Correction of atmospheric effect on ADEOS/OCTS ocean color data: Algorithm description and evaluation of its performance

This paper first describes the atmospheric correction algorithm for OCTS visible band data used at NASDA/EOC. Sharing a basic structure with Gordon and Wang’s Sea WiFS algorithm, it uses 10 candidate aerosol models including the “Asian dust model” introduced in consideration of the unique feature of aerosols over the east Asian waters. Based on the observations at 670 and 865 nm bands, the algorithm selects a pair of aerosol models that account best for the observed spectral reflectances, and synthesizes the aerosol reflectance used for the atmospheric correction. Two different schemes for determining the value of the parameter for the aerosol model selection are presented and their anticipated estimation error is analyzed in terms of retrieved water reflectance at 443 nm. The results of our numerical simulation show that the standard deviation of the estimation error of the “weighted average” scheme is mostly within the permissible level of ±0.002, reducing the error by 18% on average compared to the “simple average” scheme. The paper further discusses the expected error under the old CZCS-type atmospheric correction, which assumes constant aerosol optical properties throughout the given image. Although our algorithm has a better performance than the CZCS algorithm, further analysis shows that the error induced by the assumption taken in the algorithm that the water-leaving radiance at 670 nm band is negligibly small may be large in high pigment concentration waters, indicating the necessity for future improvements.     

Decadal seesaw of the Central and Subtropical Mode Water formation associated with the Kuroshio Extension variability

Available Argo profiling float data from 2002 to 2011 were analyzed to examine the effect of the Kuroshio Extension (KE) current system variability on the formation of the Central Mode Water. Just north of the upstream portion of the KE at 140–152°E, formation of a lighter variety of the Central Mode Water in winter was active during the unstable period of the upstream KE in 2006–2009 and was reduced when the upstream KE was in the stable period of 2002–2005 and 2010–2011. This decadal formation variability is out of phase with that of the Subtropical Mode Water just south of the KE.     

Upwelling plumes in sagami bay and adjacent water around the Izu Islands,Japan

Water plumes, 20 km long or less, identified by low temperature, high salinity and high nutrient concentrations, were observed on the eastern side of Izu Islands where the Kuroshio Current or its branch flowed eastward. The T-S diagrams and the vertical profiles of oceanographic variables indicated that the water plumes resulted from the upwelling of subsurface water. A newly formed plume, characterized by a sharp temperature front and high nutrient concentrations, contained less chlorophyll than did old plumes. It is suggested that the upwelling plumes are maintained for a period long enough to allow luxuriant growth of phytoplankton.     

Chaotic Itinerancy and Thermalization in a One-Dimensional Self-Gravitating System

Long time behavior of one-dimensional self-gravitating system is numerically investigated. Itinerant behavior among quasiequilibria is discovered, and its origin is clarified. The macroscopic distributions of the quasiquilibria are different from the isothermal distribution, but the transient states, which appears between two successive quasiequilibria, resemble the isothermal distribution. Averaging over the is itinerancy gives approximately the thermal equilibrium. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Geology, Mineralogy, and Formation Environment of the Disseminated Gold-Silver Telluride Bulawan Deposit, Negros Occidental, Philippines

Abstract: The Bulawan deposit is located in the porphyry copper belt of southwest Negros island, Philippines. Propylitic, K–feldspar, sericitic, and carbonate alteration types can be distinguished in the deposit. Propylite alteration occurs mainly in Cretaceous-Eocene andesitic lavas and agglomerates while K–feldspar, sericite and carbonate alteration types occur mostly in the Middle Miocene dacite porphyry breccia pipes and stocks which were intruded into the andesites. K-feldspar zones occur in the inner parts of the sericitized zone. Sericite alteration overprinted the propylitized and K-feldspar alteration zones, at lower temperature than epidote and chlorite in the propylitized zone. Carbonate alteration is associated with the mineralization in the center of the breccia pipes and along faults. Mineralization consists of gold-silver telluride ores that are hosted by the carbonate– and sericite-altered dacite porphyry breccia pipes. The Bulawan ores occur mainly as disseminations, but unlike many epithermal gold deposits, lack classical epithermal colloform and crustiform quartz veins. The ore minerals are sphalerite, galena, chalcopyrite, pyrite and tetrahedite-tennantite with minor amounts of electrum, calaverite, petzite, sylvanite, hessite, tellurobismuthite, coloradoite, altaite, and rucklidgeite. Electrum and telluride minerals are associated mostly with calcite and dolomite-ankerite minerals. Fluid inclusions in quartz and calcite in clasts of propylitized andesite in the breccia pipes homogenize from about 300° to 400°C while fluid inclusions in quartz, calcite and sphalerite within the dacite porphyry breccia pipes homogenize between 300° to 310°C. The ores were formed around 300°C from hydrothermal solutions with salinity of about 6. 6 wt % NaCl equivalent. The presence of sylvanite and calaverite as intergrowths with each other, and the Ag content of calaverite are consistent with the above temperature estimate. Based on paragenesis, the Bulawan deposit formed in a pyrite-stable environment, with pH between 3. 4 and 5. 5, f_O2 between 10^-32 to 10^-30 atm, f_S2 between 10^-9.8 to 10^-7.8 atm, f_Te2 between 10^-8.9 to 10^-6.5 atm, and total sulfur content about 10^-2.8 molal. The dominant reduced sulfur species in the ore solutions may have been H₂S_(aq), and the likely aqueous tellurium species were H₂Te_(aq) and H₂TeO_3(aq). The ore minerals in the Bulawan deposit were probably formed by mixing of slightly saline and low salinity fluids.     

Characteristics of Triassic epithermal Au mineralization at the Q prospect,Chatree mining area,Central Thailand

The Chatree deposit is located in the Loei‐Phetchabun‐Nakhon Nayok volcanic belt that extends from Laos in the north through central and eastern Thailand into Cambodia. Gold‐bearing quartz veins at the Q prospect of the Chatree deposit are hosted within polymictic andesitic breccia and volcanic sedimentary breccia. The orebodies of the Chatree deposit consist of veins, veinlets and stockwork. Gold‐bearing quartz veins are composed mainly of quartz, calcite and illite with small amounts of adularia, chlorite and sulfide minerals. The gold‐bearing quartz veins were divided into five stages based on the cross‐cutting relationship and mineral assemblage. Intense gold mineralization occurred in Stages I and IV. The mineral assemblage of Stages I and IV is characterized by quartz–calcite–illite–laumontite–adularia–chlorite–sulfide minerals and electrum. Quartz textures of Stages I and IV are also characterized by microcrystalline and flamboyant textures, respectively. Coexistence of laumontite, illite and chlorite in the gold‐bearing quartz vein of Stage IV suggests that the gold‐bearing quartz veins were formed at approximately 200°C. The flamboyant and brecciated textures of the gold‐bearing quartz vein of Stage IV suggest that gold precipitated with silica minerals from a hydrothermal solution that was supersaturated by boiling. The δ¹⁸O values of quartz in Stages I to V range from +10.4 to +11.6‰ except for the δ¹⁸O value of quartz in Stage IV (+15.0‰). The increase in δ¹⁸O values of quartz at Stage IV is explained by boiling. P_H2O is estimated to be 16 bars at 200°C. The f_CO2 value is estimated to be 1 bar based on the presence of calcite in the mineral assemblage of Stage IV. The total pressure of the hydrothermal solution is approximately 20 bars at 200°C, suggesting that the gold‐bearing quartz veins of the Q prospect formed about 200 m below the paleosurface.     

The role of the intra-daily SST variability in the Indian monsoon variability and monsoon-ENSO–IOD relationships in a global coupled model

The impact of diurnal SST coupling and vertical oceanic resolution on the simulation of the Indian Summer Monsoon (ISM) and its relationships with El Ni?o-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) events are studied through the analysis of four integrations of a high resolution Coupled General Circulation Model (CGCM), but with different configurations. The only differences between the four integrations are the frequency of coupling between the ocean and atmosphere for the Sea Surface Temperature (SST) parameter (2 vs. 24?h coupling) and/or the vertical oceanic resolution (31 vs. 301 levels) in the CGCM. Although the summer mean tropical climate is reasonably well captured with all the configurations of the CGCM and is not significantly modified by changing the frequency of SST coupling from once to twelve per day, the ISM–ENSO teleconnections are rather poorly simulated in the two simulations in which SST is exchanged only once per day, independently of the vertical oceanic resolution used in the CGCM. Surprisingly, when 2?h SST coupling is implemented in the CGCM, the ISM–ENSO teleconnection is better simulated, particularly, the complex lead-lag relationships between the two phenomena, in which a weak ISM occurs during the developing phase of an El Ni?o event in the Pacific, are closely resembling the observed ones. Evidence is presented to show that these improvements are related to changes in the characteristics of the model’s El Ni?o which has a more realistic evolution in its developing and decaying phases, a stronger amplitude and a shift to lower frequencies when a 2-hourly SST coupling strategy is implemented without any significant changes in the basic state of the CGCM. As a consequence of these improvements in ENSO variability, the lead relationships between Indo-Pacific SSTs and ISM rainfall resemble the observed patterns more closely, the ISM–ENSO teleconnection is strengthened during boreal summer and ISM rainfall power spectrum is in better agreement with observations. On the other hand, the ISM–IOD teleconnection is sensitive to both SST coupling frequency and the vertical oceanic resolution, but increasing the vertical oceanic resolution is degrading the ISM–IOD teleconnection in the CGCM. These results highlight the need of a proper assessment of both temporal scale interactions and coupling strategies in order to improve current CGCMs. These results, which must be confirmed with other CGCMs, have also important implications for dynamical seasonal prediction systems or climate change projections of the monsoon.     

Impact of intra-daily SST variability on ENSO characteristics in a coupled model

This paper explores the impact of intra-daily Sea Surface Temperature (SST) variability on the tropical large-scale climate variability and differentiates it from the response of the system to the forcing of the solar diurnal cycle. Our methodology is based on a set of numerical experiments based on a fully global coupled ocean–atmosphere general circulation in which we alter (1) the frequency at which the atmosphere sees the SST variations and (2) the amplitude of the SST diurnal cycle. Our results highlight the complexity of the scale interactions existing between the intra-daily and inter-annual variability of the tropical climate system. Neglecting the SST intra-daily variability results, in our CGCM, to a systematic decrease of 15% of El Ni?o—Southern Oscillation (ENSO) amplitude. Furthermore, ENSO frequency and skewness are also significantly modified and are in better agreement with observations when SST intra-daily variability is directly taken into account in the coupling interface of our CGCM. These significant modifications of the SST interannual variability are not associated with any remarkable changes in the mean state or the seasonal variability. They can therefore not be explained by a rectification of the mean state as usually advocated in recent studies focusing on the diurnal cycle and its impact. Furthermore, we demonstrate that SST high frequency coupling is systematically associated with a strengthening of the air-sea feedbacks involved in ENSO physics: SST/sea level pressure (or Bjerknes) feedback, zonal wind/heat content (or Wyrtki) feedback, but also negative surface heat flux feedbacks. In our model, nearly all these results (excepted for SST skewness) are independent of the amplitude of the SST diurnal cycle suggesting that the systematic deterioration of the air-sea coupling by a daily exchange of SST information is cascading toward the major mode of tropical variability, i.e. ENSO.