Wind-driven diversion of summer river runoff preconditions the Laptev Sea coastal polynya hydrography: Evidence from summer-to-winter hydrographic records of 2007–2009

This paper examines the role of atmospheric forcing in modifying the pathways of riverine water on the Laptev Sea shelf, using summer-to-winter hydrographic surveys from 2007 to 2009. Over the two consecutive winter seasons of 2007–2008 and 2008–2009 in the area of the winter coastal polynya, our data clearly link winter surface salinity fields to the previous summer conditions, with substantially different winter salinity patterns preconditioned by summer atmospheric forcing. In the summer of 2007, dominant along-shore westerly winds in the cyclonic regime force the Lena River runoff to flow eastward. In contrast, in the summer of 2008, dominant along-shore easterly winds over the East Siberian Sea and on-shore northerly winds over the Laptev Sea in the anticyclonic regime lock the riverine water in the vicinity of the Lena Delta. Over the coastal polynya area in the southeastern Laptev Sea these patterns precondition a surface salinity difference of 8–16 psu between the winters of 2008 and 2009. Overall, this indicates a residence time of at least half a year for riverine water on the Laptev Sea shelf. Future climate change associated with an enhanced summer cyclonicity over the eastern Arctic may turn more riverine water eastward along the eastern Siberian coast, resulting in weaker vertical density stratification over the Laptev Sea shelf, with possible impact on the efficiency of vertical mixing and polynya dense water production.     

Surface current variability in the Keum River Estuary (South Korea) during summer 2002 as observed by high-frequency radar and coastal monitoring buoy

High-frequency (HF) radar observations of surface currents were conducted for 3 months during summer 2002 in the Keum River estuary. A comparison between HF radar-derived currents and directly measured ones form a buoy showed that the regression slope is close to 1 and the correlation coefficient greater than 0.86, with an RMS difference less than 13 cm/s which is less than 17% of the tidal current. This fairly good agreement allows us to use HF radar observation in investigating the surface flow and circulation in this tidal-current-dominant coastal-plume area. To examine the spatial variation in tidal current characteristics, as well as currents associated with non-tidal forcing, the HF radar-derived currents were separated into tidal and sub-tidal frequency currents. The overall pattern of M₂-current ellipse distribution in the study area showed a counterclockwise rotation, with the offshore maximum current direction to the northeast. Eccentricity, the direction of maximum current, and the phase of net motion of the ellipse changed near the estuary mouth and near the gap of the Saemangeum reclamation tide dyke due to the complex coastal geometry and the out-flowing jet during the ebb period.     

Relative quantification of wind erosion in argan woodlands in the Souss Basin,Morocco

The endemic argan woodlands cover large parts of South Morocco and create a characteristic landscape with areas of sparsely vegetated and bare soil surfaces between single trees. This unique ecosystem has been under extensive agrosilvopastoral management for centuries and is now at risk of degradation caused by overgrazing and increasing scarcity and variability of rainfall. To investigate susceptibility to wind erosion, we conducted an experimental–empirical study including wind tunnel tests and a drone-generated digital elevation model and quantified wind-erodible material on five different associated surface types by means of sediment catchers. The highest emission flux was measured on freshly ploughed surfaces (1875 g m^–2 h^–1), while older ploughed areas with a re-established crust produced a much lower emission flux (795 g m^–2 h^–1). Extensive tillage may have been a sustainable practice for generations, but increasing drought and uncertainty of rainfall now lead to an acute risk of severe soil erosion and dust production. The typical crusted surfaces characterized by residual rock fragment accumulation and wash processes produced the second highest emission flux (1,354 g m^–2 h^–1). Material collected from tree-shaded areas (933 g m^–2 h^–1) was revealed to be a considerable source of organic material, possibly affecting substrate conditions positively on a larger regional scale. The lowest flux was measured on rock fragment-covered surfaces (301 g m^–2 h^–1). The data show that open argan woodland may be a considerable source for wind erosion and dust production, depending on surface characteristics strongly related to management. An adapted management must include the conservation of argan trees to offer a promising approach to prevent severe wind erosion and dust production and mitigate possible impacts of land-use change and climate change related shifts in wind and rainfall patterns. © 2020 The Authors. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd     

地震前兆复杂性成因机理研究的讨论（二）：地震前兆复杂性成因机理

针对前兆复杂性的种种表现,作从震源、构造应力场、断裂力学、前兆监测等方面探讨了前兆复杂性产生的可能原因。认为前兆复杂性是客观存在的,与共性一起构成前兆的二重性,因此在研究前兆时,既要研究共性,也要研究复杂性,才能更好地掌握或认识前兆。同时从复杂性中再寻求普遍性,进一步完善孕震理论和开发新的分析预报方法;造成前兆复杂性的根本原因是孕震的物理力学过程的复杂性,其中包括地质构造、孕震环境、动力学过程、     

Macrozoobenthic community structure in a large shallow lake: Disentangling the effect of eutrophication and wind-wave disturbance

Biological communities in shallow lakes are often subject to the combined effects of eutrophication and wind-wave disturbance. However, their relative importance in regulating macrozoobenthic community assembly has not been well addressed. In the present study, a monthly sampling of macrozoobenthos and environmental parameters was conducted at ten sites from December 2012 to November 2013 in Lake Hongze, the fourth largest freshwater lake in China, which has undergone serious water quality deterioration over the past few decades. A total of 30 taxa were recorded during the 12 sampling occasions, including 6 chironomids, 6 bivalves, 4 gastropods, 4 oligochaetes, 4 polychaetes, 4 crustaceans and 2 other aquatic insects. The mean abundance and biomass of total macrozoobenthos varied greatly among the ten sites and presented distinctive taxonomic composition between the protected bays and the offshore zone. Three eutrophication parameters (including permanganate index (COD_Mn), chlorophyll a, and total phosphorus in surficial sediments) and three wind-wave variables (including Secchi depth, turbidity, and mean effective fetch) were highly related to spatial variation of macrozoobenthic assemblages. When eutrophication variables were controlled, there was a significant correlation between community similarity and wind-wave disturbance condition, and vice versa. Variation partitioning showed that wind wave disturbance explained 15.9% of the variation in benthic community composition, slightly lower than that explained by eutrophication (17.9%). These results indicate that wind-wave disturbance is as important as eutrophication in regulating benthic community structure in this large shallow lake. Wind-wave disturbance imposed opposite effects on benthic community relative to eutrophication, and were more prominent in the offshore zone weakening the role of eutrophication.     

Hybrid foundation for offshore wind turbines: Environmental and seismic loading

A hybrid foundation for offshore wind turbines (OWT) is studied, combining a monopile of diameter d and length L with a lightweight circular footing of diameter D. The footing is composed of steel plates and stiffeners forming compartments, backfilled to increase the vertical load. A special pile–footing connection is outlined, allowing transfer of lateral loads and moments, but not of vertical loads. The efficiency of the hybrid foundation is explored through 3D finite element modelling. Hybrid foundations of L=15 m are comparatively assessed to an L=30 m reference monopile. A detailed comparison is performed focusing on a 3.5 MW OWT. While the moment capacity of the monopile is larger, the hybrid foundation exhibits stiffer response, outperforming the monopile in the operational loading range. Under cyclic loading, the hybrid foundation experiences less stiffness degradation and rotation accumulation. Besides installation, the cost savings depend on the design of the footing and buckling can be crucial. The rubble fill is shown to provide lateral restraint to the stiffeners, being beneficial for buckling prevention. Although seismic shaking is not critical in terms of capacity, it may lead to substantial accumulation of rotation and settlement. Combined with cyclic environmental loading, the latter may challenge the serviceability of the OWT, potentially leading to a reduction of its service life. To derive insights on the effect of seismic loading, two scenarios are investigated: (a) seismic loading; and (b) combined environmental and seismic loading. In the first case, even a D=15 m hybrid foundation may outperform the reference monopile. This is not the case for combined environmental and seismic loading, where a D=20 m hybrid system would be required to outperform the reference monopile.     

Sediment resuspension under action of wind in Taihu Lake,China

A field study was undertaken to investigate the changes of the current speed, wave parameters and sediment resuspension under different wind speeds in the Taihu Lake. The Acoustic Doppler Current Profi...     

气枪激发信号传播的谱元法数值模拟研究

为了研究气枪激发信号的波场,本文利用谱元法对双相介质中波的传播做了数值模拟,分析了波的传播特征.本文主要做了以下工作:(1)研究了使用谱元法(SEM)模拟孔隙弹性介质中波的传播,模拟结果表明,采用谱元法能有效解决双相介质的波场传播模拟问题.(2)验证了Biot理论中慢纵波的存在.双相介质中存在明显的慢纵波,流相波场的慢纵波比固相波场的明显,慢纵波具有很强的散射性质.(3)研究了地震波在孔隙度变化的沉积层中传播规律,验证了孔隙度对于相速度的影响.(4)针对有限的水库底部情况,研究了起伏界面对波传播的影响.     

起伏地表下的直接叠前时间偏移

提出了一种新的叠前时间偏移方法和流程,可不必应用野外静校正,直接对起伏地表采集的地震数据进行叠前时间偏移.本文采用输入道成像方式,通过基于稳相点原理给出单道数据的走时和振幅计算方法,发展了一个表驱动的叠前时间偏移算法.偏移方法可依据同相轴是否被拉平确定叠加速度和修正近地表速度模型,也可依据拟成像的构造倾角,自适应地确定偏移孔径;后者既减少了偏移计算量,也压制了偏移噪声.文中用二维起伏地表的断陷盆地模型的理论数据验证了所发展方法的成像效果.