海相遗迹化石对显生宙生物大辐射事件的响应*

通过系统梳理前寒武纪和显生宙海相遗迹化石记录及笔者自己的研究,发现在寒武纪生命大爆发、奥陶纪生物大辐射、中生代海洋革命共3次里程碑式的生物大辐射过程中,海相遗迹化石的属级多样性变化和歧异度增减均与生物多样性呈正相关,生物扰动强度和深度明显增加,造迹生物的觅食策略和行为习性多样化明显增多。寒武纪生命大爆发时期,最有代表性的生物行为变化是出现了具有垂向分量的潜穴; 奥陶纪生物大辐射期间,海相遗迹化石的分布逐渐从滨、浅海扩展至半深海和深海,表现为造迹生物群落栖息地的扩张; 中生代海洋革命时期,海相和陆相遗迹化石同步增加,生物对生态空间利用的深度、广度和集约性同步增强,遗迹化石面貌表现为深海雕画迹的多样性和歧异度大幅增加、形态类型多样、多种觅食策略共存。地史时期的海相遗迹化石面貌受环境外因和生物内因控制,表现出形态由简到繁、分布范围由小到大的变化趋势,对生态空间的利用表现为由沉积物表层至浅层再到深层、由二维到三维、由局域(浅水)到广域(浅水和深水以及陆地)的发展,印证了生物获取生态机会的过程。     

Climate projections of spatial variations in coastal storm surges along the Gulf of Mexico and U.S. east coast

Using statistically downscaled atmospheric forcing, we performed a numerical investigation to evaluate future climate's impact on storm surges along the Gulf of Mexico and U.S. east coast. The focus is on the impact of climatic changes in wind pattern and surface pressure while neglecting sea level rise and other factors. We adapted the regional ocean model system(ROMS) to the study region with a mesh grid size of 7–10 km in horizontal and 18 vertical layers. The model was validated by a hindcast of the coastal sea levels in the winter of 2008. Model's robustness was confirmed by the good agreement between model-simulated and observed sea levels at 37 tidal gages. Two 10-year forecasts, one for the IPCC Pre-Industry(PI) and the other for the A1 FI scenario, were conducted. The differences in model-simulated surge heights under the two climate scenarios were analyzed. We identified three types of responses in extreme surge heights to future climate: a clear decrease in Middle Atlantic Bight, an increase in the western Gulf of Mexico, and non-significant response for the remaining area. Such spatial pattern is also consistent with previous projections of sea surface winds and ocean wave heights.     

东北太平洋一次强爆发性气旋发展的机制分析

使用FNL Analysis全球格点资料,对东北太平洋一次强爆发性气旋的特殊性进行了分析,发现气旋对其西北部低压系统的吸收合并是其爆发性发展过程中的典型特征,斜压强迫对其快速发展的作用较弱,与西北太平洋爆发性气旋的发展过程存在显著差异。同时,使用Zwack-Okossi诊断方程,从影响爆发性发展的动力和热力因子方面,对其发展机制作了深入的探讨。研究表明,正涡度平流、暖平流和非绝热加热的共同作用使气旋开始爆发性发展,由潜热释放导致的非绝热加热的贡献最大,非绝热加热是其快速发展的主导因子,其中正涡度平流贡献主要来自于中高层,暖平流的贡献主要来自于中低层和高层,而非绝热加热主要发生在中低层,这为东北太平洋爆发性气旋的发展机制提供了一个新的认识。     

Mesoscale and submesoscale mechanisms behind asymmetric cooling and phytoplankton blooms induced by hurricanes: a comparison between an open ocean case and a continental shelf sea case

Right-side bias in both sea surface cooling and phytoplankton blooms is often observed in the wake of hurricanes in the Northern Hemisphere. This idealized hurricane modeling study uses a coupled biological-physical model to understand the underlying mechanisms behind hurricane-induced cooling and phytoplankton bloom asymmetry. Both a deep ocean case and a continental shelf sea case are considered and contrasted. Model analyses show that while right-side asymmetric mixing due to inertial oscillations and restratification from strong right-side recirculation cells contributes to bloom asymmetry in the open ocean, the well-mixed condition in the continental shelf sea inhibits formation of recirculation cells, and the convergence of water onto the shelf is a more important process for bloom asymmetry.     

21世纪遗迹学热点与前沿:第14届国际遗迹组构专题研讨会综述*

第14届国际遗迹组构专题研讨会于2017年4月29日至5月2日在中国台北台湾大学顺利召开。从会议口头报告、展板、会间和会后野外地质考察以及交流讨论可以看出遗迹学热点与前沿: (1)遗迹化石的系统分类将一直是遗迹学家努力的方向,旨在为古生物学研究提供丰富的行为学资料,并为沉积学、古生态学等研究提供科学、客观和简便的遗迹分类学框架;(2)遗迹组构分析在沉积学中的深入应用,能提供大量传统沉积学、地球化学分析所无法揭示的生物学信息;(3)重大地质事件的遗迹学响应以及遗迹化石的演化古生态学为地质—生命突变期研究提供了独一无二的新素材;(4)地微生物学与遗迹学的结合进行了初步有益尝试;(5)特殊化石行为如求偶行为的报道扩大了深时行为类型;(6)定量形态表征和统计分析是遗迹学研究精细化和定量化的重要途径,通过遗迹组构分析来定量刻画沉积环境因子是遗迹组构研究的重要前景方向。     

遗迹学的可持续发展:第4届国际遗迹学大会综述*

第4届国际遗迹学大会于2016年5月6日—9日在葡萄牙新伊达尼亚世界地质公园召开。从会议报告、展板、论文摘要集和野外地质考察可以看出:遗迹化石与沉积环境分析及遗迹化石的系统古生物学是当前遗迹学研究的热门领域,新概念和跨学科的研究方法将是未来遗迹学发展的重要推动力。对比表明,中国学者在遗迹化石的系统分类学、陆相遗迹化石以及新遗迹学领域研究较为薄弱。笔者认为,注重遗迹化石在地质突变期中的分析、发展新遗迹学、加强四足动物及鸟类足迹的研究,将是近期国内遗迹学的主要研究方向。     

Ground–Space–Sky Observing System Experiment during Tropical Cyclone Mulan in August 2022

Forecasting tropical cyclone track and intensity is a great challenge for the meteorological community, and safeguarding the life and property of people living near the coast is an important issue. One major reason for challenging forecasts is the lack of observations over the vast oceans. During tropical cyclone Mulan between 8 and 10 August 2022over the northern part of the South China Sea, the meteorological authority and research institutes of Chinese mainland collaborated with the meteorolo...     

Statistical downscaling of IPCC sea surface wind and wind energy predictions for U.S. east coastal ocean,Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea

A multivariate statistical downscaling method is developed to produce regional, high-resolution, coastal surface wind fields based on the IPCC global model predictions for the U.S. east coastal ocean, the Gulf of Mexico(GOM), and the Caribbean Sea. The statistical relationship is built upon linear regressions between the empirical orthogonal function(EOF) spaces of a cross- calibrated, multi-platform, multi-instrument ocean surface wind velocity dataset(predictand) and the global NCEP wind reanalysis(predictor) over a 10 year period from 2000 to 2009. The statistical relationship is validated before applications and its effectiveness is confirmed by the good agreement between downscaled wind fields based on the NCEP reanalysis and in-situ surface wind measured at 16 National Data Buoy Center(NDBC) buoys in the U.S. east coastal ocean and the GOM during 1992–1999. The predictand-predictor relationship is applied to IPCC GFDL model output(2.0?×2.5?) of downscaled coastal wind at 0.25?×0.25? resolution. The temporal and spatial variability of future predicted wind speeds and wind energy potential over the study region are further quantified. It is shown that wind speed and power would significantly be reduced in the high CO_2 climate scenario offshore of the mid-Atlantic and northeast U.S., with the speed falling to one quarter of its original value.     

Temporal and spatial variability of Chl-a and SST on the South Atlantic Bight: Revisiting with cloud-free reconstructions of MODIS satellite imagery

Daily, cloud-free data interpolating empirical orthogonal function (DINEOF) reconstructions of sea-surface temperature (SST) and chlorophyll (Chl-a) satellite imagery are compiled into monthly mean images for a six-year period (2003–2008) and used to identify their spatial and temporal variability on the South Atlantic Bight. Monthly-mean SST has the highest variability on the inner-shelf, decreasing seaward approaching the more stable temperatures of the Gulf Stream (GS). Monthly-mean Chl-a concentrations are similarly highest on the inner shelf throughout the year and decrease cross-shelf toward the nutrient depleted open ocean. Empirical orthogonal function (EOF) analyses on SST and Chl-a show a clear seasonal cycle in their 1st mode of variability, with SST lagging behind Chl-a by approximately one month. The 1st EOF modes account for 95.8% and 46.4% variance of SST and Chl-a, respectively. Chl-a EOF mode 1 in particular shows a highly regionalized spatial pattern with values on the central SAB clearly out of phase with the southern and northern SAB. This regional difference is likely a result of shelf geometry and stratification, which modulate GS influence on the shelf. SST EOF mode 2 exhibits a seasonal cycle as well, which previous studies have shown to be a function of local wind. Chl-a EOF mode 2 is well correlated with the cumulative river transport onto the SAB, but accounts for a relatively small 10.8% of Chl-a variability.