Cadmium and manganese distributions in the Hudson River estuary: interannual and seasonal variability

Surface waters collected along the salinity gradient of the Hudson River estuary in four cruises between 1995 and 1997 were size-fractionated into particulate (>0.45 μm), ‘dissolved' (<0.45 μm), colloidal (10 kDa, 0.45 μm) and low molecular weight (<10 kDa) phases. Dissolved Cd concentrations (range: 0.11–1.19 nM) in surface waters of the estuary appear to have decreased fourfold (from an average of 2.36 to 0.61 nM) over a 23-year period, since the initial analysis of samples collected in the 1970s by Klinkhammer and Bender [Estuar. Coastal Shelf Sci. 12 (1981) 629–643]. This interannual decline reflects improvement in sewage treatment and the elimination of industrial Cd sources to the Hudson River estuary. In contrast, dissolved Mn levels (range: 0.033–1.46 μM) have remained relatively constant over the same period of time, suggesting that anthropogenic sources have very limited impact on Mn concentrations in the estuary. The concentrations of both Cd and Mn appeared to strongly depend on the season and/or river discharge. The highest concentrations were detected under low freshwater discharge, implying that limited hydraulic flushing allows a build-up of metals in the water column. Although the decline in Cd levels within the estuary reflects a reduction in the magnitude of anthropogenic inputs, mass balance estimates indicated that current sources of Cd to the estuary include sewage discharges (in the lower estuary around Manhattan) and diagenetic remobilization from industrial Cd deposited in sediments nearly 2 decades ago (in the upper estuary near Foundry Cove). Moreover, under low river discharge, the sources considered in our model (sewage, riverine input, atmospheric deposition, and benthic fluxes) could account for no more than 60% of the Cd exported from the lower estuary to the ocean. This suggests that undefined sources such as ground water and inputs from other watersheds (e.g., Long Island Sound and Newark Bay) may potentially influence the water quality of the New York Harbor. The size-fractionated metal concentrations indicated that most of the traditionally defined ‘dissolved' Cd and Mn consisted of <10 kDa molecular weight species. High molecular weight colloidal species of Mn accounted for about 50% of the dissolved fraction at the riverine end-member and <5% at intermediate and high salinities. Colloidal Cd accounted for <6% of the dissolved phase throughout the estuary. Unlike the non-conservative excess (relative to ideal dilution of river water and seawater) of dissolved Mn observed along the estuary, high molecular weight colloidal Mn appeared to be removed at the head of the estuary. The small contribution of colloidal Cd and Mn to the ‘dissolved' phase suggests that remobilization from suspended particulate phases and/or from sediments occurs through the formation of small molecular weight species.     

Multisite generalization of a daily stochastic precipitation generation model

The familiar chain-dependent-process stochastic model of daily precipitation, consisting of a two-state, first-order Markov chain for occurrences and a mixed exponential distribution for nonzero amounts, is extended to simultaneous simulation at multiple locations by driving a collection of individual models with serially independent but spatially correlated random numbers. The procedure is illustrated for a network of 25 locations in New York state, with interstation separations ranging approximately from 10 to 500 km. The resulting process reasonably reproduces various aspects of the joint distribution of daily precipitation observations at the modeled locations. The mixed exponential distributions, in addition to providing substantially better fits than the more conventional gamma distributions, are convenient for representing the tendency for smaller amounts at locations near the edges of wet areas. Means, variances, and interstation correlations of monthly precipitation totals are also well reproduced. In addition, the use of mixed exponential rather than gamma distributions yields interannual variability in the synthetic series that is much closer to the observed.     

Spatio-temporal variations of seismicity in the southern Peru and northern Chile seismic gaps

The spatio-temporal variation of seismicity in the southern Peru and northern Chile seismic gaps is analyzed with teleseismic data (m _b 5.5) between 1965 and 1991, to investigate whether these gaps present the precursory combination of compressional outer-rise and tensional downdip events observed in other subduction zones. In the outer-rise and the inner-trench (0 to 100 km distance from the trench) region, lower magnitude (5.0m _b <5.5) events were also studied. The results obtained show that the gaps in southern Peru and northern Chile do not present compressional outer-rise events. However, both gaps show a continuous, tensional downdip seismicity. For both regions, the change from compressional to tensional regime along the slab occurs at a distance of about 160 km from the trench, apparently associated with the coupled-uncoupled transition of the interplate contact zone. In southern Peru, an increase of compressional seismicity near the interplate zone and of tensional events (5.0m _b 6.3) in the outer-rise and inner-trench regions is observed between 1987 and 1991. A similar distribution of seismicity in the outer-rise and inner-trench regions is observed with earthquakes (m _b <5.5). In northern Chile there is a relative absence of compressional activity (m _b 5.5) near the interplate contact since the sequence of December 21, 1967. After that, only a cluster of low-magnitude compressional events has been located in the area 50 to 100 km from the trench. The compressional activity occurring near the interplate zone in both seismic gaps represents that a seismic preslip is occurring in and near the plate contact. Therefore, if this seismic preslip is associated with the maturity of the gap, the fact that it is larger in southern Peru than in northern Chile may reflect that the former gap is more mature than the latter. However, the more intense downdip tensional activity and the absence of compressional seismicity near the contact zone observed in northern Chile, may also be interpreted as evidence that northern Chile is seismically more mature than southern Peru. Therefore, the observed differences in the distribution of stresses and seismicity analyzed under simple models of stress accumulation and transfer in coupled subduction zones are not sufficient to assess the degree of maturity of a seismic gap.     

The Distribution and Seasonal Variation of Dissolved Trace Metals in Florida Bay and Adjacent Waters

Florida Bay is a shallow carbonate estuary in South Florida. It receives fresh waters from the Everglades that contribute a number of metals to the Bay. The Bay is the largest estuary in Florida with nearly pristine conditions. In this paper we report the first extensive studies of trace metals in the Bay. The seasonal distributions of trace metals (Sc, V, Cr, Co, Cu, Fe, Pb, Mn, Ni and Al) were determined on surface waters in Florida Bay and adjacent waters. The measurements in the Bay were made from May 2000 to May 2001, and the adjacent waters were sampled in September 2000 and May 2002. Most of the dissolved trace metals exhibited their maximum concentrations in summer, except Al and Pb that did not show any seasonal variability. The seasonal variations of the metals are related to the influx of fresh water from rainfall. The lowest concentrations are found during the dry season in the winter and the highest during the wet season in the summer. Several metals (V, Mn, Al, Sc, Fe, Co, Ni and Cr) exhibited their highest concentrations in the western zone of the Bay. These waters from agricultural areas are influenced by Gulf of Mexico waters, which carry metals coming from Barron, Broad and Shark rivers into the Bay. The Shark River always exhibited high concentrations of V, Mn, Al, Sc, Co and Cr. Other possible influences in the western and north-central zone of the Bay are from Flamingo Center, the creeks of Taylor Slough and the mangrove fringe of the Everglades. High concentrations of Al, Co, Ni, Cr, Cu, Fe, and Pb were detected in the eastern zone. The high values found in the northeast are influenced by Taylor Slough runoff and in the southeast by Key Largo, Tavernier Marina and the drainage from the main highway (US1) on Tavernier Key. The minimum concentrations for most of the metals were found in areas near the Key channels that exchange waters between Florida Bay and the Atlantic Ocean (Gulf Stream). The adjacent waters in the Atlantic side including the Gulf Stream waters showed very low concentrations for all the metals studied except for V. In the Bay correlations of V were found: (1) V with salinity and Al and (2) Sc with Si. Most of the other metals did not show any strong correlations with nutrients or salinity. Florida Bay is thus not a typical estuary due to the unique structure of its mud banks and multiple inputs of metals from the mangrove fringe in the north.     

Combined discrete and continuous gravity observations at Mount Etna

Systematic investigation of discrete gravity measurements has continued at Mount Etna since 1986. The network now covers an area of 400 km² with about 70 stations 0.5–3 km apart. Mass redistributions occurring at depths ranging between about 8 km below sea level and a few hundred metres below the surface (magma level changes within the shallower parts of the feeding conduits) have been identified from these data. Conventional (discrete) microgravity monitoring on a network of stations furnishes only instantaneous states of the mass distribution at continuously active systems. In order to obtain information on the rate at which the volcanic processes (and thus mass transfers) occur, three stations for continuously recording gravity where installed on Mount Etna in 1998. A 16-month long sequence from one of the continuously running stations (PDN, located 2 km from the active northeast crater at the summit of Etna volcano) is presented. After removing the effects of Earth Tide and tilt, the correlation of the residual gravity sequence with simultaneous recordings of meteorological parameters acquired at the same station was analysed. Once the meteorological effects have also been removed, continuous gravity changes are within 10 μGal of gravity changes measured using conventional microgravity observations at sites very close to the continuous station. This example shows how discrete and continuous gravity observations can be used together at active volcanoes to get a fuller and more accurate picture of the spatial and temporal characteristics of volcanic processes.     

Trace gas measurements at the monitoring station cape point,South Africa,between 1978 and 1988

Since 1978, a measuring station has been operated at Cape Point (34°21 S, 18°29 E). In this article, results of measurements of CO, CFCl₃, CCl₄, O₃, N₂O and CH₄ are presented as monthly means and analyzed with respect to long-term trends and seasonal variations. For CO and CH₄, very similar seasonal variations have been observed, indicating strong interrelations between these two gases. For CO and O₃, no significant changes of the mean annual concentrations can be established for the observation periods of 10 and 5 years, respectively. The measurements yield a growth rate of 9.1 pptv yr^-1 for CFCl₃ (1980–1987) and 0.6 ppbv yr^-1 for N₂O (1983–1987). The concentration increases of CH₄ (10.3 ppbv yr^-1 for 1983–1987) and of CCl₄ (2.1 pptv yr^-1 for 1980–1988) are analyzed for temporal changes during the last years.Presented at the Second Conference on Baseline Observations in Atmospheric Chemistry (SABOAC II) in Melbourne, Australia, November 1988.     

Seismicity and codaQ values in the eastern Pyrenees: First results from the La Cerdanya seismic network

Seismicity in the La Cerdanya region of the eastern Pyrenees has been accurately mapped for the first time using data from a local seismic network. The majority of earthquakes lies on or near the La Cerdanya fault or secondary faults to the south. Coda magnitudes determined for these earthquakes, using magnitude relations from other regions, range between –0.5 and 2.2. These are, however, presumed to be underdetermined values sinceQ values appear to be very low in the La Cerdanya region. CodaQ values at a frequency of 1.5 Hz range between 17 and 120, the lowest values being obtained for the most seismically active regions. CodaQ values also increase with increasing distance, a result which indicates decreasing seismic attenuation with increasing depth in the crust.     

The caldera of Volcan Fernandina: a remote sensing study of its structure and recent activity

Air photographs taken in 1946, 1960, and 1982, together with SPOT HVR-1 images obtained in April and October of 1988, are used to characterize recent activity in and around the caldera of Fernandina Volcano, West Galapagos Islands. The eruptive and collapse events during this time span appear to be distributed in a NW-SE band across the summit and caldera. On the flanks of the volcano, subtle topographic ridges indicate that this is a long-term preferred orientation of extra-caldera activity as well (although radial and arcuate fissures are found on all sectors). The caldera is formed from the coalescence of multiple collapse features that are also distributed along a NW-SE direction, and these give the caldera its elongate and scalloped outline. The NW and SE benches consist of lavas that ponded in once-separated depressions that have been incorporated into the caldera by more recent collapse. The volume of individual eruptions within the caldera over the observed 42 years appears to be small (4x10⁶ m³) in comparison to the volumes of individual flows exposed in the caldera walls (120–150x10⁶ m³). Field observations (in 1989) of lavas exposed in the caldera walls and their cross-cutting relationships show that there have been at least three generations of calderas, and that at times each was completely filled. An interplay between a varying supply rate to the volcano and a regional stress regime is suggested to be the cause of long-term spatial and volumetric variations in activity. When supply is high, the caldera is filled in relative to collapse and dikes tend to propagate in all directions through the edifice. At other times (such as the present) supply is relatively low; eruptions are small, the caldera is far from being filled in, and dike propagation is influenced by an extra-volcano stress regime.     

Decadal water mass variations along 20°W in the Northeastern Atlantic Ocean

Water mass variations in the northeastern Atlantic Ocean along 20°W are analyzed with pentadal resolution over the past 15 years using data from four repeat occupations of a meridional hydrographic section running south from Iceland. The section was sampled in 1988, 1993, 1998, and 2003. The results are interpreted in the context of changes in air–sea forcing, ocean circulation, and water properties associated with the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO). The NAO index oscillated around zero from 1984 to 1988, was strongly positive from 1989 to 1995, after which it shifted to lower positive, and occasionally negative values from 1996 to 2003. Previously published studies suggest that after the 1995–1996 shift of the NAO, the subpolar gyre largely retreated to the northwest in the northeastern Atlantic Ocean, resulting in an increasingly southeastern character of local water masses with time. Water property changes extending from the SubPolar Mode Water (SPMW) just below the seasonal pycnocline through the density range shared by Mediterranean Outflow Water and SubArctic Intermediate Water (SAIW) along 20°W are consistent with changes in wind-driven ocean circulation and air–sea heat flux associated with shifts in the NAO, especially after accounting for ocean memory. After periods of lower NAO index the SPMW is warmer, saltier, and lighter. At these same times, large increases of apparent oxygen utilization (AOU) and potential vorticity are found at the SPMW base, consistent with SPMW ventilation to lighter densities during lower NAO index periods. Deeper and denser in the water column, the cold, fresh, and dense SAIW signature within the permanent pycnocline that was most strongly present in 1993, near the culmination of a period of high NAO index, is much reduced in 1988 and 1998. In 2003, after a prolonged period of lower NAO index, increasing influence of warmer, saltier subtropical waters is clear within the permanent pycnocline. The deep penetration of the changes implies that they are caused primarily by circulation changes resulting from NAO-associated wind shifts, but changes in air–sea heat flux could also have played a role.     

栉孔扇贝不同种群杂交效果 Ⅲ.中国种群与俄罗斯种群及其杂种1~2龄的生长发育

在对栉孔扇贝中国养殖种群(CC)、中国野生种群(CW)与俄罗斯种群(RW)及其杂交种群早期(2,3,4月龄)和中期(6,8,10,12月龄)生长发育研究的基础上,进行了各种群的1~2龄(14,16,19,21,24月龄)生长发育测定比较研究.结果表明,3个亲本群体各个性状的后期生长性能表现以中国养殖种群最好;2个杂交组合CC雌(♀)×RW雄(♂)和CW雌(♀)×RW雄(♂)的杂种群体各个性状的后期生长性能均高于纯种亲本种群,杂种优势均较大,其范围在3.16%~37.18%之间,以CC雌(♀)×RW雄(♂)杂交效果最好,是理想的杂交组合;壳长、壳宽、壳高、活体重4个生长发育指标在后期各个阶段均表现出不同程度的杂种优势,杂种优势在性状间存在明显差别,体重的杂种优势远大于壳宽、壳长和壳高,变化趋势为体重大于壳宽大于壳长大于壳高;栉孔扇贝各个性状的生长率受生长发育季节的影响较大,12~16月龄生长迅速,到16月龄(11月份)生长速度达到高峰,到下一年度的2月下旬(19月龄)几乎没有增长,仅能维持生命,开春以后增长也不大,这说明,栉孔扇贝在来年秋季完成了强度生长,是水产养殖的最佳收获时节,应当尽量避免跨越第二个冬季,以减少越冬损失.