Effects of winds,tides and storm surges on ocean surface waves in the Sea of Japan

Ocean surface waves are strongly forced by high wind conditions associated with winter storms in the Sea of Japan. They are also modulated by tides and storm surges. The effects of the variability in surface wind forcing, tides and storm surges on the waves are investigated using a wave model, a high-resolution atmospheric mesoscale model and a hydrodynamic ocean circulation model. Five month-long wave model simulations are inducted to examine the sensitivity of ocean waves to various wind forcing fields, tides and storm surges during January 1997. Compared with observed mean wave parameters, results indicate that the high frequency variability in the surface wind filed has very great effect on wave simulation. Tides and storm surges have a significant impact on the waves in nearshores of the Tsushima-kaihyō, but not for other regions in the Sea of Japan. High spatial and temporal resolution and good quality surface wind products will be crucial for the prediction of surface waves in the JES and other marginal seas, especially near the coastal regions.     

El Niño对东亚气候年际异常影响的数值模拟

根据1949~1998年期间8次显著El Niño事件合成的24个月年际海温异常(SSTAs)和气候平均的海温(SST),利用CCM3分别进行了3个包含10次积分的集合试验,即控制试验(CTRL),热带太平洋海洋全球大气试验(TOGA)以及整个太平洋海洋全球大气试验(TOGA-NP),通过对比分析这3个试验之间的集合模拟结果,揭示了在El Niño不同演变阶段东亚气候年际异常响应结构以及北太平洋年际SSTAs在此过程中的调制作用.结果表明:El Niño发展阶段夏季,东亚地区大气环流异常呈显著的负PJ波列,副热带高压减弱、偏东,东亚夏季风增强,东北和江淮流域降水偏多,华北和长江流域及其以南地区降水偏少;El Niño成熟阶段冬季,东亚大槽加强,东亚北部冬季风加强,西太平洋副热带地区低层有显著的反气旋式异常风场,华南地区降水显著增多;El Niño衰亡阶段夏季东亚气候年际异常型与其发展阶段夏季几乎相反.同时,北太平洋年际SSTAs对El Niño影响东亚气候年际异常有一定的调制作用,使模拟的我国降水异常分布更符合观测.     

Sea surface temperature variations in the southwestern South China Sea over the past 160 ka

Sea surface temperatures (SSTs) in the southwestern South China Sea have been reconstructed for the past 160 ka using the Uk37 paleothermometer from the core MD01-2392. The temperature differences between glacial times (MISs 6 and 2) and interglacial times (MISs 5.5 and 1) are 2.2~2.5 ℃. Younger Dryas event during the last deglaciation was documented in both the planktonic foraminiferal δ18O and SST records. After MIS 5.5, SSTs displayed a progressive cooling from 28.6 to 24.5 ℃, culminating at the LGM. During this gradual cooling period, warm events such as MISs 5.3, 5.1 and 3 were also clearly documented. By comparison of SST between the study core and Core 17954, a pattern of low or no meridional SST gradients during the interglacial periods and high meridional SST gradients during the glacial periods was exhibited. This pattern indicates the much stronger East Asian winter monsoon at the glacial than at the interglacial periods. Spectral analysis gives two prominent cycles: 41 and 23 ka, with the former more pronounced, suggesting that SSTs in the southern SCS varied in concert with high-latitude processes through the connection of East Asian winter monsoon.     

Air-Sea Gas Transfer Velocity in Stormy Winter Estimated from Radon Deficiency

Thirteen vertical profiles of ²²⁶Ra and ²²²Rn in the near-surface water were obtained in the western North Pacific in winter, and the gas transfer velocities across the air-sea interface were estimated. The transfer velocities found by applying a steady state model varied widely from 2.1 to 30.2 m day⁻¹ with a mean of 9.4 m day⁻¹. The mean value is almost 5 times higher than that in summer in other oceans, and the maximum value is a record high for world oceans. This is partly due to the inadequacy of the steady state model, which overestimates when stronger winds blow in more recent days than the ²²²Rn half-life of about 4 days. In fact, a strong low pressure zone passed through the station about 2 days earlier, which was one of the low pressure zones that with a period of develop once a week or so in the northwestern North Pacific in winter. Instead of steady-state removal, if half of the radon removal occurred sporadically every 7 days, and the last removal took place two days before the observation, the transfer velocity would be 26 m day⁻¹. Our mean transfer velocity, which is less than 20% different from the steady state value including both overestimated and underestimated values, 9.4 ± 4.8 m day⁻¹, seems to represent the mean state of this region in winter. This suggests that the gas exchange fluxes under extremely rough conditions in the open ocean are larger than those estimated by using a transfer velocity equation with a linear or quadratic relationship with wind speed. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

North Pacific Subtropical Mode Waters Observed in Long XBT Cross Sections along 32.5°N Line

The S/V Shoyo, of the Hydrographic Department, Japan Coast Guard, has conducted high-density expendable bathythermograph (XBT) measurements along the 32.5°N line in the North Pacific every year from 1990 to 1993 as a part of the Japanese-World Ocean Circulation Experiment (WOCE). These XBT data are analyzed here, focusing on year-to-year variations of the inventory and core layer temperature (CLT) of the North Pacific subtropical mode water (NPSTMW). Large year-to-year changes are found in the NPSTMW CLTs estimated in longitudes between 140°E and 160°E. CLT values were found of 17.4°C in 1990, 17.1°C in 1991, 17.3°C in 1992 and 17.6°C in 1993. Inspection of the wintertime westerlies over the formation area and sea surface temperature distribution revealed that this change in CLT can be qualitatively attributed to the strength of atmospheric cooling in the formation area in the previous winter. Although a large year-to-year variation of NPSTMW inventory was also found, it is hard to state any relationship between CLT and atmospheric forcing. There is a possibility that different observational seasons may affect the inventory. It has also been found that the thermocline depth in 1991 was shallower in the sea area east of 180° than in 1992 and 1993. Associated with this change, the North Pacific central mode water (NPCMW), characterized by thermostad with temperatures ranging from 14°C to 11°C, appears in the sea area east of 180° in the 1992 and 1993 cross sections. The 1993 cross section, which ranged from the Japanese coast to the west coast of North America, possessed another thermostad in the surface layer, with a temperature of about 17°C in the eastern part of the cross section, off California. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

南海南部近50万年来沉积物特点及古环境意义

对南海南部MD05-2897孔沉积物的分析显示,该孔涵盖氧同位素1~12期,底界年龄约为50万年。碳酸钙含量曲线形态基本与底栖有孔虫氧同位素曲线平行,即碳酸钙高值对应氧同位素轻值,呈现典型的大西洋型碳酸钙分布模式。碳酸钙含量在冰消期的高值出现及含量变化均领先于氧同位素,证明低纬海区"碳酸钙泵"对大气二氧化碳浓度和温度的作用。粒度分析显示,3~5μm组分含量曲线的变化与氧同位素曲线基本平行,说明它主要受海平面升降变化控制,可作为海平面变化的间接指标。而1.5~2.5μm粒级颗粒主要通过河流的悬浮搬运,直接受亚洲夏季风及其所带来降雨的影响,可间接反映夏季风的强弱变化。南海南部深海沉积中的季风记录具有0.1 Ma偏心率周期,40 ka斜率周期,20 ka岁差和10 ka半岁差周期等丰富的频谱,显示出低纬度海区气候变化对轨道周期的良好响应。     

1998年夏季季风爆发前后南海上层环流的诊断分析

基于1998年南海季风试验（SCSMEX，South China Sea Monsoon Experiment)期间2个强化观测航次（4－5月及6－7）所获温盐深（CTD）资料，利用一个改进逆模式研究了夏季季风爆发前后南海环流的演变特征。诊断计算表明，在此期间南海环流主要表现为两脊两槽型，即越南以东和菲律宾以西呈反气旋式环流，南海北部和南海中部呈气旋式环流。但对局部区域而言，可以发现在季风爆发前后其环流结构有明显的差异。上述计算结果亦与等压面上海水密度分布的定性分析结果及同期观测的ADCP资料进行了比较，结果表明模式计算所得到的南海上层环流主要特征与定性分析结果及实测资料大体一致，诊断结果可作为南海上层季风环流演变机制研究的依据。     

利用卫星遥感资料对南海北部陆架海洋表层温度锋的分析

利用7年(1993～1999)月平均的SST卫星遥感资料，分析了南海北部陆架区域海洋表层温度锋在一年中的逐月变化特征，表明南海北部陆架海洋表层温度锋存在明显的季节内变化。结合风场的卫星遥感资料，分析了东北季风对南海北部陆架温度锋的影响，表明东北季风风速的增加有利于温度锋强度的增强。通过对黑潮南海流套入侵较强的1999年2月与流套入侵较弱的1998年2月的SST卫星遥感资料的对比分析，考察了黑潮南海流套的入侵对南海北部陆架温度锋的影响，结果表明黑潮流套的较强入侵能够增加陆架温度锋的强度，对温度锋的走向也会产生一定的影响。     

Chemical Fluxes of Asian Rivers into Oceans and their Controlling Factors

Chemical fluxes of Asian rivers into oceans bear different regional variations. Three zones are characteristic of distinct dissolved sediment loads and yields and ionic concentration.Rivers into oceans in China play an important role in Asia because of their different chemical fluxes, among which those draining the Loess Plateau have high ionic concentration, low water discharges and dissolved sediment loads and yields.Climate, vegetation, soil and strata lithology, chemical weathering intensity and tectonic activity dominate chemical fluxes of Asian rivers into oceans, and different factors have different effects on the chemical fluxes of separate regional rivers. Rising of the Tibet Plateau also exerts an important influence on chemical compositions of rivers originating from it.     

Consequences of winter upwelling events on biogeochemical and phytoplankton patterns in a western Galician ria (NW Iberian peninsula)

The consequences of two upwelling events in mid- (MW) and late (LW) winter on biogeochemical and phytoplankton patterns were studied in the Pontevedra Ria and compared with the patterns measured under typical winter conditions and under a summer upwelling event. Thermohaline patterns measured during the mid-winter upwelling event (MW-up) revealed the intrusion of saltier seawater (35.9) into the ria associated with the Iberian Poleward Current (IPC). During the late-winter upwelling event (LW-up), the seawater which had welled up into the ria showed characteristics of the Eastern North Atlantic Central Water mass (ENACW). In both cases the measured water residence time (4 days during MW-up and 10 days during LW-up) was related to both meteorological and fluvial forcing. This residence time contrasts with that of summer upwelling (7 days) and with that estimated under unfavorable upwelling atmospheric conditions (2–4 weeks). During MW-up, the ria became poor in nutrients due to continental freshwater dilution, associated with the shorter residence time of the water, and the intrusion of IPC, which is a water body poor in nutrient salts: 2.9 μM of nitrate, 0.1 μM of phosphate and 1.5 μM of silicate. During this event, the ria exported 3.4 mol_DIN s⁻¹, compared with 6.9 mol_DIN s⁻¹ in non-upwelling conditions. Phytoplankton showed a uniform distribution throughout the ria, as during unfavorable upwelling conditions, and was characterized by the dominance of diatoms, mainly Nitzschia longissima and Skeletonema costatum. During LW-up, a nutrient depletion in the photic layer also occurred, but as a result of a phytoplankton spring bloom developing at this time. The ria was a nutrient trap where 4.1 mol_DIN s⁻¹ were processed by photosynthesis. This budget is three times higher than the one under non-upwelling conditions. In contrast with the MW-up, which had no effect on primary production, during LW-up the ria became more productive, although not as productive as during a summer upwelling event (9.9 mol_DIN s⁻¹). The taxonomic composition of the phytoplankton community did not change noticeably during LW-up and the summer upwelling, with the same species present and changing only in relative proportions. Diatoms were always the dominant microphytoplankton community, with Pseudonitzschia pungens, Thalassionema nitzschioides and several species of Chaetoceros as characteristic taxons.