Recent satellite-derived sea ice volume flux through the Fram Strait: 2011–2015

The Fram Strait(FS) is the primary region of sea ice export from the Arctic Ocean and thus plays an important role in regulating the amount of sea ice and fresh water entering the North Atlantic seas. A 5 a(2011–2015) sea ice thickness record retrieved from Cryo Sat-2 observations is used to derive a sea ice volume flux via the FS. Over this period, a mean winter accumulative volume flux(WAVF) based on sea ice drift data derived from passivemicrowave measurements, which are provided by the National Snow and Ice Data Center(NSIDC) and the Institut Francais de Recherche pour d'Exploitation de la Mer(IFREMER), amounts to 1 029 km~3(NSIDC) and1 463 km~3(IFREMER), respectively. For this period, a mean monthly volume flux(area flux) difference between the estimates derived from the NSIDC and IFREMER drift data is –62 km~3 per month(–18×10~6 km~2 per month).Analysis reveals that this negative bias is mainly attributable to faster IFREMER drift speeds in comparison with slower NSIDC drift data. NSIDC-based sea ice volume flux estimates are compared with the results from the University of Bremen(UB), and the two products agree relatively well with a mean monthly bias of(5.7±45.9) km~3 per month for the period from January 2011 to August 2013. IFREMER-based volume flux is also in good agreement with previous results of the 1990 s. Compared with P1(1990/1991–1993/1994) and P2(2003/2004–2007/2008), the WAVF estimates indicate a decline of more than 600 km~3 in P3(2011/2012–2014/2015). Over the three periods, the variability and the decline in the sea ice volume flux are mainly attributable to sea ice motion changes, and second to sea ice thickness changes, and the least to sea ice concentration variations.     

The Southwest Atlantic intertidal burrowing crab Neohelice granulata modifies nutrient loads of phreatic waters entering coastal area

Along the coastal areas of the Southwest Atlantic estuaries and embayments, phreatic water often circulates through very extended areas (up to several hundred meters perpendicular to the coast), dominated by dense assemblages of deep burrows of the crab Neohelice granulata (formerly Chasmagnathus granulatus). This crab inhabits the intertidal area, from mudflats to marshes vegetated by species of Spartina, Sarcocornia and Juncus, generating extensive burrowing beds where burrow density may reach up to 60 burrows m⁻². Since the lower limit of the crab burrows is usually the water table, we investigated through field experiments the effect of N. granulata and their burrows on the chemical characteristics of this phreatic water. Water analysis from experimental (1) occupied burrows (with crabs), (2) unoccupied burrows (where crabs were excluded), and (3) sediment pore water show remarkable differences. Water oxygenation, and nitrate, ammonium and sulphate concentrations inside occupied burrows were higher than in the water inside unoccupied burrows or pore waters. Moreover, directed sampling of phreatic water entering and leaving the crab bed, shows that dissolved inorganic nitrogen concentration is enhanced as the water crosses the crab bed. These results may be ascribed to the fact that in the salt marsh the crabs spend most of their time within burrows, where presumably they store food (plants) and defecate. These activities generate an area of accumulation of excrements and nutrients in different decomposition states. The present work shows a novel way by which bioturbating organisms can affect nutrients exportation from salt marshes to the open waters.     

Low-frequency flux-density measurements and spectral features of millisecond pulsars

Radio flux-density measurements for a large sample of millisecond pulsars at a low frequency of 102 MHz are presented. Using higher frequency measurements, we construct their spectra in the frequency range from 102 MHz to 4.8 GHz, the widest one studied to date. The spectra of millisecond and normal pulsars have been found to differ. The spectra of millisecond pulsars have no low-frequency turnover typical of normal pulsars. The absence of a low-frequency turnover in the spectrum suggests that the emitting regions of millisecond and normal pulsars differ in geometry, which we interpret by deviation of the magnetic field from a dipole one or by compactness of the emitting region.     

马克兰增生楔自生碳酸盐岩与水合物——以2007年流星号M74/3航次调查报告为例

为了探讨马克兰增生楔自生碳酸盐岩与水合物的关系,对2007年流星号的M74/3航次资料进行了总结。结果显示,自生碳酸盐岩与水合物并非一一对应的关系。对于甲烷通量很大的海区,海底和浅表层沉积物中通常没有自生碳酸盐岩,但是可以存在水合物。对于甲烷通量较高的海区,如果海底或浅表层沉积物中存在少量且小块的自生碳酸盐岩,通常沉积物中存在水合物;如果海底或浅表层沉积物中存在大量且大块的自生碳酸盐岩,通常浅表层沉积物中没有水合物,但就目前的资料,尚不能确定其深部是否存在水合物。对于甲烷通量很弱的海区,沉积地层表现为纹层状结构,通常既没有自生碳酸盐岩,也没有水合物。     

Far infrared emission from three new planetary nebulae

As dust emission in the far infrared (FIR) is a characteristic property of planetary nebulae we searched the Infrared Astronomical Satellite (IRAS) point-source catalogue for confirmatory evidence on the two new possible planetary nebulae S 68 and 248 - 5 identified by Fesen, Gull & Heckathorn (1983) and the high-excitation planetary nebula 76 + 36 detected by Sanduleak (1983). We identify the nebulae 248 - 5 and 76 + 36 with IRAS sources 07404 - 3240 and 17125 + 4919, respectively and have determined their dust temperature, total FIR emission and optical depth. We also set a lower limit ranging in value from 1.2 × 10^-6 to 3.7 × 10^-5 forM _dust /M _bd of the nebula 248 - 5 depending on whether its grain material is silicate or graphite. S 68 could not be identified with an IRAS source.     

Anomalous Emissions of SO2 During the Recent Eruption of Santa Ana Volcano, El Salvador, Central America

Santa Ana volcano in western El Salvador, Central America, had a phreatic eruption at 8:05 am (local time) on October 1, 2005, 101 years after its last eruption. However, during the last one hundred years this volcano has presented periods of quiet degassing with fumarolic activity and an acidic lake within its crater. This paper presents results of frequent measurements of SO₂ degassing using the MiniDOAS (Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy) system and a comparison with the volcanic seismicity prior to the eruption, during, and after the eruption. Vehicle measurements of SO₂ flux were taken every hour during the first nine days of the eruption and daily after that. The period of time reported here is from August to December, 2005. Three periods of degassing are distinguished: pre-eruptive, eruptive, and post-eruptive periods. The intense activity at Santa Ana volcano started in July 2005. During the pre-eruptive period up to 4306 and 5154 ton/day of SO₂ flux were recorded on October 24 and September 9, 2005, respectively. These values were of the same order of magnitude as the recorded values just after the October 1^st eruption (2925 ton/day at 10:01 am). Hourly measurements of SO₂ flux taken during the first nine days after the main eruptive event indicate that explosions are preceded by an increase in SO₂ flux and that this parameter reaches a peak after the explosion took place. This behavior suggests that increasing accumulation of exsolved magmatic gases occurs within the magmatic chamber before the explosions, increasing the pressure until the point of explosion. A correlation between SO₂ fluxes and RSAM (Real Time Seismic Amplitude Measurements) is observed during the complete sampling period. Periodic fluctuations in the SO₂ and RSAM values during the entire study period are observed. One possible mechanism explaining these fluctuations it that convective circulation within the magmatic chamber can bring fresh magma periodically to shallow levels, allowing increasing degasification and then decreasing degasification as the batch of magma lowers its gas content, becomes denser, and sinks to give space to a new magma pulse. These results illustrate that the measurements of SO₂ flux can provide important warning signals for incoming explosive activity in active volcanoes.     

On the variability of vertical eddy heat flux in the upper ocean

Ocean eddies produce strong vertical heat flux (VHF) in the upper ocean, exerting profound influences on the climate and ecosystem. Currently, mooring array provides a standard way to estimate the eddy-induced VHF (EVHF) based on the adiabatic potential density equation. Apart from the validity of adiabatic assumption, it remains unclear to what extent the estimated EVHF at a single location within a limited time period is representative of its climatological mean value. In this study, we analyzed the above issue by systematically evaluating the variability of EVHF simulated by a 1-km ocean model configured over the Kuroshio Extension. It is found that the EVHF at a single location exhibits pronounced variability. Even averaged over one year that is comparable to the current maintenance capacity of mooring array, the EVHF still deviates significantly from its climatological mean value. For more than 49% of locations in our computational domain (31°–40°N, 149°–166°E), the discrepancy between the one-year mean EVHF and its climatological mean value at the peaking depth is larger than the climatological mean itself. The mesoscale eddies play a dominant role in the variability of EVHF but contribute little to the climatological mean EVHF; the opposite is true for submesoscale eddies. Our findings indicate that nested mooring array allowing for isolating the effects of submesoscale eddies will be useful to obtain climatological mean EVHF.     

The partial pressure of carbon dioxide and air-sea fluxes in the Changjiang River Estuary and adjacent Hangzhou Bay

The distributions of partial pressure of carbon dioxide (p CO2 ) in the surface waters of the Changjiang River Estuary and adjacent Hangzhou Bay were examined in the summer of 2010. Surface water p CO2 ranged from 751-2 095 μatm (1 atm=101 325 Pa) in the inner estuary, 177-1 036 μatm in the outer estuary, and 498-1 166 μatm in Hangzhou Bay. Overall, surface p CO2 behaved conservatively during the estuary mixing. In the inner estuary, surface p CO2 was relatively high due to urbanized pollution and a high respiration rate. The lowest p CO2 was observed in the outer estuary, which was apparently induced by a phytoplankton bloom because the dissolved oxygen and chlorophyll a were very high. The Changjiang River Estuary was a significant source of atmospheric CO2 and the degassing fluxes were estimated as 0-230 mmol/(m2 d) [61 mmol/(m2 d) on average] in the inner estuary. In contrast, the outer estuary acted as a CO2 sink.     

通量差分裂格式的二维水流水质计算的适用性分析

将通量差分裂(FDS)格式应用于二维水流水质数值模拟中.应用若干理想条件下的简化模型对格式的计算精度进行分析,结果表明:FDS格式不仅能高精度地模拟浓度梯度较缓的污染物稳定排放情况,且其二阶格式能高分辨率捕俘水质间断,与理论值吻合很好,说明FDS二阶格式能高精度地计算污染物间断排放引起的大浓度梯度或水质突跃情况.该格式在长江南通江段水环境数值模拟中的应用验证了它的实际应用能力.