Sea-level fluctuations in a coastal lagoon

Sea-level observations made during December, 1979, at six stations in Great South Bay (which is a coastal lagoon on the south shore of Long Island, New York) reveal that there were significant subtidal fluctuations in addition to the tidal oscillations. Harmonic analysis of the tidal oscillations of sea level indicates that M₂ is the dominant tidal constituent. The M₂ amplitude, however, suffered a more than 50% reduction in the interior of the Bay due largely to the narrow inlet. The subtidal sea level fluctuations within the Bay were forced primarily by the low-frequency fluctuations of the adjacent shelf water. The active subtidal exchange induced by this Bay-shelf coupling appeared to have suffered only minor attenuation within the Bay. As a consequence, the variance associated with subtidal sea level fluctuations was greater than that associated with the tidal oscillations over most of Great South Bay.     

Seasonal methyltin and (3-dimethylsulphonio)propionate concentrations in leaf tissue of Spartina alterniflora of the Great Bay estuary (NH)

Concentrations of total recoverable inorganic tin (TRISn), monomethyltin (MeSn³⁺), dimethyltin (Me₂Sn²⁺), trimethyltin (Me₃Sn⁺) and (3-dimethylsulphonio)propionate (DMSP) were determined in leaves of Spartina alterniflora from three sites in the Great Bay estuary (NH) from 8 May to 15 September 1989. Total methyltin concentration increased from 8·9 ng g⁻¹ (fresh weight) on 8 May to 472 ng g⁻¹ on 23 May, decreased to 52 ng g⁻¹ on 7 June and 16ng g⁻¹ on 20 June, and remained low until the last sample on 18 September. Statistical calculations showed that methyltin concentrations varied significantly with sampling week, but not with site. DMSP concentrations showed very different behaviour. During the same sampling period DMSP concentrations varied only from 7·5 to 26 μmol g⁻¹ (fresh weight). DMSP concentrations varied significantly for site, but not sampling week.     

Shoreline variability via empirical orthogonal function analysis: Part I temporal and spatial characteristics

Empirical orthogonal functions (EOFs) or principal components were used to extract the significant modes of shoreline variability from several data sets collected at three very different locations. Although EOFs have proven to be a valuable tool in the analysis of nearshore data, most applications have focused on the ability of the technique to describe cross-shore or profile variability. Here however, EOFs were used to help identify the dominant modes of longshore shoreline variability at Duck, North Carolina, the Gold Coast, Australia, and at several locations within the Columbia River Littoral Cell in the U.S. Pacific Northwest. In part one of this analysis, characteristic patterns of shoreline variability identified by the EOF analysis are described in detail. At each site, the dominant modes consisting of the first four eigenfunctions were found to describe nearly 95% of the total shoreline variability. At both Duck and the Gold Coast, several interesting longshore periodic features suggestive of sand waves were identified, while boundary effects related to natural headlands and navigational structures/entrances dominated the Pacific Northwest data sets.     

Periodicities in the time series of annual minimum temperatures for the United States Gulf Coast region

The minimum winter temperature series for the United States Gulf Coast for 1799–1988 (190 values) was subjected to Maximum Entropy Spectral Analysis. Significant periodicities in the QBO region (T-2–3 years) and atT=3.7, 4.5, 5.5, 6.5, 7.5, 12.9, 15.5 and 22 years were detected. Some of these were present in the first half only (1799–1893) while others in the latter half only (1894–1988), indicating a transient nature. Also, more than 50% of the variance was random. Many of the significant periodicities are seen in other geophysical parameters. Some may be harmonics of the 11-year sunspot cycle and the 22-year Hale magnetic sunspot cycle.     

A review of landsliding and coastal erosion damage to historic fortifications in South East England

Coastal fortifications in South East England have been continuously built and rebuilt over the centuries according to the ebb and flow of politics in Europe. This paper covers an extensive historical period from the influx of the Romans to the present day, detailing how landslides and coastal erosion have affected the numerous constructions along this stretch of coastline. Principal landslide-prone strata form extensive sections of this part of the coast with the tendency to be weak and highly susceptible to marine attack and cliff retreat. Fortifications have been built out of necessity in strategic positions without full consideration of the ground upon which they have been constructed. The continual construction of fortifications along this section of coastline constitutes an unparalleled archaeological record, but it is one that is under continuous threat from coastal erosion and landsliding.     

一次造成乌鲁木齐市电网瑶线铁塔倒塌事故的气象原因分析

为了解2004年11月24日乌鲁木齐市两座电网瑶线铁塔倒塌事故的气象原因，通过实地调查，并对高低空环流形势场、加密气象站信息等进行了分析。结果表明，乌鲁木齐地区不同地理位置风速差异很大，红雁池和头屯河区瞬间极大风速分别比市区大12．8m／s和18．4m／s。纠正了过去认为东南大风的强中心只出现在红雁池附近的说法，为今后制作大风分区预报提供了参考，也可为城区高层建筑及相关设计规范的修正提供借鉴。     

Problems with argon: K-Ar ages in Gulf Coast shales

K-Ar ages of Gulf Coast shales do not correspond to diagenetic ‘events’, but are a combination of inherited detrital ages and authigenic overprints. The key to understanding K-Ar ages of shales is the fate of the ⁴⁰Ar when the host minerals dissolve or react during the illitisation reaction: is ⁴⁰Ar incorporated within the illite, or is it lost to the porewaters? Ages are modelled as due to a single illitisation reaction, assuming a uniform precursor sediment and open-system import of K. Both whole-rock and clay mineral fraction data can be reproduced by modelling. The ⁴⁰Ar incorporated into illite is a surprisingly high proportion (75-100%) of that produced within detrital phases (smectite, K-feldspar, mica), perhaps implying that the illitisation reaction is a solid-state transformation, or that ⁴⁰Ar is imported into the shales along with incoming K. The model does not provide a good fit to the data below 4000 m, when the illitisation reaction is apparently complete, but shales lose ⁴⁰Ar by solid-state diffusion or recrystallisation.     

Rethinking Precolonial Plant Cultivation on the Northwest Coast of North America

The indigenous peoples of the Northwest Coast of North America are widely believed to have been true “hunter‐fisher‐gatherers,” lacking plant cultivation of any kind. This depiction of the region's indigenous inhabitants emerged within early colonial accounts and was perpetuated within the literatures of geography, anthropology, and archaeology. Still, there is ample evidence of plant cultivation available from archival, archaeological, and ethnographic sources. In particular, the peoples of coastal British Columbia created large gardens of edible estuarine plants, using sophisticated indigenous technologies. The oversight of these practices in written representations of the region reveals consistent patterns of bias, emanating from the agendas of colonial agents and early academics alike. In turn, this bias has undermined aboriginal traditions of cultivation and indigenous land claims.     

Lithology and palynology of Neogene sediments on the narrow edge of the Kitakami Massif (basement rocks), northeast Japan: Significant change for depositional environments as a result of plate tectonics

Abstract A controversial stratigraphic section, the Taneichi Formation, is exposed along the Pacific Coast of northeastern Honshu, the main island of the Japanese Archipelago. Although most sediments of the formation have long been dated as late Cretaceous, the northern section of it has been assigned to (i) the Upper Cretaceous; (ii) the Paleogene; or (iii) the Neogene. In the present report, we present the data of palynological and sedimentological studies, showing that the northern section should be assigned to the Neogene. A more important point in the present study is that we invoke some basic principles of fluvial sedimentology to resolve this stratigraphic subject. The lignite layers full of Paleogene–Miocene dinoflagellate cysts and pollen assemblages drape over the boulder‐sized (>40 cm in diameter) clasts in the northern section. However, the layers totally consist of aggregates of small lignite chips, indicating that the lignites are allochthonous materials. The mega‐clasts with derived microfossils in the lignites are thought to have been deposited as Neogene fluvial (flood) sediments in the newly formed Japanese Archipelago. Prior to the Miocene, the northern Honshu was part of the Eurasian Plate, thus the boulder‐sized clasts cannot be envisaged as long river flood deposits along the continental Paleogene Pacific Coast. Instead, the mega‐clasts with the draping lignites were probably derived from nearby Miocene highlands in the newly born island arc.     

东南沿海地震区地震活动特性与未来趋势分析

根据地震资料，对东南沿海地震区地震活动特下及未来趋势进行了初步分析与研究，结果表明：（１）从地震活动轮回分析，东南沿海地震区从１９５９年开始的第五个轮回中的地震活动时段，估计将延续到２０３１年前后结束，而后转入本轮回的平静时段；（２）２０００年以前，研究区有可能发生１次Ｍｓ≥６．０地震，到２００５到则最多发生２次；（３）东南沿海地震区下一次发生Ｍｓ≥６．０地震的地区可能在河源－邵武地震带上，尤其可