Concentration du chrome dans deux profils de l'ocean pacifique

Determination of total chromium on two profiles and chromium III on four samples of equatorial Pacific Ocean water have been carried out using coprecipitation of chromium from sea water with hydrous iron oxides, followed by ion-exchange separation and isotope dilution mass spectrometry. Results for two Pacific profiles show increasing total chromium concentration from surface to 250 m. The Cr concentration appears to be different below 1,000 m, with nearly homogeneous concentrations for the first profile and regularly increasing Cr concentrations from 0.330 to 0.550 μg/l at 3,900 m for the second one. Results for Cr(III) show that trivalent species are dominant in these samples.     

Adaptive balance of global development processes

We study the processes of global self-regulation of Earth’s biota (GAIA-theory) by applying the method of adaptive balance of causes proposed by the authors. By using, as an example, the Daisy World model constructed by this method, we reveal the phenomenon of preservation of the mean temperature of Earth’s surface due to the presence of the vegetation cover. We develop an integral model of global natural, social, and economic processes in which the World Ocean is one of the factors regulating the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. The decrease in the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere caused by the GAIA-effects increases the number of hurricanes and floods on the Earth. As a result, the levels of ecological and social hazards for the mankind become much higher. To eliminate these threats, it is necessary to intensify the processes of self-organization of the society realized via the improvement of education, development of science, and global regulation of the competition for natural resources. We present the results of numerical experiments performed by using the model demonstrating possible scenarios of global development with regard for the processes of self-organization of the society. __________ Translated From Morskoi Gidrofizicheskii Zhurnal, No. 3, Pp. 62–80, May–June, 2007.     

Comparison between zooplankton data collected by the Continuous Plankton Recorder survey in the English Channel and by WP-2 nets at station L4, Plymouth (UK)

Zooplankton sampling has been carried out by the Continuous Plankton Recorder (CPR) survey since the 1930s enabling the study of long-term changes in plankton populations, the elucidation of seasonal patterns of abundance, and more recently providing zooplankton biomass estimates for ecosystem models. Data for zooplankton abundance collected by CPR tows in the Western English Channel (between 1988 and 1998) were compared to vertically integrated samples collected from station L4 off Plymouth, UK. Comparisons were made for locally abundant copepods (including Acartia, Calanus, Para/Pseudocalanus, Centropages, Oithona and Temora) collected by CPR and WP-2 nets. All dominant species recorded at L4 were also common to the CPR data. However, the position of the taxa in the two datasets was not equivalent. Seasonal cycles revealed by CPR data were significantly similar to those recorded throughout the water column at L4 for most taxa. However, absolute levels of abundance differed for the two datasets: abundances were underestimated by CPR samples when compared to those of vertically integrated samples by a factor of between 2 and 35, with the exception of Centropages. The differing mesh sizes (200 and 270 μm) of the WP-2 net and CPR mesh could only partially explain these differences in abundance, implying that the behaviour of individual taxa and their depth in the water column also influenced the abundance recorded.     

Measurement of DNA single-strand breaks in gill and hemolymph cells of mussels, Mytilus sp., collected on the French Atlantic Coast

DNA single-strand breaks were measured by the comet assay in both gill and hemolymph cells of mussels collected in 3 sampling areas of the French coast (Pointe du Castelli, Pen Bron and Saint-Nazaire Harbour). Whole mussel tissue samples were also collected for the chemical determination of PAH, PCB and heavy metal concentrations. In mussel, a higher level of DNA strand breaks was measured in gill than in hemolymph cells (p < 0.01). Despite a factor of contamination from 2 to 3 between sites, no difference in the extent of mussel DNA strand breaks was shown between sampling locations (p > 0.05), questioning the sensitivity of the assays used in biomonitoring studies.     

The wadic project: A comprehensive field evaluation of directional wave instrumentation

The results of a comprehensive field trial of nearly all commercially available directional wave measurement systems at the Edda field in the North Sea during winter 1985-86 are presented. The results summarize the accuracy of the principal engineering wave parameters from each system and the dependence on sea state. Limiting factors on system performance and operational problems are also included in the assessment. Overall experience has been good with systems utilizing widely different measurement principles returning consistent results.     

On the possibility of forecasting the long-term air temperature variability that determines the hydrophysical structure and ecology of the Black Sea waters

Periods and amplitudes of long-term temperature fluctuations were obtained using the methods of spectral analysis and filtration of secular time series of the air temperature at 13 hydrometeorological stations in the Black Sea region. The prognostic calculations of the long-term air temperature variability are based on the results of processing of time series. The calculations of the air temperature agree with the data of observations. The possibility of the long-term air temperature variability prediction is shown.     

A Linear Programming Model for Seabed Oil-Gas Pipe Network

This paper analyzes the pipe network system of oil-gas collection and transportation foroffshore oilfield development.A"0-1"integer linear programming model is constructed to optimize theinvestment of seabed pipe network.The mathematical model is solved by the spanning tree method ofgraph theory and network analysis.All spanning trees of a network graph compose all the feasible solu-tions of the mathematical model.The optimal solution of the model is the spanning tree with the minimumcost among all spanning trees.This method can be used to optimize the seabed pipe network system andgive a minimum cost plan for the development of offshore marginal oilfield groups.     

Analysis of solutions to the inverse problem on the retrieval of the microstructure of stratospheric aerosol from satellite measurements

A statistical ensemble of microphysical parameters of the background stratospheric aerosol at altitudes of 15 to 30 km is modeled on the basis of experimental data. The aerosol attenuation coefficients (AACs) in the wavelength range 0.38–16.3 μm are calculated for all realizations of the ensemble by algorithms of the Mie theory. Analysis of correlations between the AACs and the microphysical parameters indicate that the AAC correlates most strongly with the total volume V and area S of all particles. The errors of determining the microphysical parameters from AAC measurements are analyzed via the method of linear regression. It is shown that, if the AAC is measured with an error of 5%, the errors of determining both the particle size distribution (PSD) for particles with sizes of 0.4 to 4 μm and the parameter S are an order of magnitude smaller than the prior uncertainty, whereas the error of determining V is two orders of magnitude smaller than the prior uncertainty. Schemes of AAC measurements with the SAGE III, ISAMS, CLAES, HALOE instruments and an IR interferometer in the visible and IR regions are discussed. It is shown that combining the schemes makes it possible to extend the range of particle sizes for which the PSD is retrieved with a satisfactory accuracy and to increase the accuracy of determining S and V substantially and the accuracy of determining the total number of particles N _opt to a lesser extent. Examples of interpreting AAC measurements carried out simultaneously with the SAGE III and HALOE instruments within the same spatial region are presented. A systematic discrepancy between vertical profiles of S and V obtained from SAGE III and HALOE measurements is revealed.