A gridded sea surface salinity data set for the tropical Pacific with sample applications (1950–2008)

We present a gridded data set of Sea Surface Salinity (SSS) for the tropical Pacific (120°E–70°W; 30°N–30°S), with a grid resolution of 1° longitude, 1° latitude and 1 month, from 1950 to 2008. The product, together with its associated error field, is derived from an objective analysis of about 10 million validated SSS records, with most of the data originating from Voluntary Observing Ships, TAO/TRITON moorings and Argo profilers (during the most recent period). We expect this product to benefit studies in oceanography, meteorology and paleoceanography. As examples of applications, we analyse: (a) the seasonal and ENSO (El Niño Southern Oscillation) modes of observed SSS variability, (b) the ability of 23 coupled models used in the Intergovernmental Panel for Climate Change 4th Assessment Report (IPCC AR4) to simulate the mean SSS and these two time varying modes, and (c) the usefulness of the SSS product and of its associated error field in calibrating and validating the paleo-salinity time series. We anticipate improvements and regular updates to our product, as more SSS data become available from in situ networks and from the ongoing and near-future satellite-derived observations by SMOS (Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity) and Aquarius.     

Intra-interstadial environmental changes in Last Glacial loess revealed by molluscan assemblages from the Upper Palaeolithic site of Amiens-Renancourt 1 (Somme,France)

The Amiens-Renancourt 1 site recently yielded one of the most important Upper Palaeolithic human occupations of northern France by the number of flint artefacts and especially by the presence of Venus figurines. All the material comes from a single archaeological layer located in a tundra gley bracketed by loess units. A multi-proxy study combining a detailed stratigraphy, luminescence and radiocarbon datings and high-resolution (5 cm per sample) grain size and molluscan analyses was therefore carried out to reconstruct and date the associated environmental changes and to determine the exact context of the human occupation. The chronological frame thus established supports the correlations of the archaeology-bearing tundra gley and of an underlying arctic brown soil with Greenland interstadials GI-4 and GI-3. Composition changes in the molluscan population enabled the identification of transitional and optimum phases and sub-phases within these two pedogenetic horizons. A conceptual correlation model linking molluscan phases with millennial-scale variations of Greenland ice-core and Sieben Hengste speleothem climate records is proposed. The Human occupation appears contemporaneous to the end of the stadial–interstadial transition of GI-3. Synchronous in Amiens-Renancourt 1 and Nussloch, subsequent micro-gleys may also result from a regional/global forcing. Such a level of detail is unprecedented in a loess sequence.     

Searching for Added Value in Simulating Climate Extremes with a High-Resolution Regional Climate Model over Western Canada

We evaluate the capacity of a regional climate model to represent observed extreme temperature and precipitation events and also examine the impact of increased resolution, in an effort to identify added value in this respect. Two climate simulations of western Canada (WCan) were conducted with the Canadian Regional Climate Model (version 4) at 15 (CRCM15) and 45?km (CRCM45) horizontal resolution driven at the lateral boundaries by data from the European Centre for Medium-range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) 40-year Reanalysis (ERA-40) for the period 1973–1995. The simulations were evaluated using the spline-interpolated dataset ANUSPLIN, a daily observational gridded surface temperature and precipitation product with a nominal resolution of approximately 10?km. We examine a range of climate extremes, comprising the 10th and 90th percentiles of daily maximum (TX) and minimum (TN) temperatures, the 90th percentile of daily precipitation (PR90), and the 27 core Climate Daily Extremes (CLIMDEX) indices.

Both simulations exhibit cold biases compared with observations over WCan, with the bias exacerbated at higher resolution, suggesting little added value for temperature overall. There are instances, however, of regional improvement in the spatial pattern of temperature extremes at the higher resolution of CRCM15 (e.g., the CLIMDEX index for the annual number of days when TX?>?25°C). The high-resolution simulations also reveal similarly localized features in precipitation (e.g., rain shadows) that are not resolved at the 45?km resolution. With regard to precipitation extremes, although both simulations generally display wet biases, CRCM15 features a reduced bias in PR90 in all seasons except winter. This improvement occurs despite the fact that spatial and interannual variability of PR90 in CRCM15 is significantly overestimated relative to both CRCM45 and ANUSPLIN. We posit that these characteristics are the result of demonstrable differences between corresponding topographical datasets used in the gridded observations and CRCM, the resulting errors propagated to physical variables tied to elevation and the beneficial effect of subsequent spatial averaging. Because topographical input is often discordant between simulations and gridded observations, it is argued that a limited form of spatial averaging may contribute added value beyond that which has already been noted in previous studies with respect to small-scale climate variability.     

A semi-implicit method for incompressible three-phase flow in porous media

In this paper, we present a semi-implicit method for the incompressible three-phase flow equations in two dimensions. In particular, a high-order discontinuous Galerkin spatial discretization is coupled with a backward Euler discretization in time. We consider a pressure-saturation formulation, decouple the pressure and saturation equations, and solve them sequentially while still keeping each equation implicit in its respective unknown. We present several numerical examples on both homogeneous and heterogeneous media, with varying permeability and porosity. Our results demonstrate the robustness of the scheme. In particular, no slope limiters are required and a relatively large time step may be taken.     

The curse of physiology—challenges and opportunities in the interpretation of geochemical data from mollusk shells

Physiology corrupts geochemical records of mollusk shells in many ways, e.g., by actively controlling the incorporation of trace elements in the skeleton. However, the effects of variable biomineralization rates and growth cessation have largely remained unconsidered. Mediated by endogenous timekeeping mechanisms, mollusks stop growing skeletal material on a regular basis ranging from ultradian to annual timescales. During growth cessation, the shells do not record environmental conditions. Shell growth also stops when environmental conditions are beyond the physiological tolerance of the organism, e.g., above and below genetically determined, species-specific thermal extremes where shell growth slows and eventually ceases. Such growth disruptions can occur at non-periodic time intervals. Due to growth retardations and halts, proxy records of mollusk shells are thus incomplete, and reconstructed environmental amplitudes prone to truncation. Furthermore, environmental records are biased toward the physiological optimum of the animal. Favorable environmental conditions increase shell growth, whereas adverse environmental conditions result in reduced shell production and lowered overall metabolism. Not least, the duration of the growing season and overall growth rate decrease as the mollusk grows older. Mathematical modeling approaches can significantly improve proxy records obtained from mollusk shells. For example, if the duration of growth cessation is known, it may be possible to model the missing environmental record. It is also fairly easy to account for age-related growth trends, or variable time-averaging in different portions of the shell. However, a major premise for a reliable interpretation of proxy records from a mollusk shell or other organisms secreting biogenic hard parts is a proper understanding of the physiology, and of course, a high-resolution record of the many different environmental factors that may influence physiology and shell growth. The present paper reviews examples from the literature, and unpublished data on how physiology influences geochemical proxy records from mollusk shells, and presents methods how to eliminate such adverse effects.