南海夏季风建立的气候特征及其机制的讨论

使用1998年南海季风试验期问高质量资料和NCEP／NCAR40年再分析资料分析了南海季风建立前后的大尺度环流特征和要素的突变及爆发过程。发现南亚高压迅速从菲律宾以东移到中南半岛北部，孟加拉湾槽加深加强，赤道印度洋西风加强并向东向北迅速扩展和传播，以及伴随的中低纬相互作用和西太平洋副高连续东撤是南海夏季风建立的大尺度特征。与此同时，亚洲低纬地区的南北温差和纬向风切变也发生相应的突变。数值试验结果表明，印度半岛地形的陆面加热作用在其东侧激发的气旋性环流对于孟加拉湾槽的加强有重要作用，并进而有利于南海夏季风先于印度夏季风爆发。     

华南6月持续性致洪暴雨与孟加拉湾对流异常活跃的关系

利用NCEP/NCAR再分析逐日及逐月资料、NOAA卫星观测的向外长波辐射（Outgoing Long-wave Radiation,OLR）资料、我国160站月降水资料及华南45站逐日降水资料,分析了2005年6月华南持续性致洪暴雨的发生与孟加拉湾对流异常活跃及西太平洋副热带高压演变的关系,并对华南6月有无持续性大范围暴雨年进行合成分析,结果表明华南持续性大范围暴雨发生的年份,孟加拉湾对流相对活跃,西太平洋副高强度偏强、位置偏西;反之亦然。华南6月持续性大范围暴雨发生前,孟加拉湾对流经历了一次活跃过程,同时西太平洋副高也明显经历了一次增强西伸过程。孟加拉湾对流活跃可能通过东西向垂直环流诱使西太平洋副高增强西伸,从而对华南暴雨的形成产生影响。     

亚洲夏季风季节内振荡对云南主汛期降水的影响Ⅱ:云南主汛期季节内振荡活动过程及其对MJO活动的响应

利用NCEP OLR、风场再分析资料和日本APHRO_MA_V1003R1降水资料,针对云南主汛期季节内振荡(ISO)活跃年分析了对应低频对流场、环流场和降水的异常特征,以及热带印度洋大尺度振荡MJO分别激发孟加拉湾西南季风ISO和南海热带季风ISO,从而对云南主汛期ISO和降水产生的影响.在云南主汛期ISO活跃年,低频对流场和环流场在云南ISO波动的1～3位相和4～6位相呈反位相特征,这主要由热带印度洋低频对流东传、北传和副热带西太平洋低频对流西传造成的.热带印度洋的低频对流在发展过程中,一方面沿孟加拉湾西岸向西南-东北方向传播,激发了孟加拉湾西南季风ISO活跃并继续向云南传播;另一方面沿孟加拉湾以南继续东传到南海,激发了南海热带季风ISO活跃并北传到副热带中国东部地区,再沿副热带西传至云南,越过云南后与沿孟加拉湾西岸从东北方向传来的低频对流在孟加拉湾以北地区交汇,完成了一个经纬向接力传播的周期.云南主汛期降水在1～3位相由于副热带低频对流西传和孟加拉湾低频对流东北向传播而处于正距平(第2位相降水最多);在4～6位相,由于副热带低频对流抑制区西传和孟加拉湾低频对流抑制区东北向传播而降水减少(第5位相降水最少),云南主汛期降水与当地低频对流有较好的对应关系.当热带印度洋MJO较强时,4-7月以两条路径向云南的三次传播增强和提前,使得云南主汛期ISO活动也加强,对应产生三次低频对流活跃期,这种MJO由热带印度洋向云南的传播需要30～40天的时间.因此,正是热带印度洋MJO分别对孟加拉湾西南季风ISO和南海热带季风ISO的激发,使得东亚夏季风和南亚夏季风这两个亚洲夏季风系统共同作用于云南主汛期ISO,影响当地降水.     

Spatial distribution of atmospheric carbon monoxide over Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea: Measurements during pre-monsoon period of 2006

Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) conducted the ‘Integrated Campaign for Aerosols, gases and Radiation Budget (ICARB)’ for a two-month pre-monsoon period in 2006 with the ocean segment covering Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea. During this campaign, carbon monoxide (CO) was continuously monitored using a non-dispersive IR analyser. Quantifying CO in ambient air is vital in determining the air quality of a region. Being toxic, CO is a criteria pollutant, but it is a weak green house gas. Globally, very few measurements exist over marine atmospheres to study its temporal pattern; particularly in situ CO measurements are few over the Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea for comparison. Present measurements indicate: (i) predominant single peak in the diurnal pattern of CO over the marine atmosphere in contrast to the double peak over the continent, (ii) the mean diurnal CO over the marine atmosphere showing an increasing trend towards evening hours, (iii) the amplitude of the AN peaks over the marine atmosphere was ∼ 100 ppbv, while at a remote island site in the Indian Ocean it was ∼ 5 ppbv and (iv) high CO values were observed close to continent and the long range transport by wind also caused CO highs.     

Structural imprints at the front of the Chocó-Panamá indenter: Field data from the North Cauca Valley Basin, Central Colombia

The northern Andes are a complex area where tectonics is dominated by the interaction between three major plates and accessory blocks, in particular, the Chocó-Panamá and Northern Andes Blocks. The studied Cauca Valley Basin is located at the front of the Chocó-Panamá Indenter, where the major Romeral Fault System, active since the Cretaceous, changes its kinematics from right-lateral in the south to left-lateral in the north. Structural studies were performed at various scales: DEM observations in the Central Cordillera between 4 and 5.7°N, aerial photograph analyses, and field work in the folded Oligo-Miocene rocks of the Serranía de Santa Barbara and in the flat-lying, Pleistocene Quindío-Risaralda volcaniclastic sediments interfingering with the lacustrine to fluviatile sediments of the Zarzal Formation.The data acquired allowed the detection of structures with a similar orientation at every scale and in all lithologies. These families of structures are arranged similarly to Riedel shears in a right-lateral shear zone and are superimposed on the Cretaceous Romeral suture.They appear in the Central Cordillera north of 4.5°N, and define a broad zone where 060-oriented right-lateral distributed shear strain affects the continental crust. The Romeral Fault System stays active and strain partitioning occurs among both systems. The southern limit of the distributed shear strain affecting the Central Cordillera corresponds to the E–W trending Garrapatas–Ibagué shear zone, constituted by several right-stepping, en-échelon, right-lateral, active faults and some lineaments. North of this shear zone, the Romeral Fault System strike changes from NNE to N.Paleostress calculations gave a WNW–ESE trending, maximum horizontal stress, and 69% of compressive tensors. The orientation of σ1 is consistent with the orientation of the right-lateral distributed shear strain and the compressive state characterizing the Romeral Fault System in the area: it bisects the synthetic and antithetic Riedels and is (sub)-perpendicular to the active Romeral Fault System.It is proposed that the continued movement of the Chocó–Panamá Indenter may be responsible for the 060-oriented right-lateral distributed shear strain, and may have closed the northern part of the Cauca Valley, thereby forming the Cauca Valley Basin.Conjugate extensional faults observed at surface in the flat-lying sediments of the Zarzal Formation and Quindío-Risaralda volcaniclastic Fan are associatedwith soft-sediment deformations. These faults are attributed to lateral spreading of the superficial layers during earthquakes and testify to the continuous tectonic activity from Pleistocene to Present.Finally, results presented here bring newinformation about the understanding of the seismic hazard in this area: whereas the Romeral Fault Systemwas so far thought to be themost likely source of earthquakes, themore recent cross-cutting fault systems described herein are another potential hazard to be considered.     

On the impossibility of the co-existence of monsoons and severe storm surges in the Bay of Bengal

The problem of storm surges is introduced briefly. The utility of passive microwave observations to study this phenomenon is pointed out. The reasons for the nonoccurrence of severe surges in the Bay of Bengal, during monsoon regimes, is discussed in this paper. It was demonstrated that the predominant reason for lack of severe surges over the Bay of Bengal coast is due to the absence of weak wind shear during monsoon seasons.Atmospheric Environment Service, Ice Center, Environment Canada, 373 Sussex Drive, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K1A OH3.     

Depositional processes and stratigraphic architecture within a coarse-grained rift-margin turbidite system: The Wollaston Forland Group,east Greenland

The Wollaston Forland Basin, NE Greenland, is a half-graben with a Middle Jurassic to Lower Cretaceous basin-fill. In this outcrop study we investigate the facies, architectural elements, depositional environments and sediment delivery systems of the deep marine syn-rift succession. Coarse-grained sand and gravel, as well as large boulders, were emplaced by rock-falls, debris flows and turbulent flows sourced from the immediate footwall. The bulk of these sediments were point-sourced and accumulated in a system of coalescing fans that formed a clastic wedge along the boundary fault system. In addition, this clastic wedge was supplied by a sand-rich turbidite system that is interpreted to have entered the basin axially, possibly via a prominent relay ramp within the main fault system. The proximal part of the clastic wedge consists of a steeply dipping, conformable succession of thick-bedded deposits from gravity flows that transformed down-slope from laminar to turbulent flow behaviour. Pervasive scour-and-fill features are observed at the base of the depositional slope of the clastic wedge, c. 5 km into the basin. These scour-fills are interpreted to have formed from high-density turbulent flows that were forced to decelerate and likely became subject to a hydraulic jump, forming plunge pools at the base of slope. The distal part of the wedge represents a basin plain environment and is characterised by a series of crude fining upward successions that are interpreted to reflect changes in the rate of accommodation generation and sediment supply, following from periodic increases in fault activity. This study demonstrates how rift basin physiography directly influences the behaviour of gravity flows. Conceptual models for the stratigraphic response to periodic fault activity, and the transformation and deposition of coarse-grained gravity flows in a deep water basin with strong contrasts in slope gradients, are presented and discussed.     

An assessment of TropFlux and NCEP air-sea fluxes on ROMS simulations over the Bay of Bengal region

This study presents an assessment of the TropFlux and the National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) reanalysis air-sea fluxes in simulating the surface and subsurface oceanic parameters over the Bay of Bengal (BoB) region during 2002–2014 using the Regional Ocean Modelling System (ROMS). The assessment has been made by comparing the simulated fields with in-situ and satellite observations. The simulated surface and subsurface temperatures in the TropFlux forced experiment (TropFlux-E) show better agreement with the Research Moored Array for African-Asian-Australian Monsoon Analysis (RAMA) and Argo observations than the NCEP forced experiment (NCEP-E). The BoB domain averaged sea surface temperature (SST) simulated in the NCEP-E is consistently cooler than the satellite SST, with a root mean square error (RMSE) of 0.79 °C. Moreover, NCEP-E shows a limitation in simulating the observed seasonal cycle of the SST due to substantial underestimation of the pre-monsoon SST peak. These limitations are mostly due to the lower values of the NCEP net heat flux. The seasonal and interannual variations of SST in the TropFlux-E are better comparable to the observations with correlations and skills more than 0.80 and 0.90 respectively. However, SST is overestimated during summer monsoon periods mainly due to higher net heat flux. The superiority of TropFlux forcing over the NCEP reanalysis can also be seen when simulating the interannual variabilities of the magnitude and vertical extent of Wyrtki jets at two equatorial RAMA buoy locations. The jet is weaker in the NCEP-E relative to the TropFlux-E and observations. The simulated sea surface height anomalies (SSHA) from both the experiments are able to capture the regions of positive and negative SSHA with respect to satellite-derived altimeter data with better performance in the TropFlux-E. The speed of the westward propagating Rossby wave along 18°N in the TropFlux-E is found to be about 4.7 cm/s, which is close to the theoretical phase speed of Rossby waves.     

Influence of basin-scale and mesoscale physical processes on biological productivity in the Bay of Bengal during the summer monsoon

Physical forcing plays a major role in determining biological processes in the ocean across the full spectrum of spatial and temporal scales. Variability of biological production in the Bay of Bengal (BoB) based on basin-scale and mesoscale physical processes is presented using hydrographic data collected during the peak summer monsoon in July–August, 2003. Three different and spatially varying physical processes were identified in the upper 300 m: (I) anticyclonic warm gyre offshore in the southern Bay; (II) a cyclonic eddy in the northern Bay; and (III) an upwelling region adjacent to the southern coast. In the warm gyre (>28.8 °C), the low salinity (33.5) surface waters contained low concentrations of nutrients. These warm surface waters extended below the euphotic zone, which resulted in an oligotrophic environment with low surface chlorophyll a (0.12 mg m⁻³), low surface primary production (2.55 mg C m⁻³ day⁻¹) and low zooplankton biovolume (0.14 ml m⁻³). In the cyclonic eddy, the elevated isopycnals raised the nutricline upto the surface (NO₃–N > 8.2 μM, PO₄–P > 0.8 μM, SiO₄–Si > 3.5 μM). Despite the system being highly eutrophic, response in the biological activity was low. In the upwelling zone, although the nutrient concentrations were lower compared to the cyclonic eddy, the surface phytoplankton biomass and production were high (Chl a – 0.25 mg m⁻³, PP – 9.23 mg C m⁻³ day⁻¹), and mesozooplankton biovolume (1.12 ml m⁻³) was rich. Normally in oligotrophic, open ocean ecosystems, primary production is based on ‘regenerated’ nutrients, but during episodic events like eddies the ‘production’ switches over to ‘new production’. The switching over from ‘regenerated production’ to ‘new production’ in the open ocean (cyclonic eddy) and establishment of a new phytoplankton community will take longer than in the coastal system (upwelling). Despite the functioning of a cyclonic eddy and upwelling being divergent (transporting of nutrients from deeper waters to surface), the utilization of nutrients leading to enhanced biological production and its transfer to upper trophic levels in the upwelling region imply that the energy transfer from primary production to secondary production (mesozooplankton) is more efficient than in the cyclonic eddy of the open ocean. The results suggest that basin-scale and mesoscale processes influence the abundance and spatial heterogeneity of plankton populations across a wide spatial scale in the BoB. The multifaceted effects of these physical processes on primary productivity thus play a prominent role in structuring of zooplankton communities and could consecutively affect the recruitment of pelagic fisheries.