Sur l'assimilation variationnelle de données par un modèle d'écosystème marin de type NPZ

A variational data assimilation method is applied to a simplified marine ecosystem model of NPZ (Nutrient Phytoplankton Zooplankton) type, which implies five parameters. The method allows us to optimise these parameters by an iterative process of minimisation of a cost function which quantifies the quadratic discrepancy between observations and simulation results. The first part of this note describes how to obtain the adjoint model of the NPZ model allowing us to compute the gradient of the cost function relative to the parameters. Two experiments of artificial data assimilation then show the efficiency of this method, but also its limitations because of non-linearities and sensitivity problems of the model relative to the parameters. To cite this article: Y. Leredde et al., C. R. Geoscience 337 (2005).     

Soil moisture retrievals from biangular L-band passive microwave observations

A simple approach for correcting the effect of vegetation in the estimation of soil moisture (w/sub S/) from L-band passive microwave observations is presented in this study. The approach is based on statistical relationships, calibrated from simulated datasets, which requires only two observations made at distinct incidence angles (/spl theta//sub 1/,/spl theta//sub 2/). A sensitivity study was carried out, and best retrieval remote sensing configurations, in terms of polarization and couple of incidence angles (/spl theta//sub 1/,/spl theta//sub 2/), were investigated. Best estimations of w/sub S/ could be made at H polarization, for /spl theta//sub 1/ varying between 15/spl deg/ and 30/spl deg/, and with a difference (/spl theta//sub 2/-/spl theta//sub 1/) larger than 30/spl deg/. The method was tested against two experimental datasets acquired over crop fields (soybean and wheat). The average accuracy in the soil moisture retrievals during the whole crop cycle was found to be about 0.05 m/sup 3//m/sup 3/ for both crops.     

Convective crystal dissolution

The effect of free and forced convection on crystal dissolution is examined both theoretically and experimentally. Well-established relationships for heat and mass transfer are applied to obtain approximate expressions for the dissolution velocity and the associated thickness of the compositional boundary layer. These expressions are found to be in good agreement with experimental observations of the dissolution of quartz crystals in basalt and NaCl crystal in water. When applied to light felsic crystals in basaltic magmas, the expressions predict that forced convection will produce a boundary layer thickness of about 100 μm and a dissolution velocity of order 10⁻⁶ cm s⁻¹. These velocities are too slow for xenocrysts to be dissolved significantly during magma ascent in dykes, but are sufficient for cm-size crystals to dissolve in the interior of a convecting magma chamber. Larger crystals are likely to accumulate at the chamber's roof, where free convection is predicted to dissolve them at velocities of order 10⁻⁷ cm s⁻¹. In an Appendix, the dissolution of the chamber's walls is also considered, and a velocity of order 10⁻⁸cm s⁻¹ is predicted. Editorial responsibility: T.L. Grove     

Ozone measurements from the Balloon Intercomparison Campaign

Measurements of the Balloon Intercomparison Campaign (BIC), conducted during fall, 1982 (BIC-1) and summer, 1983 (BIC-2), are reported. Results of five remote and two in situ techniques agree (with a few exceptions) within 95% confidence level uncertainties and generally within 15% above 20 km. Weighted mean profiles, which best represent conditions during the capaign, are used as a comparison standard. Accuracies of experiments indicated by BIC generally confirm estimated uncertainites for ECC sondes, UV photometry, and microwave emission experiments, are somewhat better for far IR emission and IR absorption experiments, and are somewhat worse for IR emission and solar UV absorption experiments. The large collection of BIC measurements confirms a problem reported earlier with current theoretical modeling of ozone near 40 km where transport is negligible and the chemistry is believed to be simpler.     

The sensitivity of the south chilean snowline to climatic change

Inferred climatic changes in southern Chile during the Last Glacial Maximum are modelled to investigate the role of the southern Westerlies on the region's glacial history. This is accomplished with a numerical model of the surface energy balance which derives glacial mass balance profiles from existing climatic stations. This provides an independent measure of the regional snowline which is compared with palaeoecological evidence of former snowlines.The modelled snowline mirrors the latitudinal trend of current glacier equilibrium line altitudes. It is most sensitive to temperature changes in regions with high precipitation (46°–50° S) and to precipitation changes in regions with lower precipitation totals (south of 50° and north of 40°). This differential sensitivity with latitude implies that glacial expansion in the region depends on a delicate interplay between cooling induced by the equatorward movement of the oceanic Antarctic Polar Front and access to precipitation comparable to or greater than that of today. The main conclusion is that glacial expansion in southern Chile is associated with the migration of the southern Westerlies towards the equator. The importance of migrating precipitation belts in permitting glacier growth carries the implication that maximum depression of the snowline is unlikely to have been contemporaneous from latitude to latitude.     

The spread of subducted lithospheric material along the mid-mantle boundary

Studies of phase transitions in silicate minerals at high temperatures and pressures suggest that the bulk density of subducted lithosphere at the mid-mantle boundary is intermediate between the densities of the upper and lower mantle. We argue that, if this is the case, then the lithospheric material will intrude along the mid-mantle boundary driven by buoyancy forces resulting from the compositional density differences between the intrusion and its surroundings. The rate of spread of the intrusion is given by a balance between these buoyancy forces and the viscous resistance of the mantle to motion. Using results from our recent studies of the fluid mechanics of such viscous gravity currents, we find that lithospheric material can propagate between one thousand and two thoudand kilometres in a hundred million years and can cover the entire boundary in one to six billion years. This spreading may be reflected in the global distribution of the isotopic characteristics of oceanic basalts.     

On the buckling analyses of embedded layers

The published buckling analyses of axially compressed layers embedded in a softer medium, or of multilayers, are based on the notion that the buckling load is P_cr; the so-called critical load which is obtained from a linear eigenvalue problem. The purpose of the present paper is to show that this assumption is generally not justified. For these cases a linearized buckling analysis is not sufficient and buckling of a layer, or of multilayers, has to be determined from a non-linear formulation.     

Satellite thermal infrared observations of Mt. Etna after the 17th March 1981 eruption

The aim of this study is to estimate the feasibility of monitoring the surface temperature of an active volcano, using satellite thermal infrared data.For this, the data collected by a radiometer on board the NOAA polar-orbiting satellites over Mt. Etna were processed (geometrical and radiometric corrections) and merged with a Digital Terrain Model in order to correct for the variations of mean ground temperature and atmospheric absorption with altitude.Four pictures, or scenes, subsequent to the eruption of 17th March 1981, have been interpreted; and they display two thermal anomalies: one, near the summit zone; and the other, on the NNW slope where lava flows took place.Some elementary models of thermal evolution are proposed.     

Hydrodynamics in the Gulf of Aigues-Mortes,NW Mediterranean Sea: In situ and modelling data

The Gulf of Aigues-Mortes (NW Mediterranean Sea) is a midshelf zone whose scale is an intermediate between the nearshore scale (0–10 m depth) and the coastal scale (including the whole continental shelf). Its hydrodynamics is investigated for the first time. ADCP, CTD and thermosalinograph data were collected during three short cruises (HYGAM; March 6–7, 20–21, April 5–6, 2005). They were scheduled approximately every 15 days to sample the gulf circulation under different weather conditions. Moreover, the cruise data were used to validate the Symphonie model, a 3D primitive equations circulation model. The circulation features displayed by in situ data were well reproduced by Symphonie. A downscaling modelling approach was implemented, the largest scale being obtained by the replay of the MFSTEP regional model of the North-Western Mediterranean Sea.     

Multibody approach for reactive transport modeling in discontinuous-heterogeneous porous media

Computational Geosciences - In the context of long-term degradation of porous media, the coupling between fracture mechanics and reactive transport is investigated. A reactive transport model in a...