A remote sensing environmental study of Haiko Bay——Ⅰ Tidal influx and its changes

Through the water areas extracted from remote sensing images and the combination of the methods for establishing the formula for calculating tidal influx with tidal data, the tidal influx of the Haikou Bay, Hainan Province was found to be 5.14×10⁷m³ in 1990, 5.80×10⁷m³ in 1984 and 5.05×10⁷m³ in 1965, respectively.After the analysis of the morphological and tidal range factors which determine tidal influx, this paper presents the trend of the changes in tidal influx caused by the changes in the morphological factors of the Haikou Bay.It is found that a decreasing trend was shown with a depressive rate of 2×10^-3during the period from 1965 to 1984, and an increasing trend with an incremental rate of 1×10^-3 during the period of 1984-1990.The main reason for the appearance of the decreasing trend before 1984 is the natural deposition and silting-up of the bay sediments; after 1984, the dredging and expansion of the Haikou Port and the Haikou New Port which caused an increase in water area at the mean low tide are the leading factor which causes the increase in tidal influx.     

Biogeochemical patterns in the Atlantic Inflow through the Strait of Gibraltar

The effects of tidal forcing on the biogeochemical patterns of surface water masses flowing through the Strait of Gibraltar are studied by monitoring the Atlantic Inflow (AI) during both spring and neap tides. Three main phenomena are defined depending on the strength of the outflowing phase predicted over the Camarinal Sill: non-wave events (a very frequent phenomenon during the whole year); type I Internal wave events (a very energetic event, occurring during spring tides); and type II Internal wave events (less intense, occurring during neap tides).During neap tides, a non-wave event comprising oligotrophic open-ocean water from the Gulf of Cádiz is the most frequent and clearly dominant flow through the Strait. In this tidal condition, the inflow of North Atlantic Central Water (NACW) provides the main nutrient input to the surface layer of the Alboran Sea, supplying almost 70% of total annual nitrate transport to the Mediterranean basin. A low percentage of active and large phytoplankton cells and low average concentrations of chlorophyll (0.3–0.4 mg m⁻³) are found in this tidal phase. Around 50% of total annual phytoplankton biomass transport into the Mediterranean Sea through the Strait presents these oligotrophic characteristics.In contrast, during spring tides, patches of water with high chlorophyll levels (0.7–1 mg m⁻³) arrive intermittently, and these are recorded concurrently with the passage of internal waves coming from the Camarinal Sill (type I internal wave events). When large internal waves are arrested over the Camarinal Sill this implies strong interfacial mixing and the probable concurrent injection of coastal waters into the main channel of the Strait. These processes result in a mixed water column in the AI and can account for around 30% of total annual nitrate transport into the Mediterranean basin. Associated with type I internal wave events there is a regular inflow of large and active phytoplankton cells, transported in waters with relatively high nutrient concentrations, which constitutes a significant supply of planktonic resources to the pelagic ecosystem of the Alboran Sea (almost 30% of total annual phytoplankton biomass transport).     

Observations and simulations of an unsteady island wake in the Firth of Forth, Scotland

Beamer Rock, a 50-m-wide island in the Firth of Forth, produces a distinctive von Kármán vortex street wake, the characteristics of which depend on the speed and direction of the tidal flow. ADCP (acoustic Doppler current profiler), CTD (conductivity–temperature–depth) and aerial photograph data were collected from the region during flood and ebb tidal flow under neap and spring conditions. Good agreement was found between the observations and the results from a fixed-grid depth-averaged numerical tidal model. The island wake parameter correctly predicted the unsteady nature of the wake, and the Strouhal number (defined in terms of flow past a circular cylinder) was found to give excellent predictions of the wake wavelength when scaled on the island width. Contrary to published results, the study shows that it is possible to accurately simulate an unsteady island wake using a relatively coarse fixed-grid numerical model.Responsible Editor: Jens Kappenberg     

A model for grain-size sorting over tidal sand ridges

A model was developed and analyzed to quantify the effect of graded sediment on the formation of tidal sand ridges. Field data reveal coarse (fine) sediment at the crests (in the troughs), but often phase shifts between the mean grain-size distribution and the bottom topography occur. Following earlier work, this study is based on a linear stability analysis of a basic state with respect to small bottom perturbations. The basic state describes an alongshore tidal current on a coastal shelf. Sediment is transported as bed load and dynamic hiding effects are accounted for. A one-layer model for the bed evolution is used and two grain size classes (fine and coarse sand) are considered. Results indicate an increase in growth and migration rates of tidal sand ridges for a bimodal mixture, whilst the wavelength of the ridges remains unchanged. A symmetrical externally forced tidal current results in a grain-size distribution which is in phase with the ridges. Incorporation of an additional external M₄ tidal constituent or a steady current results in a phase shift between the grain-size distribution and ridge topography. These results show a general agreement with observations. The physical mechanism responsible for the observed grain-size distribution over the ridges is also discussed.Responsible Editor: Jens Kappenberg     

淮南深地重力观测的环境噪声评估与慢地震探测潜力

深地实验室的低噪声特性为高精度连续重力观测提供了理想的外部条件.为了揭示深地观测环境对重力观测精度的提升效果,本研究利用CG-5型和CG-6型各两台重力仪,在淮南煤矿的地下和地表同时开展重力观测.为减小仪器性能差异对结果的影响,先在淮北重力站进行同址观测.研究结果表明,相比于地表观测,地下观测可以减少1/3至1/2的线性漂移和1/3左右的非线性漂移,提取的潮汐因子精度也更高.地下非线性漂移的功率谱密度比地表低,二者差异在半日波频段最大可达15 dB.相比于地表和山洞,深地观测在次地震频段有明显的低噪声优势.地震位错理论计算结果表明,冲绳海沟7级左右的地震可在淮南深地试验场产生大约0.003 μGal的重力变化,超过0.001 μGal的超导重力静态观测精度.因此有望利用淮南深地实验室,在次地震频段的低噪声优势环境下开展超导连续重力观测,捕捉冲绳海沟可能存在的7级以上慢地震事件.

     

Observations of resuspended diatoms in the turbid tidal edge

Observations of resuspended diatoms in the shallow waters (<60 cm) of the turbid tidal edge are described for single sites on two tidal flats–the Molenplaat in the Westerschelde estuary, and the Hond in the Ems-Dollard estuary, The Netherlands. High concentrations of chlorophyll-a (chl-a) were observed in the trailing edge of the ebbing tide in water depths of <20 cm, after which concentrations decreased markedly. Peak mean values were 19 μg chl-a l⁻¹ in 10 cm of water at the Molenplaat, and 45 μg chl-a l⁻¹ in 5 cm of water at the Hond. Similar trends were observed on the flooding tide, although peak values were far less pronounced (6 and 30 μg chl-a l⁻¹ respectively). Microscopic examination of the diatom community within the turbid tidal edge at the Molenplaat revealed that peaks in biomass were caused by suspended benthic diatoms, as well as the large centric diatom Coscinodiscus sp., particularly on the ebb tide. Planktonic diatoms other than Coscinodiscus sp. were more randomly distributed and did not appear to follow any particular trend. It would seem that as the tide recedes, resuspended benthic diatoms and large Coscinodiscus sp. cells become concentrated in the shallow water. However, the virtual absence of Coscinodiscus sp. from the leading edge of the flooding tide suggests that most of the resuspended cells do not settle to the seabed, but are washed away into the channels. The small peak of benthic diatoms at the leading edge of the flood tide is most likely resuspended locally from the sediment, along with large numbers of diatom frustules.     

Impact of mega-scale sand extraction on tidal dynamics in semi-enclosed basins: An idealized model study with application to the Southern North Sea

Long-term considerations of repeated and increasing sand extraction on the Netherlands Continental Shelf (North Sea) may lead to the creation of a mega-scale extraction trench in front of the Dutch coast (length hundreds of km, width over 10 km, depth several m). We investigate the impact of such a huge topographic intervention on tidal dynamics, which is a key aspect in hydrodynamics, and indirectly also affecting morphodynamics and ecology.     

分潮波模型多资料数值计算方法研究 Ⅰ.岸边资料运动学外推的第一边值方法

对于含多资料三维分潮波模型建立了一种岸边资料运动学外推的潮波第一边值方法，并对渤海的四大原湖波进行试算。结果证实本方法可行，该方法使潮波方程既满足第一边值问题，充分利用岸边测站资料，又保证岸界法向流速为零条件，符合物理意义。并对复型病态矩阵的收敛问题提出了一种可行性处理。     

Spatial Variation of Sea Level Trend Along the Bangladesh Coast

The Bangladesh coast is threatened by rising sea level due to various factors. The results based on the analysis of past 22 years of tidal data of the Bangladesh coast reveal that the annual mean tidal level in the eastern Bangladesh coast is rising at an alarmingly high rate of 7.8 mm/year, which is almost twice the observed rate in the western region. This type of sea level trend seems to be the result of changing local conditions like increased precipitation and land subsidence during the recent decades. It seems that the higher rate of land subsidence in the eastern Bangladesh coast is the main causative factor for the steeper sea level trends there. The differential sea level trends show that the subsidence component in the sea level rise may be as high as 4 mm/year in the eastern Bangladesh coast. However, this needs to be verified with actual geological observations.     

Progressive grain-size sorting along an intertidal energy gradient

Along a 2 km NW-SE transect along the energy gradient of an intertidal sand body of the back-barrier tidal flats of Spiekeroog island (German Wadden Sea, southern North Sea), three sets of closely spaced surface sediment samples were taken at different times to investigate whether the effects of progressive size sorting could be identified in the textural parameters and size-frequency curves of the sediments. Grain-sizes analyses were carried out with a high-resolution settling tube having an internal resolution of 1/50-psi intervals. The settling velocity data were subsequently transformed numerically into equivalent settling diameters on the basis of a quartz sphere standard. At this high resolution, it was possible to visualize subtle changes in textural parameters which would not have been resolved by standard 0.25-phi sieve analyses. The first two sample sets of 1992 and 1994 show similar trends of progressive fining in the sediment, combined with a slight decrease in skewness and sorting in the direction of decreasing energy. Ten years later, in 2003, the sediments were slightly coarser but still reflected the hydrodynamic energy gradient by a distinct fining trend along the transect. However, in contrast to the former data sets, the skewness values now remained constant, whereas the sorting values revealed the existence of two overlapping hydrodynamic energy regimes on the tidal flat. The better sorting in the coarser size fractions and the general coarsening trend in the central part of the tidal flat are interpreted to reflect an increase in the hydrodynamic energy level since the first two sample sets were collected. This observation suggests that some of the finer particles in the grain-size spectrum on the tidal flat were winnowed out by wave action without, however, completely obliterating the former trend. This interpretation is supported by an increase in the frequency and duration of strong winds as recorded by the national weather bureau since the early 1990s. The results of the study demonstrate that the intertidal sediments of the Wadden Sea respond rapidly and sensitively to gradual changes in the hydrodynamic energy regime.