在南中国海北部设立特别敏感海域的思考

针对国际海事组织不断认定新的特别敏感海域,以及中国沿海尚无任何海域被认定为特别敏感海域的现状,分析特别敏感海域概念的由来、认定标准、发展现状,并对将南中国海北部认定为特别敏感海域的符合性、紧迫性和益处进行论述,提出将南中国海北部认定为特别敏感海域的可行性做法和建议。

Vegetation Evolution in the Northern South China Sea Region Since 40 ka BP - An Attempt to Reconstruct Palaeovegetation Based on Biomization

Vegetation evolution in the northern South China Sea region since 40 500 a BP is reconstructed using biomization procedure based on pollen data from deep sea core 17940. The result shows that, it is feasible to reconstruct palaeovegetation using biomization procedure, when pollen, particularly Pinus pollen, transported by mind over long distance is excluded. Results from factor analysis suggest that humidity and temperature are the two main factors determining vegetation evolution on land around the northern South China Sea. From 40 500 a BP to 11 100 a BP, broad-leaved evergreen forest (WAMF), and montane conifers(MGRF) occurred on hills and low mountains; while steppe (STEP) predominated on the exposed shelf. The main feature of the vegetation evolution is the frequent alternation between MGRF (or WAMF) and STEP, implying abrupt changes in millennium scale between humid/cold and dry/temperate climate. All abrupt climate events could be broadly correlated with Henrich events and Dansggard-Oscherge events. One of the events around 12 700 a BP, sees the occurrence of MGRF, suggesting that climate turned humid and cold rapidly. This may be correlated with the Younger Dryas event; Broad-leaved evergreen (WAMF) predominates since 11 000 a BP. During the early Holocene and late Holocene tropical rainforest (TRFO) or tropical seasonal forest (TSFO) occurred several times.

Characteristics of nonlinear internal waves observed in the northern South China Sea

The South China Sea(SCS) is one of the most active areas of internal waves.We undertook a program of physical oceanography in the northern South China Sea from June to July of 2009,and conducted a 1-day observation from 15:40 of June 24 to 16:40 of June 25 using a chain of instruments,including temperature sensors,pressure sensors and temperature-pressure meters at a site(117.5°E,21°N) northeast of the Dongsha Islands.We measured fluctuating tidal and subtidal properties with the thermistor-chain and a ship-mounted Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler,and observed a large-amplitude nonlinear internal wave passing the site followed by a number of small ones.To further investigate this phenomenon,we collected the tidal constituents from the TPXO7.1 dataset to evaluate the tidal characteristics at and around the recording site,from which we knew that the amplitude of the nonlinear internal wave was about 120 m and the period about 20 min.The horizontal and vertical velocities induced by the soliton were approximately 2 m/s and 0.5 m/s,respectively.This soliton occurred 2-3 days after a spring tide.

A continuously stratified nonlinear model for internal solitary waves in the northern South China Sea

A continuously stratified nonlinear model is set up to study the impact of topographical character on the generation of internal solitary waves over a sill by tidal flow.One of the reasons why almost all of the generated internal solitary waves propagate westward in the northern South China Sea is explained.The model simulations describe the generation and propagation of internal waves well.When the strength of imposed barotropic tides and the water stratification stay unchanged,the steepness of the sill slope can control both(a) whether or not the waves induced over a sill by tidal flow are linear internal waves or nonlinear internal solitary waves,and(b) the amplitude of the internal solitary waves generated.If the steepness of the sill is asymmetric,the nonlinear internal solitary waves may be induced on the steeper side of the sill.These conclusions are supported by a numerical experiment with a monthly-mean stratification and an actual seafloor topography from the Luzon Strait.

Submesoscale activity over the shelf of the northern South China Sea in summer:simulation with an embedded model

We applied a primitive equation ocean model to simulate submesoscale activities and processes over the shelf of the northern South China Sea(NSCS) with a one-way nesting technology for downscaling.The temperature and density fields showed that submesoscale activities were ubiquitous in the NSCS shelf.The vertical velocity was considerably enhanced in submesoscale processes and could reach an average of 58 m per day in the subsurface.At this point,the mixed layer depth also was deepened along the front,and the surface kinetic energy also increased with the intense vertical movement induced by submesoscale activity.Thus,submesoscale stirring/mixing is important for tracers,such as temperature,salinity,nutrients,dissolved organic,and inorganic carbon.This result may have implication for climate and biogeochemical investigations.

Phytoplankton size class derived from phytoplankton absorption and chlorophyll-a concentrations in the northern South China Sea

A previously developed model was modified to derive three phytoplankton size classes (micro-, nano-, and pico-phytoplankton) from the overall chlorophyll-a concentration, assuming that each class has a specific absorption coefficient. The modified model performed well using in-situ data from the northern South China Sea, and the results were reliable and accurate. The relative errors of the size-fractioned chlorophyll-a concentration for each size class were: micro-:21%, nano-:41%, pico-:26%, and nano+pico:23%. The model was then applied on ocean color remote sensing data to examine the distribution and variation of phytoplankton size classes in northern South China Sea on a large scale.

Variation in downwelling diffuse attenuation coefficient in the northern South China Sea

The diffuse attenuation coefficient for downwelling irradiance(Kd(λ)) is an important parameter for ocean studies.Based on the optical profile data measured during three cruises in the northern South China Sea in autumn from 2003 to 2005,variations in the Kd(λ) spectra were analyzed.The variability of Kd(λ) shows much distinct features in both magnitude and spectra pattern,it is much higher in coastal waters than that of open oceanic waters;and the blue-to-green(443/555) ratio of Kd(λ) tends to increase with chlorophyll a concentration([Chl-a]) from open ocean to coastal waters.These characteristics can be explained most by the increase of aw+p(443)/aw+p(555) with [Chl-a].In short waveband,the relation between Kd(λ)-Kw(λ) and [Chl-a] can be well described by a power law function,indicating the large contribution of phytoplankton to the variations in Kd(λ).As for the spectral model of the diffuse attenuation coefficient,there are good linear relationships between Kd(490) and Kd(λ) in other wavelengths with own slope and intercept of a linear functions in the spectral range 412-555 nm.Kd(490) is well correlated with the spectral ratio of remote sensing reflectance;and should enough measurement data are given,this empirical algorithm would be used in the Kd(λ) retrieval from ocean color satellite data.The variation in Kd(λ) provides much useful information for us to study the bio-optical property in the northern South China Sea.

Accumulation and exploration of gas hydrate in deep-sea sediments of northern South China Sea

The large deep-sea area from the southwestern Qiongdongnan Basin to the eastern Dongsha Islands,within the continental margin of northern South China Sea,is a frontier of natural gas hydrate exploration in China.Multiform of deep-sea sedimentations have been occurred since late Miocene,and sediment waves as a potential quality reservoir of natural gas hydrate is an most important style of them.Based on abundant available data of seismic,gravity sampling and drilling core,we analyzed the characteristics of seismic reflection and sedimentation of sediment waves and the occurrence of natural gas hydrate hosted in it,and discussed the control factors on natural gas hydrate accumulation.The former findings revealed the deep sea of the northern South China Sea have superior geological conditions on natural gas hydrate accumulation.Therefore,it will be of great significance in deep-sea natural gas hydrate exploration with the study on the relationship between deep-sea sedimentation and natural gas hydrate accumulation.

Observations of Kuroshio intrusion into the South China Sea

To discuss the intrusion of the Kuroshio into the SCS,we examined the mixing between the North Pacific and South China Sea(SCS) waters based on in-situ CTD data collected in August and September 2008 and the moored ADCP data taken from mid September 2008 to early July 2009.The CTD survey included four meridional sections from 119°E to 122°E around the Luzon Strait,during which pressure,temperature,and salinity were measured.The CTD data show that the isopycnal surface tilted from the SCS to the North Pacific;and it was steeper in the lower layers than in the upper ones.Meanwhile,we found strong vertical mixing taken place in the areas near 121°E.The Kuroshio in high temperature and salinity intruded westward through Luzon Strait.The frequency of buoyancy was one order of magnitude greater than that of the common ones in the ocean,suggesting stronger stratification in the northeastern SCS.On the other hand,the long-term ADCP data show that before late October 2008,the direction of water flow in the SCS was eastward,and from November 2008 to late February 2009,it turned northwestward in the layers shallower than 150 m,while remained unchanged in deep layers from 200 to 450 m.From March to June 2009,the direction shifted with increasing depth from northward to southward,akin to the Ekman spiral.EOF analysis of the current time series revealed dominant empirical modes:the first mode corresponded to the mean current and showed that the Kuroshio intrusion occurred in the upper layers only from late December to early March.The temporal coefficient of the first and the second mode indicated clearly a dominant signal in a quasi-seasonal cycle.

Estimation of potential distribution of gas hydrate in the northern South China Sea

Gas hydrate research has significant importance for securing world energy resources, and has the potential to produce considerable economic benefits. Previous studies have shown that the South China Sea is an area that harbors gas hydrates. However, there is a lack of systematic investigations and understanding on the distribution of gas hydrate throughout the region. In this paper, we applied mineral resource quantitative assessment techniques to forecast and estimate the potential distribution of gas hydrate resources in the northern South China Sea. However, current hydrate samples from the South China Sea are too few to produce models of occurrences. Thus, according to similarity and contrast principles of mineral outputs, we can use a similar hydrate-mining environment with sufficient gas hydrate data as a testing ground for modeling northern South China Sea gas hydrate conditions. We selected the Gulf of Mexico, which has extensively studied gas hydrates, to develop predictive models of gas hydrate distributions, and to test errors in the model. Then, we compared the existing northern South China Sea hydrate-mining data with the Gulf of Mexico characteristics, and collated the relevant data into the model. Subsequently, we applied the model to the northern South China Sea to obtain the potential gas hydrate distribution of the area, and to identify significant exploration targets. Finally, we evaluated the reliability of the predicted results. The south seabed area of Taiwan Bank is recommended as a priority exploration target. The Zhujiang Mouth, Southeast Hainan, and Southwest Taiwan Basins, including the South Bijia Basin, also are recommended as exploration target areas. In addition, the method in this paper can provide a useful predictive approach for gas hydrate resource assessment, which gives a scientific basis for construction and implementation of long-term planning for gas hydrate exploration and general exploitation of the seabed of China.

Impacts of internal waves on chlorophyll a distribution in the northern portion of the South China Sea

Internal waves can bring nutrients to the upper level of water bodies and facilitate phytoplankton photosynthesis.Internal waves occur frequently in the northern portion of the South China Sea and inflict an important effect on chlorophyll a distribution.In this study,in-situ observation and satellite remote sensing data were used to study the effects of internal waves on chlorophyll a distribution.Based on the in-situ observations,lower chlorophyll a concentrations were present in the middle and bottom level in areas in which internal waves occur frequently,while the surface chlorophyll a distribution increased irregularly,and a small area with relatively higher chlorophyll a concentrations was observed in the area around the Dongsha Island.Satellite remote sensing showed that the chlorophyll a concentration increased in the area near Dongsha Island,where internal waves frequently occurred.The results of the increased chlorophyll a concentration in the surface water near Dongsha Island in the northern portion of the South China Sea indicated that internal waves could uplift phytoplankton and facilitate phytoplankton growth.

Currents and mixing in the northern South China Sea

We investigated the vertical distribution of current velocity data of the entire water column at a site on the continental shelf of the northern South China Sea(SCS) from August 4 to September 6,2007,and found that the characteristics of barotropic and baroclinic tides are mainly diurnal.During the observation period,we also estimated the mixing before and after the passage of Typhoon Pabuk.We found that the internal-wave-scale dissipation rate,the turbulent dissipation rate,and the mixing rate in every water layer increased by about an order of magnitude after the typhoon passage.We analyzed a case of abrupt strong current and calculated the mixing rate before,during,and after the typhoon event.The results show that the internal-wave-scale dissipation rate and the mixing rate in every water layer increased by about two orders of magnitude during the event,while the turbulent dissipation rate increased by about an order of magnitude.Passage of the abrupt strong current could also have increased the mixing rate of affected seawater by more than an order of magnitude.However,the passage of the typhoon differed in that there was an increase in mixing only in the lower layer where the abrupt strong current was particularly strong.The variation of the mixing rate may help us to understand the effects of typhoons and abrupt strong currents on the mixing of seawater.

Spatio-temporal variations in the siphonophore community of the northern South China Sea

To understand how hydrological and biological factors affect near-to off-shore variations in the siphonophore community,we sampled zooplankton at 82 stations in the northern South China Sea during summer,winter,and spring.Forty-one species of siphonophore were collected by vertical trawling.The species richness of siphonophores increased from the nearshore to offshore regions in all three seasons of investigation,with maximum richness in summer and minimum richness in winter.The abundance of siphonophores was also higher in summer than in spring and winter,concentrated in the nearshore region in the warm season and scattered in the offshore region in the cold season.Four siphonophore groups were classified according to the frequency of occurrence:nearshore,near-offshore,offshore,and tropical pelagic.Among them,the nearshore group had higher abundance nearshore compared with the offshore.The tropical pelagic group had higher species number offshore than nearshore.Spatial and temporal fluctuations in taxonomic composition and abundance of siphonophores were due to the influence of the coastal upwelling and surface ocean currents of the South China Sea,driven by the East Asia monsoonal system.

Phytoplankton pigment patterns and community composition in the northern South China Sea during winter

Phytoplankton pigment patterns and community composition were investigated in the northern South China Sea using high-performance liquid chromatography and the CHEMTAX software from February 11 to 23, 2009. We recognized four different vertical distribution patterns of pigments: chlorophyll a (Chl a)-like type, divinyl chlorophyll a (DV Chl a) type, even distribution type, and surface type. The average value of ratios of accessory photo-protective pigments (APP) to accessory photo-synthetic pigments was 0.89±0.63 in the upper 50 m and 0.16±0.06 below 50 m depth. With increasing depth, APP decreased and photo-synthetically active radiation was attenuated. There was an obvious succession in the phytoplankton community from inshore to the open sea. Diatoms were dominant in the inshore region, while pelagophytes, Prochlorococcus, cyanobacteria and prymnesiophytes were dominant in the open sea. The vertical distribution of phytoplankton also differed greatly from inshore to the open sea. In the coastal and shelf region, diatoms were important components in the whole water column. Cyanobacteria also had a high abundance at the Subsurface Chlorophyll a Maxima (SCM) in the shelf region. In the slope and open sea, Prochlorococcus and cyanobacteria were important groups above the SCM, while pelagophytes dominated below the SCM.

Nonlinear interactions among internal tidal waves in the northeastern South China Sea

We used a set of 75-day long ADCP data from the northeastern South China Sea(SCS) to investigate nonlinear interactions among freely propagating internal tidal waves.The kinetic energy spectra displayed significant peaks at some higher tidal frequencies,such as O1M2(O1+M2),and M4(M2 +M2),where O1 is the lunar diurnal internal tide,M2 is the lunar semidiurnal internal tide,and M4 is the first higher harmonic frequency of M2.These higher tidal harmonic frequency peaks,as well as the fundamental tidal harmonic peaks,show a σ-2.3 spectral falloff rate with frequency.In addition,we explored the possible generation mechanism of higher tidal harmonics.Analysis on the rotary and bicoherence spectra suggests that strong forced non-resonant interaction induced by nonlinear advections was the dominant physical mechanism that induced these higher tidal harmonics.Moreover,the energetic,freely propagating semidiurnal(M2) internal tidal wave played the most crucial role in these interactions.These results indicate that strong nonlinear forced non-resonant interactions among internal tides can be one of the processes responsible for the redistribution of energy in the internal wave spectrum.

Hydrochemistry of the Natural Low p H Groundwater in the Coastal Aquifers near Beihai, China

Natural weak acidic groundwater occurs in the unconfined and confined aquifers consisting of Quaternary and Neogene unconsolidated sediments near Beihai in southern Guangxi, China. Under natural conditions the groundwater has low TDS(less than 200 mg L-1) and low concentrations of trace elements(less than 100 μg L-1) with a deceasing tend in contents of the Lanthanides(rare earth elements, less than 1 μg L-1) towards higher atomic number. The groundwater ranges in p H from 3.33 to 7.0 with an average value of 5.12(even lower than that of local rainwater, 5.88). p H values in the groundwater are a bit higher in rainy seasons than those in dry seasons and do not show significant increasing or decreasing trend with time. The average p H value in groundwater in the confined aquifers is even a bit lower than that in the unconfined aquifer. Comprehensive analyses of the groundwater environment suggest that H+ in the groundwater may be derived from dissociation of H2CO3, release of the absorbed H3O+ in clay layers and the acidity of rainwater. The H2CO3 in the groundwater may be formed by dissolution of CO2(g). Minerals in the unconsolidated sediment are predominated by quartz with small amount of clay minerals. The sediments undergoing a long-term weathering contain low levels of soluble constitutes. Lack of alkaline substances in the groundwater system is also helpful in the accumulation of acidity of the groundwater.

Determining suspended sediment concentration and settling velocity from PC-ADP measurements in the Beibu Gulf, China

Modeling sediment transport depends on several parameters, such as suspended sediment concentration （SSC）, shear stress, and settling velocity. To assess the ability of Pulse-Coherent Acoustic Doppler Profiling （PC-ADP） to non-intrusively quantify spatial and temporal SSC and settling velocity at seabed, a field experiment was conducted in the Beibu Gulf （Tonkin Gulf）, in the South China Sea. The spatial profiles and temporal variations in SSC at 1 m above bottom were derived from PC-ADP acoustic backscatter intensity determinations after being calibrated with the optical backscatter sensor （OBS） measurements at the same elevation. The PC-ADP and OBS results agreed well. The temporal settling velocity obtained from Rouse profiles agreed well with the Soulsby formula based on size information by LISST （laser in situ scattering and transmissometry）. Tides and tidal currents are diurnal in the gulf. SSC increased with increasing ebb and flood flow, and it rapidly decreased with the increase of distance from the seabed. The maximum SSC at 0.16 m and 1.3 m above bottom reached 816 mg/L and 490 mg/L during spring tides, respectively. The sediments consisted of mineral particles 23-162 μm in diameter and 0.05-2.04 crn/s in settling velocity. Generally, both the SSC and settling velocity followed variations in the bottom friction. Results suggest that PC-ADP is able to provide reasonable SSC and settling velocity measurements of both profiles and time series for a long study period.

Comparison of nonlinear and linear PCA on surface wind,surface height,and SST in the South China Sea

We compared nonlinear principal component analysis(NLPCA) with linear principal component analysis(LPCA) with the data of sea surface wind anomalies(SWA),surface height anomalies(SSHA),and sea surface temperature anomalies(SSTA),taken in the South China Sea(SCS) between 1993 and 2003.The SCS monthly data for SWA,SSHA and SSTA(i.e.,the anomalies with climatological seasonal cycle removed) were pre-filtered by LPCA,with only three leading modes retained.The first three modes of SWA,SSHA,and SSTA of LPCA explained 86%,71%,and 94% of the total variance in the original data,respectively.Thus,the three associated time coefficient functions(TCFs) were used as the input data for NLPCA network.The NLPCA was made based on feed-forward neural network models.Compared with classical linear PCA,the first NLPCA mode could explain more variance than linear PCA for the above data.The nonlinearity of SWA and SSHA were stronger in most areas of the SCS.The first mode of the NLPCA on the SWA and SSHA accounted for 67.26% of the variance versus 54.7%,and 60.24% versus 50.43%,respectively for the first LPCA mode.Conversely,the nonlinear SSTA,localized in the northern SCS and southern continental shelf region,resulted in little improvement in the explanation of the variance for the first NLPCA.

Comment on "Estimation of potential distribution of gas hydrate in the northern South China Sea" by Chunjuan Wang et al.

Herein we would like to comment on the paper ＂Estimation of potential distribution of gas hydrate in the northern South China Sea＂ by Wang et al. 2010 in Chinese Journal of Oceanology and Lirnnology, 28（3）： 693-699. The purpose of this comment is to point out that the given probabilities of gas hydrate occtwrence in the northern Zhujiang Mouth Basin and the Yinggehai Basin in the figure of Wang et al. （2010） are improper. After introducing our work of estimation of gas hydrate stability distribution in the northern South China Sea, we suggest that Wang et al. （2010） dismissed the basic P-T rule for the existence of gas hydrate. They should consider more the variables of water depth, seabed temperature and geothermal gradient in their gas hydrate distribution model in future studies.

Sea surface temperature and terrestrial biomarker records of the last 260 ka of core MD05-2904 from the northern South China Sea

This paper reports high-resolution biomarker records of the last 260 ka for core MD05-2904 from the northern South China Sea (SCS). The sea surface temperature (SST) record using the U k3’7 index re-veals a minimum of 21.5℃ (MIS 2) and a maximum of 28.3℃ (MIS 5.5), for a temperature difference of almost 7℃, and provides the longest high-resolution U k3’7 SST record in northern SCS. The content of odd-number long chain n-alkanes and several n-alkanes indexes such as the CPI, ACL and the C31/C27 ratio, all reveal generally higher values during the glacials and lower values during the interglacials. Terrestrial input as indicated by n-alkane content was mostly controlled by sea-level changes: During the glacials, lower sea-level exposed the continental shelf to enable rivers to transport more terrestrial materials to the slope; and the situation reverses during the interglacials. The n-alkane indexes changes reveal more n-alkanes from contemporary vegetation during glacials as a result of the prox-imity of the core site to the source region, while the increases in ACL and C31/C27 ratio during glacials indicate a change to more grassy vegetation. However, the highest values for CPI, ACL and the C31/C27 ratio all occurred during late MIS 3, and it was suggested that this period was characterized by a strong summer monsoon-dominated humid climate which resulted in a denser vegetation for the exposed continental shelf region.