Relative importance of wind and buoyancy forcing for interdecadal regime shifts in the Pacific Ocean

Interdecadal variations in the Northern Hemisphere and the North Pacific have been documented in many studies[1 4]. The connection between the subtropical North Pacific and the tropics is regarded as the most important process triggering and maintaining t…     

奥帆基地水工结构物模试验的概率特性研究

为确保第29届北京奥运会青岛帆船比赛顺利进行,针对奥帆基地波浪断面模型试验结果,引入多维联合概率分析理论,并应用随机模拟技术,进行结构浮托力和越浪量计算,进而给出可靠度及风险分析结果,新方法考虑到多种极端海洋环境条件对结构物的综合作用,给模型试验赋予了联合概率特征,结果更加科学合理。     

俯冲带的负浮力及其影响因素

基于Ｍｕｒｎａｇｈａｎ－Ｂｉｒｃｈ状态方程,计算了密度Ｐ、热膨胀系数ａｖ、定压比热ｃｐ等物性参数在上地幔温压条件下的分布,给出了热传导系数ｋ在上地幔温压条件下的分布．采用准动力学计算方案,用有限元方法计算了板块不同俯冲速度、角度、不同厚度及不同俯冲深度情况下俯冲带的温度分布和密度分布．计算了不同俯冲模型下俯冲带的负浮力及其对岩石层板块形成的等效应力,发现负浮力在俯冲过程中是变化的,俯冲速度和板块厚度对其有明显的影响,在稳定俯冲状态,负浮力约为（１．５－２．３）×１０１３Ｎｍ－１,等效张应力约为０．２５－０．２９Ｇｐａ．     

A Model Simulation of Future Oceanic Conditions along the British Columbia Continental Shelf. Part II: Results and Analyses

An ocean circulation model for the British Columbia continental shelf is run with future initial conditions and forcing fields downscaled from the North American Regional Climate Change Assessment Program archive. Average seasonal sea surface temperatures for the period 2065 to 2078 are projected to increase by between 0.5° and 2.0°C with respect to analogous averages from 1995 to 2008. Seasonal sea surface salinities are projected to decrease by as much as 2.0 over the same period, though there are some regions where and periods when small increases are projected. Though stronger winter winds result in larger Haida Eddies, slightly stronger summer winds along the western Vancouver Island shelf do not result in appreciable changes to either the cross-shelf upwelling or to the magnitude of Juan de Fuca Eddies or the timing of their formation. However, increased flows are projected in some seasons for the Rose Spit, Middle Bank, and Goose Island Bank eddies. More precipitation over the watersheds emptying into coastal waters produces larger freshwater discharges and, in particular, a stronger estuarine flow in Juan de Fuca Strait and a stronger Vancouver Island Coastal Current. Generally increasing winds and decreasing density mean that the winter minus summer range of sea surface heights is projected to increase all along the coast.     

Impacts of High-Frequency Atmospheric Forcing on Southern Ocean Circulation and Antarctic Sea Ice

The relative contributions of atmospheric fluctuations on 6 h?2 d,2?8 d,and 8 d?1 month time scales to the changes in the air?sea fluxes,the SO circulation,and Antarctic sea ice are investigated.It was found that the imposed forcing variability on the three time scales creates a significant increase in wind power input,and hence an increase of about 50%,97%,and 5%of eddy kinetic energy relative to the simulation driven by monthly forcing,respectively.Also,SO circulation and the strength of the upper cell of meridional overturning circulation become strengthened.These results indicate more dominant effects of atmospheric variability on the 2?8 d time scale on the SO circulation.Meanwhile,the 6 h?2 d(2?8 d)atmospheric variability causes an increase in the total sea-ice extent,area,and volume,by about 33%,30%,and 19%(17%,20%,and 25%),respectively,relative to those in the experiment forced by monthly atmospheric variables.Such significant sea-ice increases are caused by a cooler ocean surface and stronger sea-ice transports owing to the enhanced heat losses and air-ice stresses induced by the atmospheric variability at 6 h?2 d and 2?8 d,while the effects of the variability at 8 d?1 month are rather weak.The influences of atmospheric variability found here mainly result from wind fluctuations.Our findings in this study indicate the importance of properly resolving high-frequency atmospheric variability in modeling studies.     

Turbulence measurements in stratified and well-mixed estuarine flows

From mean velocities measured in estuarine flows it has been found that the velocity distributions are log-linear in stratified flows and logarithmic in well-mixed flows. The results of salinity measurements reveal that the mean salinity profiles are geometrically similar and expressible as a power law. The buoyancy parameters, such as the Monin-Obukhov length scale, the gradient and the flux Richardson numbers, are independent of the flow state. The gradient and the flux Richardson numbers are almost equal, indicating the existence of a local equilibrium layer. The non-dimensional parameter describing dissipation rates of turbulent kinetic energy is a constant of 0·2 and 0·3 for stratified and well-mixed flows respectively. In well-mixed flow the drag coefficient varies with time approaching a constant of about 3·2 × 10^?3 when the flow is stratified. The shape of the turbulent energy spectra are generally flatter and broader in stratified as compared with those of well-mixed flows.     

Colonisation of South African kelp-bed canopies by the alien mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis: extent and implications of a novel bioinvasion

The Mediterranean mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis is the most significant invasive alien marine species in South Africa and, although not normally found subtidally, has recently been observed colonising heads and stipes of the kelp species Ecklonia maxima in False Bay. We quantified this invasion and explored its ecological implications. Transects laid across kelp beds revealed that 10.34% of kelp individuals surveyed bore canopy mussels, with kelp heads (10.07%) being far more commonly infected than stipes (0.27%). Twenty kelp individuals with infected heads and 20 with infected stipes were separately collected for more-detailed examination. Wet mass of mussels on these kelp heads ranged from 2.5 to 2 462 g (median 86.4 g, interquartile range 14.8–353.8 g) and that of mussels on the stipes from 7.6 to 3 492 g (median 595.5 g, interquartile range 194.0–955.0 g). Mussel clumps consisted mostly of individuals <40 mm in length. Mussel clumps supported a rich biota of 80 invertebrate and 13 algal species. Larger clumps supported more epibiotic species, and those on stipes more species than those of comparable mass on kelp heads. The mussels and their associated epibiotic species negatively affected kelp buoyancy, but rarely enough to overcome natural buoyancy. Some kelp individuals that had been toppled by the weight of mussels and their epibiotic species, however, were encountered in situ. Implications of this invasion include large increases in animal biomass and species richness in the kelp canopy, plus reductions in kelp buoyancy and increased hydrodynamic drag on infected kelps, increasing their probability of being uprooted. Uprooted kelp individuals can raft long distances, potentially transporting both native and alien species to distant sites.     

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1674987111000478

Convective heat transfer associated with the circulation of pore-fluid in porous rocks and fractures within the upper crust of the Earth is substantial when the temperature gradient is sufficiently high.In order to understand the process of Sn-polymetallic mineralization in the Dachang ore district of Guangxi,a finite element method has been used in this study to simulate both pore-fluid flow and heat transfer in this district.On the basis of related geological,tectonic and geophysical constraints,a computational model was established.It enables a computational simulation and sensitivity analysis to be carried out for investigating ore-forming pore-fluid flow and other key factors that may affect hydrothermal ore genesis in the district.The related simulation results have indicated that:(1) permeable fault zones in the Dachang ore district can serve as preferential pathways for pore-fluid flow on a regional-scale;and(2) the pore-fluid flow can affect the salinity distribution.This latter factor is part of the reason why Sn-polymetallic mineralization has taken place in this district.