Exploring relationships between recruitment of European hake (Merluccius merluccius L. 1758) and environmental factors in the Ligurian Sea and the Strait of Sicily (Central Mediterranean)

This paper explores the relationships between the spatial patterns of the distribution of the young hakes of the year (YOY) and the oceanographical features in two areas of the Central Mediterranean (the Ligurian Sea and the Strait of Sicily), characterised by the occurrence of straits and channels. Comparative and correlative approaches were used to investigate coupling between biological and physical patterns. Density indices of the YOY were derived from annual trawl surveys from 1994 to 2004 in spring and autumn. Mean patterns of the YOY distributions were compared with the mesoscale oceanographical features reported in literature. No evident trends in recruitment strength were found in either areas. Inter-annual variability in YOY abundance in the Ligurian Sea was higher than in the Strait of Sicily. The location of nursery grounds in the study areas coincides with zones of relatively higher production, where upwelling and other enrichment processes regularly occur. The presence of predictable eddies and the frontal systems play a major role in the localization of nursery areas in the Strait of Sicily, maintaining their stable position throughout the years. The strongest transport of southern waters from the Tyrrhenian to the Ligurian Sea, due to the East Corsica Current, which is negatively correlated to winter North Atlantic Oscillation, is associated with the highest abundance of hake recruits in the nurseries of the Northern Ligurian Sea.     

两岸“三通”后闽台港口合作发展展望

运用SWOT分析方法,指出闽台两地港口共建的优势和劣势,机遇和面临的强大挑战.提出了两地当务之急是要建立港口战略合作沟通机制,深度整合双方港口资源,研究突破双方开展港口合作的制度障碍,加大两地临港工业和港口物流建设的力度,不断加强双方的港口货物集疏运系统建设,增加对腹地货源的吸引力.     

Seasonal variability of fractionated phytoplankton, biomass and primary production in the Straits of Magellan

The results on the distribution of phytoplankton biomass (expressed as Chla) and primary production (¹⁴C assimilation), during three oceanographic cruises carried out during Austral spring and at the end of the summer and the autumn in the Straits of Magellan, suggest a strong variability of trophic levels for this ecosystem.Seasonal evolution of the biomass concentration goes from the spring maximum of 2.33 μg/l through a sharp decrease, 0.49 μg/l, observed at the end of summer, until the minimum of 0.24 μg/l measured during the autumn.The trophic conditions are dependent on hydrographic, meteo-climatic and geo-morphological characteristics: at the Atlantic entrance and between the two Angosturas the strong mixing of water column limit the development of phytoplankton; at the Western opening and along the Pacific arm the complex exchange mechanisms with the ocean, the glacio-fluvial contribution and the presence of a thermohaline front near the Isla Carlos III influence both biomass and primary production distributions. The maximum values are reached in the Central Zone (Paso Ancho) characterized by high stability of the water column.Primary production ranged from a minimum of 12.3 to a maximum of 125.9 mgC m⁻² h⁻¹. The overall trend seems to be a progressive and simultaneous increase from the Pacific and Atlantic openings to the Central Zone of Paso Ancho where the maximum value was reached. In general, biomass and primary production distributions correspond quite well except for the area of Isla Carlos III where biological and chemico-physical causes tend to limit ¹⁴C assimilation.Contribution of pico-phytoplankton (< 2 μm) to total biomass appears to be time dependent: in the blooms observed during spring a very modest incidence (< 6%) was observed whereas became more (> 50%) during the summer-autumn seasons when total biomass was decreasing.Within the Straits, at the end of summer, the contribution of pico-phytoplankton primary production is 59%, whereas nano and microplankton contribute 39% and 2%, respectively. At the oceanic external stations the photosynthetic activity of the bigger size-fraction (> 2 μm) is predominant (> 50%).These findings support the hypothesis that the pico-phytoplankton ( < 2 μm) is substantially constant, whereas temporal variations are due to the larger (> 10 μm) cells only.     

Formation of Denmark Strait overflow water and its hydro-chemical composition

The dense overflow across the Denmark Strait is investigated with hydrographic and hydro-chemical data and the water mass composition of the Denmark Strait Overflow Water (DSOW) is determined by multivariate analysis. Hydrographical properties, the transient tracers CFC-11 and CFC-12, oxygen and nutrients are utilized for the water mass definitions. Distribution and characteristics of water masses north of Denmark Strait are described, the important water masses at the sill and the variability on weekly time-scales are discussed, and the entrainment and mixing of water into the overflow plume in the northern Irminger Basin is calculated. The analysis indicates that water masses both from the Nordic Seas and the Arctic Ocean are important for the formation of DSOW. It is found that water masses transported with the East Greenland Current make up about 75% of the overflow at the sill. The overflow at, and shortly south of, the sill is inhomogeneous with a low-salinity component dominated by Polar Intermediate Water. The high-salinity component of the overflow is mainly of Arctic origin. The water mass composition, and the short-term variability for 7 repeats of sections close to the sill are described, and these illustrate that the overflow is in fact a composite of a number of water masses with different formation and transport histories. This indicate that the overflow is a robust feature, but that it responds to variations in the circulation or atmospheric forcing that influences the formation of intermediate and deep water masses within the Arctic Mediterranean and the North Atlantic. At a section about 400 km south of the sill the overflow is well mixed and modified by entrainment of, mainly, Iceland–Scotland Overflow Water and Labrador Sea Water, together constituting 30% of the overflow plume. The entrainment of Middle Irminger Water dominates shortly downstream of the sill, before the overflow plume reaches too deep but the entrainment seems to be intermittent in time.     

琼州海峡盾构隧道方案工程技术要点

在了解琼州海峡隧道的项目背景(包括海峡地理位置、区域经济、交通现状、未来交通需求)和场地的地质、气候、生态环境等的基础上,对目前国内有关单位已研究的若干推荐方案进行分析,认为中线铁路盾构隧道方案为首选方案,给出了中线铁路盾构隧道方案的建议,并对隧道施工采用盾构的主要技术问题提出了相应的解决方案。最后指出琼州海峡跨海工程建设的原则及目前要做的工作和要继续研究的问题。     

About the seasonal variability of the Alboran Sea circulation

Data from a mooring line deployed midway between the Alboran Island and Cape Tres Forcas are used to study the time variability of the Alboran Sea from May 1997 to May 1998. The upper layer salinity and zonal velocity present annual and semiannual cycles characterised by a minimum in spring and autumn and a maximum in summer and winter. Temperature has the opposite behaviour to that of salinity indicating changes in the presence of the Atlantic water within the Alboran Passage. A large set of SST images is used to study these cycles. The decrease of salinity and velocity in our mooring location in spring and autumn seems to be related to the eastward drifting of the Western Alboran Gyre (WAG). The increase of salinity and velocity is caused by the Atlantic current flowing south of the Alboran Island and its associated thermohaline front. Conductivity–temperature–depth (CTD) data from two cruises along the 3°W are coherent with current meters and SST interpretations.During the period analysed, summer months are characterised by the stability of the two-gyre system, while in winter, the circulation is characterised by a coastal jet flowing close to the African shore. We use sea level differences across the Strait of Gibraltar for studying the variability of the Atlantic inflow. We discuss the changes in the Alboran Sea circulation and its relation with the variability of the inertial radius of the Atlantic inflow. Though our results are speculative, we find a possible relation between the disappearance of the two-gyre system and a reversal of the circulation in Gibraltar. Longer time series are needed to conclude, but comparison with previous works makes us think that the seasonal cycle described from May 1997 to May 1998 could be the most likely one for the Alboran Sea upper layer.     

SWAN在台湾海峡台风浪场数值模拟中的应用研究

简要介绍了波浪模式的发展及应用较为广泛的几种第三代能量谱海浪模式的特点。为了研究台湾海峡台风浪场的分布特征,以0903号"莲花"台风为例,选取第三代能量谱海浪模式SWAN,充分考虑底摩擦、风、白浪破碎、波波非线性相互作用、波浪浅化效应等物理过程,模拟了该海域的台风浪场的分布特征。将模拟结果与实测波浪、风资料对比分析,结果表明风速、有效波高计算值与实际值符合性较好,SWAN模式在海域的适应性良好。     

台湾海峡隧道工程规划方案若干关键性问题的思考

首先对台湾海峡隧道的若干技术关键问题作了简要归纳,包括地质地貌、线位选择、过海交通方式、耐久性问题、施工方法、加建中间服务隧道的必要性及主要功能等。简要分析了修建隧道过海的技术优势和存在的问题,指出对台海大通道桥、隧方案的比选和优化,日后定将是前期方案和工程可行性设计中的重中之重,应从长计议。重点对隧道越海施工方案和工期的设想进行了阐述,推荐采用第1方案(中间服务隧道(5.5)先行,主洞大型TBM(8.0 m)和后面的车架先拆卸成块后从服务隧道和平洞进入主隧道内,经洞内组装后再开挖掘进),第2方案作为备选(先用5.5 m TBM开挖(经横洞时仍需拆卸,待进入主隧道后再在洞内组装);主洞先形成5.5 m小洞后,随后再用钻爆法扩挖成型8.0 m)。按第1种方案对150 km的隧道工期进度进行了估算,含地勘在内的估算工期约为30年。     

海峡两岸VTS协作初探

文中主要分析两岸开展VTS协作的必要性和可行性,并在综合分析开展协作存在的问题的基础上,提出增进协作交流、编制作业指南、建设“试验田”等方面的对策建议。     

加快建设东南国际航运中心的对策研究

建设东南国际航运中心可考虑以厦门港为中心,福州港、湄洲湾港、温州港、汕头港为支撑的构架。提出了实现这一设想的9项措施,诸如科学规划统筹发展、加快港口基础建设、提升空港航运功能、促进临港工业发展、完善物流服务体系等。