The origin of Antarctic precipitation: a modelling approach

The contribution of different moisture sources to Antarctic precipitation for present‐day and glacial conditions is estimated with the NASA/GISS Atmospheric General Circulation Model. Despite its low horizontal resolution (8°×10°), this model simulates reasonably well the broad features of the observed present‐day hydrological cycle. Simulated present‐day Antarctic precipitation is dominated throughout the year by moisture from a subtropical/midlatitude band (30°S−60°S). The moisture supplied to a given coastal area of Antarctica originates mostly in the adjacent oceanic basin; closer to the pole, other oceanic basins can also contribute significantly. Replacing the present‐day sea surface temperatures (SSTs) and sea ice cover in the GCM with those from the CLIMAP oceanic reconstruction for the last glacial maximum (LGM), greatly increases the simulated latitudinal temperature gradient, with the consequence of slightly enhancing the contribution of low latitude moisture to Antarctic precipitation. It also changes the seasonality of the different contributions and thus their budget, particularly in coastal regions. Because the nature of LGM tropical SSTs is still under debate, we performed an additional LGM simulation in which the tropical SSTs are reduced relative to those of CLIMAP. The resulting decrease in the latitudinal gradient brings the relative contributions to Antarctic precipitation more in line with those of the present‐day simulation.     

2004年夏季中国南海北部的浮游植物

报道了2004年夏季南海北部18个大面测站浮游植物的调查结果。应用Utermhl方法初步鉴定出浮游植物4门74属159种,平均细胞丰度为(115.05±438.89)×103个/L(n=91),其中硅藻在物种丰富度和细胞丰度上占绝对优势;其次为甲藻。主要优势种为柔弱伪菱形藻Pseudo-nitzschiadelicatissima、旋链角毛藻Chaetoceroscurvisetus、皇冠角毛藻Chaetocerosdiadema、具齿原甲藻Prorocentrumdentatum和冰河拟星杆藻Asterionellopsisglacialis。调查区浮游植物表层细胞丰度的平面分布从沿岸向外海迅速减少,高值区分布在广东沿岸和珠江口附近海域。同1999年同期资料相比,浮游植物细胞丰度增加1倍,但平面分布趋势相同。调查区浮游植物垂直分布总体特征是由水体表层到底层,细胞丰度逐渐减少。细胞丰度密集区位于水体表层,但是只有S2断面出现了次表层最大值现象,其垂直剖面分布同叶绿素a、铵盐、溶解氧以及盐度密切相关。整个调查区浮游植物的多样性程度是低的。     

2009年春季南黄海聚球藻生长率、被摄食消亡率及其与环境因子的关系

2009年春季(3-4月)在南黄海海域采用选择性代谢抑制剂技术测定了微微型光合浮游生物--聚球藻Synechococcus spp.的生长率和被摄食消亡率,研究了其空间分布格局及其与环境因子的相关性,并根据生长率估算了聚球藻碳生物量、碳生产力及其对微微型光合浮游生物总碳生物量的贡献.结果表明,在真光层内,聚球藻平均生长...     

海洋底边界层中实测海流的垂直分布I. 余流边界层

海底以上 1— 2m水层的海流垂直分布和变化 ,对于海底泥沙运动和海洋工程设计具有十分重要的意义。迄今为止 ,研究者分别从实测资料、实验室实验和理论等方面对底边界层中稳定流动的垂直分布进行了研究 ,其结果均难以直接满足工程需要。本文基于现有的理论和实验结果 ,发展了现有海底边界层理论 ,运用把稳定流的底Ekman层与对数层相配匹的方法确定了实测余流的垂直分布 ,并给出了在渤海石油平台区的应用实例。结果表明 ,本文给出的原理和方法在应用中与实测结果符合良好 ,可以直接满足工程需要     

Scientific applications of downhole measurements in the ocean basins

Abstract The well logging activity of the Ocean Drilling Programme, which deploys the most technically advanced suite of downhole measurements available for routine use, is providing new opportunities for advancement in marine geoscience. Particular examples are cited of the application of wireline data to problems associated with global environmental changes, crust/ mantle interactions, crustal fluid circulation in the context of a global geochemical budget, lithospheric stress and deformation, and evolutionary processes in oceanic communities. Further technological developments will expand the scientific role of downhole measurements still further, especially in terms of the integration of geophysical data at different scales of measurement, and the interpretation of these data in accordance with; global scientific themes.     

The Soom Shale: a unique Ordovician fossil horizon in South Africa

The recent discovery of fossils with preserved soft tissues in the Cedarberg Mountains of the Cape Province has opened a new window on Ordovician life.     

The status of the 'Little Ice Age' in southern Norway: relative-age dating of Neoglacial moraines with Schmidt hammer and lichenometry

A Schmidt hammer was used in conjunction with lichenometry to examine the relative age of the outermost Neoglacial moraines in front of glaciers in the Jotunheimen mountains of southern Norway. Particular attention was directed at (1) the magnitude of the 'Little Ice Age' glacier expansion episode relative to any others of Neoglacial age, and (2) the potential and limitations of the Schmidt hammer in the context of Holocene glacial chronologies. Schmidt hammer R-values were measured at 34 glaciers and the sizes of the lichen Rhizocarpon geographicum agg. at 80 glaciers. Unusually low R-values and large lichens suggest the occurrence of pre- 'Little lee Age' Neoglacial moraines at only a small minority (< 10 %) of the sampled glaciers. The traditional model of relatively large southern Norwegian glaciers during the 'Little Ice Age' is substantiated and it is tentatively suggested that differences in climate or glacier type may account for a regional difference in the status of the 'Little Ice Age' between northern and southern Scandinavia. The incorporation of weathered boulders into 'Little Ice Age' moraines by glacier push mechanisms, and the altitudinally-related variation in boulder surface textures, are identified as major sources of potential error in the use of the Schmidt hammer R-values for relative-age determination of Neoglacial surfaces.