Sea State and Rain: A Second Take on Dual-Frequency Altimetry

TOPEX and Jason were the first two dual-frequency altimeters in space, with both operating at K_u- and C-band. Thus, each gives two measurements of the normalized backscatter, σ⁰, (from which wind speed is calculated) and two estimates of wave height. Departures from a well-defined relationship between the K_u- and C-band σ⁰ values give an indication of rain. This study investigates differences between the two instruments using data from Jason's verification phase. Jason's K_u-band estimates of wave height are ∼1.8% less than TOPEX's, whereas its σ⁰ values are higher. When these effects have been removed the root mean square (rms) mismatch between TOPEX and Jason's K_u-band observations is close to that for TOPEX's observations at its two frequencies, and the changes in σ⁰ with varying wave height conditions are the same for the two altimeters. Rain flagging and quantitative estimates of rain rate are both based on the atmospheric attenuation derived from the σ⁰ measurements at the two frequencies. The attenuation estimates of TOPEX and Jason agree very well, and a threshold of-0.5 dB is effective at removing the majority of spurious data records from the Jason GDRs. In the high σ⁰ regime, anomalous data can be caused by processes other than rain. Consequently, for these low wind conditions, neither can reliable rain detection be based on altimetry alone, nor can a generic rain flag be expected to remove all suspect data.     

The physical structure of a cold filament in a Chilean upwelling zone (Península de Mejillones, Chile, 23°S)

Cold filaments associated with Eastern Boundary Currents are typically narrower than 100 km but can be several hundred kilometers long, extending from the coast to the open ocean in upwelling areas. One such structure, observed off Península de Mejillones (23°S, Chile), was studied with both satellite images and two 5-days hydrographic cruises carried out during January 1997. The study used a coastal grid of 31 stations in an area of 165 ×155 km², approximately. The spatial distribution of the filament and its change between cruises are described from the horizontal distributions of dynamic height, temperature, salinity and dissolved oxygen. The filament was a shallow feature (thickness <100 m) and extended at least 165 km toward the open ocean. A meandering northward current flowed at the borders of the filament, separating oceanic and coastal waters of different physical properties. Comparisons of cross sections of the filament near the coast and in the oceanic zone show the ascent of the shallow salinity minimum (SSM), and its extension toward the ocean, bound to the filament. It is concluded that Subantarctic Water ((SAAW) distinguish by low salinity, high dissolved oxygen) and Equatorial Subsurface Water ((ESSW) high salinity, low dissolved oxygen, high nutrient content) form this filament, and that their relative proportions depend on the strength of the coastal upwelling. Thus, the knowledge of the dynamics of these structures is fundamental to better understanding of the spatial distribution of important biological variables, such as nutrients and chlorophyll, in the coastal ecosystem.     

Stochastic modeling based on deterministic formulation: An example

In the context of seismology, an example of stochastic modeling on the basis of an established deterministic formulation is presented. The advantages of this approach to modeling over those based solely on statistical fit are discussed. It is demonstrated that the result of applying this procedure is a model whose main parameter has a physical interpretation, and therefore a validation based on criteria other than statistical goodness of fit is also possible. Statistical inference together with some demonstrating examples are also included.     

粤西河台金矿田糜棱岩XRD特征及其地质意义

粤西河台金矿田位于钦州湾—杭州湾（钦—杭）结合带南段的云开地区,是典型的受韧性剪切带控制的金矿。然而,对于剪切带中有利于金成矿的地质环境及其成矿过程仍然存在争议。本文在对河台矿区高村矿床进行详细野外地质调查的基础上,通过X射线衍射（XRD）对含金剪切带中各类糜棱岩系列岩石进行系统研究,建立应力变化—成分变异的对比序列,从而进一步揭示剪切变形与金矿化的关系。结果显示,剪切带中白（绢）云母的含量在9%~40%,并且在初糜棱岩、无矿糜棱岩、含矿糜棱岩、无矿超糜棱岩、含矿超糜棱岩中呈现出逐渐递增的趋势。白（绢）云母主要为2M1型,b0值在 0.55505~0.99002 nm之间,初糜棱岩＜无矿糜棱岩＜ 无矿超糜棱岩,分别指示低压、中压和高压环境。可见,从初糜棱岩到超糜棱岩,随着变形强度的增加,热液活动也随之增强,从而新生成了大量白（绢）云母。然而,在含矿的糜棱岩和超糜棱岩中还存在一些低压白云母,推测其可能是在后期脆性裂隙中由于流体活动所新形成的。因此,成矿可能经历了两个阶段,即早期的韧性剪切变形阶段导致金的初步富集,后期叠加的脆性破裂阶段形成具有工业品位的矿体。另外,无矿超糜棱岩的石英含量（29.8%）明显低于糜棱岩（44.2%）,推测在形成石英脉型矿体过程中,部分热液可能来自于其围岩超糜棱岩。因此,相对于初糜棱岩和糜棱岩,超糜棱岩中更有利于金矿的形成。     

The 1974 spill of the Bouchard 65 oil barge: petroleum hydrocarbons persist in Winsor Cove salt marsh sediments

Petroleum hydrocarbons persist in salt marsh sediments in Winsor Cove (Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts) impacted from the 1974 spill of No. 2 fuel oil by the barge Bouchard 65. Intertidal sediment cores were collected from 2001 to 2005 and analyzed for total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPHs). TPHs content was greatest (as high as 8.7 mg g(-1) dry weight) in the surface sediments and decreased with distance landward. Select samples were analyzed for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) with values as high as 16.7 microg g(-1) for total naphthalenes and phenanthrenes/anthracenes. These remaining PAHs are mainly C(4)-naphthalenes and C(1)-, C(2)-, and C(3)-phenanthrenes/anthracenes revealing preferential loss of almost all of the naphthalenes and the parent compound phenanthrene. Inspection of the data indicates that biodegradation, water-washing and evaporation were major removal processes for many of the petroleum hydrocarbons in the marsh sediments. In addition, historical data and photographs combined with their recent counterparts indicate that erosion has physically removed these contaminants from this site.     

1：50000数据库的更新服务数据库系统设计与实现

1：50000数据库的更新工程数据库服务系统是以1：50000数据库更新成果为基础．建立了一个基于B／S结构的服务系统,满足更新数据快速发布、浏览、应急服务等需求。本文介绍了陔系统的设计思想、系统总体架构、数据库设计与建库、软件功能设计与实现,为其他地理信息数据系统建设提供借豁。     

交通枢纽的空间演进与发展机理

长时间序列的交通枢纽空间分布格局的演进规律,一直是国内外交通地理学有待解决的问题。考察交通枢纽的长期演变规律,有助于把握交通枢纽的发展机理,为空间优化提供科学支撑。对秦汉时期以来中国交通枢纽分布格局的发展过程与空间特征进行系统解析,认为存在秦汉至南北朝、隋唐、宋朝至辽金时期、元明、清朝、民国至今等6个阶段。基于中国不同历史阶段交通枢纽的发展轨迹,总结了交通枢纽的基本形成条件和空间演变的一般过程,并对交通枢纽的生命周期进行了分析,在此基础上,深入研究了交通枢纽的基本发展模式,系统总结了中国交通枢纽空间布局的基本形态。相关研究既是对交通枢纽研究的理论完善,也是中国交通枢纽布局规划的理论基础。     

The 8.2 ka event: Evidence for seasonal differences and the rate of climate change in western Europe

Recent studies have drawn attention to differences in the seasonal impact of the 8.2 ka event, with longer cooler summers and shorter cooler/drier winters. However, there are no data available on the simultaneity or the rate of onset of the seasonal changes in Europe. Based on the microfacies and geochemical analyses of seasonally laminated varved sediments from Holzmaar, we present evidence of differences in duration and onset time of changes in summer temperature and winter rainfall during the 8.2 ka event. Since both summer and winter climate signals are co-registered within a single varve, there can be no ambiguity about the phasing and duration of the signals. Our data show that the onset and withdrawal of the 8.2 ka summer cooling occurred within a year, and that summer rains were reduced or absent during the investigated period. The onset of cooler summers preceded the onset of winter dryness by ca. 28 years. In view of the differences in nature and duration of the impact of the 8.2 ka event we suggest that a clearer definition of the 8.2 ka event (summer cooling or winter cooling/dryness) needs to be developed. Based on regional comparison and available modelling studies we also discuss the roles of solar variability, changes in North Atlantic Thermohaline circulation, and North Atlantic Circulation (NAO) during the period under consideration. Wavelet analyses of seasonal laminae indicates that the longer NAO cycles, linked to changes in the N. Atlantic temperatures, were more frequent during the drier periods.     

≥3700 Ma pre-metamorphic dolomite formed by microbial mediation in the Isua supracrustal belt (W. Greenland): Simple evidence for early life?

Chemical (meta)sedimentary rocks in the amphibolite facies ≥3700 Ma Isua supracrustal belt (W. Greenland) are mostly strongly deformed, so there is only a small chance of the survival of features such as stromatolites or microfossils that would be direct proof of a ≥3700 Ma biosphere. Therefore the search for evidence of ≥3700 Ma life in Isua rocks has focused on chemical signatures, particularly C-isotopes. The new approach presented here is based on whole rock chemistry rather than isotopic signatures. Isua chemical sedimentary rocks have Ca–Mg–Fe bulk compositions that coincide with ferroan dolomite – siderite/Fe-oxide mixtures. Most have low Al₂O₃, TiO₂ contents (<0.5 and <0.05 wt% respectively) showing minimal contamination from terriginous materials. Identical seawater-like REE + Y shale-normalised trace element signatures with La, Ce, Eu and Y positive anomalies are found in magnetite-rich banded iron formation (BIF – such as the geochemical standard IF-G), dolomite-rich rocks and quartz–carbonate–calc-silicate rocks. Additionally from a rare, small area of low deformation in Isua, there are ∼3700 Ma pillow lava interstices consisting of quartz + tremolite + calcite derived from pre-metamorphic dolomite + silica. Thus the dolomite in the chemical sediments and the pillow interstice was part of the pre-metamorphic assemblage, and was deposited from seawater and/or low-temperature groundwater (as shown by the REE + Y chemistry). Therefore, at least some Isua carbonate rocks are sedimentary or diagenetic in origin rather than being formed by metasomatism at 600–500 °C as proposed by Rose et al. (1996. American Journal of Science 296, 1004–1044).     

Tephrochronological dating of varved interglacial lake deposits from Piànico‐Sèllere (Southern Alps,Italy) to around 400 ka

The sediment record from the Piànico palaeolake in the southern Alps is continuously varved, spans more than 15 500 years, and represents a key archive for interglacial climate variability at seasonal resolution. The stratigraphic position of the Piànico Interglacial has been controversial in the past. The identification of two volcanic ash layers and their microscopic analysis provides distinct marker layers for tephrochronological dating of these interglacial deposits. In addition to micro‐facies analyses reconstructing depositional processes of both tephra layers within the lake environment, their mineralogical and geochemical composition has been determined through major‐element electron probe micro‐analysis on glass shards. Comparison with published tephra data traced the volcanic source regions of the Piànico tephras to the Campanian volcanic complex of Roccamonfina (Italy) and probably the Puy de Sancy volcano in the French Massif Central. Available dating of near‐vent deposits from the Roccamonfina volcano provides a robust tephrochronological anchor point at around 400 ka for the Piànico Interglacial. These deposits correlate with marine oxygen isotope stage (MIS) 11 and thus are younger than Early to Middle Pleistocene previously suggested by K/Ar dating and older than the last interglacial as inferred from macrofloral remains and the geological setting. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.