Relationship between Salinity and Nutrients in the Subsurface Layer in the Suruga Bay

We investigated the water structure and nutrient distribution in the Suruga Bay from April 2000 to July 2002, especially the Offshore Water, which occupies a large part of the bay. The maximum salinity in the upper 200 m varied between 34.49 and 34.71, indicating a temporal change in the influence of Kuroshio Water on the Offshore Water. Seasonal variation in nutrient concentrations was largest from surface to 50 m. On the other hand, the variance in nutrient concentrations within each season was largest in the subsurface layer of 100–300 m in spring, summer and fall. In the Offshore Water, the change of nutrients was negatively correlated with that of salinity in each season. This suggests that an increasing intrusion of saline water brings about a lower nutrient concentration in the Offshore Water. Likewise, negative correlations were observed between the change of the maximum salinity and chlorophyll a (Δ [chl.a-int])/nutrients integrated in the upper 200 m. Δ[chl.a-int] was significantly correlated with the changes of nitrate and phosphorus, but there were no significant correlations between Δ[chl.a-int] and the change of silicate. These results suggest that the concentrations of chlorophyll a and nutrients in the Offshore Water were decreased due to the increasing intrusion of Kuroshio Water. The Offshore Water is likely to be related to the regulation of primary production by nitrate.     

Electron acceleration behind a wavy dipolarization front

In this paper, with the in-situ observations from the Time History of Events and Macroscale Interactions during Substorms (THEMIS) probes we report a wavy dipolarization front (DF) event, where the DF has different magnetic structures and electron distributions at different \(y\) positions in the Geocentric Solar Magnetospheric (GSM) coordinates. At \(y \sim2.1R_{E}\) (\(R_{E}\) is the radius of Earth), the DF has a relatively simple structure, which is similar to that of a conventional DF. At \(y \sim3.0R_{E}\), the DF is revealed to have a multiple DF structure, where the plasma exhibits a vortex flow. Such a wavy DF could be the results of the interchange instability. The different structure of such a wavy DF at different sites has a great effect on electron acceleration. Fermi acceleration can occur at the site of the DF with a simple or multiple DF structure, while betatron acceleration as a local process has the contribution to energetic electrons only at the site of the DF with a simple structure.     

Estimation of specific yields of individual litho-units in a terrain with multiple litho-units: A water balance approach

In a terrain with more than one litho-unit, the traditional water balance approach provides a single spatially averaged specific yield. A methodology is proposed here, which can be applied to estimate specific yields of individual litho-units in such terrains. This approach is demonstrated here considering two watersheds, which are covered partly by limestone and partly by sandstone. Watershed wise specific yields were estimated using a traditional water balance method. The specific yields thus obtained are the volume-weighted averages of the specific yields of the individual litho-units in the watersheds. Based on the volumes of aquifers desaturated and the watershed wise specific yield values, a set of two linear equations in two variables was formulated. These linear equations were solved to get the specific yields of the individual litho-units. Specific yields of sandstone (Chandarpur Group) and limestone (Charmuria Formation) units in the study area were thus estimated to be 0.004 and 0.037 respectively.     

Reproducing the Piper trilinear diagram in rectangular coordinates

Though several alternatives/modifications to the Piper diagram are available, the Piper diagram is still the most common way of representing chemical analyses. The present note shows how to reproduce the Piper trilinear diagram in rectangular coordinates retaining all the essential features of the trilinear diagram. In this form, it can be generated using commonly used graphics packages without requiring specialized software. A sample data set of six samples from Gurur watershed, Chhattisgarh, India, was used to illustrate the method. The patterns of points produced in the trilinear Piper diagram and the reproduced Piper diagram in rectangular coordinates are essentially identical.     

The Southern Westerlies during the last glacial maximum in PMIP2 simulations

The Southern Hemisphere westerly winds are an important component of the climate system at hemispheric and global scales. Variations in their intensity and latitudinal position through an ice-age cycle have been proposed as important drivers of global climate change due to their influence on deep-ocean circulation and changes in atmospheric CO₂. The position, intensity, and associated climatology of the southern westerlies during the last glacial maximum (LGM), however, is still poorly understood from empirical and modelling standpoints. Here we analyse the behaviour of the southern westerlies during the LGM using four coupled ocean-atmosphere simulations carried out by the Palaeoclimate Modelling Intercomparison Project Phase 2 (PMIP2). We analysed the atmospheric circulation by direct inspection of the winds and by using a cyclone tracking software to indicate storm tracks. The models suggest that changes were most significant during winter and over the Pacific ocean. For this season and region, three out four models indicate decreased wind intensities at the near surface as well as in the upper troposphere. Although the LGM atmosphere is colder and the equator to pole surface temperature gradient generally increases, the tropospheric temperature gradients actually decrease, explaining the weaker circulation. We evaluated the atmospheric influence on the Southern Ocean by examining the effect of wind stress on the Ekman pumping. Again, three of the models indicate decreased upwelling in a latitudinal band over the Southern Ocean. All models indicate a drier LGM than at present with a clear decrease in precipitation south of 40°S over the oceans. We identify important differences in precipitation anomalies over the land masses at regional scale, including a drier climate over New Zealand and wetter over NW Patagonia.     

Stoichiometry among bioactive trace metals in seawater on the Bering Sea shelf

The distribution of Al, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Cd, and Pb in seawater was investigated on the Bering Sea shelf (56–64°N, 165–169°W) in September 2000. The unfiltered and filtered seawater samples were used for determination of total dissolvable (TD) and dissolved (D) metals (M), respectively. The TD-M concentrations were generally higher than in the Pacific Ocean. TD-Cd was highest in deep water of the outer shelf domain and dominated by dissolved species. The other TD-M were highest at stations close to the Yukon River delta and had higher fractions of labile particulate (LP) species that were obtained as the difference between TD-M and D-M. Dissolved Al, Ni, and Cu were characterized by input from the Yukon River. Dissolved Mn and Co showed maximums on the bottom of the coastal domain, suggesting influence of sedimentary Mn reduction. The correlations of D-Zn, D-Cd, and macronutrients indicated their distributions were largely controlled through uptake by microorganisms and remineralization from settling particles. All these three processes (river input, sedimentary reduction, and biogeochemical cycle) had an influence on the distribution of D-Fe. D-Pb was fairly uniformly distributed in the study area. The stoichiometry of D-M in the Bering Sea shelf showed enrichment of Co and Pb and depletion of Ni, Cu, Zn, and Cd compared with that in the North Pacific. The LP-M/LP-Al ratio revealed significant enrichment of the other eight metals relative to their crustal abundance, suggesting importance of formation of Fe–Mn oxides and adsorption of trace metals on the oxides.     

Silicate to Nitrate Ratio of the Upper Sub-Arctic Pacific and the Bering Sea Basin in Summer: Its Implication for Phytoplankton Dynamics

Consumption of silicate and nitrate (Si:N molar ratio) in the upper layer of the pelagic subarctic Pacific in summer was evaluated by a regression analysis of silicate vs. nitrate concentrations at the upper 100 m depth. Based on data of three cruises, the pelagic subarctic Pacific can be classified into two groups. First group is characterized by roughly 1:1 consumption of silicate and nitrate, and occupies rather larger area of subarcfic Pacific, i.e., the Gulf of Alaska and the Western Subarctic gyre (averaged slope of Si:N linear regression: 1.21, n = 10 and 1.45, n = 9, respectively). Second group is the regions of the Bering Sea basin and the Oyashio region, and showed higher silicate consumption compared to that of nitrate (averaged slope of Si:N linear regression: 2.14, n = 9 and 2.36, n = 3, respectively). The Si:N difference observed is possibly attributed to relative contribution of diatoms production among the phytoplankton assemblages in the regions, i.e., dominance of diatoms production in the regions of the second group. Higher accumulation of ammonium at the bottom of euphotic layer in the summer Bering Sea basin would also contribute to increase consumption ratio of Si:N amounts.