Curved shape reconstruction using multiple hypothesis tracking

Panoramic sweeps produced by a scanning range sensor often defy interpretation using conventional line-of-sight models, particularly when the environment contains curved, specularly reflective surfaces. Combining multiple scans from different vantage points provides geometric constraints necessary to solve this problem, but not without introducing new difficulties. Existing multiple scan implementations, for the most part, ignore the data correspondence issue. The multiple hypothesis tracking (MHT) algorithm explicitly deals with data correspondence. Given canonical observations extracted from raw scans, the MHT applies multiple behavior models to explain their evolution from one scan to the next. This technique identifies different topological features in the world to which it assigns the corresponding measurements. We apply the algorithm to real sonar scans generated specifically for this investigation. The experiments consist of interrogating a variety of two-dimensional prismatic objects, standing on end in a 1.2-m-deep freshwater tank, from multiple vantage points using a 1.25 MHz profiling sonar system. The results reflect the validity of the algorithm under the initial assumptions and its gradual performance degradation when these assumptions fail to characterize the environment adequately. We close with recommendations that detail extending the approach to handle more natural underwater settings     

Aliasing inertial oscillations in a 1/6° Atlantic circulation model: impact on the mean meridional heat transport

A 1/6° model simulation of the Atlantic ocean forced with daily fluxes from ECMWF (re-analysis 1979–1993 and analysis 1994–1999) has been carried out within the Clipper project. A storage strategy which filters out inertial oscillations is defined: five-day mean fields are continuously stored at five-day intervals. It is shown that aliasing errors on the monthly mean meridional heat transport (MHT, a second-order moment) are negligible in that case. These errors are of the order of 0.8 PW in the tropics in the case of a sampling strategy based on instantaneous fields stored every five days, even in the case where step-like variations in the forcing are avoided by an interpolation of the daily wind stress to the model time step. It is also shown that aliasing errors on the annual mean MHT can be as large as 0.2 PW in the tropics in the case of sub-sampling with instantaneous fields.     

Simulated South Atlantic transports and their variability during 1958–2007

South Atlantic transports, as simulated by a global ocean-sea ice model forced with the Coordinated Ocean-ice Reference Experiments version 2 (CORE-II) interannually varying air-sea reanalysis data sets, are analyzed for the period 1958–2007. The ocean-sea ice model is configured at three different resolutions: from eddy-permitting to coarsened grid spacing. A particular focus is given to the effect of eddy fluxes and inter-ocean exchanges on the South Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (SAMOC), as well as on the main factors contributing to the interannual variability during the integration period. Differences between refined and coarsened grid spacing models are more evident in coastal areas and in regions of high eddy activities. Major discrepancies are associated to both the parameterization of eddy fluxes and the coarse representation of the bathymetry. The refined grid spacing model produces higher values of both SAMOC index, defined as the maximum of the zonally-integrated northward cumulative volume transport (CVT) from surface to bottom across ∼34° S, and meridional heat transport (MHT). All models show high correlations between SAMOC index and MHT, as well as a strengthening of the transports in the 1980–2007 period. The strengthening of the SAMOC index is mainly dominated by surface and mode waters in all models. In surface and intermediate layers, the regions contributing to this trend are located east of 40° W. These changes are compensated by the strengthening of the poleward transport in deeper layers, mostly in the western part of the basin. The MHT trend is connected with the combined effect of a heat transport increase through the Drake Passage and a reduction of the heat loss through the eastern section between Africa and Antarctica, mainly associated with a strengthening in heat entering into the basin through the Agulhas system.     

Numerical simulation of the world ocean circulation and its climatic variability for 1948–2007 using the INMOM

The results of simulating global ocean circulation and its interannual variability in 1948–2007 using INM RAS ocean general circulation model INMOM (Institute of Numerical Mathematics Ocean Model) are presented. One of the INMOM versions is also used for the Black Sea dynamics simulation. The CORE datasets were used to set realistic atmospheric forcing. Sea ice area decrease by 2007 was reproduced in the Arctic Ocean that is in good agreement with observations. The interdecadal climatic variability was revealed with significant decrease of Atlantic thermohaline circulation (ATHC) and meridional heat transport (MHT) in North Atlantic (NA) since the late 1990’s. MHT presents decrease of heat transport from NA to the atmosphere since the mid-1990’s. Therefore the negative feedback is revealed in the Earth climate system that leads to reducing of climate warming caused primarily by anthropogenic factor for the last decades. Long-term variability (60 years) of ATHC is revealed as well which influences NA thermal state with 10 year delay. The assumption is argued that this mechanism can make a contribution in the ATHC own long-term variability.     

Space-and-time variability of the meridional heat transport in the north atlantic

We analyze the space-and-time variability of the meridional heat transport in the North Atlantic. The contribution of various mechanisms to the integral meridional heat transport (MHT) is estimated. The key role played by the drift transport of the Tropical Atlantic in the formation of the meridional oceanic heat transport is confirmed. On the basis of the general analysis of estimations obtained by various authors according to the data accumulated for 1870–2008 and the results of numerical analyses based on the data of NCEP/NCAR reanalysis, we show that the long-term average meridional drift heat (mass) transport attains its maximum values equal to (1.6 ± 0.1) PW [(17.4 ± 1.5) Sv] in the vicinity of 12.5°N in the Tropical Atlantic. The contribution of the heat transport caused by the horizontal Sverdrup circulation to the integral meridional heat transport is maximum in the vicinity of 30° N. On the average, it is equal to ∼ 40%. In the Subtropical Atlantic, the meridional heat transport varies with a period of ∼ 50–70 yr. The minimum value of the integral meridional heat transport was attained in the mid-1960s and its maximum value was at attained at the beginning of the 1990s. The location of the center of Azores pressure maximum makes it possible to conclude that the intensification of the total meridional heat transport in the Subtropical Atlantic on these time scales is accompanied by the displacement of the center of the North Subtropical anticyclonic gyre in the southwest direction.     

A global heat and freshwater forcing dataset for ocean models

A global dataset based on the ECMWF Re-Analyses (ERA) is presented that can be used as surface boundary conditions for ocean models with sea-ice components. The definition of these conditions is based on bulk formulae. To study the mean ocean circulation, a mean annual cycle on a daily basis was constructed from ERA for all relevant parameters including wind stress. Continental runoff is considered by using information about the catchment areas of the rivers and about the main drainage basins. The bulk formulae were extended by using sea ice concentration.To estimate meridional heat transports (MHT) and to avoid any drift in ocean model simulations, the heat and fresh water budgets have been closed by applying an inverse procedure to fine-tune the fluxes towards observed transports. To improve the MHTs on the Southern Hemisphere the winds and the short wave radiation at southern higher latitudes should be corrected. Furthermore, tests were performed concerning short wave radiation which was increased in the tropics and decreased in the subsidence zones.The heat and fresh water fluxes are assessed by using a scheme of Macdonald and Wunsch based on hydrographic sections. The net heat fluxes of ERA and of the forcing dataset are consistent with the heat flux divergences and convergences estimated by this scheme except for parts of the South Atlantic and the Indian Ocean sector of the Southern Ocean where none of these datasets is consistent with these estimates. In the subtropical South Indian Ocean the forcing dataset is consistent with these estimates while ERA are not. The flux components of ERA and the forcing dataset were compared to several observational datasets (SRB, SOC, HOAPS, GPCP, and CMAP). For each component, at least one of these datasets (especially HOAPS) supports the effects of the inverse procedure and the bulk formulae almost globally with some regional exceptions: short wave radiation in the tropical oceans and the subtropical North Atlantic, latent heat flux at higher latitudes, and precipitation in the northern North Atlantic.Comparisons to the NCAR/NCEP Re-Analyses (NRA) (versions 1 and 2) and the ECHAM model in place of ERA lead to similar results. In the North Atlantic the net heat fluxes of the model based datasets approach the hydrographic estimate with increasing resolution. Applied to any ocean/sea-ice model and compared to ERA, the forcing dataset would induce only a relative small net sea-surface buoyancy loss.A comparison of the forcing dataset to measurements made using one buoy deployed in the western Pacific warm pool and five buoys deployed in the subduction region of the Northeast Atlantic shows that at the site of the first buoy the net heat fluxes of the forcing dataset are in poorer agreement than those of ERA. At the sites of two subduction buoys both datasets show the same level of agreement within the error bars specified. At the sites of the three remaining subduction buoys the forcing dataset shows a marginal improvement on ERA.     

Variations of the Kuroshio in the Southern Region of Japan: Conditions for Large Meander of the Kuroshio

Conditions for the formation of large meander (LM) of the Kuroshio are inferred from observational data, mainly obtained in the 1990s. Propagation of the small meander of the Kuroshio from south of Kyushu to Cape Shiono-misaki is a prerequisite for LM formation, and three more conditions must be satisfied. (1) The cold eddy carried by small meander interacts with the cold eddy in Enshu-nada east of the cape. During and just after the propagation of small meander, (2) the Kuroshio axis in the Tokara Strait maintains the northern position and small curvature, and (3) current velocity of the Kuroshio is not quite small. If the first condition is not satisfied, the Kuroshio path changes little. If the first condition is satisfied, but the second or third one is not, the Kuroshio transforms to the offshore non-large-meander path, not the LM path. All three conditions must be satisfied to form the large meander. For continuance of the large meander, the Kuroshio must maintain the small curvature of current axis in the Tokara Strait and a medium or large range of velocity and transport. These conditions for formation and continuance may be necessary for the large meander to occur. Moreover, effects of bottom topography on position and structure of the Kuroshio are described. Due to topography, the Kuroshio changes horizontal curvature and vertical inclination of current axis in the Tokara Strait, and is confined into either of two passages over the Izu Ridge at mid-depth. The former contributes to the second condition for the LM formation.     

Patterns of Activity of the Sea Urchin Paracentrotus lividus in the Bay of Port-Cros (Var, France, Mediterranean)

Abstract. Tagged individuals of the sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus followed in Port Cros Island showed mostly nocturnal movements, with individual peaks of activity which were not coordinated for the population during the night period. The straight line distance travelled in 24 h has a mean value of 49 cm, with a range of 0 to 240 cm. Neither sea urchin size nor depth affect activity. The urchins living on rocky substrate moved significantly more than those on seagrass beds. From one day to another, the distance travelled by the population of urchins varies significantly; this is not related to season. The activity is negatively correlated with the mean wind speed; during a period of turbulence lasting several hours, movement was significantly oriented to the deep. Periods of inactivity of 1 or 2 days were observed; they are not coordinated for the individuals followed, and the relation between feeding and movement is not clear. Urchins seem to stay in a quite small area, at least for some months.     

Permafrost as a factor of the dynamics of the coastal zone of the Russian East Arctic Seas

Some regularities that are generally accepted in the theory about the development of sea coasts as applied to the East Arctic coast of Russia do not conform to reality. To find out the reasons for these contradictions, the connection between the coastal processes and the perennially frozen sediment of the underwater coastal slope in the Laptev Sea and the East Siberian Sea was studied. The frozen state of the deposits of the coastal zone exerts a substantial influence on the coastal dynamics and determines several features of the thermoabrasion development. In particular, the subaqual permafrost does not allow the forming of a storm profile with dynamic balance. This fact causes the more effective action of the sea on the coastal cliffs and the more active recession of the frozen coasts as compared with their counterparts outside the cryolitozone.     

Alternative interpretations as to the origin of the hydrocarbons of the Guajira Basin,Colombia

The origins of the hydrocarbon gases recovered from the Chuchupa, Ballena, and Riohacha fields, located in the Guajira basin, northeast Colombia, are examined. These gases are composed of methane with trace amounts of wet gas components (C₂₊<0.5%). The methane is isotopically light (δ¹³C₁<−50‰), as are the other hydrocarbon components. The Ballena and Riohacha fields are considered to have a biogenic origin and the Chuchupa gas is thought to have a mixed biogenic-thermogenic origin. The presence of a thermogenic contribution at Chuchupa need not, however, indicate that the sedimentary sequence was exposed to elevated temperatures. The generative kitchen located to the northwest of the three gas fields would preferentially feed into the Chuchupa Field.The gases recovered at three onshore seep localities appear to include a thermogenic component. As a result of fractionation it is unclear whether they represent ‘pure’ thermogenic gases or a mixed thermogenic-biogenic origin similar to Chuchupa.An examination of oil microseepage observed in soil samples recovered from the onshore Guajira region point to another hydrocarbon system apparently not related to the three gas fields. Some of these microseeps include ‘fresh’ (nonbiodegraded) oils. These microseeps did not correlate with either of the Tertiary oil families from the Sinú Urabá basin located to the southwest of the study area or with Cretaceous oils from that basin. A better correlation was observed with the La Luna Formation, but significant differences remain implying that the source for the microseeps was less calcareous and deposited in a less restricted environment than associated with ‘classical’ La Luna facies. This could indicate either a facies change or that a different source unit is present within the region.     

A synthetic pollen record of the eastern Mediterranean sapropels of the last 1 Ma: implications for the time-scale and formation of sapropels

The Quaternary climate of southern Europe (south Italy and Greece) is investigated by pollen analysis of the sapropels which were deposited in the deep eastern Mediterranean Sea during the last 1 million year (Ma). The time-scale of core KC01b in the Ionian Sea has been established by tuning its oxygen isotopic record to the ice volume model of Imbrie and Imbrie (1980). For the last 250,000 year (250 ka), the previous pollen studies and astronomical tuning have been confirmed. Sapropels were deposited under a large range of Mediterranean climates: fully interglacial, fully glacial, and intermediary, as revealed mainly by the balance between the respective pollen abundances of oak (Quercus) and sage-brush (Artemisia). The high value of the oak reveals the warm and wet climate of an Interglacial, and the high value of the sage-brush, the dry and cold climate of a Glacial. Whereas the Mediterranean climate is directly related to the variation of the high-latitude ice sheets, the deposition of sapropels is not so. In contrast with the wide climatic range, sapropels were deposited only when summer insolation in the low latitudes reached its highest peaks. However, between 250 ka and 1 Ma, that stable pattern is not yet established. Only six sapropels are observed, many expected ones do not appear, even as ghosts signalled by peaks of barium abundance, that remain after the post-deposition oxidation of organic matter. The pattern of sapropel formation in stable and direct relationship to highest insolation does not seem to apply. For five of those sapropels, neither climate extremes are observed; they mainly formed during intermediary types of Mediterranean climate. In contrast, one sapropel (and one ghost) relates to a relatively low peak of insolation, and its climate is of a unique, composite type not seen later. This might suggest an unsuspected, more complex pattern linking the formation of Mediterranean sapropels to the astronomical configuration.     

Dealing with the problem of eutrophication in the Adriatic Basin: the institutional framework and policies

The process of eutrophication in the Adriatic Sea Basin has emerged over recent decades as a problem that demands special consideration and treatment; one of the most important reasons is the damage to the economy due to its undesired effects.Scientific knowledge concerning this process, while not exhaustive, is sufficient as a basis for directing action. But the experience acquired to date demonstrates that scientific knowledge alone cannot steer practical action, assuring the use of all existing (limited) knowledge to define the best practicable actions in a given time and place. In other terms, the institutional framework has not been able to use this knowledge for improving the environmental state of the Basin.To overcome this unsatisfactory situation, a different definition of the problem is proposed, as well as a different way for designing suitable solutions.     

Significance of Shallow Bottom Friction in the Dynamics of the Tsushima Current

A simple analytical model is considered for the dynamics of volume transport of the Tsushima Current. This model is basically baroclinic but allows bottom friction over the shallow regions connecting the Pacific Ocean to the Japan Sea basin, and is thus different from previous models which are either purely barotropic with bottom friction predominating over the whole domain, or purely baroclinic with bottom friction completely ignored. Compared to the previous barotropic model, this model is not only more realistic but also gives much simpler results. It gives the observed downstream sea level slope, which is not seen in the previous baroclinic model. As a result, the estimated transport of the Tsushima Current is closer to the observational data than those of previous models. This model indicates that the localized bottom friction acting over the shallow regions not only controls the transport of the Tsushima Current but also moves the stagnation point of the western boundary current northward. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

On the problem of the computation of spectra of small-scale inhomogeneities in hydrophysical fields of the ocean

A novel form of correlation window employed to calculate the spectral density of a random process using a Fourier transform of the correlation function is proposed. It is shown that, concerning its metrologic characteristics, the value of the spectral density obtained does not yield the best autoregression estimates. A fast recurrent estimational algorithm is suggested to increase the efficiency of the calculational procedure.Translated by M. M. Trufanov.     

加里曼丹岛西北侧低盐水季节变化及机理分析

利用LEVITUS温盐资料、HOAPS降水及蒸发资料以及OFES模式资料等分析加里曼丹岛西北侧表层低盐水的季节变化规律,并使用盐度平衡模式诊断了海面淡水通量、径流、卷挟作用以及平流作用对低盐水变化的贡献.分析表明:加里曼丹西北侧全年均存在1个低盐水团,其季节变化具有"双峰"特征,3月至4月以及10月至11月会发生2次低...     

胶州湾环境保护法律问题研究

胶州湾正面临着严重的环境问题,如湿地减少,海域面积不断缩小、纳潮量持续减小;水域污染严重,水质日益恶化;生物资源衰退等,针对这些问题,对涉及胶州湾的各级法律法规进行分析研究,找出了现行法律的欠缺之处:法律体系不完善、海洋执法水平较低、司法救济不足。立法方面,国家立法和地方立法不完善,尚未形成健全有效的胶州湾保护法律体系;执法方面,既往的执法工作取得了积极有效的成果,但执法能力仍然有待提高;司法方面,受制于我国司法体系,司法救济并没有真正到位。针对这些不足提出解决胶州湾法律问题的对策建议,主要有:健全海洋法律体系、提高海洋执法能力、健全司法救济制度。期望为青岛市整治胶州湾环境问题、合理开发利用胶州湾、保护胶州湾海洋环境提供参考。     

Numerical study of the Subtropical Front and the Subtropical Countercurrent

Using a multi-level numerical model, it is shown that the Subtropical Front and the Subtropical Countercurrent can be reproduced realistically in a highly idealized model, as a consequence of the coupling effect of wind driven gyre circulation and differential heating. In the model, the North Pacific Ocean is idealized as a rectangular flat-bottomed model ocean, and is driven by wind stress, which features the Westerlies and the Trades, and by heat flux through the sea surface formulated after Haney (1971).In the model ocean, a shallow front and an eastward current associated with the front are formed around the central latitude of the Subtropical Gyre, which show close similarities to the Subtropical Front and the Subtropical Countercurrent in the real ocean.Although the detailed mechanism of formation of the Subtropical Front and the Subtropical Countercurrent is not clarified in the present study, two factors are found inessential for the formation of the Subtropical Front and the Subtropical Countercurrent. First, the results of the model indicate that a small trough of wind stress curl in the lower latitudes of the Subtropical Gyre, which Yoshida and Kidokoro (1967a, b) attributed to the Subtropical Countercurrent, is not necessary for the formation of the Subtropical Front and the Subtropical Countercurrent, since they are reproduced well in the model without the trough. Second, using a model driven by meridional wind stress, it is shown that the meridional Ekman convergence, which many authors related to the Subtropical Front, is not essential for the formation of the Subtropical Front and the Subtropical Countercurrent.     

Preliminary data on the composition and distribution of polychaetes in the deep-water areas of the north-western part of the Sea of Japan

During the SoJaBio expedition, the deep sea fauna of the north-western Sea of Japan was sampled in August–September 2010. From this study, 11 epibenthic sledge stations are analyzed, with a focus on species composition, diversity and distribution patterns of polychaetes. A total of 92 polychaete taxa belonging to 70 genera and 28 families and 3 indeterminate species were found. Twelve species and eight genera have not been reported from the Sea of Japan before, but were registered from other deep-sea basins. Calculation of diversity (Shannon–Wiener Index, Pielou's Evenness) showed that the upper bathyal of the Sea of Japan is an area of higher polychaete diversity than the abyssal plain. The increased richness and diversity here could possibly be explained by a zoogeographic overlapping with the shallower species' assemblages of the shelf. At a higher taxonomic level the polychaete fauna of the deep Sea of Japan does not seem to differ from that of other deep-sea regions world-wide. In depths below 2000 m about 30% polychaete species have wide distributional ranges.     

Adaptive behaviours of the jellyfish Aurelia labiata in Roscoe Bay on the west coast of Canada

Four behaviours of mature Aurelia labiata medusae (Scyphozoa) were observed. Touching the manubrium with a soft, hollow, silicone rubber ball or a foam rubber ball caused medusae at a depth of 1 m to swim to the surface. Dense aggregations of medusae did not form within 5 m of rock walls. Medusae did not swim into water with salinity < 20 parts per thousand. Sunlight-stimulated directional swimming was to the west. These behaviours add to a growing list of adaptive behaviours of Aurelia labiata medusae.