Anthropogenic "Litter" and macrophyte detritus in the deep Northern Gulf of Mexico

A deep-sea trawl survey of the Northern Gulf of Mexico has documented the abundance and diversity of human-generated litter and natural detrital plant material, from the outer margin of the continental shelf out to the Sigsbee abyssal plain. Plastics were the most frequently encountered type of material. Litter and debris were encountered more frequently in the eastern than in the western GoM. Land-derived plant material was located primarily within the head of the Mississippi Canyon, whereas ocean-derived plant material was spread evenly throughout the NE GoM. Human discards were principally from ships offshore. Some of the material was contained in metal cans that sank to the sea floor, probably in order to conform to international agreements that prohibit disposal of toxic material and plastics. The Mississippi Canyon was a focal point for litter, perhaps due to topography, currents or proximity to shipping lanes.     

Marine debris from the Oregon Dungeness crab fishery recovered in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands: identification and oceanic drift paths

Two Dungeness crab trap tags and floats lost off the State of Oregon, USA during the 2006-2007 fishing season were recovered 4years later in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands (NWHI): on Lisianski Island on July 15, 2010; and on Kure Atoll on December 10, 2010. This is the first documented recovery of marine debris from Oregon fisheries in the NWHI. We simulate the oceanic drift tracks of the derelict fishing gear with the Ocean Surface Current Simulator (OSCURS) model using estimated loss dates in Oregon based on interviews with the crab trap owners and known recovery sites and dates in the NWHI. These data confirm the US Pacific Northwest as a source of marine debris deposited in the NWHI and provide enhanced understanding of the oceanic drift pathways of marine debris in the North Pacific Ocean.     

澳大利亚昆士兰州艾萨谷的三维地质和磁模拟

地球物理数据能够对３－Ｄ构造解释起到重要的约束作用,因为任何解释必须给磁性单元指定适中的位置、深度和几何形状以便与实测的地球物理资料相匹配。虽然得到的模型可能是非唯一性的,但它提供了一种方法。根据这种方法可以研究概念模型并且确定概念模型是否符合于地球物理和地质资料,２－Ｄ和３－Ｄ地球物理方法来确定艾萨谷的构造和构造历史。利用Ｃ．Ａ．Ｄ．程序模块建立了澳大利亚萨谷地区的３－Ｄ构造模型。     

遥感海洋初级生产力的生物—地理动力学问题

卫星遥感为大尺度海洋观测提供了一种可行方法。卫星资料应用于海洋初级生产力研究中最重要的是建立由海洋水色遥感资料得出的色素浓度计算初级生产力的合适算法。由于植物生理学方面的问题，建立一个合适的初级生产力算法有一定的困难。本文在分析水下光场和藻类光合作用光谱响应基础上，阐述了海洋初级生产力遥感中的生物－地理动力学问题。     

Interannual variation of rare earth element abundances in corals from northern coast of the South China Sea and its relation with sea-level change and human activities

Here we present interannual rare earth element (REE) records spanning the last two decades of the 20th century in two living Porites corals, collected from Longwan Bay, close to the estuarine zones off Wanquan River of Hainan Island and Hong Kong off the Pearl River Delta of Guangdong Province in the northern South China Sea. The results show that both coral REE contents (0.5-40 ng g?1 in Longwan Bay and 2-250 ng g?1 in Hong Kong for La-Lu) are characterized with a declining trend, which are significantly negative correlated with regional sea-level rise (9.4 mm a?1) from 1981 to 1996 in Longwan Bay, 13.7 mm a?1 from 1991 to 2001 in Hong Kong). The REE features are proposed to be resulted from seawater intrusion into the estuaries in response to contemporary sea-level rise. However, the tendency for the coral Er/Nd time series at Hong Kong site is absent and there is no significant relation between Er/Nd and total REEs as found for the coral at Longwan Bay site. The observations are likely attributed to changes of the water discharge and sediment load of Pearl River, which have been significantly affected by intense human activities, such as the construction of dams/reservoirs and riverbed sediment mining, in past decades. The riverine sediment load/discharge ratio of the Pearl River decreased sharply with a rate of 0.02 kg m?3 a?1, which could make significant contribution to the declining trend of coral REE. We propose that coastal corals in Longwan Bay and similar unexplored sites with little influences of river discharge and anthropogenic disruption are ideal candidates to investigate the influence of sea-level change on seawater/coral REE.