Holocene sea‐level reconstruction in the Young Sound region,Northeast Greenland

A relative sea‐level curve over the Holocene is constructed for the Young Sound region in northeastern Greenland. The reconstruction is derived by dating the heights of raised beach ridges in coastal plains using optically stimulated luminiscence (OSL), and by dating palaeoterrestrial surface levels now buried beneath the intertidal frame using the ¹⁴C technique. The relative sea‐level curve reveals a rapid fall of at least 10 mm a^?1 from ca. 9500 to 7500 a ago, which slowed to 2 mm a^?1 until it reached the present sea level ca. 3000 a ago. This part of the curve is based on the raised beach ridge data. Thereafter, relative sea level continued to fall, to reach a minimum level at about 0.5 m below the present sea level ca. 2300 a ago. Since then, relative sea level has experienced a slow rise of about 0.2 mm a^?1. This part of the curve uses the data from the palaeoterrestrial surfaces. The study supplements other estimates of Holocene relative sea‐level changes and supports the observations of a decreasing trend in the timing of the cross point and in minimum relative sea level from South to North Greenland. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

First record of an odontaspidid shark in New Zealand waters

Photographs and a preserved head are identified as Odontaspis herbsti Whitley, 1950, an Australian sand shark growing to about 3 m long and similar to the Mediterranean O. ferox Risso, but differing in having a uniform grey body without black markings on the back or sides. No living odontaspidids have previously been reported from New Zealand. Six specimens were trawled in 119–165 m off Table Cape, Hawke Bay, in October‐November 1972. Californian and. East Atlantic (Madeira) specimens are treated as conspecific with O. herbsti. It is suggested that O. herbsti is normally an inhabitant of the continental slope, and that the present records are of a few individuals that have strayed on to the shelf.     

Some observations on phytoplankton species composition,biomass, and productivity in Kenepuru Sound,New Zealand, 1982–83

Phytoplankton species composition, biomass, and rates of primary production were determined at two sites within Kenepuru Sound, New Zealand, in spring, summer, and autumn of 1982–83. Microflagellates and ultraplankton (< 5–10 μm) were numerically very abundant on each occasion and small gymnodinoid nanno‐planktonic (< 10–15 μm) dinoflagellates were likewise always a common component of the populations. The dinoflagellate, Prorocentrum gracile, made a substantial contribution to the total biomass in summer. The diatom community changed from mainly small chain forming species (Chaetoceros spp., Leptocylindricus spp.) in spring to small solitary centric and pennate forms (Nitzchia longissima, Coscinodiscus spp.) in summer, to a diversity of larger taxa (Coscinodiscus concinnus, Eucampia zoodiacus) in autumn. The autotrophic ciliate Mesodinium rubrum was a particularly important member of the autumn photo‐autotrophic assemblage. Both phytoplankton biomass and productivity increased from spring to autumn. In situ rates of primary production ranged from 15 to 1420 mgC m^‐2h^‐1 and chlorophyll a concentrations ranged from 6.9 to 258.5 mgChl a m^‐2. A gross primary production rate, in summer, was estimated at 0.57 gC m^‐2 d^‐1. Phytoplankton production and biomass appeared to be related to dissolved inorganic nutrient concentrations as a result of variations in the freshwater inflow. A tentative comparison between the rates of phytoplankton and cultivated mussel production is made.     

Hydrodynamic and water column properties at six stations associated with mussel farming in Pelorus sound, 1984–85

Mussel farming places a benthic organism in a pelagic environment; it is therefore important to understand the driving force that transports the food to the mussels. The hydrodynamic regimes in the sidearms and embayments in Pelorus Sound are dominated by the lunar tide, and a net estuarine circulation in the main channel flowing inwards along the bottom and outwards along the top. Salinity gradients extend throughout the sound from the river inflows, with strongest density stratification in the sidearms and embayments: nearest the head of the sound. There, the water column is separated at the pycnocline into upper and lower layers which tend to move in different directions or at different velocities. Local circulation patterns modify tidal flushing patterns, producing extended residence times in some embayments, whereas other embayments off the side of the main channel tend to be flushed more rapidly by through‐flow water and have shorter residence times than would otherwise be expected. The changing inflow of fresh water modifies the local hydraulic regimes in the inner sounds, especially during flood conditions.     

Estimating turbulent dissipation rates from acoustic backscatter

Recent work has suggested the possibility of using high-frequency (10 kHz to 1 MHz) acoustics to remotely sense turbulent microstructure in the ocean. Once developed, this technique will provide a powerful tool for examining the spatial and temporal distributions of ocean mixing in a way not possible using traditional microstructure methods. In this paper turbulent dissipation rates are estimated through an inversion of 307 kHz acoustic scattering data collected in the lee of a sill in Knight Inlet, British Columbia. These data have been shown previously to be strongly correlated with temperature and shear microstructure measurements. Here we show that inversion methods can be used to get turbulent dissipation rates from acoustic backscatter, provided that independent measurements of temperature and salinity stratification are available. The temperature–salinity characteristics of the environment, however, can place limitations on the inversion technique. The strong negative salinity gradient in Knight Inlet decreases the slope of the functional relationship between dissipation rate and scattering cross-section for high dissipation rates and increases the uncertainty of the inversion. This limitation on the inversion technique is not an issue throughout most of the world's oceans (where dT/dS>0) and, in places where it could be a problem, the limitation can be overcome by using multi-frequency techniques.     

Asperity distribution of the 1964 Great Alaska earthquake and its relation to subsequent seismicity in the region

The 1964 Alaska earthquake was the second largest seismic events in the 20th century. The aim of this work is the use of surface deformation data to determine asperity and slip distributions on the fault plane of the Alaska earthquake: these distributions are calculated by a Monte Carlo method. To this aim, we decompose the fault plane in a large number of small square asperity units with a side of 25 km; this allows us to obtain plane surfaces with an irregular shape. In the first stage, each asperity unit is allowed to slip a constant amount or not to slip at all, providing the geometry of the dislocation surface that best reproduces the observed displacements. To this purpose, a large number of slip distributions have been tried by the use of the Monte Carlo method. The slip amplitude is the same for all the asperities and is equal to the average fault slip inferred from the seismic moment. In the second stage, we evaluate the slip distribution in the dislocation area determined by the Monte Carlo inversion: in this case, we allow unit cells to undergo different values of slip in order to refine the initial dislocation model. The results confirm the previous finding that the slip distribution of the great Alaska earthquake was essentially made of two dislocation areas with a higher slip, the Prince William Sound and the Kodiak asperities. Analysis of the post-1964 seismicity in the rupture region shows a strong correlation between the larger earthquakes (M_w≥6) and the distribution of locked asperities following the 1964 event, which can be considered as an independent test of the validity of the model. We do not find slip values higher than 25 m for any of the patches, and we determine two separate high-slip zones: one correspondent to the Prince William Sound asperity, and one (18 m slip) to the Kodiak asperity. The slip distribution connected with the 1964 shock appears to be consistent with the following seismicity in the region.     

山东省胶东半岛两次疑难历史地震的考证

山东省的胶东半岛历史悠久,是我国文化发展较早的地区之一。根据有关史料的记载,该区曾发生过１０４６年,４９５年虞丘山两次历史地震。但在确定地震参数时,由于历史原因,对史料中记载的“虞丘山”的位置说法不一,因而,对这两次地震的震中位置和震级存在不同的意见。     

声控指挥图形显示智能系统的研究

本文在分析声控产生态势图必要性的基础上,提出了利用计算机及其外围设备和语音识别器构成声控指挥图形显示智能系统的设计思想、功能、数据流程和结构。     

Model of the Long Island Sound outflow: Comparison with year-long HF radar and Doppler current observations

A three-dimensional primitive-equation model is used to simulate the Long Island Sound (LIS) outflow for a 1-year (2001) period. The model domain includes LIS and New York Bight (NYB). Tidal and wind forcing are included, and seasonal salinity and temperature variations are assimilated. The model results are validated with the HF radar, moored acoustic Doppler current profiler (ADCP), and ferry-based ADCP observations. The agreement between simulated and observed flow patterns generally is very good. The difference in seasonal mean currents between the model and moored ADCP is about 0.01 m/s; the correlation of dominant velocity fluctuations between the model and HF radar is 0.83; and the difference in mean LIS transport between the model and shipboard ADCP is about 5%. However, the model predicts a prominent tidally generated headland eddy not supported by the HF radar observation. The model sensitivity study indicates that the tides, winds, and ambient coastal front all have important impact on the buoyant outflow. The tides and winds cause stronger vertical mixing, which reduces the surface plume strength. The ambient coastal front, on the other hand, tends to enhance the plume.