Lithium and rubidium concentrations in waters of seas and oceans

Data on lithium, rubidium and cesium concentrations in waters of open seas and oceans are summarized. Average amounts of these elements in the World Ocean inferred from published data and those obtained by the author are as follows: Li - 0.18 mg/l, Rb - 0.12 mg/l and Cs - 0.004 mg/l. Rare alkaline elements in the oceans and open seas are distributed (like sodium and potassium) in accordance with salinity. The ability of lithium to become a constituent of clay minerals accounts for its relatively low concentration in sea water as compared with that of sodium and potassium. Compared to rubidium and cesium that have high absorption energy and low hydration energy, lithium relatively enriches sea water. Residence times of these elements in the ocean are: Na - 120 My, Li - 2.7 My, Rb - 2.3 My and Cs - 0.3 My.

Geochemistry and sedimentation rates of ODP Leg 199 sites and of surface sediments in the eastern Pacific ocean

We present the first high-resolution organic carbon mass accumulation rate (MAR) data set for the Eocene equatorial Pacific upwelling region, from Sites 1218 and 1219 of the Ocean Drilling Program. A maximum Corg MAR anomaly appears at 41 Ma and corresponds to a high carbonate accumulation event (CAE). Independent evidence suggests that this event (CAE-3) was a time of rapid cooling. Throughout the Eocene, organic carbon burial fluxes were an order of magnitude lower than fluxes recorded for the Holocene. In contrast, the expected organic carbon flux, calculated from the biogenic barium concentrations for these sites, is roughly equal to modern. A sedimentation anomaly appears at 41 Ma, when both the measured and the expected organic carbon MAR increases by a factor of two-three relative to the background Eocene fluxes. The rain of estimated Corg and barium from the euphotic zone to the sediments increased by factors of three and six, respectively. We suggest that the discrepancy between the expected and measured Corg in the sediments is a direct consequence of the increased metabolic rates of all organisms throughout the Eocene oceans and sediments. This hypothesis is supported by recent work in ecology and biochemical kinetics that recognizes the fundamental basis of ecology as following from the laws of thermodynamics. This dependence is now elucidated as the Universal Temperature Dependence (UTD) "law" of metabolism and can be applied to all organisms over their biologically relevant temperature range. The general pattern of organic carbon and barium deposition throughout the Eocene is consistent with the UTD theory. In particular, the anomaly at 41 Ma (CAE-3) is associated with rapid cooling, an event that triggered slower metabolic rates for all organisms, slower recycling of organic carbon in the water and sediment column, and, consequently, higher deposition of organic carbon in the sediments. This "metabolism-based" scenario is consistent with the sedimentation patterns we observe for both Sites 1218 and 1219.

Late Eocene to Early Oligocene magnetostratigraphic chron boundaries of ODP Hole 119-744A (Table 1)

The earliest Oligocene (~33.5 Ma) is marked by a major step in the long-term transition from an ice-free to glaciated world. The transition, characterized by both cooling and ice-sheet growth, triggered a transient but extreme glacial period designated Oi-1. High-resolution isotope records suggest that Oi-1 lasted for roughly 400,000 yr (the duration of magnetochron 13N) before partially abating, and that it was accompanied by an ocean-wide carbon isotope anomaly of 0.75?. One hypothesis relates the carbon isotope anomaly to enhanced export production brought about by climate-induced intensification of wind stress and upwelling, particularly in the Southern Ocean. To understand how this climatic event affected export production in the Southern Ocean, biogenic silica (opal) and carbonate accumulation rates were computed for the sub-polar Indian Ocean using deep-sea cores from ODP Site 744, Kerguelen Plateau. Our findings suggest that net productivity in this region increased by several fold in response to the Oi-1 glaciation. In addition, calcareous primary producers dominant in the Late Eocene were partially replaced by opaline organisms suggesting a trend toward seasonally greater surface divergence and upwelling in this sector of the Southern Ocean. We attribute these changes to intensification of atmospheric=oceanic circulation brought about by high-latitude cooling and the appearance of a full-scale continental ice-sheet on East Antarctica. Higher terrigenous sediment accumulation rates support the idea that wind-induced changes in regional productivity were augmented by an increased supply of glacial dust and debris that provided limiting micro-nutrients (e.g., iron-rich dust particles). We speculate that the rapid changes in biogenic sediment accumulation in the Southern Ocean and other upwelling-dominated regions contributed to the ocean-wide positive carbon isotope anomaly by temporarily increasing the burial rate of organic carbon relative to carbonate carbon. The changes in burial rates, in turn, may have produced a positive feedback on climate by briefly drawing down atmospheric pCO2 .

Coral communities exposed to differential large amplitude internal waves cooling and a severe heat stress in 2010 in the Andaman Sea

Tropical scleractinian corals are particularly vulnerable to global warming as elevated sea surface temperatures (SST) disrupt the delicate balance between the coral host and their algal endosymbionts, leading to symbiont expulsion, mass bleaching and mortality. While satellite sensing of SST has proven a good predictor of coral bleaching at the regional scale, there are large deviations in bleaching severity and mortality on the local scale, which are only poorly understood. Here, we show that internal waves play a major role in explaining local coral bleaching and mortality patterns in the Andaman Sea. In spite of a severe region-wide SST anomaly in May 2010, frequent upslope intrusions of cold sub-pycnocline waters due to breaking large amplitude internal waves (LAIW) alleviated heating and mitigated coral bleaching and mortality in shallow LAIW-exposed waters. In LAIW-sheltered waters, by contrast, bleaching susceptible species suffered severe bleaching and total mortality. These findings suggest that LAIW, which are ubiquitous in tropical stratified waters, benefit coral reefs during thermal stress and provide local refugia for bleaching susceptible corals. The swash zones of LAIW may thus be important, so far overlooked, conservation areas for the maintainance of coral diversity in a warming climate. The consideration of LAIW can significantly improve coral bleaching predictions and can provide a valuable tool for coral reef conservation and management.

Stable carbon and oxygen isotope ratios of bulk sediment from DSDP Hole 62-463 (Appendix A)

In order to elucidate early Aptian marine paleotemperature evolution across the period of enhanced organic carbon (Corg)-burial [Oceanic Anoxic Event (OAE) 1a], stable isotope analyses were performed on pelagic limestones at Deep Sea Drilling Project Site 463, central Pacific Ocean. The delta18O data exhibit a distinct anomaly by ~-2? spanning the OAE 1a interval (i.e., a ~6 m-thick, phytoplanktonic Corg-rich unit constrained by magneto-, bio- and delta13C stratigraphy). Elucidation of paleotemperature significance of the delta18O shift is made by taking account of recent Sr/Ca evidence at the same section, which revealed that geochemical signals in carbonate-poor lithologies are relatively unaltered against burial diagenesis. By discriminating delta18O values from carbonate-poor samples (CaCO3 contents=5-30 wt.%), it appears that an abrupt rise in seasurface temperatures (SSTs) by 8 °C (=-1.7? shift in delta18O) occurred immediately before OAE 1a, whereas a cooling mode likely prevailed during the peak Corg-burial. In terms of its stratigraphic relationship as to the Corg-rich interval and to a pronounced negative delta13C excursion, as well as its timescale, the observed SST rise resembles those associated with the Paleocene-Eocene thermal maximum and, more strikingly, Jurassic Toarcian OAE. This observation is consistent with the hypothesis that these paleoenvironmental events were driven by a common causal mechanism, which was likely initiated by the greenhouse effect via massive release of CH4 or CO2 from the isotopically-light carbon reservoir and terminated by a negative productivity feedback.

(Table 1) Sea surface temperature reconstruction for eastern equatorial Pacific surface sediment samples

Significant uncertainties persist in the reconstruction of past sea surface temperatures in the eastern equatorial Pacific, especially regarding the amplitude of the glacial cooling and the details of the post-glacial warming. Here we present the first regional calibration of alkenone unsaturation in surface sediments versus mean annual sea surface temperatures (maSST). Based on 81 new and 48 previously published data points, it is shown that open ocean samples conform to established global regressions of Uk'37 versus maSST and that there is no systematic bias from seasonality in the production or export of alkenones, or from surface ocean nutrient concentrations or salinity. The flattening of the regression at the highest maSSTs is found to be statistically insignificant. For the near-coastal Peru upwelling zone between 11-15°S and 76-79°W, however, we corroborate earlier observations that Uk'37 SST estimates significantly over-estimate maSSTs at many sites. We posit that this is caused either by uncertainties in the determination of maSSTs in this highly dynamic environment, or by biasing of the alkenone paleothermometer toward El Niño events as postulated by Rein et al. (2005).

Power plant cooling water chlorination in northern California /

Issued March 1978.

Cooling efficiency of different air velocities in hot environments /

Mode of access: Internet.

An assessment of sample surveys as feedback mechanisms for guiding local decision making /

Research supported by U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research.

Cooling and holding eggs on the ranch /

Mode of access: Internet.

Toxicity of chlorinated power plant condenser cooling waters to fish /

Grant no. R-800700.

Environmental readiness document : solar heating and cooling of buildings /

September 1979.