Nitrogen Uptake in Permanently Well-mixed Temperate Coastal Waters

Uptake rates of ammonium, nitrate, urea and nitrite were measured for 1 year (1988) at a coastal station in the well-mixed waters of the western English Channel. Ammonium was the major form of nitrogen (N) utilized (48%) by phytoplankton, followed by nitrate (32%), urea (13%) and nitrite (7%). Seasonal changes of uptake of ammonium, nitrate and urea showed a broad, intense summer maximum. Nitrite uptake was low throughout the year except for a peak value in June. Uptake rates of ammonium and nitrate were independent of substrate concentrations, whereas those of urea and nitrite were not. The summer maxima of ammonium, nitrate and total N uptake, and the significant relationships of N-uptake index to ambient light, and of chlorophyll-a-specific N uptake to surface-incident light, indicate that light is the major factor controlling N uptake in these waters. This is due to the permanent vertical mixing which reduces the mean light available for N uptake to <15% of the incident light. Mixing also injects regenerated N continuously into the euphotic zone, thus alleviating nitrogen limitation and accounting for the larger proportion of regenerated N uptake in total N uptake.     

Successful colonization of the calanoid copepod Acartia tonsa in the oligo-mesohaline area of the Gironde estuary (SW France) – Natural or anthropogenic forcing?

The copepod Acartia tonsa appeared in Europe in the first half of the 20th century and colonized progressively European seas and estuaries, possibly transferred from North Atlantic Coast of America. It had been reported in the polyhaline area of the Gironde estuary for a long time but was first recorded in the oligo-mesohaline area in 1983. Its abundance has been increasing significantly. High abundances of A. tonsa were reported since 1999, supplanting the abundances of its autochthonous congeneric species, Acartia bifilosa. This colonization was characterized by analyzing the mean seasonal variability: (1) for three 5-year periods corresponding to three different steps of A. tonsa appearance (1978–1982, A. tonsa was absent; 1988–1992, low abundances of the species; and 1999–2003, high abundances of A. tonsa) in the oligo-mesohaline area and (2) for three stations distributed along the salinity gradient during the recent period. The aim of this work was to define if this colonization was due to natural or anthropogenic forcing and to evaluate its possible impact on autochthonous zooplanktonic community.Both natural and anthropogenic forcings seem to explain the colonization of Acartia tonsa in the oligo-mesohaline area of the Gironde estuary. First records (1983–1988) could be due to marine water inputs caused by high values of the North Atlantic Oscillation index. The global warming which caused the increase of the summer warm period, the marinisation of the system and the local decrease of the turbidity should have been the key factors favoring the establishment of the species. Anthropogenic forcings as the establishment of the nuclear power plant which locally causes warmer conditions are also important factors explaining the differences of seasonal cycle observed between oligo-mesohaline area and other stations: the seasonal pattern of A. tonsa in the oligo-mesohaline area was indeed characterized by an autumnal peak of abundances which has been observed in other stations and in many North European estuaries, and by a second spring peak that had only been observed in Southern estuaries.The introduction of Acartia tonsa in the Gironde estuary significantly changed the seasonal pattern of autochthonous copepods, by limiting their seasonal abundances without affecting their long-term population stability. Finally, the successful colonization of A. tonsa had led to the spread of the seasonal zooplanktonic production which could have had an impact on fish and shrimp productions.     

Unusual features of the distribution of Radon-222 in the bottom waters of the continental slope of the Mid-Atlantic Bight: Hydrodynamic implications

²²²Rn was measured in the near-bottom waters of the continental slope of the Mid-Atlantic Bight. Separate measurements of the ²²²Rn supported by dissolved ²²⁶Ra allowed the excess ²²²Rn that is derived from the underlying sediments to be distinguished. Measurements of production of ²²²Rn by the sediments were used to calculate fluxes of ²²²Rn from sediments that would be expected as a result of molecular diffusion. On the upper slope and on the lower slope excess ²²²Rn standing crops were, respectively, greater than and consistent with fluxes of radon from sediments by molecular diffusion as are typical of most ocean environments. On the middle slope, however, observed excess ²²²Rn concentrations and standing crops were significantly lower than what would be expected from the calculated fluxes from the underlying sediments. This unusual feature of low radon concentrations on the middle slope is referred to as the low-radon zone (LRZ). This LRZ was always present over several years and seasons, but was variable in intensity (excess-radon concentration and standing crop) and in location on the slope. Low concentrations of suspended particulate matter and low current velocities observed by others in the same region are consistent with low mixing as a possible cause of the LRZ. Radon profile shapes and recent work by others on near bottom mixing due to interactions between topography and internal waves, however, suggest that high mixing due to internal waves is a more likely cause of the LRZ.     

Geometric corrections on sidescan sonar images based on bathymetry. Application with SeaMARC II and Sea Beam data

Acoustic backscatter images of the seafloor obtained with sidescan sonar systems are displayed most often using a flat bottom assumption. Whenever this assumption is not valid, pixels are mapped incorrectly in the image frame, yielding distorted representations of the seafloor. Here, such distortions are corrected by using an appropriate representation of the relief, as measured by the sonar that collected the acoustic backscatter information. In addition, all spatial filtering operations required in the pixel relocation process take the sonar geometry into account. Examples of the process are provided by data collected in the Northeastern Pacific over Fieberling Guyot with the SeaMARC II bathymetric sidescan sonar system and the Sea Beam multibeam echo-sounder. The nearly complete (90%) Sea Beam bathymetry coverage of the Guyot serves as a reference to quantify the distortions found in the backscatter images and to evaluate the accuracy of the corrections performed with SeaMARC II bathymetry. As a byproduct, the processed SeaMARC II bathymetry and the Sea Beam bathymetry adapted to the SeaMARC II sonar geometry exhibit a 35m mean-square difference over the entire area surveyed.On leave at the Naval Research Laboratory, Code 7420, Washington D.C. 20375-5350.     

Facies sequences in large-volume debris- and turbidity-flow deposits from the Pyrenees (Cretaceous; France,Spain)

Facies types and depositional models for thick gravity-flow deposits are inferred from Cretaceous Pyrenean examples occurring in different sedimentary settings: basin-plain during relative low sea level stand; slope-apron or deep valleys during relative sea level rise; and slope during relative sea level rise. The depositional units are interpreted as debrites, debrite-turbidite couplets, and megaturbidites. They are a function of transport distance and hydraulic jump by liquefaction and phase separation in large subaqueous flows.     

Wave power extraction by a train of rafts: hydrodynamic theory and optimum design

A theory is given for a two-dimensional wave power device which consists of a train of floating rafts whose wave-induced rotation about the hinges is used to generate energy. Ideal efficiency, wave forces and raft movements are studied by a linearized shallow water theory which is sufficiently simple to enable an investigation for optimum designs under a variety of criteria of efficiency and cost-effectiveness. For a sample raft train, a numerical theory for arbitrary wavelength is also applied, yielding results which are not essentially different from those by the long wave approximation.