Possible Density Change of the Origin of North Pacific Intermediate Water Due to Double Diffusion in the Mixed Water Region

In this study we test Talley's hypothesis that Oyashio winter mixed-layer water (26.5–26.6σ _θ) increases its density to produce the North Pacific Intermediate Water (NPIW) salinity minimum (26.7– 26.8σ_θ) in the Mixed Water Region, assuming a combination of cabbeling and double diffusion. The possible density change of Oyashio winter mixed-layer water is discussed using an instantaneous ratio of the change of temperature and salinity along any particular intrusion (R _l ). We estimate the range of R _l ^DD required to convert Oyashio winter mixed-layer water to the NPIW salinity minimum due to double diffusion, and then assume double-diffusive intrusions as this conversion mechanism. A double-diffusive intrusion model is used to estimate R _l ^DD in a situation where salt fingering dominates vertical mixing, as well as to determine whether Oyashio winter mixed-layer water can become the NPIW salinity minimum. Possible density changes are estimated from the model R _l ^DD by assuming the amount of density change due to cabbeling. From these results, we conclude that Oyashio winter mixed-layer water contributes to a freshening of the lighter layer of the NPIW salinity minimum (around 26.70σ_θ) in the MWR.     

Paleoenvironment and sea-level change in the early Cretaceous Barents Sea—implications from near-shore marine sapropels

The late Volgian (early "Boreal" Berriasian) sapropels of the Hekkingen Formation of the central Barents Sea show total organic carbon (TOC) contents from 3 to 36 wt%. The relationship between TOC content and sedimentation rate (SR), and the high Mo/Al ratios indicate deposition under oxygen-free bottom-water conditions, and suggest that preservation under anoxic conditions has largely contributed to the high accumulation of organic carbon. Hydrogen index values obtained from Rock-Eval pyrolysis are exceptionally high, and the organic matter is characterized by well-preserved type II kerogen. However, the occurrence of spores, freshwater algae, coal fragments, and charred land-plant remains strongly suggests proximity to land. Short-term oscillations, probably reflecting Milankovitch-type cyclicity, are superimposed on the long-term trend of constantly changing depositional conditions during most of the late Volgian. Progressively smaller amounts of terrestrial organic matter and larger amounts of marine organic matter upwards in the core section may have been caused by a continuous sea-level rise.     

Evidence of NW extension of the North Anatolian Fault Zone in the Marmara Sea: a new interpretation of the Marmara Sea (Izmit) earthquake on 17 August 1999

Active faults aligning in NW–SE direction and forming flower structures of strike-slip faults were observed in shallow seismic data from the shelf offshore of Avcılar in the northern Marmara Sea. By following the parallel drainage pattern and scarps, these faults were traced as NW–SE-directed lineaments in the morphology of the northern onshore sector of the Marmara Sea (eastern Thrace Peninsula). Right-lateral displacements in two watersheds of drainage and on the coast of the Marmara Sea and Black Sea are associated with these lineaments. This right-lateral displacement along the course of these faults suggests a new, active strike-slip fault zone located at the NW extension of the northern boundary fault of the ?ınarcık Basin in the Marmara Sea. This new fault zone is interpreted as the NW extension of the northern branch of the North Anatolian Fault Zone (NAFZ), extending from the ?ınarcık Basin of the Marmara Sea to the Black Sea coast of the Thrace Peninsula, and passing through B üy ük ?ekmece and K ü ? ük ?ekmece lagoons. These data suggest that the rupture of the 17 August 1999 earthquake in the NAFZ may have extended through Avcılar. Indeed, Avcılar and İzmit, both located on the Marmara Sea coast along the rupture route, were strongly struck by the earthquake whereas the settlements between Avcılar and İzmit were much less affected. Therefore, this interpretation can explain the extraordinary damage in Avcılar, based on the newly discovered rupture of the NAFZ in the Marmara Sea. However, this suggestion needs to be confirmed by further seismological studies.     

对虾一种无包涵体杆状病毒病原的PCR检测

为建立对虾无包涵体杆状病毒的快速诊断技术,应用PCR技术分别对暴发性流行病发生前、流行中和发病后的对虾样品进行了检测.根据已克隆的对虾杆状病毒部分基因组序列而设计的引物能特异性地扩增出靶DNA片段,最低可以检测1pg的病素DNA.由典型发病症状对虾的胃、腮、肝胰腺、中肠、游泳足、肌内和心脏等器官和组织中成功地检测到病毒.不同组织和器官经扩增得到的信号强弱不同:病虾的胃扩增得到的信号最强,中肠、肌肉、心脏和游泳足次之,腮和肝胰腺信号最弱,说明病毒在不同组织和器官中数量及感染程度不同.在对虾发病前及发病后,用二次PCR还能检测表面不发病呈隐性感染状态的对虾携带的病毒;而对野生健康虾的检测结果为阴性.研究表明,PCR是检测对虾暴发性流行病快速、灵敏而准确的方法,对病毒病的早期诊断、防治和高健康对虾品种的选育具有指导意义.     

Scaling analysis of deposition from turbidity currents

Many oil-bearing sedimentary deposits are formed by the settling of particles from turbidity currents. Modeling sedimentary processes that form these turbidites enables the calculation of properties such as extent, depth, porosity and permeability of hydrocarbon-bearing reservoirs. This paper estimates the extent and thickness of turbidites from the initial conditions of the turbidity flow. This is achieved by the application of scaling analysis of the partial differential equations that govern the dynamics of and deposition from turbidity currents. We apply the results of scaling analysis to five modern submarine fans. The predicted and actual values of the dimensions of the fan deposits match well. We then compare the derived results against tabulated sizes of ancient turbidites. The comparisons are good as long as we correctly identify the flow regimes in which the deposition took place. The good agreements observed in the two cases show that the estimates obtained using scaling analysis can provide useful first-guess values for the dimensions of the deposits.     

杆状病毒感染越冬亲虾(Penaeus chenesis)的研究——越冬亲虾感染及其垂直传播的可能性

在中国对虾越冬亲虾中检出杆状病毒。经对病虾鳃、前中肠、卵巢组织进行电镜观察，在这些组织中发现大量有囊膜的杆状病毒。病毒粒子大小约为３６７ｎｍ×１２８ｎｍ，核衣壳为３２４ｎｍ×９２ｎｍ。病毒在细胞内不形成包涵体，在核内或在细胞质的发生基质中装配。从病毒的形态特征、感染组织以及典型的发病症状和病理变化，初步认为亲虾感染的病毒与近年广泛报道的造成养殖对虾大规模流行病的主要原因——中国对虾杆状病毒为同一种。卵巢组织也是病毒的主要靶器官之一，亲虾卵巢组织的被感染暗示着该病毒有可能通过生殖细胞而垂直传播     

Processes Causing the Temporal Changes in Si/N Ratios of Nutrient Consumptions and Export Flux during the Spring Diatom Bloom

Two processes are generally explained as causes of temporal changes in the stoichiometric silicon/nitrogen (Si/N) ratios of sinking particles and of nutrient consumption in the surface water during the spring diatom bloom: (1) physiological changes of diatom under the stress of photosynthesis of diatom and (2) differences of regeneration between silicon and nitrogen. We investigated which process plays an important role in these changes using a one-dimensional ecosystem model that explicitly represents diatom and the other non-silicious phytoplankton. The model was applied to station A7 (41°30′ N, 145°30′ E) in the western North Pacific, where diatom regularly blooms in spring. Model simulations show that the Si/N ratios of the flux exported by the sinking particles at 100 m depth and of nutrient consumptions in the upper 100 m surface water have their maxima at the end of the spring diatom bloom, the values and timings of which are significantly different from each other. Analyses of the model results show that the differences of regeneration between silicon and nitrogen mainly cause the temporal changes of the Si/N ratios. On the other hand, the physiological changes of diatoms under stress can hardly cause these temporal changes, because the effect of the change in the diatom's uptake ratio of silicon to nitrogen is cancelled by that in its sinking rate.     

A Zonal Pathway for NADW in the South Atlantic

Several large deployments of neutrally buoyant floats took place within the Antarctic Intermediate (AAIW), North Atlantic Deep Water (NADW), and the Antarctic Bottom Water (AABW) of the South Atlantic in the 1990s and a number of hydrographic sections were occupied as well. Here we use the spatially and temporally averaged velocities measured by these floats, combined with the hydrographic section data and various estimates of regional current transports from moored current meter arrays, to determine the circulation of the three major subthermocline water masses in a zonal strip across the South Atlantic between the latitudes of 19°S and 30°S. We concentrate on this region because the historical literature suggests that it is where the Deep Western Boundary Current containing NADW bifurcates. In support of this notion, we find that a net of about 5 Sv. of the 15–20 Sv that crosses 19°S does continue zonally eastward at least as far as the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Once across the ridge it takes a circuit to the north along the ridge flanks before returning to the south in the eastern half of the Angola Basin. The data suggest that the NADW then continues on into the Indian Ocean. This scheme is discussed in the context of distributions of dissolved oxygen, silicate and salinity. In spite of the many float-years of data that were collected in the region a surprising result is that their impact on the computed solutions is quite modest. Although the focus is on the NADW we also discuss the circulation for the AAIW and AABW layers.     

The fate of dumped sediments monitored by a high-resolution multibeam echosounder system,Weser Estuary,German Bight

With the development of high-resolution multibeam echosounder systems (MBES) for surveying shallow-water areas a new tool is available to monitor rapid changes in seabed morphology as, e.g., caused by the dumping of dredge spoil in coastal waters. In this study, four data sets of repeated bathymetric surveys with a MBES were processed and analyzed. The data were collected in a 1.94-km² dumping site in the outer Weser Estuary (German Bight). Between June and December 1998, 2.6 million m³ of dredged sediment were deposited there. The bathymetric maps generated in the course of this study reveal features such as subaqueous dunes, scour holes, and mounds of dumped dredge spoil. The mean water depth decreased by about 1 m during the dumping period. Furthermore, difference grids showing changes in sediment volume allowed a calculation of the sediment budget for the monitored area. After a time period of only 5 months, 0.5 million m³ of the originally dumped 2.6 million m³ of dredge spoil had already been removed from the dumping site.     

中国近海海水中几种微量金属离子的分布研究

中国近海海水中的锌等微量元素，尚未进行过较为广泛而可靠的分布研究。极为零星的资料，还是近几年来在沿岸进行污染调查时，用陈旧的方法测定的。 世界海洋海水中微量元素的含量，不同文献报道的数据，常有一定的差别。这是自然变化，抑方法误差(包括所测形态)，是值得研究的。 本文采用单池示差反向极谱法，比较广泛而可靠地研究了中国近海海水中,锌等微量，元素的离子(和不稳定络合物)的地球化学分布。测定锌、铅、铜、镉时，样品不加任何试剂，因而避免了元素存在形态的转移及被测离子的带入或损失。