Is the meander growth in the Brazil Current system off Southeast Brazil due to baroclinic instability?

Temporally-growing frontal meandering and occasional eddy-shedding is observed in the Brazil Current (BC) as it flows adjacent to the Brazilian Coast. No study of the dynamics of this phenomenon has been conducted to date in the region between 22° S and 25°S. Within this latitude range, the flow over the intermediate continental slope is marked by a current inversion at a depth that is associated with the Intermediate Western Boundary Current (IWBC). A time series analysis of 10-current-meter mooring data was used to describe a mean vertical profile for the BC-IWBC jet and a typical meander vertical structure. The latter was obtained by an empirical orthogonal function (EOF) analysis that showed a single mode explaining 82% of the total variance. This mode structure decayed sharply with depth, revealing that the meandering is much more vigorous within the BC domain than it is in the IWBC region. As the spectral analysis of the mode amplitude time series revealed no significant periods, we searched for dominant wavelengths. This search was done via a spatial EOF analysis on 51 thermal front patterns derived from digitized AVHRR images. Four modes were statistically significant at the 95% confidence level. Modes 3 and 4, which together explained 18% of the total variance, are associated with 266 and 338-km vorticity waves, respectively. With this new information derived from the data, the [Johns, W.E., 1988. One-dimensional baroclinically unstable waves on the Gulf Stream potential vorticity gradient near Cape Hatteras. Dyn. Atmos. Oceans 11, 323–350] one-dimensional quasi-geostrophic model was applied to the interpolated mean BC-IWBC jet. The results indicated that the BC system is indeed baroclinically unstable and that the wavelengths depicted in the thermal front analysis are associated with the most unstable waves produced by the model. Growth rates were about 0.06 (0.05) days⁻¹for the 266-km (338-km) wave. Moreover, phase speeds for these waves were low compared to the surface BC velocity and may account for remarks in the literature about growing standing or stationary meanders off southeast Brazil. The theoretical vertical structure modes associated with these waves resembled very closely to the one obtained for the current-meter mooring EOF analysis. We interpret this agreement as a confirmation that baroclinic instability is an important mechanism in meander growth in the BC system.     

Ternary geochemical-tracing system in natural gas accumulation

The establishment of geochemical-tracing system of gas generation and accumulation is helpful to re-elucidating the gas migration and accumulation in time and space. To deduce the complex process of gas accumulation, a ternary geochemical-tracing system is set up, according to stable isotope inheritance of source rocks, kinetic fractionation of stable isotopes, time-accumulating effect of noble gas isotopes, mantle-derived volatile inheritance, and organic molecule inheritance of light hydrocarbons and thermally kinetic fractionation in their generation, in combination with the previous achievements of gas geochemistry and geochemical parameters of gas-source correlation. There are tight interactions for the geochemical parameters with much information about parent inheritance and special biomarkers, in which they are confirmed each other, reciprocally associated and preferentially used for the requirement so that we can use these geochemical parameters to effectively demonstrate the sources of natural gas, sedimentary environments and thermal evolution of source rocks, migration and accumulation of natural gas, and rearrangement of natural gas reservoirs. It is necessary for the ternary geochemical-tracing system to predict the formation of high efficient gas reservoir and their distribution in time and space.     

Porosity and hydraulic conductivity estimation of the basaltic aquifer in Southern Syria by using nuclear and electrical well logging techniques

An alternative approach using nuclear neutron-porosity and electrical resistivity well logging of long (64 inch) and short (16 inch) normal techniques is proposed to estimate the porosity and the hydraulic conductivity (K) of the basaltic aquifers in Southern Syria. This method is applied on the available logs of Kodana well in Southern Syria. It has been found that the obtained K value by applying this technique seems to be reasonable and comparable with the hydraulic conductivity value of 3.09 m/day obtained by the pumping test carried out at Kodana well. The proposed alternative well logging methodology seems as promising and could be practiced in the basaltic environments for the estimation of hydraulic conductivity parameter. However, more detailed researches are still required to make this proposed technique very performed in basaltic environments.     

Phytoplankton production and nutrient distributions in a subtropical estuary: Importance of freshwater flow

The relationships between phytoplankton productivity, nutrient distributions, and freshwater flow were examined in a seasonal study conducted in Escambia Bay, Florida, USA, located in the northeastern Gulf of Mexico. Five sites oriented along the salinity gradient were sampled 24 times over the 28-mo period from 1999 to 2001. Water column profiles of temperature and salinity were measured along with surface chlorophyll and surface inorganic nutrient concentrations. Primary productivity was measured at 2 sites on 11 dates, and estimated for the remaining dates and sites using an empirical regression model relating phytoplankton net production to the product of chlorophyll, euphotic zone depth, and daily solar insolation. Freshwater flow into the system varied markedly over the study period with record low flow during 2000, a flood event in March 2001, and subsequent resumption of normal flow. Flushing times ranged from 1 d during the flood to 20 d during the drought. Freshwater input strongly affected surface salinity distributions, nutrient flux, chlorophyll, and primary productivity. The flood caused high turbidity and rapid flushing, severely reducing phytoplankton production and biomass accumulation. Following the flood, phytoplankton biomass and productivity sharply increased. Analysis of nutrient distributions suggested Escambia Bay phytoplankton alternated between phosphorus limitation during normal flow and nitrogen limitation during low flow periods. This study found that Escambia Bay is a moderately productive estuary, with an average annual integrated phytoplankton production rate of 290 g C m⁻² yr⁻¹.     

A new algorithm to estimate sky condition based on 5 minutes-averaged values of clearness index and relative optical air mass

Summary This work describes a new algorithm to characterize sky condition in intervals of 5 min using four categories of sun exposition: apparent sun with cloud reflection effects; apparent sun without cloud effects; sun partially concealed by clouds; and sun totally concealed by clouds. The algorithm can also be applied to estimate hourly and daily sky condition in terms of the traditional three categories: clear, partially cloudy and cloudy day. It identifies sky conditions within a confidence interval of 95% by minimizing local climate and measurement effects. This is accomplished by using a logistic cumulative probability function to characterize clear sky and Weibull cumulative probability function to represent cloudy sky. Both probability functions are derived from frequency distributions of clearness index, based on 5 minutes-averaged values of global solar irradiance observed at the surface during a period of 6 years in Botucatu, Southeastern of Brazil. The relative sunshine estimated from the new algorithm is statistically comparable to the one derived from Campbell-Stocks sunshine recorder for both daily and monthly values. The new method indicates that the highest frequency of clear sky days occurs in Botucatu during winter (66%) and the lowest during the summer (38%). Partially cloudy condition is the dominant feature during all months of the year.     

Phenocryst complexity in andesites and dacites from the Tequila volcanic field,Mexico: resolving the effects of degassing vs. magma mixing

The petrology of five phenocryst-poor (2–5%) andesites and dacites, all of which were erupted from different short-lived, monogenetic vents, is compared to that of phenocryst-rich (10–25%) andesites erupted from the adjacent stratovolcano, Volcán Tequila, in the Mexican arc. Despite differences in phenocryst abundances, these magmas have comparable phase assemblages (plagioclase + orthopyroxene + titanomagnetite + ilmenite + apatite ± augite ± hornblende), and similarly wide variations in phenocryst compositions, coupled to complex zoning patterns. For the phenocryst-poor lavas, equilibrium pairs of two Fe–Ti oxides lead to a narrow range of calculated temperatures for each sample that range from 934 (±24) to 1,073 (±6)°C and oxygen fugacities that range from +0.1 to +0.7 log units relative to the Ni–NiO buffer. Application of the plagioclase-liquid hygrometer to each sample at these calculated temperatures leads to maximum melt water concentrations of 4.6–3.1 wt% during plagioclase crystallization, indicating that the magmas were fluid saturated at depths ≥6.4–4.5 km. There is a wide, continuous range in the composition of plagioclase (≤44 mol% An) and orthopyroxene (≤16% Mg#) phenocrysts in each sample, which is consistent with a loss of dissolved water (≤2.8 wt%) from the melt phase during degassing as the magmas ascended rapidly to the surface. Evidence is presented that shows the effect of dissolved water is to reduce the activity of MgO relative to FeO in the melt phase, which indicates that degassing will also affect the Mg# of pyroxene phenocrysts, with higher melt water concentrations favoring Fe-rich pyroxene. Both plagioclase and orthopyroxene commonly display diffusion-limited growth textures (e.g., skeletal and hopper crystals, large interior melt hollows, and swallow tails), which are consistent with large undercoolings produced by degassing-induced crystallization. Therefore, degassing is proposed as a possible cause for the phenocryst compositional diversity documented in the phenocryst-poor andesite and dacite lavas erupted from peripheral vents, including the coexistence of normally zoned plagioclase and reversely zoned orthopyroxene. Degassing-induced crystallization may also explain some of the phenocryst complexity in crystal-rich andesites erupted from large stratovolcanoes, including Volcán Tequila.     

Karyotype analysis of four nemertean species

We performed a karyotype analysis on four species from Phylum Nemertea using regenerating somatic cells. Two palaeonemertean species, Cephalothrix hongkongiensis and Cephalothrix sp., had the same chromosome number (2n=28), but different karyotypes (16 m+10 sm+2 st, NF=54 and 22 m+4 sm+2 st, NF=54, respectively). The karyotypes of the two heteronemerteans, Notospermus geniculatus and Ramphogordius sanguineus were 2n=38, 30 m+6 sm+2 sm/st (NF=76/74) and 2n=56, 48 m+4 sm+4 sm/st (NF=112/108), respectively.