Environmental change and oyster colonization within the Hudson River estuary linked to Holocene climate

Geophysical mapping and sampling data provide a record of changing environmental and faunal conditions within the Hudson River estuary during the mid- to late Holocene. On the shallow, broad marginal flats of the mesohaline Hudson, fossil oyster beds (Crassostrea virginica) are found exposed on the river bottom and buried by sediment. The shallowest beds are well imaged in chirp sub-bottom and side-scan sonar data and form discrete flow-perpendicular bands, 0.6–1.0 km wide and up to 3 km long, which cover 30% of the river bottom. Radiocarbon-dated sediment cores indicate oysters thrived within two time periods from ~500–2,400 and ~5,600–6,100 cal. years b.p. Sediment and physical property data indicate a changing depositional regime consistent with the oyster chronology. Similar changes in oyster presence are found in local shell midden sites of the Lower Hudson Valley as well as elsewhere along the Atlantic coast, and may reflect climatic controls associated with warm–cool cycles during the Holocene. Oysters flourished during the mid-Holocene warm period, disappeared with the onset of cooler climate at 4,000–5,000 cal. years b.p., and returned during warmer conditions of the late Holocene. The most recent demise of oysters within the Hudson at 500–900 cal. years b.p. may have accompanied the Little Ice Age.     

Changing anthropogenic influence on the Santa Monica Bay watershed

Santa Monica Bay is an open coastal embayment located directly seaward of Los Angeles, California. The Bay provides vital economic value through its water-dependent activities, such as swimming, diving, boating, and fishing. An increase from 100,000 residents in 1900 to 10 million in 2000 has imposed numerous environmental stressors on the Bay, including urbanization of the watershed. Pollutant discharges into the Bay increased throughout the early part of the century, but declined following passage of the Clean Water Act in 1972. Since that time, the predominant source of pollutant inputs has changed from point sources to non-point urban runoff. To assess how present-day and historical pollution interact to affect the environmental quality of Santa Monica Bay, three organizations collaborated on a multi-disciplinary study in 1997, towards which this volume is focused. This paper details the temporal patterns of anthropogenic influence on Santa Monica Bay to provide context for the papers that follow.     

Casualties in dry bulk shipping (1963–1996)

In recent years, bulk carriers have been identified with high risks of catastrophic structural failure and foundering, and with heavy loss of human life. This study, based upon Lloyd's of London casualty records, identified four risk factors that had significant, independent effect upon the likelihood of a bulk carrier foundering. The risk of foundering increased with the age of the ship, and was related to the ship's flag of registration. Most importantly, however, increased risks were found for heavy cargoes of iron ore and scrap steel or iron, and for trading routes to the Far East and from Europe to North America. Additional safety measures, in particular regarding ship design and high-risk trades, may well be necessary to reduce the high casualty rates.     

羊栖菜茎部愈伤组织再生苗的解剖学研究

利用石蜡切片法对羊栖菜纵裂主枝上愈伤组织再生苗的发生过程进行了形态解剖学观察。发现此种成苗方式是在主枝 (茎 )或假根处由外皮层分裂形成愈伤组织 ,再由愈伤组织分化成苗的一种无性繁殖方式。愈伤组织形成再生苗有望成为羊栖菜人工养殖种苗的来源之一。     

Geochemical variation in ferromanganese nodules and associated sediments from the Pacific Ocean

The major and minor element compositions of a suite of abyssal sea-floor ferromanganese nodules and associated sediments from the eastern central Pacific have been used to examine inter-element relationships and the mineralogy of the nodules, the relationship between the composition of nodules and their associated sediments and regional variations in composition with respect to likely modes of formation of such deposits. Apart from Mn and Fe, significant proportions of the total Ti, Ca, Mg, K, Ba, Sr, Th and Y and almost all the P, As, Ce, Co, Cu, Mo, Ni, Pb, Zn and Zr are present in the oxide fractions of the nodules. The Mg, Ba, Cu, Mo, Ni and Zn contents are significantly correlated with the Mn content, while Ti, P, As, Pb, Sr, Y and Zr are similarly correlated with the total Fe content.Nodules from the northeastern tropical Pacific have Mn/Fe ratios higher than those in the oxide fractions of their associated sediments, todorokite as the principal Mn phase and relatively high concentrations of minor elements associated with Mn. Nodules from the south central Pacific have Mn/Fe ratios similar to those in the oxide fractions of the associated sediments, δ-MnO₂ as the only Mn-phase, and relatively high concentrations of minor elements associated with Fe. There appears to be a smooth gradation in composition in the tropical Pacific between these two end members.The regional compositional variation is interpreted as a reflection of different sources of metals for, and different growth mechanisms of, sea-floor nodules. The oxide precipitate from sea water consists of δ-MnO₂, has a relatively low Mn/Fe ratio and minor element contents related to the total Fe and Mn(δ-MnO₂) content. The oxide precipitate forming in areas of very low sedimentation as a result of diagenetic remobilisation in the surface sediment consists of todorokite, and has a high Mn/Fe ratio and enhanced metal content in the Mn-(todorokite)phase. Available information on the morphology and compositional variation of individual nodules from the tropical Pacific corroborates these contrasting metal sources and suggests that they can be resolved on the scale of an individual oxide concretion.     

近1300年来古胶州港位置的变迁

本文主要依据有关方志、文史资料，着重考证了近１３００年来古胶州港位置的变迁，研究发现，古胶州港的位置自唐代至清末近１３００年间，沿胶州湾西、北岸大致经历了７次变更，特别自明代开始，港口位置变迁尤为频繁，作者初步分析认为这与历史时期胶州湾内西、北岸的不断淤涨和胶莱南河、大沽河口的冲淤作用有关。     

2021年10月山西一次罕见持续性强降水过程物理机制分析

利用气象观测资料、NCEP/NCAR 1°×1°再分析资料以及GDAS资料,对2021年10月2-7日山西持续性强降水天气过程进行分析。结果表明：稳定的乌拉尔山低槽后部冷空气扩散,中纬度短波槽东移,与副热带高压外围西南暖湿气流持续交汇,同时高低空急流耦合形成强烈上升运动,低层切变线和地面辐合线稳定维持,及低层水汽不断输送并形成辐合,为持续性强降水的发生发展提供有利动力和水汽条件。此次强降水过程分为对流性降水和稳定性降水2个阶段,2阶段水汽输送通道的源地、路径、高度均有明显差异,但水汽输送贡献率均以对流层中低层山西南侧的水汽输送占主导地位。降水开始前,对流层中上层存在对称不稳定,大气可降水量明显跃增;对流性降水阶段,干空气不断入侵,对流不稳定快速建立与释放,对流层中低层水汽辐合区与强上升气流配合,导致山西出现强对流天气。地形的阻挡、抬升及地形收缩作用,对局地极端强降水具有增幅作用。     

A comparison of Hα and soft X-ray characteristics of spotless and spot group flares

A comparative analysis of spotless and spot group flares recorded at Hvar and Kanzelhöhe Observatories during the 21st cycle of solar activity is presented. The rate of occurrence of two-ribbon flares was found to be significantly higher for the spotless flares. In comparison with spot group flares of corresponding H importance, the soft X-ray peak values have been systematically lower for the spotless flares. The highest peak values and the energy released in soft X-rays was found for flares with a H ribbon protruding over a major spot umbra. It was found that the effective plasma temperatures in spotless flares have been considerably lower than the temperatures in spot group flares.     

Helium resonance lines in the flare of 15 June, 1973

Time sequences of He i and He ii resonance line intensities at several sites within the flare of 15 June, 1973 are derived from observations obtained with the Naval Research Laboratory's Slitless Spectroheliograph on Skylab. The data are compared with predictions in six model flare atmospheres based on two values for the heating rate and three for the flux of photoionizing coronal X-rays and EUV. A peak ionizing flux more than 10³ times that in the quiet Sun is indicated. For most conditions in flare kernels the He ii L and L lines are found to be formed by collisional excitation, thereby contributing to the local cooling of the plasma at temperatures above 6 × 10⁴ K. Emission in the higher Lyman lines is generally the result of a mixture of collisional excitation at these temperatures and photoionization and recombination at temperatures near 2.5 × 10⁴ K. We discuss implications for the common practice of deriving stellar coronal fluxes from He ii 1640 Å fluxes assuming dominance of the recombination mechanism.Chief, Quantum Physics Division, National Institute of Standards and Technology.Operated jointly by the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the University of Colorado.Operated by the National Optical Astronomy Observatories of the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc. under contract with the National Science Foundation.