PICES Press, Vol. 18, No. 1, Winter 2010

•Major Outcomes from the 2009 PICES Annual Meeting: A Note from the Chairman (pp. 1-3, 8) •PICES Science – 2009 (pp. 4-8) •2009 PICES Awards (pp. 9-10) •New Chairmen in PICES (pp. 11-15) •PICES Interns (p. 15) •The State of the Western North Pacific in the First Half of 2009 (pp. 16-17, 27) •The State of the Northeast Pacific in 2009 (pp. 18-19) •The Bering Sea: Current Status and Recent Events (pp. 20-21) •2009 PICES Summer School on “Satellite Oceanography for the Earth Environment” (pp. 22-25) •2009 International Conference on “Marine Bioinvasions” (pp. 26-27) •A New PICES Working Group Holds Workshop and Meeting in Jeju Island (pp. 28-29) •The Second Marine Ecosystem Model Inter-comparison Workshop (pp. 30-32) •ICES/PICES/UNCOVER Symposium on “Rebuilding Depleted Fish Stocks – Biology, Ecology, Social Science and Management Strategies” (pp. 33-35) •2009 North Pacific Synthesis Workshop (pp. 36-37) •2009 PICES Rapid Assessment Survey (pp. 38-40

西部太平洋赤道域におけるホット・イベントに関する研究 - それらの特性、メカニズム、そして太平洋暖水プールとの相互作用

Tohoku University川村宏課

An Algorithm for Cold Patch Detection in the Sea off Northeast Taiwan Using Multi-Sensor Data

Multi-sensor data from different satellites are used to identify an upwelling area in the sea off northeast Taiwan. Sea surface temperature (SST) data derived from infrared and microwave, as well as sea surface height anomaly (SSHA) data derived from satellite altimeters are used for this study. An integration filtering algorithm based on SST data is developed for detecting the cold patch induced by the upwelling. The center of the cold patch is identified by the maximum negative deviation relative to the spatial mean of a SST image within the study area and its climatological mean of each pixel. The boundary of the cold patch is found by the largest SST gradient. The along track SSHA data derived from satellite altimeters are then used to verify the detected cold patch. Applying the detecting algorithm, spatial and temporal characteristics and variations of the cold patch are revealed. The cold patch has an average area of 1.92 × 104 km2. Its occurrence frequencies are high from June to October and reach a peak in July. The mean SST of the cold patch is 23.8 °C. In addition to the annual and the intraseasonal fluctuation with main peak centered at 60 days, the cold patch also has a variation period of about 4.7 years in the interannual timescale. This implies that the Kuroshio variations and long-term and large scale processes playing roles in modifying the cold patch occurrence frequency

Use of satellite observations for operational oceanography: recent achievements and future prospects

The paper gives an overview of the development of satellite oceanography over the past five years focusing on the most relevant issues for operational oceanography. Satellites provide key essential variables to constrain ocean models and/or serve downstream applications. New and improved satellite data sets have been developed and have directly improved the quality of operational products. The status of the satellite constellation for the last five years was, however, not optimal. Review of future missions shows clear progress and new research and development missions with a potentially large impact for operational oceanography should be demonstrated. Improvement of data assimilation techniques and developing synergetic use of high resolution satellite observations are important future priorities

The influence of tropospheric biennial oscillation on mid-tropospheric CO_2

Mid-tropospheric CO_2 retrieved from the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) was used to investigate CO_2 interannual variability over the Indo-Pacific region. A signal with periodicity around two years was found for the AIRS mid-tropospheric CO_2 for the first time, which is related to the Tropospheric Biennial Oscillation (TBO) associated with the strength of the monsoon. During a strong (weak) monsoon year, the Western Walker Circulation is strong (weak), resulting in enhanced (diminished) CO_2 transport from the surface to the mid-troposphere. As a result, there are positive (negative) CO2 anomalies at mid-troposphere over the Indo-Pacific region. We simulated the influence of the TBO on the mid-tropospheric CO_2 over the Indo-Pacific region using the MOZART-2 model, and results were consistent with observations, although we found the TBO signal in the model CO_2 is to be smaller than that in the AIRS observations

Earth resources: A continuing bibliography with indexes (issue 55)

This bibliography lists 368 reports, articles and other documents introduced into the NASA scientific and technical information system between July 1 and September 30, 1987. Emphasis is placed on the use of remote sensing and geographical instrumentation in spacecraft and aircraft to survey and inventory natural resources and urban areas. Subject matter is grouped according to agriculture and forestry, environmental changes and cultural resources, geodesy and cartography, geology and mineral resources, hydrology and water management, data processing and distribution systems, instrumentation and sensors, and economic analysis

Remote sensing applications: an overview

Remote Sensing (RS) refers to the science of identification of earth surface features and estimation of their geo-biophysical properties using electromagnetic radiation as a medium of interaction. Spectral, spatial, temporal and polarization signatures are major characteristics of the sensor/target, which facilitate target discrimination. Earth surface data as seen by the sensors in different wavelengths (reflected, scattered and/or emitted) is radiometrically and geometrically corrected before extraction of spectral information. RS data, with its ability for a synoptic view, repetitive coverage with calibrated sensors to detect changes, observations at different resolutions, provides a better alternative for natural resources management as compared to traditional methods. Indian Earth Observation (EO) programme has been applications-driven and national development has been its prime motivation. From Bhaskara to Cartosat, India's EO capability has increased manifold. Improvements are not only in spatial, spectral, temporal and radiometric resolutions, but also in their coverage and value-added products. Some of the major operational application themes, in which India has extensively used remote sensing data are agriculture, forestry, water resources, land use, urban sprawl, geology, environment, coastal zone, marine resources, snow and glacier, disaster monitoring and mitigation, infrastructure development, etc. The paper reviews RS techniques and applications carried out using both optical and microwave sensors. It also analyses the gap areas and discusses the future perspectives

Characterization of sea surface temperature and air-sea heat flux anomalies associated with mesoscale eddies in the South China Sea

Author Posting. © American Geophysical Union, 2020. This article is posted here by permission of American Geophysical Union for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Journal of Geophysical Research-Oceans 125(4), (2020): e2019JC015470, doi:10.1029/2019JC015470.This study is to quantify the effects of mesoscale eddies on air‐sea heat fluxes and related air‐sea variables in the South China Sea. Using satellite observations of sea surface temperature (SST) and sea surface height anomaly and a high‐resolution air‐sea heat flux product for the 16‐year period from 2000 to 2015, we conducted the composite patterns of air‐sea fluxes and variables associated with anticyclonic eddies (AEs) and cyclonic eddies (CEs). It is found that the SST‐sea surface height correlations over eddies are not always positive. Only 56% of AEs are corresponded with positive SST anomalies (SSTA), that is, SST+ AEs, and 58% of CEs with negative SSTA, that is, SST− CEs. The percentage of these eddies increases with eddy amplitude and shows slight seasonal variations, higher in winter and lower in summer. Composites of SSTA, air‐sea variables, and fluxes are constructed over all eddies, including both SST+ eddies and SST− eddies. All composites show asymmetric patterns, showing that the centers (where the extrema are located) of the fluxes and variables shift westward and poleward (equatorward) relative to the AEs (CEs) cores. Besides, composites of latent heat flux (LHF), sensible heat flux (SHF), and air temperature show monopole patterns, while composites of wind speed and specific humidity show dipole patterns. For SST+ AEs, the coupling strength is 39.6 ± 6.5 W/m2 (7.2 ± 1.7 W/m2) per degree increase of SSTA for LHF (SHF). For SST− CEs, the coupling strength is 39.0 ± 2.0 W/m2 (9.0 ± 0.96 W/m2) per degree decrease of SSTA for LHF (SHF).This research was conducted while Y. Liu was a visiting graduate student at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI). She sincerely thanks the WHOI Academic Programs Office for hosting her visit and is grateful to the support from China Scholarship Council (CSC). This study was supported by the Strategic Priority Research Program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (Grant XDA19060101), the Key R & D project of Shandong Province (Grant 2019JZZY010102), the Key deployment project of Center for Ocean Mega‐Science, CAS (Grant COMS2019R02), the CAS Program (Grant Y9KY04101L), and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant 41776183 and 41906157). Dr. Xiangze Jin is acknowledged for providing the OAFluxHR analysis and for his programming support and guidance to this study. Heat flux data used in this paper can be downloaded (from https://figshare.com/articles/Eddy‐induced_heat_flux_in_the_South_China_Sea/11949735). AVISO SSH data are downloaded from the website (http://www.aviso.altimetry.fr), OISST from the ftp://eclipse.ncdc.noaa.gov/ site, and OAFluxHR analysis will be available from the project website (http://oaflux.whoi.edu).2020-09-1