E und 7° E.Im Tiefenwasser westlich Jütland sind zwischen den Jahren 1982 und 1984 aber deutliche Unterschiede der Verteilung zu beobachten. Im August/September 1982 ist eine klare Front in der gesamten Wassersäule zwischen Oberfläche und Boden vorhanden (Abb. 11). Ein im Prinzip vergleichbares Muster zeigt die Salzgehaltsverteilung (Abb. 13). Dagegen ist im Mai/Juni 1984 ein deutlich stärkeres Vordringen des Tiefenwassers (anhand der Aktivitätskonzentrationsunterschiede) in Richtung Jütland gegenüber dem Oberflächenwasser erkennbar (Abb. 12). Auch hier zeichnet sich dieser Effekt bis zu einem gewissen Grad in der Salzgehaltsverteilung ab (Abb. 14). Insgesamt hat der Gehalt des Radiocaesium im Wasser der Nordseee von 1982 bis 1984 um 30% abgenommen. Er beträgt 1984 mit rund 2400 TBq^137+134Cs nur 0,5% der in der Nordsee von Natur aus vorhandenen rund 481 000 TBq⁴⁰K.

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Distribution et concentration du caesium 137 et 134 et du strontium 90 dans les eaux de la Mer du Nord au cours des années 1982 et 1984

Résumé Pendant la continuation des recherches des années antérieures (Kautsky [1973, 1976, 1985]; Kautsky, Jefferies et Steele [1980]) et en plus des prélèvements d'eau de surface, on a aussi prélevé pour la première fois, des échantillons d'eau profonde à toutes les stations du réseau au Nord du parallèle 53° 30 N (1982) et du parallèle 53° N (1984).Le modèle fondamental de distribution du caesium 137 et 134 en Mer du Nord est pratiquement analogue, à l'intérieur de certaines limites de latitude, à celui des années antérieures. Dans le Sud et à l'Ouest du Jutland, on peut encore reconnaître clairement, sur la base de forts gradients de concentration d'activité, la frontière entre les eaux venant de la Manche par le Sud et les eaux pénétrant par le Nord le long de la côte anglaise. Pour l'eau de surface, cette frontière entre les deux masses d'eau s'étend, comme dans les années antérieures, entre les méridiens 6° E et 7° E.Cependant, en eau profonde à l'Ouest du Jutland, de réelles différences de distributions ont été observées entre les années 1982 et 1984. En août-septembre 1982, un front net est présent dans toute la colonne d'eau comprise entre la surface et le fond (Fig. 11). Un modèle comparable, dans le principe, est indiqué par la distribution de la salinité (Fig. 13). Par contre en mai–juin 1984 on peut reconnaître, une progression significativement plus forte de l'eau profonde (sur la base des différences de concentration d'activité comparée à celle de l'eau de surface en direction du Jutland (Fig. 12). Ici aussi cet effet est apparu jusqu'à un certain degré dans la distribution de la salinité (Fig. 14). Tout compte fait, la concentration de caesium radioactif a diminué de 30% dans la Mer du Nord entre 1982 et 1984. En 1984 le caesium 137 et 134 totalisait approximativement 2400 TBq ce qui représente seulement 0,5% des 481 000 TBq environ de potassium 40 présent au naturel dans la Mer du Nord.

     

Cs137 gamma-ray absorption in eclogites

Summary The coefficient of the gamma-ray absorption _Cs ¹³⁷ investigated in eclogites of the Bohemian Massif varies with fresh samples from0.2477 cm ^–1 to 0.2804 cm ^–1 . Symplectite is the main factor decreasing the value of down to0.242 cm ^–1 . On the contrary, the coefficient increases with the increasing content of clinopyroxene and especially of garnet. The linear dependence of the coefficient on the density may be expressed by the equation =0.0682+0.028.     

Geomagnetic activity and the North Atlantic Oscillation

The North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) is the prominent pattern of winter climate variability that has a strong effect on weather in the North Atlantic region and the adjacent continents. At present, uncertainty prevails as to the mechanisms controlling the variability of the NAO. It is also difficult to explain why the positive phase of the NAO has prevailed over the past 37 years (1972–2008). We found high positive correlation coefficients between geomagnetic activity (used as a measure of solar wind intensity) and the NAO indices that equal 0.76 for 1962–1994 and 0.63 for 1961–2011. Positive correlations of the distribution of surface air temperature with the NAO and similarly with geomagnetic activity occur in the Northern Hemisphere. These results encourage our search for possible causes controlling the NAO. We have found that at times of high geomagnetic activity the NAO index is positive and magnetic reconnection may enable the solar wind to initiate downward winds in the magnetosphere. Wind anomalies originate at the edge of the stratospheric polar vortex and propagate downward through the troposphere taking part in the intensification of the vortex and of the westerlies. Stronger northerly winds over Greenland carry cold air southward and, together with the enhanced westerlies, advect the warm air from the Atlantic along the deep Icelandic low into Eurasia increasing temperatures there. On the other hand, at times of low geomagnetic activity, the NAO index is negative and the stratospheric polar vortex is weak. Warm air from the subtropics is carried into the Arctic and a rapid amplification of planetary waves propagating upward may cause displacement or even splitting of the weak vortex and sudden stratospheric warming. During this negative NAO phase the weakened westerlies allow more cold air to build up over North America and Eurasia.     

The temporal-spatial evolutionary features of the seismic phases in the North China block and the greater North China

This paper has made a study of the relationship between the phases of seismic activities from 1966 to 1976 in the region of the North China Block and the temporal and spatial evolution of temperature anomalies from February 1960 to January 1979 of the greater North China. The main conclusions are: (1) The temperature variation from February 1960 (rise) to January 1977 (drop) and the temperature rises of September 1975 and February 1976 are connected with the beginning and conclusion of phases of seismic activity. (2) The relation between the time-duration and the extent of temperature anomaly and that between these two parameters and the energy released by an earthquake have high credibility. (3) If the time period of 16.5 years between February 1960 and July 28, 1976, the occurrence time of the the great Tangshan earthquake, is divided into 18 time intervals according to 0.618^N, the earthquakes in this phase of seismic activity and temperature rises fall just into the same intervals. The Chinese version of this paper appeared in the Chinese edition ofActa Seismologica Sinica,15, 76–82, 1993.     

Pu, Cs and excess Pb in Russian Arctic sediments

The activity ratios of Pu and radiocesium isotopes have been used to delineate the major sources (such as global and close-in (debris) fallout, nuclear fuel reprocessing and fabrication plant effluents) in the environment. We have measured ²³⁸Pu, ^239,240Pu, ¹³⁷Cs, and excess ²¹⁰Pb concentrations in 107 surficial sediments as well as in 5 sediment cores collected in the summer months of 1993 and 1994 from the Ob and Yenisey Rivers (Russia) and the Kara sea. A comparison of the sediment core inventories of ^239,240Pu and ¹³⁷Cs, along with the ²³⁸Pu/^239,240Pu activity ratios, with those expected from global fallout allows us to estimate the relative amounts, if any, of reactor-derived ²³⁸Pu and ^239,240Pu from the dumped reactor sites in the study area.

In surficial sediment samples collected in 1993 and 1994, the ^239,240Pu concentrations varied between 4.2 and 856 mBq kg⁻¹, with a mean of 239 mBq kg⁻¹. In samples with a measurable ²³⁸Pu, the ²³⁸Pu/^239,240Pu activity ratios varied between 0.010 and 0.069, with an average value of 0.035 ± 0.014. This range can be compared to the average ²³⁸Pu/^239,240Pu activity ratio of 0.030 for the year 1993 from nuclear weapons testing and SNAP fallout obtained from soil studies, indicating very little (≤ 5%) additional sources of ²³⁸Pu to the sediments in the study area. The inventories of Pu in the 5 sediment cores from the study area varied between 2.67 ± 0.67 and 24.5 ± 2.2 Bq m⁻² with a mean value of 8.83 Bq m⁻². The ¹³⁷Cs concentrations in the upper 3 cm of the sediments varied between below detection limit to 71.4 Bq kg⁻¹, with a mean of 14.9 Bq kg⁻¹. The ¹³⁷Cs inventories in the 5 sediment cores varied between 156.7 ± 28.3 and 1600 ± 153.3 Bq m⁻², with a mean value of 583.3 Bq m⁻². The mean ratio of inventories of Pu to that of ¹³⁷Cs, 0.015, is comparable to the values in other places in the Arctic region. There is a significant correlation between total organic carbon and concentrations of ¹³⁷Cs, ^239,240Pu and ²¹⁰Pb, suggesting that organic matter-enriched fine particles are a likely carrier phase for these nuclides. The ratio of ¹³⁷Cs/^239,240Pu also suggests that most of these nuclides are derived from global fallout.     

Sedimentation rates in the central lake constance determined with210Pb and137Cs

Sediment cores from central Lake Constance were dated with²¹⁰Pb and¹³⁷Cs. A sedimentation rate of (0.11±0.02) g·cm⁻²·y⁻¹ was determined with the²¹⁰Pb method.¹³⁷Cs measurements revealed sedimentation rates of (0.11±0.01) g·cm⁻²·y⁻¹ and (0.08±0.01) g·cm⁻²·y⁻¹ respectively for two different cores sampled at the same location. The lower Cs-dated value indicates incomplete core recovery and demonstrates the sensitivity of this simple dating method to small losses of material at the water/sediment interface. An unambiguous application of the¹³⁷Cs method is, therefore, only possible if complete core recovery is ensured. Sedimentation rates based on particulate matter, collected in sediment traps at various water depths, agree with the results of the radioisotope methods. Estimates of 30–125 days residence times for suspended particulate matter were calculated from⁷Be measurements.     

The density of North Atlantic and North Pacific deep waters

The densities of seventeen samples of seawater from GEOSECS stations 27 (North Atlantic) and 217 (North Pacific) have been measured with a vibrating flow densimeter at 25°C. The densities of the deep samples were found to be 5 ± 1.5and16 ± 3.6ppm greater, for the North Atlantic and North Pacific, respectively, than predicted by the equation of state of Millero, Gonzalez and Ward (1976) derived for seawaters of constant relative composition. The results are in good agreement with the density anomalies predicted by Brewer and Bradshaw (1975) on the basis of the observed increase of dissolved silica, alkalinity and total carbon dioxide in oceanic deep waters. The application of these corrections results in an agreement with the Millero, Gonzalez and Ward (1976) equation of state to ±4 ppm.     

Interdecadal change of the linkage between the North Atlantic Oscillation and the tropical cyclone frequency over the western North Pacific

The relationship between the North Atlantic Oscillation(NAO) and the tropical cyclone frequency over the western North Pacific(WNPTCF) in summer is investigated by use of observation data. It is found that their linkage appears to have an interdecadal change from weak connection to strong connection. During the period of 1948–1977, the NAO was insignificantly correlated to the WNPTCF. However, during the period of 1980–2009, they were significantly correlated with stronger(weaker) NAO corresponding to more(fewer) tropical cyclones in the western North Pacific. The possible reason for such a different relationship between the NAO and the WNPTCF during the former and latter periods is further analyzed from the perspective of large-scale atmospheric circulations. When the NAO was stronger than normal in the latter period, an anomalous cyclonic circulation prevailed in the lower troposphere of the western North Pacific and the monsoon trough was intensified, concurrent with the eastward-shifting western Pacific subtropical high as well as anomalous low-level convergence and high-level divergence over the western North Pacific. These conditions favor the genesis and development of tropical cyclones, and thus more tropical cyclones appeared over the western North Pacific. In contrast, in the former period, the impact of the NAO on the aforementioned atmospheric circulations became insignificant, thereby weakening its linkage to the WNPTCF. Further study shows that the change of the wave activity flux associated with the NAO during the former and latter periods may account for such an interdecadal shift of the NAO–WNPTCF relationship.     

Manganese in the North Pacific

A quantitative and precise method for determination of dissolved Mn at the nanomole(nmol)/kg level in seawater has been developed and used to study the distribution of Mn in the northeast Pacific. Mn concentrations in the surface mixed layer decrease from 1.0 to 0.6 nmol/kg between the central gyre and the western boundary of the California Current, then increase to values from 2 to 6 nmol/kg near the coastal boundary (in contrast to the distribution of²¹⁰Pb). Particulate Mn in the surface waters accounts for only about 1% of the total.Vertical distributions of Mn are characterized by surface maxima, minima near 300 m, maxima at mid-depth coinciding with the oxygen minimum and the labile nutrient maxima, and concentrations in Pacific bottom waters of approximately 0.2 nmol/kg. The oceanic distribution of Mn appears to be dominated by external inputs superimposed upon overall scavenging which can lead to Mn maxima in (1) the surface waters due to riverine and atmospheric sources; (2) the deep ocean as a result of hydrothermal injection and/or sediment resuspension; and (3) the oxygen minimum region resulting from in-situ breakdown of organic matter, in-situ MnO₂ reduction, and/or advective-diffusive transport of dissolved Mn from anoxic slope sediments.     

Age and significance of the North Pyrenean metamorphism

³⁹Ar-⁴⁰Ar and ⁸⁷Rb-⁸⁷Sr studies of some metamorphic minerals from the North Pyrenean zone indicate that they crystallized about 92–104 m.y. ago on the east, 85 m.y. or older on the west. An amphibole from a lherzolite in the eastern area gives a plateau age at 103 m.y. The North Pyrenean metamorphism is shown to be a thermal effect of forcible lherzolite emplacement along the North Pyrenean zone. This latter process is related to the early breakup of the Europe-Iberia plate during the middle Cretaceous time.     

Anisotropy of Cs137 gamma-ray absorption in rocks

Summary The anisotropy of the Cs¹³⁷ gamma-ray absorption coefficient has been investigated in layered models and several rock samples. It was found that in contrast to other petrophysical parameters the gamma-ray absorption coefficient is characterized by a relatively small coefficient of anisotropy (3–5%). Therefore, the possible effect of the anisotropy can be neglected in the measurements of for rocks as it is usually below current observational errors.     

Distribution of 137Cs in the Lena River estuary-Laptev Sea system.

Surface sediment samples in the Laptev Sea have average 137Cs content of 7.1 Bq kg(-1), a value intermediate between that of the western Kara Sea (23 Bq kg(-1) and the East Siberian Sea (4.2 Bq kg-'). Both surface sediment content and sediment inventory of 137Cs in the Laptev Sea sediments show significant variability, and the influence of a variety of environmental factors.137Cs concentrations in the Laptev Sea surface sediments range from 0.8 to 16 Bq kg(-1). There is a marked increase in 137Cs content of surface sediment samples collected near the Lena River delta, and a local enrichment in the 137Cs inventories at these sites is also evident. Fine-grained mixed-layer illite/ smectite rich sediments in the estuary provide effective adsorption sites to fix 137Cs, in spite of desorption processes associated with low salinities in estuarine mixing. The Lena River-Laptev Sea mixing zone is a major site of sea-ice production. River and shelf sediments are incorporated into sea-ice formed in this region (Holmes and Creager, 1974). The irregular 137Cs activity profiles of the Lena River estuary cores indicate disturbance or removal of 137Cs-laden sediments via sea-ice related processes. Lena River and Estuary sediments may have served as a secondary source (i.e. other than direct fallout) of 137Cs in sea-ice. North-east of the Lena River estuary, sediment contains a thin layer of 137Cs-bearing material over an erosion surface. The 137Cs-laden surface layer may be the result of transient deposition of estuarine sediments being delivered by sea-ice or spring floods.     

Sorption site capacities for Cs on the sedimentary rock in Horonobe area

The sorption behavior of radionuclides depends on the content of minerals in geological media. The sorption of radionuclides on minerals has been interpreted as the uptake on the sorption sites on mineral surfaces. However, conventional investigations such as X-ray diffraction analysis cannot avoid large errors in quantification of minerals. Furthermore, the discrepancies of sorption behavior have been often found even on the same kind of minerals. Therefore, the sorption site capacity cannot be effectively estimated by the quantification of minerals. In this study, the sorption site on sedimentary rock sampled in Horonobe area, where the Horonobe Underground Research Center, JAEA, is located, was estimated from the Cs sorption isotherms obtained by sorption experiments. To deduce the fitting parameters, illite content estimated from the amount of extracted K by alkylammonium treatment and smectite content estimated from the cation exchange capacity measurement were introduced to the fitting procedure. The result shows that the sorption site capacities of smectite and illite in the sedimentary rock in Horonobe area are 1.3–1.7 × 10⁻⁴ and 1.4–4.0 × 10⁻⁵ eq/g, respectively.     

The mixed-bed glacial landform imprint of the North Sea Lobe in the western North Sea

During the last glacial cycle an intriguing feature of the British-Irish Ice Sheet was the North Sea Lobe (NSL); fed from the Firth of Forth and which flowed south and parallel to the English east coast. The controls on the formation and behaviour of the NSL have long been debated, but in the southern North Sea recent work suggests the NSL formed a dynamic, oscillating terrestrial margin operating over a deforming bed. Further north, however, little is known of the behaviour of the NSL or under what conditions it operated. This paper analyses new acoustic, sedimentary and geomorphic data in order to evaluate the glacial landsystem imprint and deglacial history of the NSL offshore from NE England. Subglacial tills (AF2/3) form a discontinuous mosaic interspersed with bedrock outcrops across the seafloor, with the partial excavation and advection of subglacial sediment during both advance and retreat producing mega-scale glacial lineations and grounding zone wedges. The resultant ‘mixed-bed’ glacial landsystem is the product of a dynamic switch from a terrestrial piedmont-lobe margin with a net surplus of sediment to a partially erosive, quasi-stable, marine-terminating, ice stream lobe as the NSL withdrew northwards. Glaciomarine sediments (AF4) drape the underlying subglacial mixed-bed imprint and point to a switch to tidewater conditions between 19.9 and 16.5 ka cal BP as the North Sea became inundated. The dominant controls on NSL recession during this period were changing ice flux through the Firth of Forth ice stream onset zone and water depths at the grounding line; the development of the mixed-bed landsystem being a response to grounding line instability. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The Sumatra tsunami of 26 December 2004 as observed in the North Pacific and North Atlantic oceans

The M _w=9.3 megathrust earthquake of December 26, 2004 off the coast of Sumatra in the Indian Ocean generated a catastrophic tsunami that caused widespread damage in coastal areas and left more than 226,000 people dead or missing. The Sumatra tsunami was accurately recorded by a large number of tide gauges throughout the world's oceans. This paper examines the amplitudes, frequencies and wave train structure of tsunami waves recorded by tide gauges located more than 20,000 km from the source area along the Pacific and Atlantic coasts of North America.     

Sea-floor spreading and the early opening of the North Atlantic

We have examined available magnetic and gravity data bearing on the initiation of sea-floor spreading in the North Atlantic between Ireland and Newfoundland. The change in character of the magnetic field on the continental margin on either side of the Atlantic from a landward magnetic quiet zone to a seaward “noisy”, magnetic signature is postulated to be related to a change from continental to oceanic crust. Sea-floor spreading between Ireland and Newfoundland was initiated during the long normal geomagnetic polarity interval in the Late Cretaceous. Rockall Trough may have opened at this time. At the end of the normal polarity interval (Late Santonian) the ridge axis jumped westward to bypass Rockall Trough and the related offset initiated the Charlie Gibbs fracture zone.A reconstruction is presented for the relative position between North America and Europe prior to the initiation of sea-floor spreading in the Late Cretaceous.     

Seabird biomass and food consumption in the North Sea

Calculations presented by Bourne (1983) contain some order-of-magnitude errors, and give the misleading impression that estimates of fish consumption by seabirds in the North Sea may be as low as 0.25%, or as high as 48%, of fish production, depending on the method of calculation. It is likely that the true figure is closer to 20% once the errors in Bourne's calculations are corrected, but several areas of uncertainty require further study; particularly seabird diets and foraging ranges, fish distributions and movements. Studies from other parts of the world show that seabird numbers can dramatically alter in response to changes in food abundance. Some changes result from natural perturbations and others from effects of overexploitation of fish stocks by man. Effects of overfishing seem likely to be potentially at least as serious as effects of oil or chemical pollution in many regions, possibly including the North Sea.