Impact of cyclone Nilam on tropical lower atmospheric dynamics

A deep depression formed over the Bay of Bengal on 28 October 2012, and developed into a cyclonic storm. After landfall near the south coast of Chennai, cyclone Nilam moved north-northwestwards. Coordinated experiments were conducted from the Indian stations of Gadanki(13.5?N, 79.2?E) and Hyderabad(17.4?N, 78.5?E) to study the modification of gravity-wave activity and turbulence by cyclone Nilam, using GPS radiosonde and mesosphere–stratosphere–troposphere radar data. The horizontal velocities underwent large changes during the closest approach of the storm to the experimental sites. Hodograph analysis revealed that inertia gravity waves(IGWs) associated with the cyclone changed their directions from northeast(control time) to northwest following the path of the cyclone. The momentum flux of IGWs and short-period gravity waves(1–8 h) enhanced prior to, and during, the passage of the storm(±0.05 m2s-2and ±0.3 m2s-2, respectively), compared to the flux after its passage. The corresponding body forces underwent similar changes, with values ranging between ±2–4m s-1d-1and ±12–15 m s-1d-1. The turbulence refractivity structure constant(C2n) showed large values below 10 km before the passage of the cyclone when humidity in the region was very high. Turbulence and humidity reduced during the passage of the storm when a turbulent layer at ～17 km became more intense. Turbulence in the lower troposphere and near the tropopause became weak after the passage of the cyclone.     

Seminal role of stratiform clouds in large-scale aggregation of tropical rain in boreal summer monsoon intraseasonal oscillations

Climate Dynamics - Modification of the vertical structure of non-adiabatic heating by significant abundance of the stratiform rain in the tropics has been known to influence the large-scale...     

On experimental investigation of load-out,launching and upending of offshore steel jackets

Load-out, launching and upending are major sequential installation operations of the offshore steel jackets. Due to vital engineering importance of these high risk operations, a thorough scientific understanding of their mechanics is desirable and a physical simulation approach using scaled models is a powerful method to achieve this end. This paper presents such an approach in the context of a case study which is oriented towards gaining adequate understanding of the modelling principles, model design and simulation of operations. It also highlights the role of decisive parameters as they affect the operational performance. Some of the experimental techniques of interest are also presented.     

Ultimate Strength of Ship Plating under Axial Compression

The failure of a ship hull girder is governed by buckling and plastic collapse of the deck, bottom and side shell steel stiffened plates. The stiffened steel plating in ships is generally subjected to both in-plane and out-of-plane loading and is more important to understand the characteristics of these panels under buckling. Tests are reported on the collapse load of stiffened plates with and without cutout and with reinforced cutout under uniaxial compression. A generalized computer program for the semi-analytical solutions proposed by various investigators based on strut approach and orthotropic plate approach, and a finite element analysis program based on orthotropic plate approach are developed. The panels are also analysed using the finite element analysis software ANSYS. An approximate method based on strut approach is proposed to calculate the collapse load of stiffened plates with cutouts and initial imperfections. The reduction in strength of the panels due to the presence of square cutout, rectangular cutout and increase in strength due to reinforcement around rectangular cutout are calculated based on the test results. Comparisons are made between the test results and predictions based on semi-analytical solutions and finite element analyses, and the uncertainty parameters calculated are discussed. Based on this study it is concluded that the cutout can be reinforced with a maximum increase in strength up to 19% for plate initiated failures.     

Disposition and metabolism of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzofuran (TCDF) in rainbow trout

In order to elucidate the metabolic fate of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzofuran (TCDF) in fish and to thereby facilitate the assessment of the risks posed by this environmental toxin, we determined the whole body half-life, tissue distribution and metabolism of [³H TCDF in rainbow trout (Onchorynchus mykiss), treated orally. A whole body biphasic elimination pattern resulted in the excretion of 60% of the administered chemical during the first 3 days, after which a much slower elimination-rate (half-life = 14 days) was observed. Significant amounts of water-soluble metabolites were found in both bile and liver. Of the TCDF-derived radioactivity in bile, approximately 50% represented glucuronide conjugates, predominantly 4-hydroxy-2,3,7,8-TCDF: substantial amounts of the sulfate conjugate of this same metabolite were also present. Except at early time points, muscle contained the predominant fraction of TCDF-derived radioactivity, amounting to 25–65% of the total radioactivity present in the fish. More than 95% of the radioactivity present in muscle represented unmetabolized TCDF.     

Dynamics of dissolved organic carbon in the northwestern Indian Ocean

We report here the non-conservative behaviour of DOC in the northwestern Indian Ocean by studying this parameter together with other carbon and nitrogen components. This contrasts with earlier reports of conservative behaviour. Concentrations of DOC, 3–4 times higher than those reported earlier, were found to decrease northward from the equator. Total carbon dioxide (TCO₂) increases in proportion of the oxygen utilized, thus revealing the dominant biological role in the carbon turnover. The CO₂ added through dissolution of biogenic debris is found to decrease southward, in general. Decomposition of organic material contributes at least 64% to the CO₂ addition that increases southward, the rest being from dissolution of skeletal material. Evidence is provided for the utilization of oxygen and nitrate for DOC oxidative decomposition. Accumulation of DOC without its complete oxidation to CO₂ could be the main reason for the TCO₂ decrease in southern Arabian Sea. Relationships of DOC with nitrification and denitrification processes show that the microbial population plays a major role in regulating the DOC contents in the seawater of this region. Consumption/decomposition by denitrifying bacteria and other micro-organisms responsible for nitrogen cycling in the sea are found to be intimately related to the DOC dynamics and are responsible for decreased DOC concentrations in the north. DOC accumulation in the southern Arabian Sea seems to facilitate bacterio-particulate aggregate formation and consequent nitrification, which results in excess nitrate. Application of a one-dimensional advection-diffusion model to the present data set provides evidence for the non-conservative nature of DOC in the Arabian Sea.