WATER MASS FORMATION IN THE SOUTH INDIAN OCEAN BY AIR-SEA FLUXES

1Introduction　TheIndianCentralWater (ICW) ,formedandsubductedintheSubtropicalConvergenceintheSouthIndianOcean ,occupiesasignificantportionofthethermoclineintheIndianOcean[1,2 ]　 (Fig .1 ) .TheSubantarcticModeWater(SAMW)isformedinthe 2 6.5-2 7.1σθrangenorthoftheSub antarcticFront—thesouthernboundaryofthesubtropicalgyres[3]　 .InthesoutheastIndianO cean ,theSAMWisthethickest,ventilatedasathicklayerofhighoxygenextendingtothetropicalIndianOcean[4 ,5 ]　 .　Watermasstransformation…     

Experimental study of the breaking limit of multi-directional random waves passing over an impermeable submerged breakwater

This study investigates experimentally the breaking wave height of multi-directional random waves passing over an impermeable submerged breakwater. Experiments have been conducted in a three-dimensional wave basin equipped with a multi-directional random wave generator. A special type of wave gauge has been newly devised to record the water surface elevations in the breaker zone as accurately as possible. The records are analyzed to estimate the location and limit of wave breaking. Comparisons have also been made with the results of regular waves. The influence of the incident wave conditions on the breaking wave height normalized by the breakwater dimensions has been investigated. Empirical formulae have been presented to estimate the breaking limit of multi-directional random waves based on the experimental records. The formulae have been tested and found to work well not only for multi-directional random waves, but for regular waves as well.     

东太平洋沉积物U的地球化学

本文对地矿部“海洋四号”科学考察船１９８７－１９８９年在东赤道太平洋ＣＣ区所取得的２７个深海表层沉积样品进行Ｕ的地球化学分析，探讨了Ｕ在深海沉积中的地球化学行为，结果表明，不同类型沉积的Ｕ含量不同，平均值由大至小的次序的含沸石粘土（２．１６×１０＾－６），硅质粘土（１．９５×１０＾－６），硅质软泥（１．６５×１０＾－６），钙质硅质粘土（１．５９×１０＾－６），在同类型沉积中Ｕ的分散性较大；Ｕ在区域     

“暖池”表层对大气局地强迫的响应特征

利用湍流动能垂直混合模式和ＴＯＧＡ－ＣＯＡＲＥ加强观测期的观测资料,对“暖池”上混合层的垂直混合过程进行数值试验和数值模拟,分析表层温度、盐度的变化特征。结果表明：ＴＫＥ模式可以较好地模拟混层,尤其是表层温度、盐度对大气局地强迫的响应;太阳辐射是热源,感热、潜热通量等会造成“暖池”上混合层的温度降低,“暖池”对大气释放热量;降水有利于“淡水盖”形成和维持,从则使层结稳定,ＳＳＴ升高。但在气温低于海     

太平洋波高熵的分布变化规律研究

使用1992年IO月到1998年12月连续共75个月、230个重复周期的Topex／Poseidon卫星高度计有效波高资料，对南、北太平洋波高熵的空间分布特征和时间变化规律进行了研究。统计分析了太平洋波高熵的多年的空间分布特征和多年各月的时间变化规律。结果表明，太平洋波高熵呈现出中间低、南北高的马鞍形空间分布特征和明显季节变化的规律，与太平洋的平均有效波高和气候分布特征和变化规律相一致。给出了南北太平洋模拟波高熵的计算公式及计算稳定性检验。     

A GIS-based step-wise procedure for assessing physical exposure in fragmented archipelagos

Wind and waves are major forces affecting the geomorphology and biota in coastal areas. We present a generally applicable method for measuring and calculating fetch length, fetch direction and wave exposure. Fetch length and direction, measured by geographic information system-based methods, are used along with wind direction and wind speed data to estimate wave height and period by applying forecasting curves. The apparent power of waves approaching the shore, used as a proxy for wave exposure, is then calculated by a linear wave model. We demonstrate our method by calculating fetch lengths and wave exposure indices for five areas with varying exposure levels and types of meteorological conditions in the Finnish Archipelago Sea, situated in the northern Baltic Sea. This method is a rapid and accurate means of estimating exposure, and is especially applicable in areas with geomorphologically varying and complicated shorelines. We expect that our method will be useful in several fields, such as basic biogeographical and biodiversity research, as well as coastal land-use planning and management.     

Comparison of TOPEX/POSEIDON Altimeter Derived Wind Speed and Wave Parameters with Ocean Buoy Data in the North Indian Ocean

Results of comparison exercises carried out between the state-of-the-art TOPEX/POSEIDON altimeter-derived ocean surface wind speed and ocean wave parameters (significant wave height and wave period) and those measured by a set of ocean data buoys in the North Indian Ocean are presented in this article. Altimeter-derived significant wave height values exhibited rms deviation as small as ±0.3 m, and surface wind speed of ±1.6 m/s. These results are found consistent with those found for the Pacific Ocean. For estimation of ocean wave period, the spectral moments-based semiempirical approach, earlier applied on GEOSAT data, was extended to TOPEX/POSEIDON. For this purpose, distributions of first four years of TOPEX/POSEIDON altimeter data and climatology over the North Indian Ocean were analyzed and a new set of coefficients generated for estimation of wave period. It is shown that wave periods thus estimated from TOPEX/POSEIDON data (for the subsequent two years), when compared with independent data set of ocean data buoys deployed in the North Indian Ocean, exhibit improved accuracy (rms ~ ±1.4 nos) over those determined earlier with GEOSAT data.     

Microbial Biomass and Organic Nutrients in the Deep-Sea Sediments of the Central Indian Ocean Basin

In order to assess the impact of deep-sea mining on the in situ benthic life, we measured the microbial standing stock and concentration of organic nutrients in the deep-sea sediments of the Central Indian Ocean Basin in the Indian pioneer area. Sediments were collected using box core and grab samples during September 1996. The total bacterial numbers ranged from 10 10 -10 11 cells per g -1 dry weight sediment. There was a marginal decrease in the number of bacteria from surface to 30 cm depth, though the subsurface section registered a higher number than did the surface. The highest numbers were encountered at depths of 4-8 cm. The retrievable number of bacteria were two orders less in comparison with the direct total counts of bacteria. An almost homogeneous distribution of bacteria, total organic carbon, living biomass, and lipids throughout the depth of cores indicates active microbial and benthic processes in the deep sea sediments. On the other hand, a uniform distribution of total counts of bacteria, carbohydrates, and total organic carbon in all the cores indicates their stable nature and suggests that they can serve as useful parameters for long-term monitoring of the area after the benthic disturbance. Further studies on temporal variability in this region would not only verify the observed norms of distribution of these variables but would also help to understand restabilization processes after the simulated benthic disturbance.     

A singular evolutive extended Kalman filter to assimilate ocean color data in a coupled physical–biochemical model of the North Atlantic ocean

Within the European DIADEM project, a data assimilation system for coupled ocean circulation and marine ecosystem models has been implemented for the North Atlantic and the Nordic Seas. One objective of this project is to demonstrate the relevance of sophisticated methods to assimilate satellite data such as altimetry, surface temperature and ocean color, into realistic ocean models. In this paper, the singular evolutive extended Kalman (SEEK) filter, which is an advanced assimilation scheme where three-dimensional, multivariate error statistics are taken into account, is used to assimilate ocean color data into the biological component of the coupled system. The marine ecosystem model, derived from the FDM model [J. Mar. Res. 48 (1990) 591], includes 11 nitrogen and carbon compartments and describes the synthesis of organic matter in the euphotic zone, its consumption by animals of upper trophic levels, and the recycling of detritic material in the deep ocean. The circulation model coupled to the ecosystem is the Miami isopycnic coordinate ocean model (MICOM), which covers the Atlantic and the Arctic Oceans with an enhanced resolution in the North Atlantic basin. The model is forced with realistic ECMWF ocean/atmosphere fluxes, which permits to resolve the seasonal variability of the circulation and mixed layer properties. In the twin assimimation experiments reported here, the predictions of the coupled model are corrected every 10 days using pseudo-measurements of surface phytoplankton as a substitute to chlorophyll concentrations measured from space. The diagnostics of these experiments indicate that the assimilation is feasible with a reduced-order Kalman filter of small rank (of order 10) as long as a sufficiently good identification of the error structure is available. In addition, the control of non-observed quantities such as zooplankton and nitrate concentrations is made possible, owing to the multivariate nature of the analysis scheme. However, a too severe truncation of the error sub-space downgrades the propagation of surface information below the mixed layer. The reduction of the actual state vector to the surface layers is therefore investigated to improve the estimation process in the perspective of sea-viewing wide field-of-view sensor (SeaWiFS) data assimilation experiments.     

Dynamic Response Behaviors of Upright Breakwaters Under Breaking Wave Impact

- The dynamic response behaviors of upright breakwaters under broken wave impact are analysed based on the mass-damper-spring dynamic system model. The effects of the mass, damping, stiffness, natural period, and impulse duration (or oscillation period) on the translation, rotation, sliding force, overturning moment, and corresponding dynamic amplifying factors are studied. It is concluded that the ampli-ying factors only depend on the ratio of the system natural period to impulse duration (or oscillation period) under a certain damping ratio. Moreover, the equivalent static approach to breakwater design is also discussed.