The thermal effects of cooling system of a thermal power plant on photosynthesis of marine phytoplankton

The activity of photosynthesis and the contents of chlorophylla and pheo-pigments were compared in the samples of the intake and effluent seawater of Owase-Mita Thermal Power Plant and in the seawater samples in the Yoshimi Bay before and after heat treatment. At Owase-Mita Thermal Power Plant, after passage of sea water through the cooling system chlorophylla content reduced to about a half and pheo-pigment content doubled in August with high temperature (25–27C), but the contents of chlorophylla and pheo-pigments changed little in January with low temperature (16C); whereas the depression of photosynthetic activity after passing through the cooling system was 71–77 % in August and 31–46 % in January. In the laboratory experiments, the heat treatment at 34–43C for 7–8 sec., which resulted in temperature rise of 7–8C, gave the decrease of chlorophylla and an increase of pheo-pigments in August temperature (26.5C), but a slight decrease of chlorophylla and a slight increase of pheo-pigments in November at the initial temperature of 19.2C, while in January and December the samples with low initial temperature (11.6 and 10.8C) showed almost no change in the content of pigments; the decrease in photosynthetic activity was 32 % in August sample,ca. 11 % in November sample,ca. 15% in January and almost no change in December. It is concluded that the photosynthetic carbon assimilation of marine phytoplankton is suppressed by passing through the cooling system of a thermal power plant even at lower water temperature in winter, while the content of chlorophylla is affected very little at a temperature below 20C.     

Variation of the Kuroshio in the Tokara Strait Induced by Meso-Scale Eddies

Temporal variations of the Kuroshio volume transport in the Tokara Strait and at the ASUKA line are decomposed by phase-propagating Complex EOF modes of high-resolution sea surface dynamic topography (SSDT) field during the first tandem period of TOPEX/POSEIDON and ERS-1 (from October 1992 to December 1993). Both variations are dominated by a mode with nearly semi-annual cycle, which indicates a series of interactions between the Kuroshio and meso-scale eddies. Namely, northern part of a westward-propagating meso-scale eddy at 23°N is captured into the southern side of the Kuroshio at the south of Okinawa, then it moves downstream along the Kuroshio path passing the Tokara Strait, and reaches to the ASUKA line where it merges with another eddy propagating from the east at 30°N. The variation at the ASUKA line is, however, less dominated by this mode; instead, it includes the SSDT variations in the south of Shikoku and the east of Kyushu which would be directly affected by eddies from the east without passing the Tokara Strait. On the other hand, the same analysis for movements of the Kuroshio axis in the Strait indicates that they are governed by short-term variations locally confined to the Kuroshio in the East China Sea without being induced by meso-scale eddies. This results, however, seem to depend strongly on a time scale of interest. It is suggested that the long-term movements of the Kuroshio axis in the Strait would demonstrate coincidence with SSDT variation in the south of Japan.     

Three-year investigations into sperm whale-fall ecosystems in Japan

We report the first study of sperm whale‐fall ecosystems, based on mass sinking of whale carcasses at shelf depths in the northwest Pacific. We conducted three observations over a 2‐year period on replicate sperm‐whale carcasses implanted at depths of 219–254 m off the southern part of Japan from July 2003 to August 2005. The study was made possible by a mass stranding of sperm whales in January 2002, and the subsequent sinking of 12 carcasses in the waters off Cape Nomamisaki. Dense aggregations of unique chemosynthesis‐based fauna had formed around the whale carcasses after 18 months (July 2003). The mytilid mussel Adipicola pacifica was the most abundant macrofaunal species and covered most of the exposed bone surfaces. The general composition of the fauna was similar to that of deep‐water reducing habitats, but none of the species appearing in this study has been found at hydrothermal vents, cold seeps or deep‐water whale falls. A new species of lancelet, which was the first record of the subphylum Cephalochordata from reducing environments, a new species of Osedax; a rarely encountered benthic ctenophore, and a rare gastropod species were discovered at this sperm whale‐fall site. Benthic communities were similar across all the carcasses studied, although the body sizes of the whales were very different. The succession of epifaunal communities was relatively rapid and the sulphophilic stage was considerably shorter than that of other known whale falls.     

Susceptibility assessment of the precursor stage of a landslide threatening Haivan Railway Station,Vietnam

Haivan Station is an important station on the North-South railway line in central Vietnam. Field investigation has identified a precursor stage of a landslide that would threaten this railway. Therefore, a landslide susceptibility assessment for Haivan Station was urgently needed to protect passenger safety and the national railway. Conducted investigations included air-photo interpretation, drilling, ground water and inclinometer monitoring, laboratory testing, and landslide simulation. This research applied the undrained dynamic loading ring shear apparatus ICL-2 to drill-core samples from the precursor landslide. Samples for ring shear tests were taken from sandy soil layers found at depths of ~21, ~31, and ~50 m in the cores. Each of these was believed to be a possible sliding surface of a landslide, and all were tested to shear failure in the ICL-2 apparatus. The boundary between highly weathered granitic rock and weathered granitic rock was identified at about 50 m depth. The inclinometer monitoring detected slight movement at this depth. Therefore, the present day risk of a landslide forming at 50 m is higher than for one forming at either 21 or 31 m. The landslide dynamic parameters obtained from the ring shear test of the 50-m-deep sample were used in an integrated numerical simulation model LS-RAPID. The simulation result gave the critical pore-pressure ratio for landslide occurrence, and landslide’s likely maximum speed, total volume, and depth of landslide debris that could cover the railway. These estimates serve to raise awareness of the vulnerability of the Vietnam national railway sector to landslide impact.     

白鱀豚哨叫声的研究

于1996年1月,在中国科学院水生生物研究所白暨豚馆人工饲养池和湖北省石首市天鹅洲长江故道,使用频响范围分别为0－100kHz和0－16kHz的磁带记录系统,记录了一头成年雄性和一头成年雌性白暨豚的哨叫声。采用计算机信号分析系统详细分析了哨叫声的结构和声谱图,并与其它鲸类哨叫声进行比较。结果表明,白暨豚哨叫声的最大和最小频率平均值分别为5841Hz和4975Hz,频率变化幅度一般小于1000Hz。哨叫声平均持续时间为907ms。频率随时间变化不连续,且较平缓,起伏很少,有部分重叠现象。白暨豚哨叫声的结构与另一种淡水豚─—亚河豚相近,但相对于一些海洋性种类（如宽吻海豚）则呈现较大的差异,表现出对环境的高度适应性。     

Quasiperiodic small meanders of the Kuroshio off Cape Ashizuri and their inter-annual modulation caused by quasiperiodic arrivals of mesoscale eddies

A quasiperiodic variation of 100–110 days in the Kuroshio path off Cape Ashizuri, resulting from the passage of small meanders, was detected by observation with moored current meters during 1993–1995. TOPEX/POSEIDON altimeter data covering 9 years showed that the quasiperiodic variation period was not persistent and modulated twice, with a ∼110-day period from mid-1993 to late 1996, a ∼150-day period from late 1996 to mid-1999, and a ∼110-day period from mid-1999 to late 2001. The quasiperiodic variations of the Kuroshio path migration were contemporaneous with the quasiperiodic arrivals of mesoscale eddies from the east along 27–32°N over the same ∼110- and ∼150-day period quasiperiodic variations. The periodic arrivals of the eddies configure the periodic variations of the Kuroshio path and its inter-annual modulation.     

Holocene climate and environmental changes inferred from sediment characteristics and diatom assemblages in a core from Hwajinpo Lagoon,Korea

Hwajinpo is the largest lagoon in Korea and is located along the east coast of the country. It possesses Holocene sediments that provide an important record of past climate change. We studied the evolution of Hwajinpo Lagoon using grain size data and diatom assemblages in an 11.0-m core (HJ02), which was obtained at the mouth of a small river that drains into the lagoon. Core chronology was established with accelerator mass spectrometry ¹⁴C dates and optically stimulated luminescence dates. Diatom assemblages and grain size analysis revealed that estuarine conditions in the inner lagoon area transitioned to an open embayment ca. 8 ka as a result of sea-level rise. Around 7.8 ka, the open bay became a semi-closed bay as a consequence of development of a sand barrier. After the bay was semi-closed, marine water inflow was increasingly restricted as the sand barrier developed, and the semi-closed bay became a completely enclosed, low-salinity, brackish lagoon around 6 ka. There was an erosional hiatus between 5.5 and 1.7 ka (7.0 m depth), likely caused by river flooding and a switch in the location of drainage along the delta. The lagoon became oligohaline around 1.6 ka, likely because of increasing precipitation associated with an intensified Asian summer monsoon. This increase in precipitation resulted in expansion of the sand bar by sediment inflow, driven by agricultural development in the area. About 1000 years ago, the diatom assemblage was similar to the modern assemblage, suggesting the lagoon’s current geomorphic conditions had been established.     

Comparison of surface velocities determined from altimeter and drifting buoy data

Surface velocities determined from trajectory of a drifting buoy from March through November 1987 are compared with surface geostrophic velocities determined from sea surface dynamic topography (SSDT) obtained from altimetry data with the aid of long-term hydrographic observation data. In general, these velocities show similar temporal variations in both zonal and meridional components, except in a period when obvious error is found in the altimetric SSDT field. When the buoy was trapped by several mid-ocean meso-scale eddies, the comparison is especially good. Systematic discrepancy is found, however, when the buoy was in the Kuroshio region, because of using both temporally and spatially smoothed mean SSDT estimated from hydrographic data; instead, surface geostrophic velocities determined from the altimetric SSDT referred to the improved geoid model result in better comparison.