A field study of the development of wind-waves

This paper presents the results of observation on the development of wind-waves which were generated in a lake water about 420 cm deep with a fetch 12 km long. Measurements of surface elevation were carried out at the end of an observational pier where the water depth was 80 cm. The wave momentum flux, i.e., the growth rate of the wave momentum, was estimated from both significant waves and power spectral densities for the wave records. The values obtained by the two ways accorded fairly well and they were 57 % as large as the wind stress measured simultaneously. The exponential growth rate of spectral densities for a frequency component was in good accord with that observed bySnyder andCox (1966) and by others. If these growth rates are applied to all the components of the spectrum, the wave momentum flux must exceed the wind stress. This cannot explain the experimental results nor can be physically accepted. The difference of spectral densities between the two successive runs showed that the increase of spectral densities was. limited in several bands of frequency. The phenomena are discussed in relation with the overshoot-undershoot effects studied byBarnett andSutherland (1968).Observational results suggest that the spectral growth of a certain component is closely related to the spectral densities of other components. Energy exchange among componented waves has not been considered in the theories for generation and development of wind-waves established by Phillips, Miles and others.New generation mechanism suggested byLonguet-Higgins (1969) was found to be able to describe the observed growth rates of the form(f)={(1/2)(t–t_1/2)}²: the spectral density(f) was proportional to the square of durationt. However, the mechanism can not explain the overshoot-undershoot effects peculiar to the equilibrium spectrum of windwaves.Three frequencies characterizing the discrete distributions of frequency bands where spectral densities increased were examined and three waves corresponding to these frequencies were found to be satisfying the resonance conditions for the wave-wave interactions among three sinusoidal wave trains as studied byPhillips (1960),Longuet-Higgins (1962) andBenny (1962). The interactions are suggested to predict well both the spectral growth proportional to squares of duration and the ceaseless oscillations of spectral densities in an equilibrium spectrum.     

Variations in sediment thickness and type along the northern Philippine Sea Plate at the Nankai Trough

Abstract   We documented regional and local variations in basement relief, sediment thickness, and sediment type in the Shikoku Basin, northern Philippine Sea Plate, which is subducting at the Nankai Trough. Seismic reflection data, tied with ocean drilling program drill cores, reveal that variations in the incoming sediment sequences are correlated with basement topography. We mapped the three-dimensional seismic facies distribution and measured representative seismic sequences and units. Trench-parallel seismic profiles show three regional provinces in the Shikoku Basin that are distinguished by the magnitude of basement relief and sediment thickness: Western (<200–400 m basement relief, >600 m sediment thickness), Central (>1500 m relief, ∼2000 m sediments), and Eastern (<600 m relief, ∼1200 m sediments) provinces. The total thickness of sediment in basement lows is as much as six times greater than that over basement highs. Turbidite sedimentation in the Shikoku Basin reflects basement control on deposition, leading to the local presence or absence of turbidite units deposited during the middle Oligocene to the middle Miocene. During the first phase of sedimentation, most basement lows were filled with turbidites, resulting in smooth seafloor morphology that does not reflect basement relief. A second phase of turbidite deposition in the Eastern Province was accompanied by significant amounts of hemipelagic sediments interbedded with turbidite layers compared to the other provinces because of its close proximity to the Izu–Bonin Island Arc. Both regional and local variations in basement topography and sediment thickness/type have caused lateral heterogeneities on the underthrusting plate that will, in turn, influence lateral fluid flow along the Nankai accretionary prism.     

Seasonal Response of Planktonic Foraminifera to Surface Ocean Condition: Sediment Trap Results from the Central North Pacific Ocean

The fluxes of planktonic foraminifera (calcareous shell producing zooplankton) were examined in order to clarify temporal and regional variations in production in the upper ocean in relation to hydrographic conditions. Three time-series sediment traps were deployed in the central North Pacific along 175°E for about one year, beginning in June 1993. Trap sites were located in the subarctic, the transition, and the subtropical water masses, from north to south. The southernmost site was under the influence of the transition zone in January to May. Both temporal and regional fluxes of planktonic foraminifera showed large variations during the experiment. In the subarctic water mass, high total foraminiferal fluxes (TFFs) and high organic matter fluxes (OMFs) were observed during summer to fall, suggesting that food availability is the most important factor for the production of planktonic foraminifera. Furthermore, low TFFs during winter were ascribed to low food availability and low temperatures. The OMFs and TFFs correlated well and increased rapidly after the disruption of the seasonal thermocline during winter, peaking in late February to early March in the transition zone. In the subtropical water mass, both OMFs and TFFs remained low due to lower productivity under oligotrophic conditions. In general, TFFs show a positive correlation with OMFs during the trap experiment, suggesting that food availability is one of the factors controlling the production of planktonic foraminifera in the central North Pacific. Relatively low TFFs during summer to fall in the subtropical water mass may be caused by the thermal structure of the upper ocean. Low SST possibly reduces the production of foraminifera during winter in the subarctic region.     

Direct measurements of mid-depth circulation in the Shikoku basin by tracking SOFAR floats

Mid-depth circulation of the Shikoku Basin was measured by tracking four SOFAR floats drifting at the 1,500 m layer. Two floats were released on 17 April 1988 at 30°N, 135°59E and tracked for 433 days. Another two were released on 3 November 1988 at 29°52N and 133°25E, and tracked for 234 days. Two floats flowed clockwise around the Shikoku Warm Water Mass with a diameter of 400 km centered at 31°N and 136°E and a mean drift speed of 4.5 cm sec^–1. One of the floats showed about ten counterclockwise rotations with a period of about 8 days and a maximum speed of 80 cm sec^–1 in the sea area west to the Izu Ridge. In the east to Kyushu, a southward flow was observed under the northward flowing Kuroshio. The southward flow of 4 cm sec^–1 drift speed was considered to be a part of the counterclockwise circulation at deep layers along the perimeter of the Shikoku Basin. One float remained for 234 days in a limited area of 100 km by 150 km in the western part of the basin.