Preliminary observations of oxygen and carbon dioxide of the wintertime Bering Sea marginal ice zone

Wintertime oxygen and pH profiles across the marginal ice zone of the central and southeastern Bering Sea shelf are analyzed and compared with summer data. During the winter, at water depths shallower than 75 m, the water column is homogeneous and near freezing. Between the 75- and 200-m isobaths the structure is essentially two-layered, a cool and fresh upper layer overlying a warmer, more saline bottom layer. The oxygen concentration in the surface mixed layer is higher than the summer values, but the degree of saturation is lower because of the lower temperature in winter. The oxygen degree of saturation in the bottom mixed layer on the shelf in winter are higher than in the surface water in winter and the bottom water in summer.In summer the oxygen and carbon dioxide data show extreme variability governed primarily by biological processes. Winter oxygen and pH data, however, do not scatter as much as the summer data and indicate conservative mixing of several sub-surface water masses. The surface water is undersaturated in both oxygen and carbon dioxide and seems to absorb oxygen, but little carbon dioxide, from the atmosphere.Two stations were occupied in the Aleutian Basin. The homogeneous surface layer has the same oxygen and pH values as in the minimum temperature layer observed in the summer by other investigators at the same location. The result substantiates the hypothesis of early investigators that the summer minimum temperature layer is the remnant local winter water. All winter surface waters sampled are undersaturated with respect to oxygen, suggesting that the input of oxygen through the air-sea exchange does not keep up with the rate of upwelling and cooling, which reduces the degree of oxygen saturation. Surface carbon dioxide is also undersaturated because of cooling. The maximum temperature layer at these two Aleutian Basin stations is warmer, fresher, and contains more oxygen, but less carbon dioxide, than in the summer, suggesting advective input of some nonlocal seawater.     

Upwelling and river runoff as sources of dissolved nitrous oxide to the Alsea estuary,Oregon

Surface waters of Alsea Bay, an unpolluted estuary on the Oregon coast, were analysed for nitrous oxide, nitrate and nitrite on a weekly or biweekly basis during the summer of 1979. The estuary was found to be a variable source of N₂O to the atmosphere. Large and rapid increases in the concentrations of N₂O, NO₃^?, and NO₂^? occurred at the beginning of the sampling period and are attributed to the influx of nutrient-rich upwelling water into the estuary with the tide. The subsequent decline in concentrations of nitrate, nitrite and nitrous oxide over the remainder of the summer is attributed to a decrease in upwelling intensity, a decline in nitrification rates and to assimilatory nitrate reduction. Measurements of nitrous oxide at six stations along the Alsea River were also made in September and October before and after the onset of the rainy season. Samples taken after flood conditions were established were systematically 50% higher than pre-flood samples. The data suggest that soil runoff results in elevated concentrations of N₂O in rivers.     

Kinetic studies of lead(II) uptake by the seagrass Zostera muelleri in water by radiotracing,atomic absorption spectrometry and electrochemical techniques

Evidence was found that uptake of lead from seawater in both model and natural systems by the leaves of the seagrass Zostera muelleri does occur for live, dead and scraped leaves at all the lead concentrations tested. Positive uptake of lead was measured using the three analytical techniques of radio-tracer, differential pulse anodic stripping voltammetry and atomic absorption spectrometry; similar uptake profiles were obtained for each technique. Profiles always showed an initial rapid uptake phase followed by a gradual transition to a plateau phase at which an approximate equilibrium between lead attached to seagrass and free ionic lead in seawater was reached. The presence of active lead uptake processes was indicated in experiments which attempted to remove lead from leaves by a chelating agent.     

A note on turbulent perturbations of salinity in a partially mixed estuary

Measurements of salinity perturbations in a partially mixed estuary have been used to evaluate the usefulness of an inductive salinometer and to determine some of the characteristics of the salinity perturbations. The salinometer performed satisfactorily under most conditions. Although internal wave like effects were present, the turbulence fluctuations were dominant. The salinity fluctuations and the turbulent fluxes $\text{sw}$ and $\text{su}$ were found to behave in a manner similar to the density fluctuations in a thermally stratified atmospheric boundary layer and a laboratory open channel flow. A quadrant analysis suggested that the contribution of each quadrant to the turbulent flux changed with Ri. The turbulence parameters ν and c_γ were found to decrease and increase respectively as Ri increases.     

Chronology and evolution of the northern Iceland Plateau

New aeromagnetic data, K-Ar age determinations of dredged marine igneous rocks, as well as other geophysical evidence have shed light on the chronology, nature and evolution of the northern Iceland Plateau. Correspondence between seismic refraction profiles taken on the Jan Mayen Ridge and westward through Jan Mayen Island, suppressed aeromagnetic anomalies, earthquake surface wave studies, and ages of dredged igneous rocks suggest these strata may form an extended region of thickened crust, possibly of Caledonian age, extending westward toward the Kolbeinsey Ridge and northwest to the south wall of the Jan Mayen Fracture Zone.