481 research outputs found

    Tidal period upwelling within Raine Island Entrance Great Barrier Reef

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    Temperature and current measurements collected from November 1981 to May 1982 at the head of Raine Island Entrance reveal tidally-induced upwelling of cold continental slope water onto the continental shelf. Daily tidal motions account for approximately 80% of the total cross-shelf eddy heat flux of 0.79 ± 1.01 cal cm−2 s−1. Although temperature and current fluctuations are principally of semidiurnal period, the heat flux is principally at diurnal period. Based on empirical nutrient-temperature relations we estimate the onshore inorganic nutrient fluxes to be 0.9 (±1.2) × 10−2 mmol m−2 s−1 for nitrate, 0.6 (±0.8) × 10−2 mmol m−2 s−1 for silicate and 0.7 (±0.9) × 10−3 mmol m−2 s−1 for phosphate.The upwelling is explained in terms of fluid withdrawal-type mechanisms in which nutrient-rich thermocline water below 100 m depth is drawn onto the shallow (40 m) shelf during the flood. We suggest that this tidal period inundation of the outer reefs is an important mechanism for effectively upgrading nominally low nutrient levels. Reef growth is expected to be most prolific near the shelf break where the time-integrated contribution of the upwelling is greatest

    Swimming abilities of temperate pelagic fish larvae prove that they may control their dispersion in coastal areas

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    The Sense Acuity and Behavioral (SAAB) Hypothesis proposes that the swimming capabilities and sensorial acuity of temperate fish larvae allows them to find and swim towards coastal nursery areas, which are crucial for their recruitment. To gather further evidence to support this theory, it is necessary to understand how horizontal swimming capability varies along fish larvae ontogeny. Therefore, we studied the swimming capability of white seabream Diplodus sargus (Linnaeus, 1758) larvae along ontogeny, and their relationship with physiological condition. Thus, critical swimming speed (U-crit) and the distance swam (km) during endurance tests were determined for fish larvae from 15 to 55 days post-hatching (DPH), and their physiological condition (RNA, DNA and protein contents) was assessed. The critical swimming speed of white seabream larvae increased along ontogeny from 1.1 cm s(-1) (15 DPH) to 23 cm s(-1) (50 and 55 DPH), and the distance swam by larvae in the endurance experiments increased from 0.01 km (15 DPH) to 86.5 km (45 DPH). This finding supports one of the premises of the SAAB hypothesis, which proposes that fish larvae can influence their transport and distribution in coastal areas due to their swimming capabilities. The relationship between larvae's physiological condition and swimming capabilities were not evident in this study. Overall, this study provides critical information for understanding the link between population dynamics and connectivity with the management and conservation of fish stocks.Funding Agency Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology SFRH/BD/104209/2014 Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology UID/Multi/04326/2019 FCT, under the Transitional Norm DL57/2016/CP[1361]/CT[CT0008 CLIMFISH project-A framework for assess vulnerability of coastal fisheries to climate change in Portuguese coast n2/SAICT/2017-SAICTinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

    Hydraulic modeling of thermal outfall diffusers for the San Onofre nuclear power plant

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    Various hydraulic model tests were performed in connection with the design and performance of the offshore thermal outfalls for the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (jointly owned by the Southern California Edison Company and the San Diego Gas and Electric Company)near San Clemente, California. These include model investigations of: (i) the multiple port discharges for the proposed Units 2 and 3, (ii) the existing submerged single outlet from Unit 1, (iii) the discharge of heated water from the Units 2 and 3 intakes during heat treatment, and (iv) hydraulic characteristics of discharge ports. On the basis of these investigations, the diffusion structure for each of the proposed new units was designed to be 2500 feet long aligned perpendicular to shore. The diffuser for Unit 3 will extend from 3500 to 6000 feet from shore, and that for Unit 2 from 6000 to 8500 feet from shore. Each diffuser will have 63 discharge nozzles aimed offshore (±25° from the pipe axis, 20° above horizontal). The momentum of the discharge produces and offshore drift of the diluted warm-water plume. The maximum temperature rise on the surface caused by the discharge was found to decrease with increasing longshore current speed, and the discharge momentum from the jets was effective in preventing significant re-entrainment in the event of reversing or low currents. Although the California thermal discharge requirements specify a maximum surface temperature increase of 4°F (beyond 1000 feet from the discharge structure), the laboratory target maximum was established at 2.5°F, to account for possible model-prototype differences and unmodeled effects. The hydraulic model studies showed that the proposed outfall design meets the laboratory target value for a variety of possible longshore current conditions; therefore, it is predicted that the prototype outfall operation will meet the California thermal discharge requirements

    Development of the dry tape battery concept

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    High energy anode and cathode for dry tape battery - incapsulation of electrolyte - manufacturing and testing of devic

    Sediment Delivery to a Tidal Marsh Platform Is Minimized by Source Decoupling and Flux Convergence

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    Sediment supply is a primary factor in determining marsh response to sea level rise and is typically approximated through high‐resolution measurements of suspended sediment concentrations (SSCs) from adjacent tidal channels. However, understanding sediment transport across the marsh itself remains limited by discontinuous measurements of SSC over individual tidal cycles. Here, we use an array of optical turbidity sensors to build a long‐term, continuous record of SSC across a marsh platform and adjacent tidal channel. We find that channel and marsh concentrations are correlated (i.e., coupled) within tidal cycles but are largely decoupled over longer time scales. We also find that net sediment fluxes decline to near zero within 10 m of the marsh edge. Together, these results suggest that large sections of the marsh platform receive minimal sediment independent of flooding frequency or channel sediment supply. Marsh‐centric, as opposed to channel‐centric, measures of sediment supply may better characterize marsh platform vulnerability

    Does behaviour affect the dispersal of flatback post-hatchlings in the Great Barrier Reef?

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    The ability of individuals to actively control their movements, especially during the early life stages, can significantly influence the distribution of their population. Most marine turtle species develop oceanic foraging habitats during different life stages. However, flatback turtles (Natator depressus) are endemic to Australia and are the only marine turtle species with an exclusive neritic development. To explain the lack of oceanic dispersal of this species, we predicted the dispersal of post-hatchlings in the Great Barrier Reef (GBR), Australia, using oceanographic advection-dispersal models. We included directional swimming in our models and calibrated them against the observed distribution of post-hatchling and adult turtles. We simulated the dispersal of green and loggerhead turtles since they also breed in the same region. Our study suggests that the neritic distribution of flatback post-hatchlings is favoured by the inshore distribution of nesting beaches, the local water circulation and directional swimming during their early dispersal. This combination of factors is important because, under the conditions tested, if flatback post-hatchlings were entirely passively transported, they would be advected into oceanic habitats after 40 days. Our results reinforce the importance of oceanography and directional swimming in the early life stages and their influence on the distribution of a marine turtle species

    Deep reefs of the Great Barrier Reef offer limited thermal refuge during mass coral bleaching

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    Our rapidly warming climate is threatening coral reefs as thermal anomalies trigger mass coral bleaching events. Deep (or "mesophotic") coral reefs are hypothesised to act as major ecological refuges from mass bleaching, but empirical assessments are limited. We evaluated the potential of mesophotic reefs within the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) and adjacent Coral Sea to act as thermal refuges by characterising long-term temperature conditions and assessing impacts during the 2016 mass bleaching event. We found that summer upwelling initially provided thermal relief at upper mesophotic depths (40 m), but then subsided resulting in anomalously warm temperatures even at depth. Bleaching impacts on the deep reefs were severe (40% bleached and 6% dead colonies at 40 m) but significantly lower than at shallower depths (60-69% bleached and 8-12% dead at 5-25 m). While we confirm that deep reefs can offer refuge from thermal stress, we highlight important caveats in terms of the transient nature of the protection and their limited ability to provide broad ecological refuge.XL Catlin Seaview Survey; Waitt Foundation; XL Catlin Group; Underwater Earth; University of Queensland; ARC Discovery Early Career Researcher Award (DECRA) [DE160101433]; Portuguese Science and Technology Foundation (FCT) [SFRH/BPD/110285/2015]; Australian Research Council (ARC

    Dependence of pp->pp pi0 near Threshold on the Spin of the Colliding Nucleons

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    A polarized internal atomic hydrogen target and a stored, polarized beam are used to measure the spin-dependent total cross section Delta_sigma_T/sigma_tot, as well as the polar integrals of the spin correlation coefficient combination A_xx-A_yy, and the analyzing power A_y for pp-> pp pi0 at four bombarding energies between 325 and 400 MeV. This experiment is made possible by the use of a cooled beam in a storage ring. The polarization observables are used to study the contribution from individual partial waves.Comment: 6 pages, 1 table, 4 figures, corrected equations 2 and
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