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Sample records for norwegian north sea

  1. Temperature, Salinity, Oxygen, Phosphate, pH and Alkalinity data collected in the North Atlantic Ocean, Baltic Sea, Barents Sea, Greenland Sea, North Sea, Norwegian Sea and White Sea from R/Vs Artemovsk, Atlantida, Okeanograf, Professor Rudovits, and ice observations, 1957 - 1995 (NODC Accession 0073674)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Temperature, Salinity, Oxygen, Phosphate, pH and Alkalinity data collected in the North Atlantic Ocean, Baltic Sea, Barents Sea, Greenland Sea, North Sea, Norwegian...

  2. Other variables collected from discrete sample and profile observations using CTD, bottle and other instruments from unknown platforms in the North Atlantic Ocean, North Sea and Norwegian Sea from 1874-01-01 to 2005-12-31 (NCEI Accession 0144342)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NCEI Accession 0144342 includes discrete sample and profile data collected from unknown platforms in the North Atlantic Ocean, North Sea and Norwegian Sea from...

  3. Highly variable Pliocene sea surface conditions in the Norwegian Sea

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    P. E. Bachem

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available The Pliocene was a time of global warmth with small sporadic glaciations, which transitioned towards the larger-scale Pleistocene glacial–interglacial variability. Here, we present high-resolution records of sea surface temperature (SST and ice-rafted debris (IRD in the Norwegian Sea from 5.32 to 3.14 Ma, providing evidence that the Pliocene surface conditions of the Norwegian Sea underwent a series of transitions in response to orbital forcing and gateway changes. Average SSTs are 2 °C above the regional Holocene mean, with notable variability on millennial to orbital timescales. Both gradual changes and threshold effects are proposed for the progression of regional climate towards the Late Pliocene intensification of Northern Hemisphere glaciation. Cooling from 4.5 to 4.3 Ma may be linked to the onset of poleward flow through the Bering Strait. This cooling was further intensified by a period of cool summers due to weak obliquity forcing. A 7 °C warming of the Norwegian Sea at 4.0 Ma suggests a major increase in northward heat transport from the North Atlantic, leading to an enhanced zonal SST gradient in the Nordic Seas, which may be linked to the expansion of sea ice in the Arctic and Nordic Seas. A warm Norwegian Sea and enhanced zonal temperature gradient between 4.0 and 3.6 Ma may have been a priming factor for increased glaciation around the Nordic Seas due to enhanced evaporation and precipitation at high northern latitudes.

  4. Disintegration of a marine-based ice stream - evidence from the Norwegian Channel, north-eastern North Sea

    Science.gov (United States)

    Morén, Björn M.; Petter Sejrup, Hans; Hjelstuen, Berit O.; Haflidason, Haflidi; Schäuble, Cathrina; Borge, Marianne

    2014-05-01

    The Norwegian Channel Ice Stream repeatedly drained large part of the Fennoscandian Ice Sheet through Mid and Late Pleistocene glacial stages. During parts of Marine Isotope Stages 2 and 3, glacial ice from Fennoscandia and the British Isles coalesced in the central North Sea and the Norwegian Channel Ice Stream reached the shelf edge on multiple occasions. Through the last decades a large amount of acoustic and sediment core data have been collected from the Norwegian Channel, providing a good background for studies focussing on stability- and development-controlling parameters for marine-based ice streams, the retreat rate of the Norwegian Channel Ice Stream, and the behaviour of the Fennoscandian Ice Sheet. Further, this improved understanding can be used to develop more accurate numerical climate models and models which can be used to model ice-sheet behaviour of the past as well as the future. This study presents new acoustic records and data from sediment cores which contribute to a better understanding of the retreat pattern and the retreat rate of the last ice stream that occupied the Norwegian Channel. From bathymetric and TOPAS seismic data, mega-scale glacial lineations, grounding-zone wedges, and end moraines have been mapped, thereby allowing us to reconstruct the pro- and subglacial conditions at the time of the creation of these landforms. It is concluded that the whole Norwegian Channel was deglaciated in just over 1 000 years and that for most of this time the ice margin was located at positions reflected by depositional grounding-zone wedges. Further work will explore the influence of channel shape and feeding of ice from western Norwegian fjords on this retreat pattern through numerical modelling.

  5. Norwegian 1990 sediment data for the North Sea Task Force (NSTF) and the Joint Monitoring Group (JMG)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Green, N.W.; Klungsoeyr, J.

    1994-12-31

    This report presents the 1990 sediment data compiled as part of the Norwegian contribution to the North Sea Task Force Monitoring Master Plan and the Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP). The JMP is ordered under the Oslo and Paris Commissions, which were established to protect the marine environment against anthropogenic contamination. The stations monitored by Norway are spread over the Kattegat, Skagerrak, North Sea south to the Dogger Bank and the Faeroe Islands. The contaminants investigated are mainly selected metals, organochlorines, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and the samples were collected by gravity cores and grab/box samplers. The raw data and the mean and standard deviations of parallel samples (if relevant) are presented. 6 refs., 2 tabs.

  6. The outlook for investment in the Norwegian North Sea

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Enger, T.

    1992-01-01

    An outline of the investment potential for oil and gas production on the Norwegian continental shelf is given. The continental shelf includes the Haltenbanken area and the Barents Sea as well as the North Sea. A description of existing projects and present knowledge of future prospects is given. The total production of oil and gas in 1990 was 107 million toe, the ratio of oil to gas production being 4:1. The relationship between oil and gas will change dramatically in the future however as the gas share in fields under development is much greater than in currently producing fields. The greatest potential for gas is expected to be in the Barents Sea which, being located at a considerable distance from existing gas markets presents a great challenge for commercial development. The conclusion drawn from the outline is that the present level of investment will be maintained or increase slightly over the next four to five years. For the period up to the turn of the century there is increasing uncertainty over the investment level which will become more and more dependent upon further expansion of gas exports but a best estimate is for continued investment stability beyond the year 2000. The production level can be expected to increase and reach a peak during the late 1990s. The resource base is sufficient to maintain a high production level for several decades after the year 2000. (UK)

  7. Geology of the North Sea and Skagerrak

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Michelsen, O. [ed.

    1995-12-31

    The Marine Geology Unit of the Department of Earth Sciences organized the second Marine Geology symposium at Aarhus University, 7-8 October 1993. The intention was to bring together people working especially with the geology of the North Sea and Skagerrak. Approximately 60 people from different Danish and Norwegian institutions attended the symposium. 28 oral presentations were given and 2 posters presented. A large range of geological topics was covered, embracing biostratigraphy, sequence stratigraphy, sedimentology and structural geology. The majority of the presentations dealt with Quaternary geology and Cenozoic sequence stratigraphy, but also Jurassic and Lower Cretaceous stratigraphy was treated. Studies from the major part of the Danish sector were presented, spanning from Bornholm to the central North Sea, and further into the Norwegian North Sea sector. (au)

  8. An operational search and rescue model for the Norwegian Sea and the North Sea

    Science.gov (United States)

    Breivik, Øyvind; Allen, Arthur A.

    A new operational, ensemble-based search and rescue model for the Norwegian Sea and the North Sea is presented. The stochastic trajectory model computes the net motion of a range of search and rescue objects. A new, robust formulation for the relation between the wind and the motion of the drifting object (termed the leeway of the object) is employed. Empirically derived coefficients for 63 categories of search objects compiled by the US Coast Guard are ingested to estimate the leeway of the drifting objects. A Monte Carlo technique is employed to generate an ensemble that accounts for the uncertainties in forcing fields (wind and current), leeway drift properties, and the initial position of the search object. The ensemble yields an estimate of the time-evolving probability density function of the location of the search object, and its envelope defines the search area. Forcing fields from the operational oceanic and atmospheric forecast system of The Norwegian Meteorological Institute are used as input to the trajectory model. This allows for the first time high-resolution wind and current fields to be used to forecast search areas up to 60 h into the future. A limited set of field exercises show good agreement between model trajectories, search areas, and observed trajectories for life rafts and other search objects. Comparison with older methods shows that search areas expand much more slowly using the new ensemble method with high resolution forcing fields and the new leeway formulation. It is found that going to higher-order stochastic trajectory models will not significantly improve the forecast skill and the rate of expansion of search areas.

  9. Temperature, salinity and other variables collected from discrete sample and profile observations using CTD, bottle and other instruments from the JOHAN HJORT in the Barents Sea, North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from 1999-06-15 to 1999-07-07 (NODC Accession 0115678)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NODC Accession 0115678 includes chemical, discrete sample, physical and profile data collected from JOHAN HJORT in the Barents Sea, North Greenland Sea and Norwegian...

  10. North Sea oil directory 1976

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    1976-01-01

    This edition of the North Sea Oil Directory has been revised to keep pace with the ever-changing North Sea industry. The information is grouped under the following topics: exploration and production; group licensees; Dutch and Norwegian licensees; UK Offshore Operators Association Committees; drilling contractors; offshore exploration and surveys; cement, drilling fluids, and related equipment; drilling equipment; prime mover, transmission equipment; production and process equipment; rig and platform equipment suppliers; rig builders, ship builders; rig and platform logistics; ports, supply bases; marine civil engineering; specialized equipment and services; classified index; and an alphabetical index. (MCW)

  11. Dissolved inorganic carbon, alkalinity, temperature, salinity and other variables collected from discrete sample and profile observations using CTD, bottle and other instruments from the HAKON MOSBY in the Barents Sea, North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from 1999-10-03 to 1999-10-11 (NODC Accession 0113888)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NODC Accession 0113888 includes chemical, discrete sample, physical and profile data collected from HAKON MOSBY in the Barents Sea, North Greenland Sea and Norwegian...

  12. The distribution of artificial radionuclides in the waters of the Norwegian-Greenland Sea in 1985

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wedekind, C.; Gabriel, H.; Goroncy, I.; Framcke, G.

    1997-01-01

    In the summer of 1985, sea water samples were taken to determine 3 H, 90 Sr, 134 Cs, 137 Cs and transuranics within a grid of 165 stations including 16 depth series down to the seafloor, covering all ice-free areas. The distribution of the activity concentrations and the nuclide ratios reveal the contamination pathway into the surface and deeper layers of the Norwegian-Greenland Sea from nuclear weapon fallout and civil nuclear technology. Moreover, the investigations show that: (1) a yearly discharge of 1 TBq (10 12 Bq) 90 Sr into the Irish Sea (English Channel) is diluted on its way to the southern Norwegian Sea, raising the concentration by about 0.04 m Bql -1 ; (2) the drift time to this sea area is around 4 years; (3) about 40% of the 137 Cs discharged does not reach the Norwegian Sea and (4) a further 30% leaves the Norwegian-Greenland Sea via the North Cape and flows into the Barents Sea. Investigations into the vertical distribution and stratification of the radioactivity indicate the time scale on which the radionuclides travel to the deeper layers. (author)

  13. Temperature, salinity and other variables collected from discrete sample and profile observations using CTD, bottle and other instruments from the JOHAN HJORT in the North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from 1993-11-06 to 1993-12-02 (NODC Accession 0115679)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NODC Accession 0115679 includes chemical, discrete sample, physical and profile data collected from JOHAN HJORT in the North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from...

  14. Temperature, salinity and other variables collected from discrete sample and profile observations using CTD, bottle and other instruments from the JOHAN HJORT in the North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from 1992-11-05 to 1992-12-01 (NODC Accession 0115403)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NODC Accession 0115403 includes chemical, discrete sample, physical and profile data collected from JOHAN HJORT in the North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from...

  15. Temperature, salinity and other variables collected from discrete sample and profile observations using CTD, bottle and other instruments from the JOHAN HJORT in the North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from 1991-11-05 to 1991-11-27 (NODC Accession 0115685)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NODC Accession 0115685 includes chemical, discrete sample, physical and profile data collected from JOHAN HJORT in the North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from...

  16. Temperature, salinity and other variables collected from discrete sample and profile observations using CTD, bottle and other instruments from the JOHAN HJORT in the North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from 1996-10-30 to 1996-11-10 (NODC Accession 0115680)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NODC Accession 0115680 includes chemical, discrete sample, physical and profile data collected from JOHAN HJORT in the North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from...

  17. Dissolved inorganic carbon, pH, alkalinity, temperature, salinity and other variables collected from discrete sample and profile observations using CTD, bottle and other instruments from the JOHAN HJORT in the Barents Sea, North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from 1993-07-30 to 1993-08-15 (NODC Accession 0113559)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NODC Accession 0113559 includes chemical, discrete sample, physical and profile data collected from JOHAN HJORT in the Barents Sea, North Greenland Sea and Norwegian...

  18. Mechanisms of long-term mean sea level variability in the North Sea

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dangendorf, Sönke; Calafat, Francisco; Øie Nilsen, Jan Even; Richter, Kristin; Jensen, Jürgen

    2015-04-01

    We examine mean sea level (MSL) variations in the North Sea on timescales ranging from months to decades under the consideration of different forcing factors since the late 19th century. We use multiple linear regression models, which are validated for the second half of the 20th century against the output of a state-of-the-art tide+surge model (HAMSOM), to determine the barotropic response of the ocean to fluctuations in atmospheric forcing. We demonstrate that local atmospheric forcing mainly triggers MSL variability on timescales up to a few years, with the inverted barometric effect dominating the variability along the UK and Norwegian coastlines and wind (piling up the water along the coast) controlling the MSL variability in the south from Belgium up to Denmark. However, in addition to the large inter-annual sea level variability there is also a considerable fraction of decadal scale variability. We show that on decadal timescales MSL variability in the North Sea mainly reflects steric changes, which are mostly remotely forced. A spatial correlation analysis of altimetry observations and baroclinic ocean model outputs suggests evidence for a coherent signal extending from the Norwegian shelf down to the Canary Islands. This supports the theory of longshore wind forcing along the eastern boundary of the North Atlantic causing coastally trapped waves to propagate along the continental slope. With a combination of oceanographic and meteorological measurements we demonstrate that ~80% of the decadal sea level variability in the North Sea can be explained as response of the ocean to longshore wind forcing, including boundary wave propagation in the Northeast Atlantic. These findings have important implications for (i) detecting significant accelerations in North Sea MSL, (ii) the conceptual set up of regional ocean models in terms of resolution and boundary conditions, and (iii) the development of adequate and realistic regional climate change projections.

  19. Tender moments in the North Sea

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Fox, C

    1991-04-01

    Described is tender-assisted drilling (TAD) on the UK North Sea Gannet field. The Gannet field is developed by Shell UK Exploration and Production (Shell Expro). In March 1990, Shell Expro awarded Sedco Forex the design and engineering contract to convert the semisubmersible drilling rig Sedco 704 into the Gannet TSV (Tender Support Vessel). The only semisubmersible TSV operation so far to have completed drilling in the North Sea has been in the Norwegian sector. The Odin field, operated by Esso Norge a/s, was developed using the converted drilling rig Treasure Hunter. 1 fig., 1 ill., 3 refs.

  20. Dissolved inorganic carbon, alkalinity, temperature, salinity and other variables collected from discrete sample and profile observations using CTD, bottle and other instruments from the JOHAN HJORT in the North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from 1994-05-25 to 1994-06-06 (NODC Accession 0113954)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NODC Accession 0113954 includes chemical, discrete sample, physical and profile data collected from JOHAN HJORT in the North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from...

  1. Dissolved inorganic carbon, alkalinity, temperature, salinity and other variables collected from discrete sample and profile observations using CTD, bottle and other instruments from the HAKON MOSBY in the North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from 1998-03-08 to 1998-03-24 (NODC Accession 0113546)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NODC Accession 0113546 includes chemical, discrete sample, physical and profile data collected from HAKON MOSBY in the North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from...

  2. Dissolved inorganic carbon, alkalinity, temperature, salinity and other variables collected from discrete sample and profile observations using CTD, bottle and other instruments from the HAKON MOSBY in the North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from 1997-02-25 to 1997-03-24 (NODC Accession 0113545)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NODC Accession 0113545 includes chemical, discrete sample, physical and profile data collected from HAKON MOSBY in the North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from...

  3. Dissolved inorganic carbon, alkalinity, temperature, salinity and other variables collected from discrete sample and profile observations using CTD, bottle and other instruments from the HAKON MOSBY in the North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from 1994-02-24 to 1994-03-17 (NODC Accession 0113541)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NODC Accession 0113541 includes chemical, discrete sample, physical and profile data collected from HAKON MOSBY in the North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from...

  4. Dissolved inorganic carbon, alkalinity, temperature, salinity and other variables collected from discrete sample and profile observations using CTD, bottle and other instruments from the HAKON MOSBY in the North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from 1994-08-26 to 1994-09-10 (NODC Accession 0113542)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NODC Accession 0113542 includes chemical, discrete sample, physical and profile data collected from HAKON MOSBY in the North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from...

  5. Dissolved inorganic carbon, alkalinity, temperature, salinity and other variables collected from discrete sample and profile observations using CTD, bottle and other instruments from the JOHAN HJORT in the North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from 1995-04-27 to 1995-05-23 (NODC Accession 0113561)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NODC Accession 0113561 includes chemical, discrete sample, physical and profile data collected from JOHAN HJORT in the North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from...

  6. Dissolved inorganic carbon, alkalinity, temperature, salinity and other variables collected from discrete sample and profile observations using CTD, bottle and other instruments from the JOHAN HJORT in the North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from 1995-11-08 to 1995-11-26 (NODC Accession 0113562)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NODC Accession 0113562 includes chemical, discrete sample, physical and profile data collected from JOHAN HJORT in the North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from...

  7. Dissolved inorganic carbon, pH, alkalinity, temperature, salinity and other variables collected from discrete sample and profile observations using CTD, bottle and other instruments from the JOHAN HJORT in the North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from 1997-04-14 to 1997-05-22 (NODC Accession 0113563)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NODC Accession 0113563 includes chemical, discrete sample, physical and profile data collected from JOHAN HJORT in the North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from...

  8. Dissolved inorganic carbon, pH, alkalinity, temperature, salinity and other variables collected from discrete sample and profile observations using CTD, bottle and other instruments from the HAKON MOSBY in the North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from 1995-02-17 to 1995-03-18 (NODC Accession 0113543)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NODC Accession 0113543 includes chemical, discrete sample, physical and profile data collected from HAKON MOSBY in the North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from...

  9. Dissolved inorganic carbon, alkalinity, temperature, salinity and other variables collected from discrete sample and profile observations using CTD, bottle and other instruments from the JAMES CLARK ROSS in the North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from 1996-07-20 to 1996-08-22 (NODC Accession 0113757)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NODC Accession 0113757 includes chemical, discrete sample, physical and profile data collected from JAMES CLARK ROSS in the North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea...

  10. Dissolved inorganic carbon, pH, alkalinity, temperature, salinity and other variables collected from discrete sample and profile observations using CTD, bottle and other instruments from the JOHAN HJORT in the North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from 1998-08-01 to 1998-08-23 (NODC Accession 0113758)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NODC Accession 0113758 includes chemical, discrete sample, physical and profile data collected from JOHAN HJORT in the North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from...

  11. Dissolved inorganic carbon, alkalinity, temperature, salinity and other variables collected from discrete sample and profile observations using Alkalinity titrator, CTD and other instruments from the G.O. SARS in the North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from 2006-07-21 to 2006-08-05 (NODC Accession 0105859)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NODC Accession 0105859 includes chemical, discrete sample, physical and profile data collected from G.O. SARS in the North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from...

  12. Temperature, salinity and other variables collected from discrete sample and profile observations using CTD, bottle and other instruments from the JOHAN HJORT in the North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from 1996-07-20 to 1996-08-05 (NODC Accession 0115688)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NODC Accession 0115688 includes biological, chemical, discrete sample, physical and profile data collected from JOHAN HJORT in the North Greenland Sea and Norwegian...

  13. Stock structure of Atlantic herring Clupea harengus in the Norwegian Sea and adjacent waters

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Pampoulie, Christophe; Slotte, Aril; Oskarsson, Guomundur J.

    2015-01-01

    The genetic structure of Atlantic herring Clupea harengus L. was investigated in its north-easterly distribution in the Norwegian Sea and adjacent waters, using 23 neutral and one non-neutral (Cpa111) microsatellite loci. Fish from the suspected 2 main populations-the Norwegian spring......-spawning herring (NSSH) and the Icelandic summer-spawning herring (ISSH)-were collected at spawning locations in their respective spawning seasons from 2009 to 2012. Samples were also collected from Norwegian autumn spawning locations, from different local Norwegian fjords such as the inner part...... of Trondheimsfjorden, Lindas pollene, Landvikvannet and Lusterfjorden, as well as from suspected Faroese spawning components. The observed level of genetic differentiation was significant but low (F-ST = 0.007) and mostly attributable to the differentiation of the local Norwegian fjord populations. The locus Cpa111...

  14. Regional seesaw between the North Atlantic and Nordic Seas during the last glacial abrupt climate events

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M. Wary

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available Dansgaard–Oeschger oscillations constitute one of the most enigmatic features of the last glacial cycle. Their cold atmospheric phases have been commonly associated with cold sea-surface temperatures and expansion of sea ice in the North Atlantic and adjacent seas. Here, based on dinocyst analyses from the 48–30 ka interval of four sediment cores from the northern Northeast Atlantic and southern Norwegian Sea, we provide direct and quantitative evidence of a regional paradoxical seesaw pattern: cold Greenland and North Atlantic phases coincide with warmer sea-surface conditions and shorter seasonal sea-ice cover durations in the Norwegian Sea as compared to warm phases. Combined with additional palaeorecords and multi-model hosing simulations, our results suggest that during cold Greenland phases, reduced Atlantic meridional overturning circulation and cold North Atlantic sea-surface conditions were accompanied by the subsurface propagation of warm Atlantic waters that re-emerged in the Nordic Seas and provided moisture towards Greenland summit.

  15. What Causes the North Sea Level to Rise Faster over the Last Decade ?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Karpytchev, Mikhail; Letetrel, Camille

    2013-04-01

    We combined tide gauge records (PSMSL) and satellite altimetry data (TOPEX/POSEIDON-JASON 1-2) to reconstruct the mean level of the North Sea and the Norwegian Sea Shelf (NS-NSS) over 1950-2012. The reconstructed NS-NSS mean sea level fluctuations reveal a pronounced interannual variability and a strong sea level acceleration since the mid-1990's. In order to understand the causes of this acceleration, the NS-NSS mean sea level was cross-correlated with the North Atlantic Oscillation and Arctic Oscillation indices. While the interannual variability of the mean sea level correlates well with the NAO/AO indices, the observed acceleration in the NS-NSS mean level is not linked linearly to the NAO/AO fluctuations. On the other hand, the Empirical Orthogonal Functions (EOF) analysis of steric sea level variations in the eastern North Atlantic gives a dominant EOF pattern (55% of variance explained) that varies on a decadal scale very closely to the NS-NSS mean level flcutuations. Also, the amplification in the temporal amplitude of the dominant steric sea level EOF corresponds to the acceleration observed in the NS-NSS mean sea level signal. This suggests that decadal variations in the mean level of the North Sea - the Norwegian Sea Shelf reflect changes in the Subpolar Front currents (Rossby, 1996).

  16. Clean-up of the sea bed in the North Sea 1996

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1997-01-01

    The petroleum activities in the North Sea have inadvertently caused some conflict with fishermen getting their trawls etc. into trash from littering of the sea bed. In the present report, the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate describes a clean-up operation undertaken in 1996 and paid by the State. A clean-up area of 1000 km 2 off Karmoey was selected. This area was mapped by side scan sonar along survey lines 300 m equidistant and a sonar range of 200 m. The sonar data were continuously interpreted by a geophysicist. Selected targets were then identified by ROV and eventually removed. Of the 59 targets examined, 11 were removed and dumped onshore. The largest part elevated was a chain cable of 9 tons. There is also a brief discussion of the compensation agreement with Norwegian fishermen. 4 figs

  17. Opportunities for suppliers in the North Sea

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    D'Ancona, J.E.

    1992-01-01

    If European suppliers to the offshore industry are to prosper, it has to be on the basis of a single internationally competitive North Sea market. If we continue to talk and think in terms of a British sector, a Norwegian sector, Dutch and Danish sectors, then we will inhibit the full development of contractors and suppliers. The long term future in oilfield supplies lies in a mixed portfolio of international projects. Oil and gas exploration and development, particularly offshore, is notoriously cyclical. To survive the downturns in one market supply, companies need to have access to the upswing in others. The significance of a single North Sea market is that it presents an international arena for the best companies to demonstrate their technical and commercial abilities. Individual national sectors do not - cannot - provide that opportunity to anything like the same extent. Taking then the North Sea as a single competitive market, it represents the most important offshore area in the world at the present time, and this is likely to continue during the 1990s. The prospects of achieving a single North Sea market are discussed. (author)

  18. Jurassic domes in the North Sea - northern North Atlantic region

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Surlyk, F. [Univ. of Copenhagen, Geological Inst., Copenhagen (Denmark)

    1996-12-31

    The stratigraphic and tectonic evolution of the Jurassic of East Greenland, the Norwegian Shelf and the North Sea is remarkably similar. A major Middle Jurassic unconformity occurs in all three areas. In the North Sea it is commonly termed the `Mid-Cimmerian Unconformity` and is characterized by progressive truncation of the underlying section towards a centre at the triple junction between the Central Graben, Viking Graben and Moray Firth. Strata above the unconformity show a progressive Late Aalenian-Early Kimmeridgian onlap in the same direction. These relations have been interpreted as caused by Early Jurassic uplift and of a major thermal dome in the central North Sea, followed by Medial and Late Jurassic rifting, erosion, deflation and transgression of the dome. The East Greenland unconformity shows progressive truncation of underlying strata from south to north, and Bajocian to Callovian onlap in the same direction. The same pattern seems to be developed on the conjugate Norwegian margin. This suggests the possibility that the three unconformities have similar causes for their development. It is proposed that major rift domes formed in the Central North Sea and in the Greenland-Norway seaway in Early Jurassic times. The domes were eroded and gradually deflated during Medial Jurassic times and were finally submerged by the Late Oxfordian-Kimmeridgian. They were associated with volcanism and rifting which was delayed with respect to dome initiation. Roughly contemperaneous domes were present west of Britain, north of the Porcupine Seabight, and in Scania, southern Sweden, as reflected by development of asymmetrical unconformities showing progressive truncation of underlying strata, onlap of overlying Jurassic strata, and associated intrusive and extrusive volcanism. The domes are related to impingement of the heads of transient mantle plumes at the base of the lithosphere. The associated unconformities are thus of non-eustatic nature. Domal uplift and

  19. Facts 2000. Norwegian petroleum activities; Fakta 2000. Norsk petroleumsvirksomhet

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    2000-03-01

    The petroleum resources discovered on the Norwegian Continental Shelf amounts to about 9,6 billion Sm{sup 3} oil equivalents, 76 percent in the North Sea, 20 percent in the Norwegian Sea and 4 percent in the Barents Sea. The present publication gives a summary of the resources, the exploration, the field development, the production of oil and gas, and the revenue from petroleum sale for the year 1999.

  20. Gas deliveries from Haltenbanken/North Sea; Gassleveranser Haltenbanken/Nordsjoeen

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ramm, H.H.

    1995-12-31

    The conference paper relates to the development and delivery of natural gas from the Haltenbanken area and the North Sea on the Norwegian continental shelf. Alternatives of field developments and pipelines together with the allocation of contracts for securing the contractual delivery of natural gas to the European continent in future and an alternative delivery to the Scandinavian countries, are discussed. 2 figs.

  1. Ecosystem structure and resilience—A comparison between the Norwegian and the Barents Sea

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yaragina, Natalia A.; Dolgov, Andrey V.

    2009-10-01

    Abundance and biomass of the most important fish species inhabited the Barents and Norwegian Sea ecosystems have shown considerable fluctuations over the last decades. These fluctuations connected with fishing pressure resulted in the trophic structure alterations of the ecosystems. Resilience and other theoretical concepts (top-down, wasp-waste and bottom-up control, trophic cascades) were viewed to examine different response of the Norwegian and Barents Sea ecosystems on disturbing forces. Differences in the trophic structure and functioning of Barents and Norwegian Sea ecosystems as well as factors that might influence the resilience of the marine ecosystems, including climatic fluctuation, variations in prey and predator species abundance, alterations in their regular migrations, and fishing exploitation were also considered. The trophic chain lengths in the deep Norwegian Sea are shorter, and energy transfer occurs mainly through the pelagic fish/invertebrates communities. The shallow Barents Sea is characterized by longer trophic chains, providing more energy flow into their benthic assemblages. The trophic mechanisms observed in the Norwegian Sea food webs dominated by the top-down control, i.e. the past removal of Norwegian Spring spawning followed by zooplankton development and intrusion of blue whiting and mackerel into the area. The wasp-waist response is shown to be the most pronounced effect in the Barents Sea, related to the position of capelin in the ecosystem; large fluctuations in the capelin abundance have been strengthened by intensive fishery. Closer links between ecological and fisheries sciences are needed to elaborate and test various food webs and multispecies models available.

  2. Integrated management plan for the North Sea and Skagerrak: Status description for the petroleum industry with emphasis on the Norwegian continental shelf; Helhetlig forvaltningsplan for Nordsjoeen og Skagerrak: Statusbeskrivelse for petroleumsvirksomheten med hovedvekt paa norsk sokkel

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    2010-06-15

    Status description of the petroleum industry covers mainly the Norwegian continental shelf, but it is also given a brief description of the activity in other offshore areas of the North Sea. It shows a list of producing fields, fields under development, developments in the future, findings that are in the planning phase, and completed fields. It also describes the pipelines and other petroleum-related activities at sea and on shore. (AG)

  3. Dissolved inorganic carbon, alkalinity, temperature, salinity and other variables collected from discrete sample and profile observations using CTD, bottle and other instruments from KNORR in the North Atlantic Ocean, North Greenland Sea and others from 1972-07-18 to 1973-04-01 (NCEI Accession 0143398)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NCEI Accession 0143398 includes discrete sample and profile data collected from KNORR in the North Atlantic Ocean, North Greenland Sea, Norwegian Sea, South Atlantic...

  4. Monitoring and modeling of contaminant loads and levels in Norwegian sea 2011

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Green, Norman W.; Heldal, Hilde Elise; Maage, Amund; Aas, Wenche; Graefert, Torbjoern; Schrum, Corinna; Boitsov, Stepan; Breivik, Knut; Iosjpe, Mikhail; Yakushev, Evgeniy; Skogen, Morten; Hoegaasen, Tore; Eckhardt, Sabine; Christiansen, Anne Bjoerkenes; Daae, Kjersti L.; Durand, Dominique; Ledang, Anna Birgitta; Jaccard, Pierre Francois

    2012-01-01

    This report describes the calculation of the supply of oil, hazardous chemicals and radioactive substances from seven sources of seven regions in the Norwegian part of the Norwegian Sea. The data from the various sources used to calculate the concentrations of pollutants in the water column throughout the defined area of the Norwegian Sea (3 dimensions) and calculate the transport of Hg, PCB153 and BaP in and out of each of the seven regions. This transport flux is huge compared with inputs and will alternately be a net source or net sink of each region. The main feature is that the supply is dominated by the fallout from the atmosphere is balanced by decomposition and sedimentation in the water column plus exports / imports from adjacent waters. It is relatively small supply of hazardous substances. With few exceptions, for the supply of air the biggest contribution of mercury, lead, cadmium, chromium, arsenic, PCBs (PCB-153) and PAH (benzo [a] pyrene) to all regions. Exception contributions of land for chromium in mid-Norway and contributions from seabed for lead and chromium from more central parts of the Norwegian Sea. Ship traffic dominates regard. supply of oil. Supply air from the major contribution of radionuclides plutonium-239 240 and strontium-90 in the eastern part of the Norwegian Sea. Otherwise, Sellafield is the dominant source. Contaminants in sediment and cod were largely of low to moderate concentrations. The concentration of radioactive substances in water, sediment and cod were low and comparable with results from other studies in the Norwegian Sea. There are still large gaps in knowledge and uncertainties in both the data and the estimates of supplies. It is especially important to improved figures for inflows into the oceans via air and enhancement of the marine transport and dispersion models.(eb)

  5. Terrestrial dissolved organic matter distribution in the North Sea.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Painter, Stuart C; Lapworth, Dan J; Woodward, E Malcolm S; Kroeger, Silke; Evans, Chris D; Mayor, Daniel J; Sanders, Richard J

    2018-07-15

    The flow of terrestrial carbon to rivers and inland waters is a major term in the global carbon cycle. The organic fraction of this flux may be buried, remineralized or ultimately stored in the deep ocean. The latter can only occur if terrestrial organic carbon can pass through the coastal and estuarine filter, a process of unknown efficiency. Here, data are presented on the spatial distribution of terrestrial fluorescent and chromophoric dissolved organic matter (FDOM and CDOM, respectively) throughout the North Sea, which receives organic matter from multiple distinct sources. We use FDOM and CDOM as proxies for terrestrial dissolved organic matter (tDOM) to test the hypothesis that tDOM is quantitatively transferred through the North Sea to the open North Atlantic Ocean. Excitation emission matrix fluorescence and parallel factor analysis (EEM-PARAFAC) revealed a single terrestrial humic-like class of compounds whose distribution was restricted to the coastal margins and, via an inverse salinity relationship, to major riverine inputs. Two distinct sources of fluorescent humic-like material were observed associated with the combined outflows of the Rhine, Weser and Elbe rivers in the south-eastern North Sea and the Baltic Sea outflow to the eastern central North Sea. The flux of tDOM from the North Sea to the Atlantic Ocean appears insignificant, although tDOM export may occur through Norwegian coastal waters unsampled in our study. Our analysis suggests that the bulk of tDOM exported from the Northwest European and Scandinavian landmasses is buried or remineralized internally, with potential losses to the atmosphere. This interpretation implies that the residence time in estuarine and coastal systems exerts an important control over the fate of tDOM and needs to be considered when evaluating the role of terrestrial carbon losses in the global carbon cycle. Copyright © 2018 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  6. Human impact and environmental consequences in the North Sea and Skagerrak; Helhetlig forvaltningsplan for Nordsjoen og Skagerrak

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    2011-07-01

    The expert group for the North Sea and Skagerrak has prepared six studies on human impact and environmental consequences. This is part of the technical basis for a management plan for the Norwegian part of this sea area.The expert group is requesting input on these studies from interested parties by 15 December 2011. (au)

  7. Regional cenozoic uplift and subsidence events in the southeastern North Sea

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Jordt, H.

    1995-12-31

    The Paleocene topography of the Fennoscandian Shield is indicated by outbuilding towards the Central Trough and the Ringkoebing-Fyn High. From Eocene until Pliocene time three events of relative vertical movements are indicated by changes in outbuilding directions and reflection termination patterns in the central North Sea. The firs event of uplift was in the Eocene and resulted in relative uplift of the Mid North Sea High and contemporary subsidence east of it, indicated by a change in outbuilding from north to west. A second event of uplift is indicated to the north of the study area at the Eocene-Oligocene boundary by renewed southward outbuilding in the Norwegian-Danish Basin. In Miocene until Early Pliocene time a relatively stationary, almost east-west striking, basin margin was probably located to the north along the Tornquist Zone as indicated by the continued outbuilding towards the Ringkoebing-Fyn High. A third event of relative uplift is indicated east of the study area by changes in the Pliocene outbuilding pattern. After the first event of uplift it appears that the deepest parts of the Eocene North Sea Basin was located more easterly than the deepest part are today. Apparently the two latest uplift events north and east of the study area were related to movements of, or along the Tornquist Zone or to regional uplift of the Fennoscandian Shield finally resulting in the present-day configuration of the North Sea. (au) 11 refs.

  8. North Sea market update: Changes in both concept and content

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Scruton, M.; Bru, J.G.

    1997-01-01

    The current paradox facing the North Sea offshore industry is that while it is experiencing a current market boom, within two years contractors may be scrambling around in a much reduced market. West Europe is running at a massive $15.1 billion. A veritable feast giving contractors, especially in Norway, a full workload and the headache of a severe skilled workforce shortage. Themes discussed cover Norwegian needs, Danish developments, UK utilisation, Dutch demand, and new breed. 4 figs

  9. Greenland-Iceland-Norwegian Seas Regional Climatology (NODC Accession 0112824)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — To provide an improved oceanographic foundation and reference for multi-disciplinary studies of the Greenland-Iceland-Norwegian Seas (GINS), NODC developed a new set...

  10. The new players - what's happening?[Talisman's petroleum activity in the North Sea]; De nye aktoerene - hva skjer?

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Johansen, Baard

    2005-03-15

    The oil company Talisman Energy and its activities in the North Sea are presented. The global corporation's strategy is briefly outlined, and this includes focus on upstream activities, area and product mix, having operator responsibility and exploration activities. North America and the North Sea represent 69 percent of the company's reserves and 76 percent of the production. the North Sea challenges for the future are among others the Norwegian fiscal system which does not stimulate marginal activities, leading to a lower level of activity, less focus on cost, premature removal of offshore infrastructure and fewer discoveries of new reserves (ml)

  11. The wind sea and swell waves climate in the Nordic seas

    Science.gov (United States)

    Semedo, Alvaro; Vettor, Roberto; Breivik, Øyvind; Sterl, Andreas; Reistad, Magnar; Soares, Carlos Guedes; Lima, Daniela

    2015-02-01

    A detailed climatology of wind sea and swell waves in the Nordic Seas (North Sea, Norwegian Sea, and Barents Sea), based on the high-resolution reanalysis NORA10, developed by the Norwegian Meteorological Institute, is presented. The higher resolution of the wind forcing fields, and the wave model (10 km in both cases), along with the inclusion of the bottom effect, allowed a better description of the wind sea and swell features, compared to previous global studies. The spatial patterns of the swell-dominated regional wave fields are shown to be different from the open ocean, due to coastal geometry, fetch dimensions, and island sheltering. Nevertheless, swell waves are still more prevalent and carry more energy in the Nordic Seas, with the exception of the North Sea. The influence of the North Atlantic Oscillation on the winter regional wind sea and swell patterns is also presented. The analysis of the decadal trends of wind sea and swell heights during the NORA10 period (1958-2001) shows that the long-term trends of the total significant wave height (SWH) in the Nordic Seas are mostly due to swell and to the wave propagation effect.

  12. Dry well analysis of well 6407/10-5 at 793 area, Norwegian Sea.

    OpenAIRE

    Qamar, Javeria

    2017-01-01

    Master's thesis in Petroleum Geosciences Engineering. The region of investigation is located in the Norwegian Sea, which is an area of high hydrocarbon activity. Many reservoirs have been successfully identified, drilled, and now they are producing in large oil & gas fields. However, the Norwegian Sea has a complex geology as it resulted from Permian to Late Jurassic crustal extension, which created rift basins and several horst and graben structures. Most of the important hydrocarbon rese...

  13. Flow-dependent assimilation of sea surface temperature in isopycnal coordinates with the Norwegian Climate Prediction Model

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    François Counillon

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available We document a pilot stochastic re-analysis computed by assimilating sea surface temperature (SST anomalies into the ocean component of the coupled Norwegian Climate Prediction Model (NorCPM for the period 1950–2010 (doi: 10.11582/2016.00002. NorCPM is based on the Norwegian Earth System Model and uses the ensemble Kalman filter for data assimilation (DA. Here, we assimilate SST from the stochastic HadISST2 historical reconstruction. The accuracy, reliability and drift are investigated using both assimilated and independent observations. NorCPM is slightly overdispersive against assimilated observations but shows stable performance through the analysis period. It demonstrates skills against independent measurements: sea surface height, heat and salt content, in particular in the Equatorial and North Pacific, the North Atlantic Subpolar Gyre (SPG region and the Nordic Seas. Furthermore, NorCPM provides a reliable monitoring of the SPG index and represents the vertical temperature variability there, in good agreement with observations. The monitoring of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation is also encouraging. The benefit of using a flow-dependent assimilation method and constructing the covariance in isopycnal coordinates are investigated in the SPG region. Isopycnal coordinates discretisation is found to better capture the vertical structure than standard depth-coordinate discretisation, because it leads to a deeper influence of the assimilated surface observations. The vertical covariance shows a pronounced seasonal and decadal variability that highlights the benefit of flow-dependent DA method. This study demonstrates the potential of NorCPM to compute an ocean re-analysis for the 19th and 20th centuries when SST observations are available.

  14. North Sea oil taxation in Norway

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kemp, A G; Crichton, D

    1979-01-01

    The Norwegian government has developed a complex fiscal regime since 1963 to cover the activities of oil companies in the North Sea. The purpose of this article is to identify and quantify the financial effects of the fiscal system on operating companies involved in the Norwegian sector. The emphasis is on the effect of the tax package introduced by the government in the Odelsting Proposition No. 26 of February 1975. The impact of the tax is not found to be well related to the profitability of fields and the sensitivity of the tax burden to key variables such as reserves, oil price, capital and operating costs and inflation is examined. The most promising change appears to be a discriminatory refund or remission of royalty payments to marginal fields. The Act's main innovation, Special Tax, fails to discriminate between fields of profitability and could influence development decisions in marginal fields. The special allowance provision, by reducing the real cost of capital expenditure and favoring capital-intensive operations, could influence the techniques of exploitation. The effect of quasi-fiscal measures, particularly of government participation via Statoil, is also examined. 10 references.

  15. Facts 2000. The Norwegian Petroleum Sector

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2000-02-01

    Petroleum production on the Norwegian continental shelf (NCS) in the North Sea, the Norwegian Sea and the Barents Sea totalled 2.7 bn scm oil equivalents (oe) up to 1998. Per December 1999, remaining reserves totalled 1.5 bn scm of oil, 1.2 bn scm oe gas and 0.2 bn scm oe of NGL/condensate. Twenty-eight exploration wells were completed or temporarily abandoned on the NCS in 1999. By 31 December 1999, 967 exploration wells had been completed or temporarily abandoned off Norway. Discoveries totalled 45-60 mill scm of oil and 45-70 bn scm of gas. Governmental approval was given in 1999 for the Tune, Borg and Sygna developments. Investment in exploration, field development and pipeline transport totalled about NOK 67 bn in 1998. Oil and gas production in 1999 was roughly on the par with 1998, while NGL/condensate sales rose by 19 per cent. The Balder, Gullfaks South, Jotun, Oseberg East, Visund and Aasgard projects came on stream during 1999. It is estimated that, with the present production rate, Norway's remaining discovered oil resources will last for 17 years, and gas, 93 years. The estimated value of Norwegian petroleum export in 1999 was NOK 168 bn, which is about 36% of the country's total earnings from foreign sales. Published by the Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy, the book is a major source of information on the Norwegian offshore petroleum activities

  16. Facts 2000. The Norwegian Petroleum Sector

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    2000-02-01

    Petroleum production on the Norwegian continental shelf (NCS) in the North Sea, the Norwegian Sea and the Barents Sea totalled 2.7 bn scm oil equivalents (oe) up to 1998. Per December 1999, remaining reserves totalled 1.5 bn scm of oil, 1.2 bn scm oe gas and 0.2 bn scm oe of NGL/condensate. Twenty-eight exploration wells were completed or temporarily abandoned on the NCS in 1999. By 31 December 1999, 967 exploration wells had been completed or temporarily abandoned off Norway. Discoveries totalled 45-60 mill scm of oil and 45-70 bn scm of gas. Governmental approval was given in 1999 for the Tune, Borg and Sygna developments. Investment in exploration, field development and pipeline transport totalled about NOK 67 bn in 1998. Oil and gas production in 1999 was roughly on the par with 1998, while NGL/condensate sales rose by 19 per cent. The Balder, Gullfaks South, Jotun, Oseberg East, Visund and Aasgard projects came on stream during 1999. It is estimated that, with the present production rate, Norway's remaining discovered oil resources will last for 17 years, and gas, 93 years. The estimated value of Norwegian petroleum export in 1999 was NOK 168 bn, which is about 36% of the country's total earnings from foreign sales. Published by the Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy, the book is a major source of information on the Norwegian offshore petroleum activities.

  17. Facts 2000. The Norwegian Petroleum Sector

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    2000-02-01

    Petroleum production on the Norwegian continental shelf (NCS) in the North Sea, the Norwegian Sea and the Barents Sea totalled 2.7 bn scm oil equivalents (oe) up to 1998. Per December 1999, remaining reserves totalled 1.5 bn scm of oil, 1.2 bn scm oe gas and 0.2 bn scm oe of NGL/condensate. Twenty-eight exploration wells were completed or temporarily abandoned on the NCS in 1999. By 31 December 1999, 967 exploration wells had been completed or temporarily abandoned off Norway. Discoveries totalled 45-60 mill scm of oil and 45-70 bn scm of gas. Governmental approval was given in 1999 for the Tune, Borg and Sygna developments. Investment in exploration, field development and pipeline transport totalled about NOK 67 bn in 1998. Oil and gas production in 1999 was roughly on the par with 1998, while NGL/condensate sales rose by 19 per cent. The Balder, Gullfaks South, Jotun, Oseberg East, Visund and Aasgard projects came on stream during 1999. It is estimated that, with the present production rate, Norway's remaining discovered oil resources will last for 17 years, and gas, 93 years. The estimated value of Norwegian petroleum export in 1999 was NOK 168 bn, which is about 36% of the country's total earnings from foreign sales. Published by the Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy, the book is a major source of information on the Norwegian offshore petroleum activities.

  18. Joint Russian-Norwegian collaboration on radioactive contamination from dumped nuclear waste in the Kara Sea

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nikitin, A.I.; Salbu, B.; Strand, P.

    1995-01-01

    Joint Russian-Norwegian expeditions to the Kara Sea have taken place annually since 1992. The 1992 expedition to the open Kara Sea included for the first time scientists from Western countries. During the 1993 expedition underwater investigations of dumped objects in the Tsivolky Fjord and the Stepovogo Fjord was performed in addition to sample collection. This program was also carried out in the Abrosimov Fjord and the Stepovogo Fjord in 1994. The enhanced levels of 137 Cs and 90 Sr, and the presence of 60 Co in sediments from Stepovogo Fjord as well as traces of 60 Co in samples from Tsivolky Fjord, show that leakage from dumped radioactive water has taken place. The contamination was localized to nearby dumped objects. The concentrations of radionuclides in waters and sediments in the open Kara Sea are presently very low and significantly lower than in other marine areas, e.g. the Irish Sea, the Baltic Sea, and the North Sea. The results imply that the impact of radioactive contamination from dumped radioactive waste on the Kara Sea environment is at present very low. 4 refs., 1 fig., 2 tabs

  19. Ventilation of the deep Greenland and Norwegian seas: evidence from krypton-85, tritium, carbon-14 and argon-39

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Smethie, W.M. Jr.; Ostlund, H.G.; Loosli, H.H.

    1986-01-01

    On leg 5 of the TTO expedition, the distributions of 85 Kr, tritium, 14 C, 39 Ar, temperature, salinity, oxygen, carbon dioxide and nutrients were measured in the Greenland and Norwegian seas. These observations support previous observations that Greenland Sea Deep Water is formed by a deep convective process within the Greenland gyre. They also support AAGAARD et al.'s (1985, Journal of Geophysical Research, 90, 4833-4846) new hypothesis that Norwegian Sea Deep Water forms from a mixture of Greenland Sea Deep Water and Eurasian Basin Deep Water. Volume transports estimated from the distributions of 85 Kr, tritium, 14 C and 39 Ar range from 0.53 to 0.74 Sv for exchange between the surface and deep Greenland Sea and from 0.9 to 1.47 Sv for exchange between the deep Greenland and deep Norwegian Seas. The residence time of water and the deep Greenland Sea with respect to exchange with surface water ranges from 24 to 34 years reported by PETERSON and ROOTH (1976, Deep-Sea Research, 23, 273-283) and 35-42 years reported by BULLISTER and WEISS (1983, Science, 221, 265-268). The residence time of water in the deep Norwegian Sea with respect to exchange with the deep Greenland Sea ranges from 19 to 30 years compared to 97-107 years reported by PETERSON and ROOTH (1976) and 10-28 years reported by BULLISTER and WEISS (1983). The oxygen consumption rate was estimated to be at most 1.04 μM kg -1 y -1 for the deep Greenland Sea and to be between 0.47 and 0.79 μM kg -1 y -1 for the deep Norwegian Sea. (author)

  20. Partial pressure (or fugacity) of carbon dioxide, salinity and other variables collected from Surface underway observations using Carbon dioxide (CO2) gas analyzer, Shower head chamber equilibrator for autonomous carbon dioxide (CO2) measurement and other instruments from JOHAN HJORT in the Barents Sea, North Sea and others from 2007-11-15 to 2008-06-08 (NCEI Accession 0157398)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NCEI Accession 0157398 includes Surface underway, chemical and physical data collected from JOHAN HJORT in the Barents Sea, North Sea, Norwegian Sea and Skagerrak...

  1. Windmills or deepwater drills?: Normative Roles of Technology in Norwegian Resource Extraction Policy

    OpenAIRE

    Goins , Elisabeth

    2012-01-01

    International audience; After discovering oil in the North and Norwegian Seas in the late 1960s, Norway is now one of the largest oil exporters and wealthiest nations in the world. Norwegians are some of the healthiest and happiest people on the planet, enjoying cradle-to-grave welfare and a national savings fund well into the billions. Yet despite its transformational power in this society, oil is a complex and highly debated topic among Norwegian policy makers and everyday citizens. In the ...

  2. Validation of an Eulerian population model for the marine copepod Calanus finmarchicus in the Norwegian Sea

    Science.gov (United States)

    Alver, Morten Omholt; Broch, Ole Jacob; Melle, Webjørn; Bagøien, Espen; Slagstad, Dag

    2016-08-01

    Calanus finmarchicus is an important zooplankton species in the Norwegian Sea, as a dominant food organism for pelagic fish larvae, and a potentially large source of marine lipids and proteins. Its position in the marine food web also makes it an important model species in assessing the risk posed by oil spills in the Norwegian and Arctic Seas. In this study, an Eulerian population model for C.finmarchicus, coupled to the physical and ecological model SINMOD, is presented. The model includes the full life cycle of C. finmarchicus with a representation of all developmental stages. The model has been validated against field measurements made in different areas of the Norwegian Sea in 1997 and 1998. The model displays geographical and temporal distributions of development stages that is in line with observed patterns. When comparing time series for selected regions, we see a high degree of variability both in the field samples and model output. On average, the model deviations are near half of the summed variability of the field data and model estimates. The model has applications within assessment of ecological production, and the potential for harvesting in the Norwegian and Arctic Seas, but in combination with other models, also for the assessment of ecological effects of oil spills and other types of pollution.

  3. Spring snow conditions on Arctic sea ice north of Svalbard, during the Norwegian Young Sea ICE (N-ICE2015) expedition

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gallet, Jean-Charles; Merkouriadi, Ioanna; Liston, Glen E.; Polashenski, Chris; Hudson, Stephen; Rösel, Anja; Gerland, Sebastian

    2017-10-01

    Snow is crucial over sea ice due to its conflicting role in reflecting the incoming solar energy and reducing the heat transfer so that its temporal and spatial variability are important to estimate. During the Norwegian Young Sea ICE (N-ICE2015) campaign, snow physical properties and variability were examined, and results from April until mid-June 2015 are presented here. Overall, the snow thickness was about 20 cm higher than the climatology for second-year ice, with an average of 55 ± 27 cm and 32 ± 20 cm on first-year ice. The average density was 350-400 kg m-3 in spring, with higher values in June due to melting. Due to flooding in March, larger variability in snow water equivalent was observed. However, the snow structure was quite homogeneous in spring due to warmer weather and lower amount of storms passing over the field camp. The snow was mostly consisted of wind slab, faceted, and depth hoar type crystals with occasional fresh snow. These observations highlight the more dynamic character of evolution of snow properties over sea ice compared to previous observations, due to more variable sea ice and weather conditions in this area. The snowpack was isothermal as early as 10 June with the first onset of melt clearly identified in early June. Based on our observations, we estimate than snow could be accurately represented by a three to four layers modeling approach, in order to better consider the high variability of snow thickness and density together with the rapid metamorphose of the snow in springtime.

  4. Air-sea exchange studies at the North Sea

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Leeuw, G. de; Eijk, A.M.J. van; Kunz, G.J.; Veefkind, P.J.

    1996-01-01

    The North Sea can be considered as a local 'inner' sea in which many processes are quite different from these over the open ocean. The surrounding land has a major influence, being the source for man-made aerosols and gases, whereas the North Sea acts as a sink for these. At the same time the North

  5. North Sea Scyphomedusae; summer distribution, estimated biomass and significance particularly for 0-group Gadoid fish

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hay, S. J.; Hislop, J. R. G.; Shanks, A. M.

    Data on the by-catch of Scyphomedusae from pelagic trawls was collected during the routine ICES International 0-group Gadoid Surveys of the North Sea, in June and July of the years 1971-1986 (except 1984). These data are used to describe the distributions, abundances and biomasses of three common North Sea Scyphomedusae: Aurelia aurita (L.), Cyanea capillata (L.) and C. lamarckii (Péron & Lesuer). Information is also presented on inter-annual variability, size (umbrella diameter) frequencies and, for the Cyanea species, umbrella diameter: wet weight relationships. The general role and ecological significance of Scyphomedusae is discussed and, given the well known 'shelter' relationships between Scyphomedusae and certain 0-group fish, whiting ( Merlangius merlangus) and haddock ( Melanogrammus aeglefinus), in particular. The data were examined for evidence of such relationships. Aurelia aurita, although fairly widespread in the northern North Sea was virtually absent from the central North Sea but very abundant in coastal waters. This species was particularly abundant off the Scottish east coast and especially in the Moray Firth. Cyanea lamerckii was most abundant in the southern and eastern North Sea. More widespread than Aurelia, this species was also most abundant in coastal regions, particularly off the Danish west coast. Cyanea capillata, with a more northern distribution was also more widely distributed and abundant offshore. This species was most abundant in the area between the Orkney/Shetland Isles and the Norwegian Deep and in shelf waters of the north west approaches to the North Sea. As with C. lamarckii it was also, in some years, abundant off the Scottish east coast and west of Denmark. The abundance and the size frequency of the jellyfish show considerable inter-annual variability, and variability between regions of the North Sea. It is considered that hydrographic variability and differences in food supply to both medusae and to their sessile

  6. Fact 2004. The Norwegian petroleum sector

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gooderham, Rolf E [ed.

    2004-07-01

    production for the year totalled 73.4 bn scm. Gas sales are expected to build up sharply from today's level to reach 120 bn scm in 2010. Development plans for Ormen Lange in the Norwegian Sea and a new gas transport system to the UK were completed by the end of 2003. Ormen Lange is the largest gas discovery on the NCS after Troll. This development and the planned transport system to the UK are very important contributions to the future activity on the NCS, and these projects will have substantial national and regional effects. Against the background of disappointing exploration results in immature areas of the Norwegian and North Seas during recent years, the government decided to announce an extensive 18th licensing round in these parts of the NCS. It will give companies the access to immature acreage, which is important for increasing exploration activity. In announcing it, the government has carefully balanced the interests of the environment, the fisheries, the aquaculture and the petroleum activities. While being highly significant for future Norwegian petroleum operations, the Lofoten-Barents Sea area of the NCS is very important both ecologically and for the fishing industry. At the end of 2003, 48 fields were in production on the NCS, 42 in the North Sea and six in the Norwegian Sea. Production began in 2003 from Fram, Grane and Mikkel. Kristin, Kvitebjoern, Skirne and Snoehvit have approved plans for development and operation, but are being developed. Forecasts indicate that remaining resources on the NCS could permit profitable production of oil for 50 years and gas for almost a century. Achieving such a positive development is very demanding. Key challenges include access to new acreage to ensure the necessary exploration activity, development of resources close to existing infrastructure and improved recovery factor for producing fields. The government is concerned to facilitate the achievement of the long-term scenario. This will accordingly be the key subject

  7. Seasonal variation in the levels of organohalogen compounds in herring (Clupea harengus) from the Norwegian Sea.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Frantzen, Sylvia; Måge, Amund; Iversen, Svein Arnholt; Julshamn, Kåre

    2011-09-01

    The Norwegian spring spawning (NSS) herring is an ecologically important fish stock in the Norwegian Sea, and with a catch volume exceeding one million tons a year it is also economically important and a valuable food source. In order to provide a baseline of the levels of contaminants in this fish stock, the levels of organohalogen compounds were determined in 800 individual herring sampled at 29 positions in the Norwegian Sea and off the coast of Norway. Due to seasonal migration, the herring were sampled where they were located during the different seasons. Concentrations of dioxins and dioxin-like PCBs, non-dioxin-like PCBs (PCB(7)) and PBDEs were determined in fillet samples of individual herring, and found to be relatively low, with means (min-max) of 0.77 (0.24-3.5) ng TEQ kg(-1) wet weight (ww), 5.0 (1.4-24) μg kg(-1) ww and 0.47 (0.091-3.1) μg kg(-1) ww, respectively. The concentrations varied throughout the year due to the feeding- and spawning cycle: Starved, pre-spawning herring caught off the Norwegian coast in January-February had the highest levels and those caught in the Norwegian Sea in April-June, after further starvation and spawning, had the lowest levels. These results show that the concentrations of organohalogen compounds in NSS herring are relatively low and closely tied to their physiological condition, and that in the future regular monitoring of NSS herring should be made in the spawning areas off the Norwegian coast in late winter. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  8. Nematode assemblages in the deep-sea benthos of the Norwegian Sea

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jensen, Preben

    1988-07-01

    The deep-sea benthos of the Norwegian Sea contains 20-204 nematodes per 10 cm 2 down to 3 cm depth at seven stations sampled between 970 and 3294 m water depth. The majority of nematodes occur in the uppermost cm. Biomass varies from 3 to 73 μg C per 10 cm 2. Individual adult weight of the most dominant species differs by a factor of almost 1000, i.e. from 3-4 ng C to 3400 ng C; however, the majority of the nematodes is small-sized. Species diversity and evenness are high at all stations and each station harbours its specific fauna with little overlap between stations. Analysis of trophic group composition suggests that microbial feeding types (deposit and epistrate feeders) prevail in the deep-sea benthos; predators and scavengers are scarce. It is concluded that the nematode assemblage at each station consists of a mosaic of many microhabitats. The small nematode body weight probably results from limited food supply and/or poor food quality.

  9. Fact Sheet 1999. Norwegian Petroleum Activity

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Breivik, Jan

    1999-10-01

    As discussed in this publication, petroleum resources in the order of 9.5 billion (bn) standard cubic metres (scm) oil equivalents (oe) have been discovered on the Norwegian continental shelf (NCS), 77 per cent in the North Sea, 19 per cent in the Norwegian Sea and four per cent in the Barents Sea. By the end of 1998, remaining reserves on the NCS totalled 1.6 bn scm of oil, 1.2 bn scm oe gas and 160 mill scm oe of natural gas liquids. Thirty-two exploration wells, including 21 wildcats and 11 for appraisal, were completed or temporarily abandoned on the NCS in 1998. 939 exploration wells had been completed or temporarily abandoned off Norway. In 1998 governmental approval was given for the Huldra, Snorre B phase II, Gullfaks satellites phase II and Yme Beta West. Norwegian offshore petroleum production in 1998 totalled 222.5 scm oe, including 168.9 mill scm oe of oil, 43.6 mill scm oe of gas and 10 mill scm oe of NGL/condensate. Oil production declined by 4 per cent compared with 1997, while gas sales rose by 2 per cent. The estimated value of Norwegian petroleum exports in 1998 was NOK 123 bn, or about 30 per cent of the country`s total earnings from foreign sales. Petroleum production and pipeline transport accounted for 12 per cent of Norway`s gross national product. Net government revenues from taxes and royalties on petroleum operations is put at 27.6 billion NOK. The publication also includes a list of white papers and a list of useful postal addresses. 23 figs., 14 tabs.

  10. The coccolithophores Emiliania huxleyi and Coccolithus pelagicus: Extant populations from the Norwegian-Iceland Seas and Fram Strait

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dylmer, C. V.; Giraudeau, J.; Hanquiez, V.; Husum, K.

    2015-04-01

    The distributions of the coccolithophore species Emiliania huxleyi and Coccolithus pelagicus (heterococcolith-bearing phase) in the northern North Atlantic were investigated along two zonal transects crossing Fram Strait and the Norwegian-Iceland Sea, respectively, each conducted during both July 2011 and September-October 2007. Remote-sensing images as well as CTD and ARGO profiles were used to constrain the physico-chemical state of the surface water and surface mixed layer at the time of sampling. Strong seasonal differences in bulk coccolithophore standing stocks characterized the northern and southern transects, where the maximum values of 53×103 cells/l (fall) and 70×103 cells/l (summer), respectively, were essentially explained by E. huxleyi. This pattern confirms previous findings of a summer to fall northwestward shift in peak coccolithophore cell densities within the Nordic Seas. While depicting an overall zonal shift in high cell densities between the summer (Norwegian Sea) and fall (northern Iceland Sea) conditions, the southern transects were additionally characterized by local peak coccolithophore concentrations associated with a geographically and temporally restricted convective process (Lofoten Gyre, summer), as well as an island mass effect (in the vicinity of Jan Mayen Island, fall). Maximum coccolithophore abundances within Fram Strait were found during both seasons close to the western frontal zone (Polar and Arctic Fronts) an area of strong density gradients where physical and chemical properties of the surface mixed layer are prone to enhance phytoplankton biomass and productivity. Here, changes in species dominance from E. huxleyi in summer, to C. pelagicus in fall, were related to the strengthened influence during summer, of surface AW, as well as to high July solar irradiance, within an area usually characterized by C. pelagicus-dominated low density populations.

  11. Tanker spills Norwegian crude oil off Shetlands

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anon.

    1993-01-01

    This paper reports that crude oil was spilling last week from the U.S. owned Braer tanker after the 89,000 dwt vessel ran aground on the south end of Scotland's Shetland Islands. Workers were trying to assess the extent of damage to the tanker, shoreline, and wildlife after the January 5 accident. Braer's cargo amounted to 607,000 bbl of Norwegian oil bound for Canada. Braer loaded its cargo and sailed January 3 from Den norske stats oljeselskap AS's Mongstad, Norway, terminal with crude from Gullfaks field in the Norwegian North Sea. The $11 million shipment was destined for Ultramar Canada Inc.'s 125,000 b/d refinery at St. Romuald, Que

  12. Modelling the pelagic nitrogen cycle and vertical particle flux in the Norwegian sea

    Science.gov (United States)

    Haupt, Olaf J.; Wolf, Uli; v. Bodungen, Bodo

    1999-02-01

    A 1D Eulerian ecosystem model (BIological Ocean Model) for the Norwegian Sea was developed to investigate the dynamics of pelagic ecosystems. The BIOM combines six biochemical compartments and simulates the annual nitrogen cycle with specific focus on production, modification and sedimentation of particles in the water column. The external forcing and physical framework is based on a simulated annual cycle of global radiation and an annual mixed-layer cycle derived from field data. The vertical resolution of the model is given by an exponential grid with 200 depth layers, allowing specific parameterization of various sinking velocities, breakdown of particles and the remineralization processes. The aim of the numerical experiments is the simulation of ecosystem dynamics considering the specific biogeochemical properties of the Norwegian Sea, for example the life cycle of the dominant copepod Calanus finmarchicus. The results of the simulations were validated with field data. Model results are in good agreement with field data for the lower trophic levels of the food web. With increasing complexity of the organisms the differences increase between simulated processes and field data. Results of the numerical simulations suggest that BIOM is well adapted to investigate a physically controlled ecosystem. The simulation of grazing controlled pelagic ecosystems, like the Norwegian Sea, requires adaptations of parameterization to the specific ecosystem features. By using seasonally adaptation of the most sensible processes like utilization of light by phytoplankton and grazing by zooplankton results were greatly improved.

  13. Monitoring and modeling of contaminant loads and levels in Norwegian sea 2011; Tilfoerselsprogrammet 2011. Overvaakingav tilfoersler og miljoetilstand i Norskehavet

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Green, Norman W.; Heldal, Hilde Elise; Maage, Amund; Aas, Wenche; Graefert, Torbjoern; Schrum, Corinna; Boitsov, Stepan; Breivik, Knut; Iosjpe, Mikhail; Yakushev, Evgeniy; Skogen, Morten; Hoegaasen, Tore; Eckhardt, Sabine; Christiansen, Anne Bjoerkenes; Daae, Kjersti L.; Durand, Dominique; Ledang, Anna Birgitta; Jaccard, Pierre Francois

    2012-07-01

    This report describes the calculation of the supply of oil, hazardous chemicals and radioactive substances from seven sources of seven regions in the Norwegian part of the Norwegian Sea. The data from the various sources used to calculate the concentrations of pollutants in the water column throughout the defined area of the Norwegian Sea (3 dimensions) and calculate the transport of Hg, PCB153 and BaP in and out of each of the seven regions. This transport flux is huge compared with inputs and will alternately be a net source or net sink of each region. The main feature is that the supply is dominated by the fallout from the atmosphere is balanced by decomposition and sedimentation in the water column plus exports / imports from adjacent waters. It is relatively small supply of hazardous substances. With few exceptions, for the supply of air the biggest contribution of mercury, lead, cadmium, chromium, arsenic, PCBs (PCB-153) and PAH (benzo [a] pyrene) to all regions. Exception contributions of land for chromium in mid-Norway and contributions from seabed for lead and chromium from more central parts of the Norwegian Sea. Ship traffic dominates regard. supply of oil. Supply air from the major contribution of radionuclides plutonium-239 240 and strontium-90 in the eastern part of the Norwegian Sea. Otherwise, Sellafield is the dominant source. Contaminants in sediment and cod were largely of low to moderate concentrations. The concentration of radioactive substances in water, sediment and cod were low and comparable with results from other studies in the Norwegian Sea. There are still large gaps in knowledge and uncertainties in both the data and the estimates of supplies. It is especially important to improved figures for inflows into the oceans via air and enhancement of the marine transport and dispersion models.(eb)

  14. Winter snow conditions on Arctic sea ice north of Svalbard during the Norwegian young sea ICE (N-ICE2015) expedition

    Science.gov (United States)

    Merkouriadi, Ioanna; Gallet, Jean-Charles; Graham, Robert M.; Liston, Glen E.; Polashenski, Chris; Rösel, Anja; Gerland, Sebastian

    2017-10-01

    Snow is a crucial component of the Arctic sea ice system. Its thickness and thermal properties control heat conduction and radiative fluxes across the ocean, ice, and atmosphere interfaces. Hence, observations of the evolution of snow depth, density, thermal conductivity, and stratigraphy are crucial for the development of detailed snow numerical models predicting energy transfer through the snow pack. Snow depth is also a major uncertainty in predicting ice thickness using remote sensing algorithms. Here we examine the winter spatial and temporal evolution of snow physical properties on first-year (FYI) and second-year ice (SYI) in the Atlantic sector of the Arctic Ocean, during the Norwegian young sea ICE (N-ICE2015) expedition (January to March 2015). During N-ICE2015, the snow pack consisted of faceted grains (47%), depth hoar (28%), and wind slab (13%), indicating very different snow stratigraphy compared to what was observed in the Pacific sector of the Arctic Ocean during the SHEBA campaign (1997-1998). Average snow bulk density was 345 kg m-3 and it varied with ice type. Snow depth was 41 ± 19 cm in January and 56 ± 17 cm in February, which is significantly greater than earlier suggestions for this region. The snow water equivalent was 14.5 ± 5.3 cm over first-year ice and 19 ± 5.4 cm over second-year ice.

  15. Meteorological conditions in a thinner Arctic sea ice regime from winter to summer during the Norwegian Young Sea Ice expedition (N-ICE2015)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cohen, Lana; Hudson, Stephen R.; Walden, Von P.; Graham, Robert M.; Granskog, Mats A.

    2017-07-01

    Atmospheric measurements were made over Arctic sea ice north of Svalbard from winter to early summer (January-June) 2015 during the Norwegian Young Sea Ice (N-ICE2015) expedition. These measurements, which are available publicly, represent a comprehensive meteorological data set covering the seasonal transition in the Arctic Basin over the new, thinner sea ice regime. Winter was characterized by a succession of storms that produced short-lived (less than 48 h) temperature increases of 20 to 30 K at the surface. These storms were driven by the hemispheric scale circulation pattern with a large meridional component of the polar jet stream steering North Atlantic storms into the high Arctic. Nonstorm periods during winter were characterized by strong surface temperature inversions due to strong radiative cooling ("radiatively clear state"). The strength and depth of these inversions were similar to those during the Surface Heat Budget of the Arctic Ocean (SHEBA) campaign. In contrast, atmospheric profiles during the "opaquely cloudy state" were different to those from SHEBA due to differences in the synoptic conditions and location within the ice pack. Storm events observed during spring/summer were the result of synoptic systems located in the Barents Sea and the Arctic Basin rather than passing directly over N-ICE2015. These synoptic systems were driven by a large-scale circulation pattern typical of recent years, with an Arctic Dipole pattern developing during June. Surface temperatures became near-constant 0°C on 1 June marking the beginning of summer. Atmospheric profiles during the spring and early summer show persistent lifted temperature and moisture inversions that are indicative of clouds and cloud processes.

  16. Fact 2004. The Norwegian petroleum sector

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gooderham, Rolf E. (ed.)

    2004-07-01

    day in 2003, while gas production for the year totalled 73.4 bn scm. Gas sales are expected to build up sharply from today's level to reach 120 bn scm in 2010. Development plans for Ormen Lange in the Norwegian Sea and a new gas transport system to the UK were completed by the end of 2003. Ormen Lange is the largest gas discovery on the NCS after Troll. This development and the planned transport system to the UK are very important contributions to the future activity on the NCS, and these projects will have substantial national and regional effects. Against the background of disappointing exploration results in immature areas of the Norwegian and North Seas during recent years, the government decided to announce an extensive 18th licensing round in these parts of the NCS. It will give companies the access to immature acreage, which is important for increasing exploration activity. In announcing it, the government has carefully balanced the interests of the environment, the fisheries, the aquaculture and the petroleum activities. While being highly significant for future Norwegian petroleum operations, the Lofoten-Barents Sea area of the NCS is very important both ecologically and for the fishing industry. At the end of 2003, 48 fields were in production on the NCS, 42 in the North Sea and six in the Norwegian Sea. Production began in 2003 from Fram, Grane and Mikkel. Kristin, Kvitebjoern, Skirne and Snoehvit have approved plans for development and operation, but are being developed. Forecasts indicate that remaining resources on the NCS could permit profitable production of oil for 50 years and gas for almost a century. Achieving such a positive development is very demanding. Key challenges include access to new acreage to ensure the necessary exploration activity, development of resources close to existing infrastructure and improved recovery factor for producing fields. The government is concerned to facilitate the achievement of the long-term scenario. This

  17. Radioactive substances - fluxes, concentrations and possible effects in the Norwegian Sea

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Liland, A.; Hosseini, A.; Iosjpe, M.; Nilsen, K.A.; Graefvert, T.; Skjerdal, H.

    2012-10-01

    Report for the comprehensive management plan for the Norwegian Sea. Different scenarios are modeled: an accident occurring while spent nuclear fuel is being transported, pollution from a submarine that sinks off the coast, discharges from Sellafield, and the consequences of discharges from the petroleum industry. Possible effects of ionising radiation to the marine environment, doses to marine organisms and contaminants in seafood, are considered. (Author)

  18. Radioactive contamination in Norwegian fish and seafood 1960-2013: time trends and geographical trends

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Heldal, Hilde Elise; Svaeren, Ingrid; Liebig, Penny Lee [Institute of Marine Research, P. O. Box 1870 Nordnes, N-5817 Bergen (Norway); Brungot, Anne Lene; Gaefvert, Torbjoern; Rudjord, Anne Liv [Norwegian Radiation Protection Authority, P.O. Box 55, N-1332 Oesteraas (Norway); Gwynn, Justin [Norwegian Radiation Protection Authority, The Fram Centre, N-9296 Tromsoe (Norway)

    2014-07-01

    Norwegian marine waters are home to some of the world's richest fishing grounds. In 2011, Norway was the world's twelfth largest fishery nation, and the world's second largest exporter of seafood. Knowledge and documentation of the levels of radioactive contamination in fish and seafood is therefore of major importance to Norwegian consumers and the fishery industry. Monitoring of radioactive pollution in Norwegian fish and seafood has been ongoing in various ways since the early 1960's. During the 1960's, different species of fish from the Barents Sea were analysed for 'total mean beta activity minus potassium-40 ({sup 40}K)'. Although not directly comparable to current measurements, these were probably the highest observed concentrations in fish during the whole monitoring period. Contamination levels decreased substantially during the late 1960's as a result of the decrease in global fallout, biological elimination of the radioactive elements and the short physical half-lives of some beta-emitters. Monitoring was more or less terminated in the following years, and little data exists from the 1970's and early 1980's, though monitoring was resumed following the Chernobyl accident in 1986. Today, different species of commercially important fish and crustacean species (as well as other species), are sampled on a regular basis from the Barents Sea, the Norwegian Sea, the North Sea and Norwegian fjords. The samples are analysed mainly for cesium-137 ({sup 137}Cs) and, additionally, a selection of the samples are analysed for technetium-99 ({sup 99}Tc), plutonium-239,240 ({sup 239,240}Pu) and polonium-210 ({sup 210}Po). This study summarizes results from the monitoring during the period 1960 to 2013. Activity concentrations of {sup 137}Cs in fish and seafood from Norwegian marine waters have been generally low during the past 20 to 25 years (up to 0.15 Bq kg{sup -1}(fresh weight) in different species of fish in the

  19. Advective and atmospheric forced changes in heat and fresh water content in the Norwegian Sea, 1951-2010

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mork, Kjell Arne; Skagseth, Øystein; Ivshin, Victor; Ozhigin, Vladimir; Hughes, Sarah L.; Valdimarsson, Hédinn

    2014-09-01

    Climate variability in the Norwegian Sea was investigated in terms of ocean heat and fresh water contents of Atlantic water above a reference surface, using hydrographic data during spring 1951-2010. The main processes acting on this variability were examined and then quantified. The area-averaged water mass cooled and freshened, but a deepening of the reference surface resulted in a positive trend in the heat content of 0.3 W m-2. Air-sea heat fluxes explained about half of the interannual variability in heat content. The effect of the advection of Atlantic and Arctic waters on the variability varied with time, apparently due to large-scale changes in the ocean circulation. The data are consistent with the explanation that changing wind patterns caused buffering and then release of Arctic water in the Iceland Sea during the late 1960s to early 1970s, and this caused large hydrographic changes in the Norwegian Sea.

  20. Global latitudinal species diversity gradient in deep-sea benthic foraminifera

    Science.gov (United States)

    Culver, Stephen J.; Buzas, Martin A.

    2000-02-01

    Global scale patterns of species diversity for modern deep-sea benthic foraminifera, an important component of the bathyal and abyssal meiofauna, are examined using comparable data from five studies in the Atlantic, ranging over 138° of latitude from the Norwegian Sea to the Weddell Sea. We show that a pattern of decreasing diversity with increasing latitude characterises both the North and South Atlantic. This pattern is confirmed for the northern hemisphere by independent data from the west-central North Atlantic and the Arctic basin. Species diversity in the North Atlantic northwards from the equator is variable until a sharp fall in the Norwegian Sea (ca. 65°N). In the South Atlantic species diversity drops from a maximum in latitudes less than 30°S and then decreases slightly from 40 to 70°S. For any given latitude, North Atlantic diversity is generally lower than in the South Atlantic. Both ecological and historical factors related to food supply are invoked to explain the formation and maintenance of the latitudinal gradient of deep-sea benthic foraminiferal species diversity. The gradient formed some 36 million years ago when global climatic cooling led to seasonally fluctuating food supply in higher latitudes.

  1. Vertical nutrient fluxes, turbulence and the distribution of chlorophyll a in the north-eastern North Sea

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bendtsen, Jørgen; Richardson, Katherine

    2017-04-01

    During summer the northern North Sea is characterized by nutrient rich bottom water masses and nutrient poor surface layers. This explains the distribution of chlorophyll a in the water column where a subsurface maximum, referred to as the deep chlorophyll maximum (DCM), often is present during the growth season. Vertical transport of nutrients between bottom water masses and the well lit surface layer stimulates phytoplankton growth and this generally explains the location of the DCM. However, a more specific understanding of the interplay between vertical transports, nutrient fluxes and phytoplankton abundance is required for identifying the nature of the vertical transport processes, e.g the role of advection versus vertical turbulent diffusion or the role of localized mixing associated with mesoscale eddies. We present results from the VERMIX study in the north-eastern North Sea where nutrients, chlorophyll a and turbulence profiles were measured along five north-south directed transects in July 2016. A high-resolution sampling program, with horizontal distances of 1-10 km between CTD-stations, resolved the horizontal gradients of chlorophyll a across the steep bottom slope from the relatively shallow central North Sea ( 50-80 m) towards the deep Norwegian Trench (>700 m). Low oxygen concentrations in the bottom water masses above the slope indicated enhanced biological production where vertical mixing would stimulate phytoplankton growth around the DCM. Measurements of variable fluorescence (Fv/Fm) showed elevated values in the DCM which demonstrates a higher potential for electron transport in the Photosystem II in the phytoplankton cells, i.e. an indication of nutrient-rich conditions favorable for phytoplankton production. Profiles of the vertical shear and microstructure of temperature and salinity were measured by a VMP-250 turbulence profiler and the vertical diffusion of nutrients was calculated from the estimated vertical turbulent diffusivity and the

  2. Bioaccumulation of 137Cs in pelagic food webs in the Norwegian and Barents Seas

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Heldal, Hilde Elise; Foeyn, Lars; Varskog, Per

    2003-01-01

    Knowledge and documentation of the levels of radioactive contamination in fish stocks important to Norwegian fisheries is of major importance to Norwegian consumers and fish export industry. In the present study, the bioaccumulation of caesium-137 ( 137 Cs) has been investigated in marine food webs in the Barents and Norwegian Seas. The contents of 137 Cs in the different organisms were generally low ( -1 wet weight), but a marked bioaccumulation was apparent: The concentration of 137 Cs was about 10-fold higher in the harbour porpoise Phocoena phocoena, representing the upper level of the food web, than in the amphipod Themisto sp., representing the lower level of the food web. The Concentration Factors (CF=Bq kg -1 wet weight/Bq l -1 seawater) increased from 10±3 for a mixed sample of krill and amphipods to 165±5 for harbour porpoises

  3. The North Sea field development guide. V.1: Northern North Sea. V.2: Southern North Sea. 6. ed.

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anon.

    1996-08-01

    The 1997/8, sixth edition is the first to be divided into two volumes. Volume 1 covers the central and northern North Sea areas; volume 2 contains the southern North Sea as well as the Irish and German sectors. The pages are numbered consecutively over the two volumes, with page numbers greater than 702 contained in the second volume. There are three index sections. Main index. Arranged by national sector (UK, Norway etc.) Within each sector the entries are alphabetical by operator name. This index contains page numbers for the book entries: the other two index sections should be used with the main index to find the exact location of an entry; Index by field. If the reader knows a field name (e.g. Kittiwake) but not the operator or the national sector, this index will reference them; Index by installation. Each installation (''Fulmar SALM'', ''Togi'') is named, giving the operator, field and national sector where it is located. This index is also useful for locating particular kinds of installations, such as subsea completions; The book is intended to provide a factual overview of field development activity in the North Sea (a term loosely used to include the Irish Sea and the Baltic Sea). The aim is therefore to provide some background, specifications and history on every offshore installation in that area. Speculative or evaluative commentary is avoided where possible. No attempt has been made to forecast the form or probability of future developments, except in those few instances where announcements have been made by the oil company itself, and these are, clearly indicated. (UK)

  4. The pollution of the North Sea

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1981-01-01

    The subject is covered in chapters entitled: the North Sea and its rivers; the uses of the North Sea (shipping; exploitation of oil and gas; fishing; recreation; land reclamation; industrial islands; waste dumping); the nature of the dumping problem (nuclear waste; organic chemicals; inorganic chemicals; oil; sewage; rubble and dredged spoils; ash); pollution legislation; Greenpeace activities in the North Sea (the nuclear campaigns (Windscale; Cap de la Hague; Atlantic waste dumping); the chemical campaigns); what is needed in the future; references; the Oslo Convention. (U.K.)

  5. Statistical analysis of temperature data sampled at Station-M in the Norwegian Sea

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lorentzen, Torbjørn

    2014-02-01

    The paper analyzes sea temperature data sampled at Station-M in the Norwegian Sea. The data cover the period 1948-2010. The following questions are addressed: What type of stochastic process characterizes the temperature series? Are there any changes or patterns which indicate climate change? Are there any characteristics in the data which can be linked to the shrinking sea-ice in the Arctic area? Can the series be modeled consistently and applied in forecasting of the future sea temperature? The paper applies the following methods: Augmented Dickey-Fuller tests for testing of unit-root and stationarity, ARIMA-models in univariate modeling, cointegration and error-correcting models are applied in estimating short- and long-term dynamics of non-stationary series, Granger-causality tests in analyzing the interaction pattern between the deep and upper layer temperatures, and simultaneous equation systems are applied in forecasting future temperature. The paper shows that temperature at 2000 m Granger-causes temperature at 150 m, and that the 2000 m series can represent an important information carrier of the long-term development of the sea temperature in the geographical area. Descriptive statistics shows that the temperature level has been on a positive trend since the beginning of the 1980s which is also measured in most of the oceans in the North Atlantic. The analysis shows that the temperature series are cointegrated which means they share the same long-term stochastic trend and they do not diverge too far from each other. The measured long-term temperature increase is one of the factors that can explain the shrinking summer sea-ice in the Arctic region. The analysis shows that there is a significant negative correlation between the shrinking sea ice and the sea temperature at Station-M. The paper shows that the temperature forecasts are conditioned on the properties of the stochastic processes, causality pattern between the variables and specification of model

  6. Radionuclides in produced water from Norwegian oil and gas installations - concentrations and bioavailability

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Eriksen, D.Oe.; Sidhu, R.; Stralberg, E.; Iden, K.I.; Hylland, K.; Ruus, A.; Roeyset, O.; Berntssen, M.H.G.; Rye, H.

    2006-01-01

    Substantial amounts of produced water, containing elevated levels of radionuclides (mainly 226 Ra and 228 Ra) are discharged to the sea as a result of oil and gas production on the Norwegian Continental Shelf. So far no study has assessed the potential radiological effects on marine biota in connection with radionuclide discharges to the North Sea. The main objective of the project is to establish radiological safe discharge limits for radium, lead and polonium associated with other components in produced water from oil and gas installations on the Norwegian continental shelf. This study reports results indicating that the presence of added chemicals such as scale inhibitors in produced water has a marked influence on the formation of radium and barium sulphates when produced water is mixed with sea water. Thus, the mobility and bioavailability of radium (and barium) will be larger than anticipated. Also, the bioavailability of food-borne radium is shown to increase due to presence of such chemicals. (author)

  7. Norwegian enterprises' deliveries to the oil and gas exploitation in Norway and abroad in 2005

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Heum, Per; Kristiansen, Frode; Vatne, Eirik; Wiig, Wibecke

    2006-01-01

    The Institute for Research in Economics and Business Administration has for the fifth time conducted a survey on how Norwegian suppliers to the petroleum industry orientate themselves towards different markets. The data concerns the business in 2005. The Oil and Energy Department has financed this publication, along with the previous publications in 2003, 2001 and 1999. The survey is conducted among 464 enterprises and 20 corporations. The enterprises are in general small to medium sized, while the corporations, who encompass several enterprises, are all in a Norwegian context larger businesses. Among the small and medium sized enterprises 199, just above 43 percent, responded. In the corporation group, where the effort was put to obtain the key figures, over 95 percent responded. Due to the fact that the latter represents 80-90 percent of the turnover in Norwegian petroleum directed business, there is little uncertainty relating to the estimations of the total scores in the survey. The petroleum directed companies in the survey had in 2005 an average of 46 percent of their turnover connected to upstream petroleum business abroad. This percentage has clearly increased over the past years, supporting the impression that Norwegian-based petroleum directed companies are increasingly competitive outside of the Norwegian shelf. The UK's North Sea is still the most important market besides the Norwegian market for most of the companies, but the reduction of this market's share of the total of all sales abroad continues. More of the sale to the UK market is made directly from a Norwegian base instead of through local sales offices. In all other regions, the sale is made increasingly through local offices, and a declining part of the sales are made directly. South Asia/Australia was the most important market abroad in 2005 based on the turnover, closely followed by UK/the North Sea. The third most important region was USA/Canada. The sales in West Africa (Angola, Nigeria

  8. Developmental defects in pelagic embryos of several flatfish species in the Southern North sea

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cameron, P.; Berg, J.; Dethlefsen, V.; Von Westernhagen, H.

    In the spring of 1984 through and in the summer of 1987 pelagic flatfish eggs were collected in horizontal subsurface hauls with a 1-m ring net in the southern North Sea between 51°49' to 55°30'N and 2°30' to 8°00'E. The flatfish eggs were observed alive for their developmental stage and aberrations from normal development. Flatfish eggs occurring in the winter ichthyoplankton of the southern North Sea were dab, Limanda limanda; flounder. Platichthys flesus; plaice, Pleuronectes platessa, and long rough dab, Hippoglossoides platessoides. Summer samples contained dab, turbot, Psetta maxima; little sole, Buglossidium luteum; common sole, Solea solea; Norwegian topknot, Phrynorhombus norwegicus, and lemon sole, Microstomus kitt. In winter as well as in summer eggs of dab were the most abundant in the southern North Sea with up to 249 eggs·m -3 surface water in winter and 26 eggs·m -3 in summer. The investigations revealed considerable quantities of abnormally developed flatfish embryos in the plankton samples. Highest malformation rates were recorded for the early stages of dab (44.4%) followed by flounder (41.3%) and plaice (26.0%) in winter; in summer these rates were for dab 18.9%, for turbot 14.1% and for little sole 12.5%. Generally malformation rates decreased with development. Areas of high malformation rates were off the river estuaries and in near-shore areas along the Dutch and German coasts. Malformation rates decreased with the distance from the coast. Causes and effects of the occurrence of malformations during embryonic development are discussed.

  9. Environmental radioactivity in the North Atlantic region. The Faroe Islands and Greenland included. 1983

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Aarkrog, A.; Boelskifte, S.; Buch, E.; Christensen, G.C.; Dahlgaard, H.; Hallstadius, L.; Hansen, H.; Holm, E.; Mattsson, S.; Meide, A.

    1984-12-01

    Measurements of fallout radioactivity in the North Atlantic region including the Faroe Islands and Greenland are reported. Strontium-90 and cesium-137 was determined in samples of precipitation, sea water, vegetation, various foodstuffs (including milk in the Faroes) and drinking water. Estimates are given of the mean contents of 90 Sr and 137 Cs in human diet in the Faroes and Greenland in 1983. Results from samplings of surface sea water and seaweed in the Norwegian and Greenland Seas and along the Norwegian and Greenland west coasts are reported. Beside radiocesium and 90 Sr some of these samples have also been anlysed for tritium,plutonium and americium. Finally technetium-99 data on seaweed samples collected in the North Atlantic region since the beginning of the sixties are presented. (author)

  10. Environmental radioactivity in the North Atlantic region. The Faroe Islands and Greenland included. 1984

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Aarkrog, A.; Boelskifte, S.; Buch, E.; Christensen, G.C.; Dahlgaard, H.; Hallstadius, L.; Hansen, H.; Holm, E.

    1985-12-01

    Measurements of fallout radioactivity in the North Atlantic region including the Faroe Islands and Greenland are reported. Strontium-90 and cesium-137 was determined in samples of precipitation, sea water, vegetation, various foodstuffs (including milk in the Faroes) and drinking water. Estimates are given of the mean contents of 90 Sr and 137 Cs in human diet in the Faroes and Greenland in 1984. Results from samplings of surface sea water and seaweed in the Norwegian and Greenland Seas and along the Norwegian and Greenland west coasts are reported. Beside radiocesium and 90 Sr some of these samples have also been anlysed for tritium, polonium, plutonium and americium. Finally technetium-99 data on seaweed samples collected in the North Atlantic region since the beginning of the sixties are presented. (author)

  11. Spatial and temporal distribution (1987-91) of 125Sb used to trace pathways and transit times of waters entering the North Sea from the English Channel

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Guegueniat, P.; Du Bois, P.B.; Gandon, R.; Leon, R.

    1994-01-01

    The labelling of marine waters off north-western Europe by artificial radionuclides discharged by the nuclear fuel reprocessing plants at Sellafield and La Hague provides a potentially useful tool for the study of hydrodynamic processes. In this context, the present investigation introduces a tracer, 125 Sb, which is conservative within the watermass and which is characteristic of releases from la Hague. Analysis of the data collected between 1987 and 1991 shows that a large part of the channel waters entering the North Sea follow a route along the Belgian, Dutch, German and Danish coasts, while undergoing a low degree of dilution with other marine waters circulating in the central North Sea. The westward extension of the channel plume is variable with time, but the general distribution is in good agreement with the ICES box model. Estimates are given for the transit times from Cap de la Hague to various sectors of the North Sea; it takes 15-17 months for labelled waters to reach the Norwegian Channel. (Author)

  12. Radionuclides in produced water from Norwegian oil and gas installations — Concentrations and bioavailability

    Science.gov (United States)

    Eriksen, D. Ø.; Sidhu, R.; Strålberg, E.; Iden, K. I.; Hylland, K.; Ruus, A.; Røyset, O.; Berntssen, M. H. G.; Rye, H.

    2006-01-01

    Substantial amounts of produced water, containing elevated levels of radionuclides (mainly 226Ra and 228Ra) are discharged to the sea as a result of oil and gas production on the Norwegian Continental Shelf. So far no study has assessed the potential radiological effects on marine biota in connection with radionuclide discharges to the North Sea. The main objective of the project is to establish radiological safe discharge limits for radium, lead and polonium associated with other components in produced water from oil and gas installations on the Norwegian continental shelf. This study reports results indicating that the presence of added chemicals such as scale inhibitors in produced water has a marked influence on the formation of radium and barium sulphates when produced water is mixed with sea water. Thus, the mobility and bioavailability of radium (and barium) will be larger than anticipated. Also, the bioavailability of food-borne radium is shown to increase due to presence of such chemicals.

  13. Norwegian North Polar Expedition 1893-1896: Oceanographic Data

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This data set contains water depth, temperature, specific gravity, salinity, and density measurements from the North Polar Basin and the Barents Sea, gathered by...

  14. Towards uncertainty estimation for operational forecast products - a multi-model-ensemble approach for the North Sea and the Baltic Sea

    Science.gov (United States)

    Golbeck, Inga; Li, Xin; Janssen, Frank

    2014-05-01

    Several independent operational ocean models provide forecasts of the ocean state (e.g. sea level, temperature, salinity and ice cover) in the North Sea and the Baltic Sea on a daily basis. These forecasts are the primary source of information for a variety of information and emergency response systems used e.g. to issue sea level warnings or carry out oil drift forecast. The forecasts are of course highly valuable as such, but often suffer from a lack of information on their uncertainty. With the aim of augmenting the existing operational ocean forecasts in the North Sea and the Baltic Sea by a measure of uncertainty a multi-model-ensemble (MME) system for sea surface temperature (SST), sea surface salinity (SSS) and water transports has been set up in the framework of the MyOcean-2 project. Members of MyOcean-2, the NOOS² and HIROMB/BOOS³ communities provide 48h-forecasts serving as inputs. Different variables are processed separately due to their different physical characteristics. Based on the so far collected daily MME products of SST and SSS, a statistical method, Empirical Orthogonal Function (EOF) analysis is applied to assess their spatial and temporal variability. For sea surface currents, progressive vector diagrams at specific points are consulted to estimate the performance of the circulation models especially in hydrodynamic important areas, e.g. inflow/outflow of the Baltic Sea, Norwegian trench and English Channel. For further versions of the MME system, it is planned to extend the MME to other variables like e.g. sea level, ocean currents or ice cover based on the needs of the model providers and their customers. It is also planned to include in-situ data to augment the uncertainty information and for validation purposes. Additionally, weighting methods will be implemented into the MME system to develop more complex uncertainty measures. The methodology used to create the MME will be outlined and different ensemble products will be presented. In

  15. The distribution of deep-sea sponge aggregations in the North Atlantic and implications for their effective spatial management

    Science.gov (United States)

    Howell, Kerry-Louise; Piechaud, Nils; Downie, Anna-Leena; Kenny, Andrew

    2016-09-01

    Sponge aggregations have been recognised as key component of shallow benthic ecosystems providing several important functional roles including habitat building and nutrient recycling. Within the deep-sea ecosystem, sponge aggregations may be extensive and available evidence suggests they may also play important functional roles, however data on their ecology, extent and distribution in the North Atlantic is lacking, hampering conservation efforts. In this study, we used Maximum Entropy Modelling and presence data for two deep-sea sponge aggregation types, Pheronema carpenteri aggregations and ostur aggregations dominated by geodid sponges, to address the following questions: 1) What environmental factors drive the broad-scale distribution of these selected sponge grounds? 2) What is the predicted distribution of these grounds in the northern North Atlantic, Norwegian and Barents Sea? 3) How are these sponge grounds distributed between Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) and High Seas areas? 4) What percentage of these grounds in High Seas areas are protected by the current High Seas MPA network? Our results suggest that silicate concentration, temperature, depth and amount of particulate organic carbon are the most important drivers of sponge distribution. Most of the sponge grounds are located within national EEZs rather than in the High Seas. Coordinated conservation planning between nations with significant areas of sponge grounds such as Iceland, Greenland and Faroes (Denmark), Norway (coastal Norway and Svalbard), Portugal and the UK, should be implemented in order to effectively manage these communities in view of the increasing level of human activity within the deep-sea environment.

  16. Natural gas - an alternative. Swedish electric power from Norwegian natural gas

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1986-10-01

    The report describes the possible substitution of electric power by natural gas on the heat source market and how gas can be used for power production. The cost of distribution and means of supply are presented. 1/3 of the electric power produced by nuclear power plants can be replaced by the middle of the nineties. Transport techniques for gas and its total volume as well as transport cost from Norwegian North Sea are discussed

  17. A comparison of three indices of fishing power on some demersal fisheries of the North Sea

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Marchal, P.; Ulrich, Clara; Korsbrekke, K.

    2002-01-01

    mortality estimates from XSA (eXtended Survivors Analysis) are accurate. IFP2 is derived from the GLM analysis of the difference between the Log-CPUE of a vessel and the average Log-CPUE of a set of reference vessels, which are chosen with regards to the stability of their Log-CPUE over time. IFP3...... is derived from the GLM analysis of the Log-CPUE of a vessel relative to some external survey abundance index. Particular attention is paid to the horsepower and year effects in IFP1, IFP2, and IFP3. This methodology is applied to the Danish, Dutch, English and Norwegian demersal fisheries of the North Sea...

  18. Closing the sea level budget on a regional scale: Trends and variability on the Northwestern European continental shelf.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Frederikse, Thomas; Riva, Riccardo; Kleinherenbrink, Marcel; Wada, Yoshihide; van den Broeke, Michiel; Marzeion, Ben

    2016-10-28

    Long-term trends and decadal variability of sea level in the North Sea and along the Norwegian coast have been studied over the period 1958-2014. We model the spatially nonuniform sea level and solid earth response to large-scale ice melt and terrestrial water storage changes. GPS observations, corrected for the solid earth deformation, are used to estimate vertical land motion. We find a clear correlation between sea level in the North Sea and along the Norwegian coast and open ocean steric variability in the Bay of Biscay and west of Portugal, which is consistent with the presence of wind-driven coastally trapped waves. The observed nodal cycle is consistent with tidal equilibrium. We are able to explain the observed sea level trend over the period 1958-2014 well within the standard error of the sum of all contributing processes, as well as the large majority of the observed decadal sea level variability.

  19. Benthic community structures in the North Sea

    Science.gov (United States)

    Heip, C.; Craeymeersch, J. A.

    1995-03-01

    Coherent assemblages of marine benthic species have been recognized from the early twentieth century, and the classical papers of Petersen (1914, 1918) were based on studies of limited areas in the North Sea. In 1986, a synoptic survey of the North Sea north to 57°N was undertaken by a group of ten laboratories from seven North Sea countries. The results of this survey have recently been published (Heip et al., 1992a, b; Künitzer et al., 1992; Huys et al., 1992), and some of the results are summarized in this paper. The analysis of the macrofauna is based on slightly more than 700 taxa. In general, the North Sea macrofauna consists of northern species extending south to the northern margins of the Dogger Bank, and southern species extending north to the 100 m depth line. The central North Sea is an area of overlap of southern and northern species, especially around the 70 m depth contour. Consistent groupings of species are recognized that were summarized in seven faunal groupings. Macrofaunal body weight, density and diversity increase linearly towards the north. Macrofaunal biomass for the whole area averages 7 g adwt. m-2 and decreases from south to north. Distribution patterns and trends within the meiofauna were very different. Nematodes, which are the dominant taxon overall, are least abundant in the sandy sediments of the Southern Bight, then increase to a maximum around 53° 30' N and slowly decrease again towards the north. Copepod density and diversity are highest in the Southern Bight, due to the presence of many interstitial species. A large number of species new to science were recorded by the North Sea Benthos Survey and about 1500 species are expected to occur. Copepods show very distinct assemblages according to water depth and sediment type. The contrasting patterns in latitudinal gradients of body weight and number of species of macro- and meiofauna can be only partially explained. Latitude and sediment characteristics, such as grain size and

  20. RKU North Sea. Update on the regional consequence examination concerning the petroleum industry in the North Sea

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2006-12-01

    An overview over prognoses for oil and gas production and the emissions related to these activities is provided for the years 2005-2025. A description of the Norwegian Continental Shelf's ecosystem, environmental technology employed, and considerations regarding the petroleum industry's effect on the ecosystem are considered. Emissions to air, planned emissions to the sea and accident emissions and spills are treated, as well as other possible environmental effects. Consequences for fishery, cultural monuments and for the society in general are also examined (ml)

  1. The North sea, one of the group's anchorage points

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anon.

    1995-01-01

    The North Sea is one of the pillars of the Elf Aquitaine group's Exploration-Production strategy. The most recent start-up in the North Sea, last february, concerned the Froy field where Elf Petroleum Norge (AS) is an operator with a 24.573 % interest alongside Statoil, Total Norge AS (15.2346 %) and Norsk Hydro. The first gas sales occurred on June 15, as scheduled. The oil production marketed by Elf (net of royalties) remained stable at 13.9 Gm 3 . At january 1,1995, Elf Aquitaine's mining area covered a gross surface area of 435,894 km 2 . In countries where the group is already established, the policy is : - to withdraw from exploration licenses considered as being the least promising in terms of discovery or profitability; - to concentrate on sectors where the existing production means allow for an optimisation of later developments ; - to penetrate more extensive exploration areas with good targets. In the British zone, the additional reserves revealed in the Elgin and Franklin condensate fields have doubled the initial forecast, placing the former among the major fields. All the discoveries made in the British zone have allowed the group to renew productions until now. Elf's production in Piper, Saltire, Chanter is 100,000 b/d which is added to the production of the Claymore and Scapa fields (100,000 b/d). The Flotta terminal processes the crude coming from these fields to which is added the production from the neighbouring fields of Tartan (Texaco) and Ivanhoe-Rob Roy (Amerada Hess), i.e. a total of more than 300,000 b/d. Other than Elgin or the Viking Graben, the future of the Elf group in Great Britain will most certainly come from the West Shetlands and the Irish Sea. In the Norwegian zone, the group has interest in the Frigg, Heimldal, Ekofisk, Valhall, Lille-Frigg, Froy, Oseberg, Hod, Sleipner East an Sleipner West Brage, Troll, Snorre, Statfjord East and Tordis production fields. (authors). 3 tabs., 1 photo

  2. Scientific symposium on the North Sea quality status report 1993

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Andersen, J.; Karup, H.; Nielsen, U.B.

    1996-01-01

    The Scientific Symposium on the 1993 North Sea quality Status Report took place in Ebeltoft, Denmark from 18 to 21 April 1994. The aim was to bring together scientists, researchers and administrators from governments, industries and environmental organizations from the countries around the North Sea in order to review new information which may supplements the 1993 North Sea Quality Status Report and to discuss the Quality Status Report and its possible implications. The 1993 North Sea Quality Status Report has been prepared by the North Sea Task force as a comprehensive statement of circulation patterns, inputs and dispersion of contaminants, ecological conditions and effects of human activities in the North Sea including the Skagerrak and the Kattegat. The programme of the Scientific Symposium on the 1993 North Sea Quality Status Report included 8 sessions for oral presentations, a poster session presenting the North Sea Task Force subregional reports and a poster session presenting individual posters. The headings of the sessions were as follows: Oceanography, Models and Remote Sensing; Ecosystem Structure; Contaminants -Distribution and Effects; Nutrients and Eutrophication Problems; Effects of Fishery; Habitats and Species; Management Implications; Conclusions and Recommendations. The proceedings includes a total of 45 contributed papers. (EG)

  3. Cleaning up the sea bed in the North Sea. 1994

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1995-01-01

    The yearly raid was executed in an efficient way and without excess technical equipment interruptions. The vessel ''Lance'' owned by the Norwegian Sea Mapping Authorities which was used for the sonar mapping of the sea bed, was equipped with a Klein 531T side seeking sonar, a Simrad echo sounder of the type EM100 (multiray) and differential GPS navigation system. The executive committee has earlier expressed desire for a strengthening of the co-operation with the Norwegian Sea Mapping Authorities. The use of the vessel was in accordance with this wish. Stolt Comex Seaway A/S used the vessel M/S ''Seaway Commander'' and the underwater vessel ''Solo'' for the cleaning up project. The systems worked satisfactory during the entire operation. The cleaning operation was in 1994 carried out in 2 sections. The Petroleum Directorate agreed to letting the M/S ''Seaway Commander'' complete the project for Norsk Hydro at the Troll field in order to avoid delays in the Troll Oil project. In both periods there were good weather conditions. There was no extensive discontinuations due to the weather. During the two periods of 13,5 days 259 out of 370 positions were investigated visually through the systems. This is in average about 20 inspected positions a day. The reason for the high average is that the sailing distances are short between the positions and the findings corresponded to stated positions and sonar interpretations. Also this year there was installed a side seeking sonar in the underwater vessel which resulted in reduced investigation time at each aim. It was possible with this type of sonar to identify the goal quicker and to seek during transit between goals at moderate distances. Few articles with certainty contributed by the petroleum activities were retrieved

  4. Radioactivity in produced water from Norwegian oil and gas installations - concentrations, bioavailability and doses to marine biota

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sidhu, R.; Eriksen, D. Oe.; Straalberg, E.; Iden, K. I.; Rye, H.; Hylland, K.; Ruus, A.; Roeyset, O.; Berntssen, M. H. G.

    2006-03-15

    Substantial amounts of produced water, containing elevated levels of radionuclides (mainly 226Ra and 228Ra) are discharged to the sea as a result of oil and gas production on the Norwegian Continental Shelf. So far no study has assessed the potential radiological effects on marine biota in connection with radionuclide discharges to the North Sea. The main objective of the project is to establish radiological safe discharge limits for radium, lead and polonium associated with other components in produced water from oil and gas installations on the Norwegian continental shelf. Preliminary results indicate that presence of added chemicals such as scale inhibitors in the produced water has a marked influence on the formation of radium and barium sulphates when produced water is mixed with sea water. Thus, the mobility and bio-availability of radium (and barium) may be larger than anticipated. Also, the bio-availability of radium may be increased due to presence of such chemicals, and this is presently being studied. (author) (tk)

  5. Influence of Late Paleozoic Gondwana glaciations on the depositional evolution of the northern Pangean shelf, North Greenland, Svalbard and the Barents Sea

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Stemmerik, Lars

    2008-01-01

    Outcrop and subsurface data from the central northern margin of the Pangean shelf in North Greenland, Svalbard, and the Norwegian Barents Sea record the depositional response of a Northern Hemisphere subtropical shelf to Late Carboniferous-Early Permian (Bashkirian-Sakmarian) Gondwana glaciations....... The dominant motif is that of meters to tens of meters of exposure-capped cycles of carbonates, mixed carbonates, and siliciclastics and, in older stratigraphic levels, siliciclastics and gypsum. Halitegypsum-carbonate cycles developed in deeper, isolated basins. Individual cycles of carbonate and mixed...

  6. How attractive is the North Sea to the financial community?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Arnott, R.

    1992-01-01

    How attractive is the North Sea to the financial community? This question is answered by discussing the type of investment opportunity that the North Sea offers the investor. It is shown how North Sea investments have performed and some of the methods used to measure that performance are discussed. Finally, some thoughts on the future importance of the North Sea to the financial community reach the conclusion that it will remain important for some years to come. (author)

  7. The carbon budget of the North Sea

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Thomas, H.; Bozec, Y.; Baar, H.J.W. de; Elkalay, K.; Frankignoulle, M.; Schiettecatte, L.-S.; Kattner, G.; Borges, A.V.; Gattuso, J.-P.

    2005-01-01

    A carbon budget has been established for the North Sea, a shelf sea on the NW European continental shelf. The carbon exchange fluxes with the North Atlantic Ocean dominate the gross carbon budget. The net carbon budget – more relevant to the issue of the contribution of the coastal ocean to the

  8. Observed Sea-Level Changes along the Norwegian Coast

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kristian Breili

    2017-07-01

    Full Text Available Norway’s national sea level observing system consists of an extensive array of tide gauges, permanent GNSS stations, and lines of repeated levelling. Here, we make use of this observation system to calculate relative sea-level rates and rates corrected for glacial isostatic adjustment (GIA along the Norwegian coast for three different periods, i.e., 1960 to 2010, 1984 to 2014, and 1993 to 2016. For all periods, the relative sea-level rates show considerable spatial variations that are largely due to differences in vertical land motion due to GIA. The variation is reduced by applying corrections for vertical land motion and associated gravitational effects on sea level. For 1960 to 2010 and 1984 to 2014, the coastal average GIA-corrected rates for Norway are 2.0 ± 0.6 mm/year and 2.2 ± 0.6 mm/year, respectively. This is close to the rate of global sea-level rise for the same periods. For the most recent period, 1993 to 2016, the GIA-corrected coastal average is 3.5 ± 0.6 mm/year and 3.2 ± 0.6 mm/year with and without inverse barometer (IB corrections, respectively, which is significantly higher than for the two earlier periods. For 1993 to 2016, the coastal average IB-corrected rates show broad agreement with two independent sets of altimetry. This suggests that there is no systematic error in the vertical land motion corrections applied to the tide-gauge data. At the same time, altimetry does not capture the spatial variation identified in the tide-gauge records. This could be an effect of using altimetry observations off the coast instead of directly at each tide gauge. Finally, we note that, owing to natural variability in the climate system, our estimates are highly sensitive to the selected study period. For example, using a 30-year moving window, we find that the estimated rates may change by up to 1 mm/year when shifting the start epoch by only one year.

  9. Sea level anomaly in the North Atlantic and seas around Europe: Long-term variability and response to North Atlantic teleconnection patterns.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Iglesias, Isabel; Lorenzo, M Nieves; Lázaro, Clara; Fernandes, M Joana; Bastos, Luísa

    2017-12-31

    Sea level anomaly (SLA), provided globally by satellite altimetry, is considered a valuable proxy for detecting long-term changes of the global ocean, as well as short-term and annual variations. In this manuscript, monthly sea level anomaly grids for the period 1993-2013 are used to characterise the North Atlantic Ocean variability at inter-annual timescales and its response to the North Atlantic main patterns of atmospheric circulation variability (North Atlantic Oscillation, Eastern Atlantic, Eastern Atlantic/Western Russia, Scandinavian and Polar/Eurasia) and main driven factors as sea level pressure, sea surface temperature and wind fields. SLA variability and long-term trends are analysed for the North Atlantic Ocean and several sub-regions (North, Baltic and Mediterranean and Black seas, Bay of Biscay extended to the west coast of the Iberian Peninsula, and the northern North Atlantic Ocean), depicting the SLA fluctuations at basin and sub-basin scales, aiming at representing the regions of maximum sea level variability. A significant correlation between SLA and the different phases of the teleconnection patterns due to the generated winds, sea level pressure and sea surface temperature anomalies, with a strong variability on temporal and spatial scales, has been identified. Long-term analysis reveals the existence of non-stationary inter-annual SLA fluctuations in terms of the temporal scale. Spectral density analysis has shown the existence of long-period signals in the SLA inter-annual component, with periods of ~10, 5, 4 and 2years, depending on the analysed sub-region. Also, a non-uniform increase in sea level since 1993 is identified for all sub-regions, with trend values between 2.05mm/year, for the Bay of Biscay region, and 3.98mm/year for the Baltic Sea (no GIA correction considered). The obtained results demonstrated a strong link between the atmospheric patterns and SLA, as well as strong long-period fluctuations of this variable in spatial and

  10. North Sea oil and gas: a geographical perspective

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Chapman, K

    1976-01-01

    Only ten years after the first rig moved into position, British oil has been piped ashore from the North Sea and, by 1980, will be making a substantial contribution to UK energy supplies. The discovery of natural gas in 1967--for initially gas was the primary objective--has transformed the gas supply so that 90% of the UK's needs already come from the North Sea. The speed and concentration of exploration pinpoints the vital importance of this new energy source. Until now the major oil 'pipeline' in the world has been led between the Middle East and Western Europe, so this new energy source has far reaching implications, both political and economic. Keith Chapman examines these implications starting from events in the North Sea itself; the geological background, agreement on the division of the North Sea, relations between oil companies, and government embodied in offshore mining legislation. The latter part of the book concentrates on the onshore repercussions of offshore activities; how North Sea oil fits into the international oil system, the various options open for its utilisation, the attitude of the EEC towards Scottish-based resources, government policy for the North coast of Scotland--an area which planners classed as ''peripheral'' but which must now accommodate extensive support facilities and service industries for the oil sites. There is also the question of relations between national and commercial interests--government versus the giant multi-national companies which took the initial gamble in the North Sea and are now responsible for the development of a resource vital to the economic well-being of Western Europe.

  11. Ecology and conservation of North American sea ducks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Savard, Jean-Pierre L.; Derksen, Dirk V.; Esler, Daniel N.; Eadie, John M.

    2015-01-01

    The past decade has seen a huge increase in the interest and attention directed toward sea ducks, the Mergini tribe. This has been inspired, in large part, by the conservation concerns associated with numerical declines in several sea duck species and populations, as well as a growing appreciation for their interesting ecological attributes. Reflecting the considerable research recently conducted on this tribe, Ecology and Conservation of North American Sea Ducks examines the 15 extant species of sea ducks from North America.

  12. Variability of North Sea pH and CO2 in response to North Atlantic Oscillation forcing

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Salt, Lesley A.; Thomas, Helmuth; Prowe, Friederike

    2013-01-01

    [1] High biological activity causes a distinct seasonality of surface water pH in the North Sea, which is a strong sink for atmospheric CO2 via an effective shelf pump. The intimate connection between the North Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean suggests that the variability of the CO2 system...... of the North Atlantic Ocean may, in part, be responsible for the observed variability of pH and CO2 in the North Sea. In this work, we demonstrate the role of the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), the dominant climate mode for the North Atlantic, in governing this variability. Based on three extensive...... observational records covering the relevant levels of the NAO index, we provide evidence that the North Sea pH and CO2 system strongly responds to external and internal expressions of the NAO. Under positive NAO, the higher rates of inflow of water from the North Atlantic Ocean and the Baltic outflow lead...

  13. Pseudocollapse and rebuilding of North Sea mackerel (Scomber scombrus)

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jansen, Teunis

    2014-01-01

    The largest observed change in mackerel (Scomber scombrus) abundance in the North Atlantic happened when the so-called “North Sea mackerel” collapsed due to overfishing. Despite protection, it has remained in a depleted state. Central to this interpretation was that the “North Sea mackerel...

  14. High Acidification Rate of Norwegian Sea Revealed by Boron Isotopes in the Deep-Sea Coral Madrepora Oculata

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gonzalez, C.; Douville, E.; Hall-Spencer, J.; Montagna, P.; Louvat, P.; Gaillardet, J.; Frank, N.; Bordier, L.; Juillet-Leclerc, A.

    2012-12-01

    Ocean acidification and global warming due to the increase of anthropogenic CO2 are major threats for marine calcifying organisms, such as deep-sea corals, particularly in high-latitude regions. In order to evaluate the current anthropogenic perturbation and to properly assess the impacts and responses of calcifiers to previous changes in pH it is critical to investigate past changes of the seawater carbonate system. Unfortunately, current instrumental records of oceanic pH are limited, covering only a few decades. Scleractinian coral skeletons record chemical parameters of the seawater in which they grow. However, pH variability over multidecadal timescales remains largely unknown in intermediate and deep seawater masses. Here we present a study that highlights the potential of deep-sea-corals to overcome the lack of long-term pH records and that emphasizes a rapid acidification of high latitude subsurface waters of Norwegian Sea during the past decades. We have reconstructed seawater pH and temperature from a well dated deep-sea coral specimen Madrepora oculata collected alive from Røst reef in Norwegian Sea (67°N, 9°E, 340 m depth). This large branching framework forming coral species grew its skeleton over more than four decades determined using AMS 14C and 210Pb dating (Sabatier et al. 2012). B-isotopes and Li/Mg ratios yield an acidification rate of about -0.0030±0.0008 pH-unit.year-1 and a warming of 0.3°C during the past four decades (1967-2007). Overall our reconstruction technique agrees well with previous pH calculations (Hönisch et al., 2007 vs. Trotter et al., 2011 and McCulloch et al., 2012, i.e. the iterative method), but additional corrections are here applied using stable isotope correlations (O, C, B) to properly address kinetic fractionation of boron isotopes used for pH reconstruction. The resulting pH curve strongly anti-correlates with the annual NAO index, which further strengthens our evidence for the ocean acidification rate

  15. Report from Holland: the economics of North Sea hydrocarbons

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ellman, M

    1977-09-01

    The article describes how, despite huge revenues from North Sea gas, Holland is currently suffering from unemployment and its long-term prospects are poor. In light of this, Mr. Ellman discusses the implications of North Sea oil for the UK economy. He sites three distinguishable policies that the UK government could adopt in the face of the huge import saving and export creation that North Sea hydrocarbons will soon bring--sound finance, demand management, and structural modernization. (MCW)

  16. Regulation of CO2 Air Sea Fluxes by Sediments in the North Sea

    Science.gov (United States)

    Burt, William; Thomas, Helmuth; Hagens, Mathilde; Brenner, Heiko; Pätsch, Johannes; Clargo, Nicola; Salt, Lesley

    2016-04-01

    A multi-tracer approach is applied to assess the impact of boundary fluxes (e.g. benthic input from sediments or lateral inputs from the coastline) on the acid-base buffering capacity, and overall biogeochemistry, of the North Sea. Analyses of both basin-wide observations in the North Sea and transects through tidal basins at the North-Frisian coastline, reveal that surface distributions of the δ13C signature of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) are predominantly controlled by a balance between biological production and respiration. In particular, variability in metabolic DIC throughout stations in the well-mixed southern North Sea indicates the presence of an external carbon source, which is traced to the European continental coastline using naturally-occurring radium isotopes (224Ra and 228Ra). 228Ra is also shown to be a highly effective tracer of North Sea total alkalinity (AT) compared to the more conventional use of salinity. Coastal inputs of metabolic DIC and AT are calculated on a basin-wide scale, and ratios of these inputs suggest denitrification as a primary metabolic pathway for their formation. The AT input paralleling the metabolic DIC release prevents a significant decline in pH as compared to aerobic (i.e. unbuffered) release of metabolic DIC. Finally, long-term pH trends mimic those of riverine nitrate loading, highlighting the importance of coastal AT production via denitrification in regulating pH in the southern North Sea.

  17. SeaWiFS: North Pacific Storm

    Science.gov (United States)

    2002-01-01

    An extratropical storm can be seen swirling over the North Pacific just south of Alaska. This SeaWiFS image was collected yesterday at 23:20 GMT. Credit: Provided by the SeaWiFS Project, NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center, and ORBIMAGE

  18. Two centuries of extreme events over the Baltic Sea and North Sea regions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stendel, Martin; den Besselaar Else, van; Abdel, Hannachi; Jaak, Jaagus; Elizabeth, Kent; Christiana, Lefebvre; Gudrun, Rosenhagen; Anna, Rutgersson; Frederik, Schenk; der Schrier Gerard, van; Tim, Woolings

    2017-04-01

    Two centuries of extreme events over the Baltic Sea and North Sea regions In the framework of the BACC 2 (for the Baltic Sea) and NOSCCA projects (for the North Sea region), studies of past and present variability and changes in atmospheric variables within the North Sea region over the instrumental period (roughly the past 200 years) have been investigated. Findings on trends in temperature and precipitation have already been presented. Here we focus on data homogeneity issues and examine how reliable reanalyses are in this context. Unlike most other regions in the world, there is a wealth of old observations available for the Baltic and North Sea regions, most of it in handwritten form in meteorological journals and other publications. These datasets need to be carefully digitised and homogenized. For this, a thorough quality control must be applied; otherwise the digitised datasets may prove useless or even counterproductive. We present evidence that this step cannot be conducted without human interference and thus cannot be fully automated. Furthermore, inhomogeneities due to e.g. instrumentation and station relocations need to be addressed. A wealth of reanalysis products is available, which can help detect such inhomogeneities in observed time series, but at the same time are prone to biases and/or spurious trends themselves e.g. introduced by changes in the availability and quality of the underlying assimilated data. It therefore in general remains unclear in how far we can simulate the pre-satellite era with respect to homogeneity with reanalyses based only on parts of the observing system. Extreme events and changes in extreme situations are more important and of greater (societal) significance than changes in mean climate. However, changes in extreme weather events are difficult to assess not only because they are, per definition, rare events, but also due to the homogeneity issues outlined above. Taking these into account, we present evidence for changes

  19. Petroleum oil and mercury pollution from shipwrecks in Norwegian coastal waters.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ndungu, Kuria; Beylich, Björnar A; Staalstrøm, André; Øxnevad, Sigurd; Berge, John A; Braaten, Hans Fredrik Veiteberg; Schaanning, Morten; Bergstrøm, Rune

    2017-09-01

    Worldwide there are tens of thousands of sunken shipwrecks lying on the coastal seabed. These potentially polluting wrecks (PPW) are estimated to hold 3-25milliont of oil. Other hazardous cargo in PPW includes ordnance, chemicals and radioactive waste. Here, we present and discuss studies on mercury (Hg) and oil pollution in coastal marine sediment caused by two of the >2100 documented PPW in Norwegian marine waters. The German World War II (WWII) submarine (U-864) lies at about 150m below the sea surface, near the Norwegian North Sea island of Fedje. The submarine is estimated to have been carrying 67t of elemental Hg, some of which has leaked on to surrounding sediment. The total Hg concentration in bottom surface sediment within a 200m radius of the wreckage decreases from 100g/kgd.w. at the wreckage hotspot to about 1mg/kgd.w. at 100m from the hotspot. The second wreck is a German WWII cargo ship (Nordvard), that lies at a depth of ca. 30m near the Norwegian harbor of Moss. Oil leakage from Nordvard has contaminated the bottom coastal sediment with polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH). The findings from this study provide useful insight to coastal administration authorities involved in assessing and remediating wreck-borne pollution from any of the tens of thousands of sunken shipwrecks. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  20. Wind fluctuations over the North Sea

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Vincent, Claire Louise; Pinson, Pierre; Giebel, Gregor

    2011-01-01

    Climatological patterns in wind speed fluctuations with periods of 1 min to 10 h are analysed using data from a meteorological mast in the Danish North Sea. Fluctuations on these time scales are of particular relevance to the effective management of the power supply from large wind farms. The Hil......Climatological patterns in wind speed fluctuations with periods of 1 min to 10 h are analysed using data from a meteorological mast in the Danish North Sea. Fluctuations on these time scales are of particular relevance to the effective management of the power supply from large wind farms...

  1. North Sea ecosystem change from swimming crabs to seagulls.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Luczak, C; Beaugrand, G; Lindley, J A; Dewarumez, J-M; Dubois, P J; Kirby, R R

    2012-10-23

    A recent increase in sea temperature has established a new ecosystem dynamic regime in the North Sea. Climate-induced changes in decapods have played an important role. Here, we reveal a coincident increase in the abundance of swimming crabs and lesser black-backed gull colonies in the North Sea, both in time and in space. Swimming crabs are an important food source for lesser black-backed gulls during the breeding season. Inhabiting the land, but feeding mainly at sea, lesser black-backed gulls provide a link between marine and terrestrial ecosystems, since the bottom-up influence of allochthonous nutrient input from seabirds to coastal soils can structure the terrestrial food web. We, therefore, suggest that climate-driven changes in trophic interactions in the marine food web may also have ensuing ramifications for the coastal ecology of the North Sea.

  2. Comparative biology and population mixing among local, coastal and offshore Atlantic herring (Clupea harengus) in the North Sea, Skagerrak, Kattegat and western Baltic

    Science.gov (United States)

    Slotte, Aril; Johannessen, Arne; Kvamme, Cecilie; Clausen, Lotte Worsøe; Nash, Richard D. M.

    2017-01-01

    The population structure of Atlantic herring (Clupea harengus) from 13 local, coastal and offshore areas of the North Sea, Skagerrak, Kattegat and western Baltic (northeast Atlantic) was studied using biological and environmental data from 1970–2015. The objective was to identify distinct populations by comparing variability in the temporal and spatial phenotypic characteristics and evaluate the potential for mixing of populations in time and space. The populations varied in biological characteristics such as mean vertebral counts (VS), growth and maturity ogives. Generalized additive models indicated temporally stable VS in the North Sea and western Baltic, whereas intra-annual temporal variation of VS occurred in other areas. High variability of VS within a population was not affected by environmental factors such as temperature and salinity. Consequently, seasonal VS variability can be explained by the presence or absence of herring populations as they migrate between areas. The three main populations identified in this paper correspond to the three managed stocks in this area: Norwegian spring spawners (NSS), western Baltic spring spawners (WBSS) and North Sea autumn spawners (NSAS). In addition, several local populations were identified in fjords or lakes along the coast, but our analyses could not detect direct mixing of local populations with the three main populations. Our results highlight the importance of recognizing herring dynamics and understanding the mixing of populations as a challenge for management of herring. PMID:29084258

  3. The importance of North Sea gas to European energy supply

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Probert, R.

    1992-01-01

    Natural gas can, of course, be transported over very long distances but, because of the economics of gas transmission, its impact is most often local. This has certainly been the case with North Sea gas, which has clearly contributed significantly to European energy supply and will continue to do so for some time to come. The historical importance of the discovery of gas in the North Sea has been that it has enabled natural gas industries to grow rapidly in North West Europe. Without North Sea gas and Dutch gas it is difficult to see how town gas would have been replaced in North West Europe. Certainly, a much smaller natural gas industry would have emerged. North Sea gas has inevitably had the greatest impact on gas markets in the countries of the European Community and this will remain the case in future. Nevertheless, it is inevitable that gas will, in future, flow across more national boundaries than in the past, and that North Sea gas will have an important part to play in meeting the Central European demand for competitively priced, secure supplies. This paper discusses the United Kingdom market for gas and future demand both in the United Kingdom and more widely in Europe. An examination of the availability of gas supplies from the North Sea suggests that it is unlikely that there will be a surplus of gas for export from the United Kingdom continental shelf. Norway will remain the main source of exports, with the Netherlands also in a strong position. Transportation and political aspects are also considered. (author)

  4. Variation in the Norwegian gyre and its links to the termohaline circulation (THC).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gunnarson, B. E.; Linderholm, H. W.; Wilson, R.; Rydval, M.

    2017-12-01

    Summer temperature patterns in Scandinavia are partly governed by variations in the North Atlantic drift (being part of the Gulf Stream) causing northern Europe to be warmer than similar latitudes. Observation show that northwestern European climate is strongly link to sea surface temperature (SST) and the ocean circulation (the Norwegian gyre, NG) in the Norwegian Sea. On decadal- multidecadal time scales, there is also positive association with the sub-tropical gyre, but also a weaker (and negative) connection to the sub Polar gyre (SPG) which is linked to the thermohaline circulation (THC). The negative correlations occur only during the April-June and July-September (JAS) seasons, when the ocean mixed layer is shallow in the North Atlantic. A network of Maximum Latewood Density (MXD) tree-ring chronologies from 7 sites in Northern Scandinavia, 1 in central Scotland and 1 in Labrador was used to identifying SST influences on local to regional summer temperatures patterns during 1901-20XX. The sites represent tree growth strongly correlated with mean JAS temperatures (Fennoscandia r > 0.7, Scotland r > 0.6, Labrador r > 0.5). Both the Scotland and Labrador chronologies correlates only with SST from adjacent coastal areas. The Fennoscandian chronologies showed strong and temporally consistent correlations with SST across the NG (r > 0.5), but also positive correlations of the same magnitude across the sub-tropical gyre. In addition, a negative, but weaker, correlation was found over the SPG domain. Climate models (PMIP5) were not able to reproduce the correlation patterns evident in both observations and tree-ring data. The tripolar correlation pattern suggests that North Atlantic SST influences summer temperature variability in Northern Fennoscandia, illustrating the potential for using tree-rings to reconstruct the THC and the heat transport towards the North Atlantic region and atmosphere- ocean interaction back in time.

  5. Temperature, salinity and other variables collected from discrete sample and profile observations using CTD, bottle and other instruments from the JOHAN HJORT in the North Atlantic Ocean, North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from 1994-10-29 to 1994-11-23 (NODC Accession 0115681)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NODC Accession 0115681 includes chemical, discrete sample, physical and profile data collected from JOHAN HJORT in the North Atlantic Ocean, North Greenland Sea and...

  6. Partial pressure (or fugacity) of carbon dioxide, salinity and other variables collected from Surface underway observations using Carbon dioxide (CO2) gas analyzer, Shower head chamber equilibrator for autonomous carbon dioxide (CO2) measurement and other instruments from G.O. SARS in the North Greenland Sea, North Sea and Norwegian Sea from 2011-04-29 to 2011-11-01 (NCEI Accession 0157278)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NCEI Accession 0157278 includes Surface underway, chemical, meteorological and physical data collected from G.O. SARS in the North Greenland Sea, North Sea and...

  7. The contribution to nitrogen deposition and ozone formation in South Norway from atmospheric emissions related to the petroleum activity in the North Sea

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Solberg, S; Walker, S -E; Knudsen, S; Lazaridis, M; Beine, H J; Semb, A

    1999-03-01

    A photochemical plume model has been developed and refined. The model is designed to simulate the advection and photochemistry for several simultaneous point sources as well as the atmospheric mixing. the model has been used to calculate nitrogen deposition and ozone formation due to offshore emissions in the North Sea. Based on meteorological data for 1992 the calculations give a total contribution of 60-80 mg (N)/m{sub 2} at most in South Norway. Emission from British and Norwegian sector is calculated to contribute less than 5% each to the AOT40 index for ozone. (author)

  8. The contribution to nitrogen deposition and ozone formation in South Norway from atmospheric emissions related to the petroleum activity in the North Sea

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Solberg, S.; Walker, S.-E.; Knudsen, S.; Lazaridis, M.; Beine, H.J.; Semb, A.

    1999-03-01

    A photochemical plume model has been developed and refined. The model is designed to simulate the advection and photochemistry for several simultaneous point sources as well as the atmospheric mixing. the model has been used to calculate nitrogen deposition and ozone formation due to offshore emissions in the North Sea. Based on meteorological data for 1992 the calculations give a total contribution of 60-80 mg (N)/m 2 at most in South Norway. Emission from British and Norwegian sector is calculated to contribute less than 5% each to the AOT40 index for ozone. (author)

  9. Long-Term Trends and Variability in Spring Development of Calanus finmarchicus in the Southeastern Norwegian Sea during 1996-2012

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dupont, N.; Bagøien, E.; Melle, W.

    2016-02-01

    Calanus finmarchicus is the dominant copepod species in the Norwegian Sea in terms of biomass, playing a key role in the ecosystem by transferring energy from primary producers to higher trophic levels. This study analyses the long-term trend of a 17-year time series (1996-2012) on abundance of adult Calanus finmarchicus in the Atlantic water-mass of the southern Norwegian Sea during spring. The long-term trend in spring abundance was assessed by using Generalised Additive Models, while simultaneously accounting for both general population development and inter-annual variation in population development throughout the study period. In one model, we focus on inter-annual changes in timing of the Calanus spring seasonal development by including Mean Stage Composition as a measure for state of population development. Following a short increase during the years 1996 to 2000, the abundance of Calanus finmarchicus decreased strongly until about the year 2010. For the two last years of the studied period, 2011-2012, increasing population abundances are suggested but with less certainty. The model results suggest that the analysis is capturing the G0 generation, displaying a peak for the adults in about mid-April. Inter-annual differences in spring seasonal development, with the peak of adults shifting towards earlier in the season as well as a shorter generation time are suggested. Considering the importance of Calanus finmarchicus as food for planktivorous predators in the Norwegian Sea, our time series analysis suggests relevant changes both with respect to the spring abundance and timing of this food source. The next step is to relate variation in the Calanus time series to environmental factors with special emphasis on climatic drivers.

  10. Illicit drugs and their metabolites in 36 rivers that drain into the Bohai Sea and north Yellow Sea, north China.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, De-Gao; Zheng, Qiu-Da; Wang, Xiao-Ping; Du, Juan; Tian, Chong-Guo; Wang, Zhuang; Ge, Lin-Ke

    2016-08-01

    Illicit drugs and their metabolites have recently been recognized as an emerging group of contaminants due to their potential ecotoxicological impact in aquatic ecosystems. To date, information on the occurrence of these compounds in the aquatic environment of China remains limited. In this study, we collected surface water samples from 36 rivers in north China that discharge into the Bohai Sea and north Yellow Sea and measured the concentrations of amphetamine-like compounds, ketamines, cocainics, and opioids. The occurrence and spatial patterns of these substances show significant differences between the rivers and regions. Two designer drugs, methamphetamine (METH) and ketamine (KET), were the most abundant compounds detected in the entire set of samples (detection frequency of 92 and 69 %). The concentrations of METH and KET ranged from illicit drugs consumed in China. The high concentrations of these illicit drugs and their metabolites were found in areas that have a high population density. The riverine input of total illicit drugs into the Bohai Sea and north Yellow Sea was estimated to be in the range of 684 to 1160 kg per year.

  11. Modeling the buoyancy-driven Black Sea Water outflow into the North Aegean Sea

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nikolaos Kokkos

    2016-04-01

    Full Text Available A three-dimensional numerical model was applied to simulate the Black Sea Water (BSW outflux and spreading over the North Aegean Sea, and its impact on circulation and stratification–mixing dynamics. Model results were validated against satellite-derived sea surface temperature and in-situ temperature and salinity profiles. Further, the model results were post-processed in terms of the potential energy anomaly, ϕ, analyzing the factors contributing to its change. It occurs that BSW contributes significantly on the Thracian Sea water column stratification, but its signal reduces in the rest of the North Aegean Sea. The BSW buoyancy flux contributed to the change of ϕ in the Thracian Sea by 1.23 × 10−3 W m−3 in the winter and 7.9 × 10−4 W m−3 in the summer, significantly higher than the corresponding solar heat flux contribution (1.41 × 10−5 W m−3 and 7.4 × 10−5 W m−3, respectively. Quantification of the ϕ-advective term crossing the north-western BSW branch (to the north of Lemnos Island, depicted a strong non-linear relation to the relative vorticity of Samothraki Anticyclone. Similar analysis for the south-western branch illustrated a relationship between the ϕ-advective term sign and the relative vorticity in the Sporades system. The ϕ-mixing term increases its significance under strong winds (>15 m s−1, tending to destroy surface meso-scale eddies.

  12. NRPA. Radioactivity in the marine environment 2008 and 2009. Results from the Norwegian national monitoring programme (RAME)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gaefvert, T.; Heldal, H. E.; Brungot, A. L.; Gwynn, J.; Svaeren, I.; Kolstad, A. K.; Moeller, B.; Straalberg, E.; Christensen, G. C.; Drefvelin, J.; Dowdall, M.; Lind, B.; Rudjord, A. L.

    2011-04-01

    The issue of present and potential radioactive contamination in the marine environment has received considerable attention in Norway. In the late 1980s several accidents and incidents involving nuclear-powered submarines,demonstrated that the risk of the release of radionuclides into the Barents Sea should be considered more carefully. In particular, it became evident that better documentation concerning the radioactivity levels in fish and other seafood was important for the seafood export industries. Furthermore, in the early 1990s, information concerning the dumping of nuclear waste emerged through bilateral environmental cooperation between Norway and Russia. In the years that followed, concern grew regarding the safety of military and civil nuclear installations in the northwest of Russia. This concern was associated not only with possible reactor accidents, but also with the prolonged or sudden release of radio-nuclides from radioactive waste facilities.In addition to the potential threats outlined above, radionuclides originating from nuclear weapons fallout, the Chernobyl accident and waste discharged from European reprocessing facilities have been detected in the Norwegian marine environment. In 1994 and 1995, the discharge of 99Tc from the reprocessing facility at Sellafield in the UK increased sharply, and although this discharge has been reduced, it continued at a high level up to 2003. There has been much public concern about the consequences of such kinds of release, as the radionuclides discharged to the Irish Sea are transported by ocean currents via the North Sea into the Norwegian coastal current and to the Barents Sea. In response to this concern, programmes for the monitoring of radioactivity in the marine environment have been established. Due to the economic importance of the fishing industry and its vulnerability to contamination, as well as any rumours of radioactive contamination, one of the main objectives of these programmes is to

  13. Temperature, salinity and other variables collected from discrete sample and profile observations using CTD, bottle and other instruments from JOHAN HJORT in the Barents Sea, North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from 2000-05-27 to 2000-06-20 (NODC Accession 0115683)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NCEI Accession 0115683 includes biological, chemical, discrete sample, physical and profile data collected from JOHAN HJORT in the Barents Sea, North Greenland Sea...

  14. Environment 2002. The Norwegian petroleum sector

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    2002-07-01

    The Ministry of Petroleum and Energy produces an annual environmental review in cooperation with the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate. The purpose of this publication is threefold: (1) to increase knowledge about the environmental aspects of Norwegian oil and gas activities, (2) to take a more detailed look at a specific topic which particularly concerns both the industry and the authorities, and identify the challenges and options faced, (3) to emphasise the governments goal of ensuring that Norway reconciles its role as a large energy producer with a pioneering position on environmental issues. This year's edition focuses on the topic of ''oil and fish - common sea''. Both the petroleum and fishing industries depend on the waters off Norway. Ever since petroleum activities began on the Norwegian continental shelf more than 30 years ago, the authorities have been keen to ensure that these two sectors can work in the same sea areas. What challenges and opportunities face the petroleum industry over discharges to the sea and living marine resources? How can the authorities ensure that this sector is able to coexist with the fisheries? These and similar questions about the relationship between the petroleum and fishing industries in their shared seas are covered in section two of this publication. Environment 2002 also incorporates a factual section, which covers the status of emissions/discharges, environmental impacts and measures to reduce discharges to the sea and emissions to the air from petroleum activities. The MPE hopes that a publication of this kind can enhance basic knowledge about petroleum activities and environmental issues.

  15. Environment 2002. The Norwegian petroleum sector

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2002-01-01

    The Ministry of Petroleum and Energy produces an annual environmental review in cooperation with the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate. The purpose of this publication is threefold: (1) to increase knowledge about the environmental aspects of Norwegian oil and gas activities, (2) to take a more detailed look at a specific topic which particularly concerns both the industry and the authorities, and identify the challenges and options faced, (3) to emphasise the governments goal of ensuring that Norway reconciles its role as a large energy producer with a pioneering position on environmental issues. This year's edition focuses on the topic of ''oil and fish - common sea''. Both the petroleum and fishing industries depend on the waters off Norway. Ever since petroleum activities began on the Norwegian continental shelf more than 30 years ago, the authorities have been keen to ensure that these two sectors can work in the same sea areas. What challenges and opportunities face the petroleum industry over discharges to the sea and living marine resources? How can the authorities ensure that this sector is able to coexist with the fisheries? These and similar questions about the relationship between the petroleum and fishing industries in their shared seas are covered in section two of this publication. Environment 2002 also incorporates a factual section, which covers the status of emissions/discharges, environmental impacts and measures to reduce discharges to the sea and emissions to the air from petroleum activities. The MPE hopes that a publication of this kind can enhance basic knowledge about petroleum activities and environmental issues

  16. Estimating the effective nitrogen import: An example for the North Sea-Baltic Sea boundary

    Science.gov (United States)

    Radtke, H.; Maar, M.

    2016-10-01

    Semienclosed water bodies such as the Baltic Sea are prone to eutrophication problems. If local nutrient abatement measures are taken to tackle these problems, their success may be limited if a strong nutrient exchange with the adjacent waters exists. The quantification of this exchange is therefore essential to estimate its impact on the ecosystem status. At the example of the Baltic Sea and the North Sea, we illustrate that neither gross transports nor net transports of nutrients have a strong informative value in this context. Instead, we define an "effective import" as the import of nutrients which have not been inside the Baltic Sea before and estimate it in an ecological model with a nutrient-tagging technique. This effective import of bioreactive nitrogen from the Skagerrak to the Kattegat amounts to 103 kt/yr; from Kattegat to Belt Sea it is 54 kt/yr. The nitrogen exchange is therefore 30% stronger than other estimates, e.g., based on import in the deep water, suggest. An isolated view on the Baltic Sea and the North Sea in terms of eutrophication, as it is practiced in management today, is therefore questionable. Nitrogen imported from the North Sea typically spreads eastward up to the Bornholm Basin but can be transported into the deep waters of the Gotland Basin during Major Baltic Inflows in a significant amount.

  17. Persistent shift of Calanus spp. in the south-western Norwegian Sea since 2003, linked to ocean climate

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kristiansen, Inga; Gaard, Eilif; Hátún, Hjalmar

    2016-01-01

    The southwestern Norwegian Sea is characterized by an inflow of warm and saline Atlantic water from the southwest and cold and less saline East IcelandicWater (EIW), of Arctic origin, from the northwest. These two water masses meet and form the Iceland-Faroe Front (IFF). In this region, the copep...... on the ecosystem and pelagic fish in this subpolar Atlantic region under expected climate change...

  18. Radioactive contamination from dumped nuclear waste in the Kara Sea--results from the joint Russian-Norwegian expeditions in 1992-1994.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Salbu, B; Nikitin, A I; Strand, P; Christensen, G C; Chumichev, V B; Lind, B; Fjelldal, H; Bergan, T D; Rudjord, A L; Sickel, M; Valetova, N K; Føyn, L

    1997-08-25

    Russian-Norwegian expeditions to the Kara Sea and to dumping sites in the fjords of Novaya Zemlya have taken place annually since 1992. In the fjords, dumped objects were localised with sonar and ROV equipped with underwater camera. Enhanced levels of 137Cs, 60Co, 90Sr and 239,240Pu in sediments close to dumped containers in the Abrosimov and Stepovogo fjords demonstrated that leaching from dumped material has taken place. The contamination was inhomogeneously distributed and radioactive particles were identified in the upper 10 cm of the sediments. 137Cs was strongly associated with sediments, while 90Sr was more mobile. The contamination was less pronounced in the areas where objects presumed to be reactor compartments were located. The enhanced level of radionuclides observed in sediments close to the submarine in Stepovogo fjord in 1993 could, however, not be confirmed in 1994. Otherwise, traces of 60Co in sediments were observed in the close vicinity of all localised objects. Thus, the general level of radionuclides in waters, sediments and biota in the fjords is, somewhat higher or similar to that of the open Kara Sea, i.e. significantly lower than in other adjacent marine systems (e.g. Irish Sea, Baltic Sea, North Sea). The main sources contributing to radioactive contamination were global fallout from atmospheric nuclear weapon tests, river transport from Ob and Yenisey, marine transport of discharges from Sellafield, UK and fallout from Chernobyl. Thus, the radiological impact to man and the arctic environment of the observed leakages from dumped radioactive waste today, is considered to be low. Assuming all radionuclides are released from the waste, preliminary assessments indicate a collective dose to the world population of less than 50 man Sv.

  19. Worldwide market forces threaten North Sea wealth

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Booth, D

    1977-01-01

    The challenges that the petroleum industry faces in winning all the oil resources in the North Sea are reviewed. All these hydrocarbons that will soon sustain governments, bolster the standard of living, and bring profits to investors will one day be gone, perhaps. The author says, ''if demand for oil continues to rise by a few percent each year for the next 25 years the prospect of the North Sea drained of its riches is real. Even if Britain makes no more demands on it than those needs of today, the global concept of the oil business will mean that other markets will place the North Sea reserves at risk of exhaustion. Two major factors affect this assumption: market forces and government-implemented depletion rates.'' After explaining these two assumptions, the author graphically portrays what life will be like when petrol becomes a luxury item. It is forgotten that the hydrocarbons are being consumed in a lifetime, when it took several millions of years to put them together. (MCW)

  20. Dissolved inorganic carbon, alkalinity, temperature, salinity and other variables collected from discrete sample and profile observations using CTD, bottle and other instruments from HUDSON in the North Atlantic Ocean, North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from 1982-02-28 to 1982-04-04 (NODC Accession 0113889)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NCEI Accession 0113889 includes chemical, discrete sample, physical and profile data collected from HUDSON in the North Atlantic Ocean, North Greenland Sea and...

  1. Determination of in-situ rock stresses related to petroleum activities on the Norwegian Continental Shelf

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Fejerskov, Morten

    1996-12-31

    In-situ rock stresses have proved to be important for exploration and production of hydrocarbons. This thesis uses various stress determination techniques to characterize the in-situ stress field on the Norwegian Continental Shelf. Leak off tests and borehole breakouts have been used to determine the in-situ stress in deep well bores. Overcoring and earthquake focal mechanisms data have also been compiled and evaluated together with stress information from petroleum wells. A new test procedure is suggested to improve the quality of leak off tests that emphasises the importance of accurate pressure determination, longer test periods and digital data sampling. Four-arm calliper logs are used to identify borehole breakouts on the Tampen Spur and Horda Platform. However, it proved difficult to distinguish borehole breakouts from other drilling processes since the elongations of the borehole consistently appeared in the direction of hole azimuth; drilling-induced key seats are here observed in vertical wells. This behaviour is discussed but not fully understood. This reduces the number of reliable stress data and their quality enormously and even casts some doubt about the quality of previous breakout studies from the North Sea. A highly compressive horizontal stress field seems to be present onshore and offshore Norway. Different stress determination techniques yield very consistent stress orientation, regional and internal variation. A 1. order stress direction is identified, where the maximum horizontal stress direction is rotating from N-S in the Barents Sea to NW-SE in the Norwegian Sea and WNW-ESE in the northern North Sea. At Tampen Spur, a dominant WNW-ESE maximum horizontal stress direction, normal to the major tectonic structures is identified as well as a minimum stress close to the vertical stress, the latter indicating high horizontal stresses. 250 refs., 91 figs., 14 tabs.

  2. Dynamic and static elastic moduli of North Sea and deep sea chalk

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Gommesen, Lars; Fabricius, Ida Lykke

    2001-01-01

    We have established an empirical relationship between the dynamic and the static mechanical properties of North Sea and deep sea chalk for a large porosity interval with respect to porosity, effective stress history and textural composition. The chalk investigated is from the Tor and Hod Formatio...

  3. Mechanisms controlling the air–sea CO2 flux in the North Sea

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Prowe, A.E.F.; Thomas, Helmuth; Pätsch, Johannes; Kühn, Wilfried; Bozec, Yann; Schiettecatte, Laure-Sophie; Borges, Alberto V.; Baar, Hein J.W. de; Paetsch, J; Kuehn, W

    2009-01-01

    The mechanisms driving the air–sea exchange of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the North Sea are investigated using the three-dimensional coupled physical–biogeochemical model ECOHAM (ECOlogical-model, HAMburg). We validate our simulations using field data for the years 2001–2002 and identify the controls

  4. Contemporary Arctic Sea Level

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cazenave, A. A.

    2017-12-01

    During recent decades, the Arctic region has warmed at a rate about twice the rest of the globe. Sea ice melting is increasing and the Greenland ice sheet is losing mass at an accelerated rate. Arctic warming, decrease in the sea ice cover and fresh water input to the Arctic ocean may eventually impact the Arctic sea level. In this presentation, we review our current knowledge of contemporary Arctic sea level changes. Until the beginning of the 1990s, Arctic sea level variations were essentially deduced from tide gauges located along the Russian and Norwegian coastlines. Since then, high inclination satellite altimetry missions have allowed measuring sea level over a large portion of the Arctic Ocean (up to 80 degree north). Measuring sea level in the Arctic by satellite altimetry is challenging because the presence of sea ice cover limits the full capacity of this technique. However adapted processing of raw altimetric measurements significantly increases the number of valid data, hence the data coverage, from which regional sea level variations can be extracted. Over the altimetry era, positive trend patterns are observed over the Beaufort Gyre and along the east coast of Greenland, while negative trends are reported along the Siberian shelf. On average over the Arctic region covered by satellite altimetry, the rate of sea level rise since 1992 is slightly less than the global mea sea level rate (of about 3 mm per year). On the other hand, the interannual variability is quite significant. Space gravimetry data from the GRACE mission and ocean reanalyses provide information on the mass and steric contributions to sea level, hence on the sea level budget. Budget studies show that regional sea level trends over the Beaufort Gyre and along the eastern coast of Greenland, are essentially due to salinity changes. However, in terms of regional average, the net steric component contributes little to the observed sea level trend. The sea level budget in the Arctic

  5. Loss of sea ice during winter north of Svalbard

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ingrid H. Onarheim

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available Sea ice loss in the Arctic Ocean has up to now been strongest during summer. In contrast, the sea ice concentration north of Svalbard has experienced a larger decline during winter since 1979. The trend in winter ice area loss is close to 10% per decade, and concurrent with a 0.3°C per decade warming of the Atlantic Water entering the Arctic Ocean in this region. Simultaneously, there has been a 2°C per decade warming of winter mean surface air temperature north of Svalbard, which is 20–45% higher than observations on the west coast. Generally, the ice edge north of Svalbard has retreated towards the northeast, along the Atlantic Water pathway. By making reasonable assumptions about the Atlantic Water volume and associated heat transport, we show that the extra oceanic heat brought into the region is likely to have caused the sea ice loss. The reduced sea ice cover leads to more oceanic heat transferred to the atmosphere, suggesting that part of the atmospheric warming is driven by larger open water area. In contrast to significant trends in sea ice concentration, Atlantic Water temperature and air temperature, there is no significant temporal trend in the local winds. Thus, winds have not caused the long-term warming or sea ice loss. However, the dominant winds transport sea ice from the Arctic Ocean into the region north of Svalbard, and the local wind has influence on the year-to-year variability of the ice concentration, which correlates with surface air temperatures, ocean temperatures, as well as the local wind.

  6. Situation in the sea area between the North Sea and the Baltic Sea. Situationen i havsomraadet mellan Nordsjoen och Oestersjoen

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Dybern, B.I.; Soederstroem, J.; Thorell, L.

    1984-01-01

    Due to the special topographical and hydrological features the seas surrounding Sweden are very sensitive to both natural changes and changes caused by man. The sea area between the North Sea and the Baltic Sea has come into focus during the last few decades due to problems with pollution and its impact on the ecosystems and to overfishing of some commer- cially important species. In order to elucidate the present situation from the Swedish viewpoint, the National Board of Fisheries, the National Environment Protection Board and the County Council of the County Goeteborg and Bohyslaen arranged a Symposium on the Situation in the Sea Area between the North Sea and the Baltic Sea in Goeteborg, 14-16 March, 1983. This volume contains lectures given at that Symposium. In most cases there are English summaries and English translations of texts to figures and tables.

  7. Modelling 99Tc concentrations in Fucus vesiculosus from the north-east Irish Sea

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nawakowski, Claire; Nicholson, Michael D.; John Kershaw, Peter; Leonard, Kinson S.

    2004-01-01

    In 1994 there were substantial increases in the quantity of 99 Tc discharged into the north-east Irish Sea from BNFL Sellafield (UK), concomitant with improvements in waste treatment procedures. As a consequence, the concentration of 99 Tc observed in seawater and biota samples, taken from the Irish Sea coastline, increased significantly. Elevated concentrations were also reported in Dutch, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish and Arctic waters in subsequent years. In the present study a simple numerical model was developed and applied to time-series data of 99 Tc concentrations in the brown seaweed Fucus vesiculosus, collected from three UK sites in the vicinity of Sellafield (St. Bees, Heysham, Port William). The model considered site-specific scaling effects, lag times, previous discharge history and potential seasonal variation in uptake. In general, there was a good fit between predicted and observed concentrations, but the degree of uncertainty varied inversely with the frequency of sampling. We did not observe a significant seasonal variation. The modelled lag times to the three sites were consistent with transport times based on observations of the water column distribution of 99 Tc. The model was applied to a variety of discharge scenarios, reflecting current discussion on the future management of 99 Tc releases. Concentrations in Fucus reached asymptotic values in 3-10 years, depending on the scenario and sampling site under consideration

  8. Artificial radionuclides in the Northern European Marine Environment. Distribution of radiocaesium, plutonium and americium in sea water and sediments in 1995

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Groettheim, Siri

    2000-01-01

    This study considers the distribution of radiocaesium, plutonium and americium in the northern marine environment. The highest radiocaesium activity in sea water was observed in Skagerrak, 26 Bq/m 3 , and in surface sediments in the Norwegian Sea, 60 Bq/kg. These enhanced levels were related to Chernobyl. The highest 239,240Pu activity in surface water was measured in the western North Sea, 66 mBq/m 3 . In sea water, sub-surface maxima were observed at several locations with an 239,240Pu activity up to 160 mBq/m 3 , and were related to Sellafield. With the exception to the North Sea, surface sediments reflected Pu from global fallout from weapons tests only. (author)

  9. Modelling the atmospheric transport of trace metals from Europe to the North Sea and the Baltic Sea

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Petersen, G; Weber, H; Grassl, H [GKSS-Forschungszentrum Geesthacht G.m.b.H., Geesthacht-Tesperhude (Germany, F.R.). Inst. fuer Physik

    1989-01-01

    Within the framework of a research contract with the German Federal Environmental Agency the long range transport of trace metals over Europe and the deposition of trace metals into the North Sea and the Baltic Sea are estimated using the EMEP- (European Monitoring and Evaluation Programme) trajectory model. The methodology for the model calculations is explained. Preliminary results for the total deposition of lead into the North Sea and the Baltic Sea show, that the calculated values are lower than previous estimates based on extrapolations from measurements at coastal sites and ship measurements in the southern Baltic Sea, respectively. (orig.).

  10. Sediment volume in the north polar sand seas of Mars

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lancaster, N.; Greeley, R.

    1990-01-01

    Data from studies of the cross-sectional area of terrestrial transverse dunes have been combined with maps of dune morphometry derived from Viking orbiter images to generate new estimates of sediment thickness and dune sediment volume in the north polar sand seas of Mars. A relationship between dune spacing and equivalent sediment thickness (EST) was developed from field data on Namibian and North American dunes and was applied to data on dune spacing and dune cover measured on Viking orbiter images to generate maps of dune sediment thickness for Martian north polar sand seas. There are four major sand seas in the north polar region of Mars, covering an area of 6.8 x 10 5 km 2 . Equivalent sediment thickness ranges between 0.5 and 6.1 m with a mean of 1.8 m. The sand seas contain a total of 1158 km 3 of dune sediment, which may have been derived by erosion of polar layered deposits and concentrated in its present location by winds that change direction seasonally

  11. The importance of North Sea oil to European energy supply

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bauw, R. De

    1992-01-01

    There is no doubt about the importance of North Sea oil to the energy supply of the European Community. One might however be used to it and forget about the nature and the size of its impact on our economies. Firstly, this paper intends to estimate this impact - past, present and future. Secondly, a more qualitative approach will explore possible consequences of the implementation of the internal market for North Sea oil. Thirdly, the assistance given by the Community to innovative technologies which enabled North Sea oil to contribute, under better economic conditions and within a safer environment, to our supply is recalled. And finally, some remarks on energy policy form an EC perspective, are offered. (author)

  12. Emissions from oil platforms in the North Sea

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kanowski, S.

    1991-01-01

    When oil and gas are extracted from below the sea bed, emissions generally occur drilling and extraction and when offshore installations are abandoned. The sources of such emissions are the drilling fluids which contain many chemicals, cuttings, extracted hydrocarbons, substances released as a result of accidents, and the improper disposal of substances used in drilling and production. Platforms are regarded as land-based installations. Regulations to limit emissions have been put into effect within the scope of the Paris Convention on the protection of the North Sea and the North-East Atlantic. (orig.) [de

  13. Coastal Erosion and Flooding Hazards on the North Sea Coast at Thyboron, Denmark

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Sørensen, Per; Sørensen, Carlo Sass; Nielsen, Peter

    Since a breach of the coastal barrier in 1862, the Thyboron Channel connecting the North Sea and the Lim Fiord has been artificially maintained by construction of breakwaters and groins on the North Sea coast and inside the channel, respectively. Sand nourishment schemes have since the 1980s coun...... counteracted the natural erosion in the upper profile on the North Sea coast where the alongshore sediment transport converges towards the channel and deposits up to 1 million m3/y on the flood tidal delta inside the fiord, Figure 1.......Since a breach of the coastal barrier in 1862, the Thyboron Channel connecting the North Sea and the Lim Fiord has been artificially maintained by construction of breakwaters and groins on the North Sea coast and inside the channel, respectively. Sand nourishment schemes have since the 1980s...

  14. Spatial differences in growth of lesser sandeel in the North Sea

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Rindorf, Anna; Wright, Peter J.; Jensen, Henrik

    2016-01-01

    Lesser sandeel, Ammodytes marinus, is a key prey to a variety of North Sea predators, including species such as single load seabirds which are highly sensitive to prey size and condition. Whilst differences in weight at age across the North Sea have been investigated previously, the scale and cause...... of this variation as well as the potential link to spatial differences in predator performance remains unknown. This study presents an analysis of spatial patterns in length and condition of the lesser sandeel in the North Sea and the relationship of these with physical and biological factors. Both mean length...... considerably both spatially and temporally, resulting in 4 fold and 1.9 fold variations in the number of sandeels required to obtain a specific weight, respectively. Hence, the value of sandeel as prey to single load predators varies considerably with values in central and northeastern North Sea being...

  15. Dissolved inorganic carbon, alkalinity, temperature, salinity and other variables collected from discrete sample and profile observations using CTD, bottle and other instruments from the HAKON MOSBY in the North Atlantic Ocean, North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from 2001-05-27 to 2001-06-19 (NODC Accession 0113754)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NODC Accession 0113754 includes chemical, discrete sample, physical and profile data collected from HAKON MOSBY in the North Atlantic Ocean, North Greenland Sea and...

  16. Microbial biogeography of the North Sea during summer

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Brandsma, J.; Martínez Martínez, J.; Slagter, H.A.; Evans, C.; Brussaard, C.P.D.

    2013-01-01

    Micro-organisms are vital for the functioning of all food webs and are the major drivers of the global biogeochemical cycles. The microbial community compositions and physicochemical conditions of the different water masses in the North Sea, a biologically productive sea on the northwestern European

  17. Sea surface temperatures and salinities from platforms in the Barents Sea, Sea of Japan, North Atlantic Ocean, Philippine Sea, Red Sea, and the South China Sea (Nan Hai) from 1896-1950 (NODC Accession 0000506)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Surface temperatures and salinities were collected in the Barents Sea, Sea of Japan, North Atlantic Ocean, Philippine Sea, Red Sea, and South China Sea (Nan Hai)...

  18. Dissolved inorganic carbon, alkalinity, temperature, salinity and other variables collected from discrete sample and profile observations using CTD, bottle and other instruments from the G.O. SARS in the North Atlantic Ocean, North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from 2003-09-22 to 2003-10-13 (NODC Accession 0113752)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NODC Accession 0113752 includes chemical, discrete sample, physical and profile data collected from G.O. SARS in the North Atlantic Ocean, North Greenland Sea and...

  19. North Sea mackerel egg survey: dutch participation may and June 2011

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Damme, van C.J.G.

    2012-01-01

    Every three years an international North Sea survey is carried out by two European institutes, Institute for Marine Research (IMR) from Norway and Institute for Marine Resources and Ecosystem Studies (IMARES) from the Netherlands, to monitor the spatial and seasonal distribution of North Sea

  20. Feeding Ecology of Northeast Atlantic Mackerel, Norwegian Spring-Spawning Herring and Blue Whiting in the Norwegian Sea.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Eneko Bachiller

    Full Text Available The Norwegian spring-spawning (NSS herring (Clupea harengus, blue whiting (Micromesistius poutassou and Northeast Atlantic (NEA mackerel (Scomber scombrus are extremely abundant pelagic planktivores that feed in the Norwegian Sea (NS during spring and summer. This study investigated the feeding ecology and diet composition of these commercially important fish stocks on the basis of biological data, including an extensive set of stomach samples in combination with hydrographical data, zooplankton samples and acoustic abundance data from 12 stock monitoring surveys carried out in 2005-2010. Mackerel were absent during the spring, but had generally high feeding overlap with herring in the summer, with a diet mainly based on calanoid copepods, especially Calanus finmarchicus, as well as a similar diet width. Stomach fullness in herring diminished from spring to summer and feeding incidence was lower than that of mackerel in summer. However, stomach fullness did not differ between the two species, indicating that herring maintain an equally efficient pattern of feeding as mackerel in summer, but on a diet that is less dominated by copepods and is more reliant on larger prey. Blue whiting tended to have a low dietary overlap with mackerel and herring, with larger prey such as euphausiids and amphipods dominating, and stomach fullness and feeding incidence increasing with length. For all the species, feeding incidence increased with decreasing temperature, and for mackerel so did stomach fullness, indicating that feeding activity is highest in areas associated with colder water masses. Significant annual effects on diet composition and feeding-related variables suggested that the three species are able to adapt to different food and environmental conditions. These annual effects are likely to have an important impact on the predation pressure on different plankton groups and the carrying capacity of individual systems, and emphasise the importance of

  1. Feeding Ecology of Northeast Atlantic Mackerel, Norwegian Spring-Spawning Herring and Blue Whiting in the Norwegian Sea.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bachiller, Eneko; Skaret, Georg; Nøttestad, Leif; Slotte, Aril

    2016-01-01

    The Norwegian spring-spawning (NSS) herring (Clupea harengus), blue whiting (Micromesistius poutassou) and Northeast Atlantic (NEA) mackerel (Scomber scombrus) are extremely abundant pelagic planktivores that feed in the Norwegian Sea (NS) during spring and summer. This study investigated the feeding ecology and diet composition of these commercially important fish stocks on the basis of biological data, including an extensive set of stomach samples in combination with hydrographical data, zooplankton samples and acoustic abundance data from 12 stock monitoring surveys carried out in 2005-2010. Mackerel were absent during the spring, but had generally high feeding overlap with herring in the summer, with a diet mainly based on calanoid copepods, especially Calanus finmarchicus, as well as a similar diet width. Stomach fullness in herring diminished from spring to summer and feeding incidence was lower than that of mackerel in summer. However, stomach fullness did not differ between the two species, indicating that herring maintain an equally efficient pattern of feeding as mackerel in summer, but on a diet that is less dominated by copepods and is more reliant on larger prey. Blue whiting tended to have a low dietary overlap with mackerel and herring, with larger prey such as euphausiids and amphipods dominating, and stomach fullness and feeding incidence increasing with length. For all the species, feeding incidence increased with decreasing temperature, and for mackerel so did stomach fullness, indicating that feeding activity is highest in areas associated with colder water masses. Significant annual effects on diet composition and feeding-related variables suggested that the three species are able to adapt to different food and environmental conditions. These annual effects are likely to have an important impact on the predation pressure on different plankton groups and the carrying capacity of individual systems, and emphasise the importance of regular

  2. Optical measurements in the North Sea-Baltic Sea transition zone. I. On the origin of the deep water in the Kattegat

    Science.gov (United States)

    Højerslev, N. K.; Holt, N.; Aarup, T.

    1996-08-01

    In the North Sea-Baltic Sea region, several studies have shown that yellow substance can be treated as a quasi-conservative parameter that is negatively correlated with salinity. A review of more than 5000 historic and recently gathered yellow substance absorption and salinity measurements from the transition zone between the North Sea and the Baltic Sea have been analyzed for the purpose of water mass identification. Salinity-yellow substance scatter plots show that three water masses can be identified in the area: (1) North Sea water (high salinity, low yellow substance content); (2) Baltic Sea water (low salinity, intermediate-high yellow substance content); and (3) German Bight/Southern North Sea water (intermediate-high salinity, high yellow substance content). Based on the volume flow estimates used in a two-layer box-model of the Kattegat (Jørgensen, Continental Shelf Research, 12, 103-114, 1992) and conservation of yellow substance, it is argued that the long-term average composition of the bottom layer inflow to the Kattegat from the Skagerrak consists of about 90% North Sea/Atlantic water and 10% German Bight/Southern North Sea water. The German Bight content estimate is substantially lower than the ones given in earlier studies (50-67%) and implies that the Jutland Coastal Current only has a small impact on the water quality of the Kattegat.

  3. Regionalization of climate model results for the North Sea

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kauker, F. [Alfred-Wegener-Institut fuer Polar- und Meeresforschung, Bremerhaven (Germany); Storch, H. von [GKSS-Forschungszentrum Geesthacht GmbH (Germany). Inst. fuer Hydrophysik

    2000-07-01

    A dynamical downscaling for the North Sea is presented. The numerical model used for the study is the coupled ice-ocean model OPYC. In a hindcast of the years 1979 to 1993 it was forced with atmospheric forcing of the ECMWF reanalysis. The models capability in simulating the observed mean state and variability in the North Sea is demonstrated by the hindcast. Two time scale ranges, from weekly to seasonal and the longer-than-seasonal time scales are investigated. Shorter time scales, for storm surges, are not captured by the model formulation. The main modes of variability of sea level, sea-surface circulation, sea-surface temperature, and sea-surface salinity are described and connections to atmospheric phenomena, like the NAO, are discussed. T106 ''time-slice'' simulations with a ''2 x CO{sub 2}'' horizon are used to estimate the effects of a changing climate on the shelf sea ''North Sea''. The ''2 x CO{sub 2}'' changes in the surface forcing are accompanied by changes in the lateral oceanic boundary conditions taken from a global coupled climate model. For ''2 x CO{sub 2}'' the time mean sea level increases up to 25 cm in the German Bight in the winter, where 15 cm are due to the surface forcing and 10 cm due to thermal expansion. This change is compared to the ''natural'' variability as simulated in the ECMWF integration and found to be not outside the range spanned by it. The variability of sea level on the weekly-to-seasonal time-scales is significantly reduced in the scenario integration. The variability on the longer-than-seasonal time-scales in the control and scenario runs is much smaller then in the ECMWF integration. This is traced back to the use of ''time-slice'' experiments. Discriminating between locally forced changes and changes induced at the lateral oceanic boundaries of the model in the circulation and

  4. Changes in size and trends of North American sea duck populations associated with North Pacific oceanic regime shifts

    Science.gov (United States)

    Flint, Paul L.

    2013-01-01

    Broad-scale multi-species declines in populations of North American sea ducks for unknown reasons is cause for management concern. Oceanic regime shifts have been associated with rapid changes in ecosystem structure of the North Pacific and Bering Sea. However, relatively little is known about potential effects of these changes in oceanic conditions on marine bird populations at broad scales. I examined changes in North American breeding populations of sea ducks from 1957 to 2011 in relation to potential oceanic regime shifts in the North Pacific in 1977, 1989, and 1998. There was strong support for population-level effects of regime shifts in 1977 and 1989, but little support for an effect of the 1998 shift. The continental-level effects of these regime shifts differed across species groups and time. Based on patterns of sea duck population dynamics associated with regime shifts, it is unclear if the mechanism of change relates to survival or reproduction. Results of this analysis support the hypothesis that population size and trends of North American sea ducks are strongly influenced by oceanic conditions. The perceived population declines appear to have halted >20 years ago, and populations have been relatively stable or increasing since that time. Given these results, we should reasonably expect dramatic changes in sea duck population status and trends with future oceanic regime shifts.

  5. Air pollution impacts due to petroleum extraction in the Norwegian Sea during the ACCESS aircraft campaign

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    P. Tuccella

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available Emissions from oil/gas extraction activities in the Arctic are already important in certain regions and may increase as global warming opens up new opportunities for industrial development. Emissions from oil/gas extraction are sources of air pollutants, but large uncertainties exist with regard to their amounts and composition. In this study, we focus on detailed investigation of emissions from oil/gas extraction in the Norwegian Sea combining measurements from the EU ACCESS aircraft campaign in July 2012 and regional chemical transport modeling. The goal is to (1 evaluate emissions from petroleum extraction activities and (2 investigate their impact on atmospheric composition over the Norwegian Sea. Numerical simulations include emissions for permanently operating offshore facilities from two datasets: the TNO-MACC inventory and emissions reported by Norwegian Environment Agency (NEA. It was necessary to additionally estimate primary aerosol emissions using reported emission factors since these emissions are not included in the inventories for our sites. Model runs with the TNO-MACC emissions are unable to reproduce observations close to the facilities. Runs using the NEA emissions more closely reproduce the observations although emissions from mobile facilities are missing from this inventory. Measured plumes suggest they are a significant source of pollutants, in particular NOx and aerosols. Sensitivities to NOx and NMVOC emissions show that, close to the platforms, O3 is sensitive to NOx emissions and is much less sensitive to NMVOC emissions. O3 destruction, via reaction with NO, dominates very close to the platforms. Far from the platforms, oil/gas facility emissions result in an average daytime O3 enhancement of +2% at the surface. Larger enhancements are predicted at noon ranging from +7% at the surface to +15% at 600 m. Black carbon is the aerosol species most strongly influenced by petroleum extraction emissions. The results highlight

  6. Dissolved inorganic carbon, alkalinity, temperature, salinity and other variables collected from discrete sample and profile observations using CTD, bottle and other instruments from the HAKON MOSBY in the Barents Sea and Norwegian Sea from 2001-08-22 to 2001-08-29 (NODC Accession 0113887)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NODC Accession 0113887 includes chemical, discrete sample, physical and profile data collected from HAKON MOSBY in the Barents Sea and Norwegian Sea from 2001-08-22...

  7. Why is the North Sea West of Us?

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Gammeltoft, Peder

    2016-01-01

    . Occurrences of sea names such as the North Sea are examined and analysed to see how they spread from an original one-language form to exist in multiple languages, and analyses them from a linguistic, geographic and nautical perspective. It is found that Seas or bodies of water in stretches of sea are named......This article focuses on the motivations behind sea-naming, by means of examples from Europe but also elsewhere. Why do certain sea names become dominant while others retract into local forms or simply die out? The article takes us back in time to the early days of map-making and, indeed, earlier...

  8. The Potential for Wave Energy in the North Sea

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Sørensen, H. C.; Chozas, Julia Fernandez

    2010-01-01

    The North Sea has not yet been regarded as prime area for wave energy development in Europe except in Denmark, Benelux and Germany. The reason is the relatively low intensity of waves (12-17kW/m) compared to the Atlantic with a wave climate of 24-48kW/m. Further on the design wave load is almost ...... is resulting in a prediction of a yearly production of 23TWh; the latter is estimating a yearly production of 77TWh. This equals to 6% of the electricity demand around the North Sea, where the annual electricity consumption is about 1,300TWh.......The North Sea has not yet been regarded as prime area for wave energy development in Europe except in Denmark, Benelux and Germany. The reason is the relatively low intensity of waves (12-17kW/m) compared to the Atlantic with a wave climate of 24-48kW/m. Further on the design wave load is almost...... as in the Atlantic and the distance to shore relatively long compared to sites with good wave climate like Ireland, Portugal, Spain and the west coast of UK. The increasing activities within offshore wind in the North Sea and the attempt to build a super grid connecting the wind sites with the major consumers around...

  9. Temperature data from Norwegian and Russian waters of the northern Barents Sea collected by free-living ringed seals

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lydersen, Christian; Anders Nøst, Ole; Kovacs, Kit M.; Fedak, Mike A.

    2004-05-01

    Free-living ringed seals ( N=11) equipped with satellite-relayed data loggers (SRDLs) with incorporated oceanographic-quality temperature sensors were used to collect data from a large sector of the northern Barents Sea during the autumn and early winter. A total of 2346 temperature profiles were collected over a 4-month period from Norwegian and Russian arctic waters in areas that were at times 90-100% ice-covered. Temperature distributions at different depths from northeastern parts of Svalbard, Norway show warm North Atlantic water (NAW) flowing along the continental slope and gradually cooling at all depths as it flows eastwards. The data suggest that most of the cooling takes place west of 30°E. Vertical temperature profiles from the area between Svalbard and Franz Josef Land, Russia show how the surface water cools during freeze-up and demonstrate a warm water flow, which is probably NAW, coming in from the north through a deep trench west of Franz Josef Land. Global oceanographic and climate models require improved oceanographic databases from crucial areas where important hydrological phenomena occur. Such areas in arctic waters are often inaccessible during winter and logistically difficult to reach even in summer. The present study demonstrates how large amounts of oceanographic information can be collected and retrieved in a cost-efficient manner using ice-associated marine mammals as carrier of oceanographic sampling equipment. In addition to the oceanographic value of the data collected by marine mammals in this manner, a vast amount of information regarding the habitat of these animals is concomitantly sampled.

  10. Offshore wind power. Technological and industrial development from a Norwegian business perspective; Vindkraft til havs. Teknologi- og industriutvikling fra et norsk bedriftsperspektiv

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hansen, Gard Hopsdal; Steen, Markus

    2011-07-01

    Offshore wind power has become an important component of the energy, industrial and climate policy of several countries surrounding the North Sea. In Norway, the political ambitions for offshore wind remains low, but several companies are nevertheless aiming for a position in the markets emerging nearby. This report addresses Norwegian companies positioning towards the emerging market for offshore wind in the North Sea to learn who they are, and how they approach a technology and market in the making. The report also briefly discusses how company managers assess the alignment between their position, and the Norwegian policy makers' positions and visions of offshore wind. The analysis shows that the majority of firms advocate experience based learning and development, while policy makers mainly stimulate R and D activities. The lack of a domestic market for offshore wind in Norway is seen as a barrier towards integration of experience-based and science-based learning, and impedes the momentum of technological and industrial development due to inadequate mutual understanding between the domains of industry, science, utility, politics and finance. The report is based on in-depth interviews (n=47) with managers of firms involved in offshore wind power as well as an e mail survey (n=147/325).(Author)

  11. Atmospheric input of trace substances into the North Sea and the Baltic Sea. Stoffeintrag in Nord- und Ostsee ueber die Atmosphaere

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Grassl, H; Eppel, D; Petersen, G; Schneider, B; Weber, H; Gandrass, J; Reinhardt, K H; Wodarg, D; Fliess, J

    1989-01-01

    The concentrations and deposition of atmospheric trace substances were measured over the Kiel Bight and the Southern North Sea. A European longrange-transport model was used to calculate the atmospheric concentrations of trace metals and their deposition into the North Sea and the Baltic Sea. Natural and anthropogenic emitted element concentrations could be separated definitely by the measurements, and preferred transport directions of anthropogenic contributions could be found. Concentrations measured over the North Sea could be related to the surrounding emission areas by airmass trajectory analyses. The deposition measurements show that the main removal process is due to deposition by precipitation. Calculated and measured concentrations at several receptor points agreed well. The model results confirm the dominating role of wet deposition. It could be shown that extrapolations from measurements at coastal stations to the whole sea area tend to overestimate the total deposition into North Sea and Baltic Sea. (orig.) With 78 refs., 26 tabs., 85 figs.

  12. First report of the planktonic copepod Oithona davisae in the northern Wadden Sea (North Sea): Evidence for recent invasion?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cornils, Astrid; Wend-Heckmann, Britta

    2015-06-01

    In October 2010, specimens of Oithona were taken from the List Tidal Basin in the northern Wadden Sea (North Sea) for a biogeographic study on Oithona similis. These specimens could not be assigned to O. similis or any of the other Oithona species known from the North Sea genetically. These specimens were identified as Oithona davisae Ferrari and Orsi 1984, a Northwest Pacific species, known as an invasive species from the Black Sea and the northwestern Mediterranean Sea. Recent sampling provided evidence that O. davisae is still present in the northern Wadden Sea and may thus now be a permanent plankton species.

  13. Environmental radioactivity in the North Atlantic region. The Faroe Islands and Greenland included. 1985

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Aarkrog, A.; Boelskifte, S.; Dahlgaard, H.; Hansen, H.; Buch, E.; Christensen, G.C.; Hallstadius, L.; Rioseco, J.; Holm, E.

    1987-06-01

    Measurements of fallout radioactivity in the North Atlantic region including the Faroe Islands and Greenland are reported. Strontium-90 and cesium-137 was determined in samples of precipitation, sea water vegetation, various foodstuffs (including milk in the Faroes) and drinking water. Estimates are given of the mean contents of 90 Sr a 137 Cs in human diet in the Faroes and Greenland in 1985. Results from samplings of surface sea water and seaweed in the English Channel, the Fram Strait and along the Norwegian and Greenland coast are reported. Beside radiocesium and 90 Sr some of these samples have also been analysed for tritium, plutonium and americium. Finally technetium-99 data on seaweed and sea water samples collected in the North Atlantic region are presented. 14 refs. (author)

  14. The development of the northern European fishery for north Atlantic bluefin tuna Thunnus thynnus during 1900-1950

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    MacKenzie, Brian; Myers, R.A.

    2007-01-01

    North Atlantic bluefin tuna, Thunnus thynnus, used to migrate to northern European waters (Norwegian Sea, North Sea, Skagerrak, Kattegat, and Øresund) where it supported important commercial and sportfisheries. The species disappeared from the region in the early 1960s and the species is now still...... increasing. The species was frequently sighted while fishermen were targeting other species (herring, mackerel) and occasionally was caught as bycatch with these and other species. Information from scientifically trained observers demonstrate that tuna schools were common in the North Sea for 2–3 months...... during the summers of 1923–1931. As fishermen realized that the species had market value, new catch methods were developed and employed. These included harpoon-rifle, improved hook and line methods, and hydraulically operated purse seines. Landings rose sharply as did the number of vessels...

  15. Avatars using computer/smartphone mediated communication and social networking in prevention of sexually transmitted diseases among North-Norwegian youngsters.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gabarron, Elia; Serrano, J Artur; Wynn, Rolf; Armayones, Manuel

    2012-10-30

    Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), especially the Chlamydia trachomatis bacterial infection, a common cause of infertility, are highly prevalent in developed countries, and a worrying problem in North Norway, where the incidence of chlamydia twice the Norwegian average. Seventy percent of reported chlamydia cases are found in people below 25 years of age, and although its spread could be controlled with proper prevention, young people are more aware of the risks of unwanted pregnancy than their risk of acquiring a STD. Information and Communication Technologies, including, the Internet, social media and/or smartphones, should be valued for sexual health promotion for their potential to engage young audiences. And in these media, avatars guarantee anonymity to users when handling sensitive information. The main objective of this project is to achieve that North Norwegian youngsters become more aware of STDs through the use of popular technologies among young people. A Virtual Clinic for Sexually Transmitted Diseases (VCSTD) will be developed. The VCSTD will provide early guidance and reliable information sources concerning reproductive health, delivered in a novel and innovative way to the younger population. The VCSTD consists of an "avatar" supported intervention in a serious gaming and e-learning environment, which will bypass direct physical access (in person) to reliable medical information, as well as allowing the youngsters to share that information in social media, and thus helping the VCSTD to be disseminated to more people.Data analyses will be conducted on publically available health data relevant to STDs in Troms and Finnmark, like the absolute number of chlamydia tests, the amount of emergency contraception medication sold, and the number of abortions. Also, usage data of the system and experiences of usefulness will be explored through participants' voluntary responses to a feedback form available in the VCSTD. This study will examine the usefulness

  16. Oceanographic profile temperature, salinity, oxygen and other measurements collected using bottle in the Barents, Kara, Laptev, White, and Norwegian Seas from 1970 through 1975 (NODC Accession 0002125)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Oceanographic profile temperature, salinity, oxygen and other measurements collected using bottle in the Barents, Kara, Laptev, White, and Norwegian Seas from 1970...

  17. Oceanographic profile temperature, salinity, oxygen and other measurement collected using bottle in the Barents, Kara, Laptev, White, and Norwegian Seas from 1976 through 1982 (NODC Accession 0002126)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Oceanographic profile temperature, salinity, oxygen and other measurement collected using bottle in the Barents, Kara, Laptev, White, and Norwegian Seas from 1976...

  18. North Sea focus on radwaste disposal

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cope, D.

    1990-01-01

    At the recent North Sea Conference in the Netherlands possible future strategies for managing radioactive waste (radwaste) proved to be a contentious issue. Several of its North Sea littoral neighbours sought a categorical assurance that the UK would forego the option of constructing a subterranean radwaste repository which though accessed from land, extends under the coastline, or a sub-seabed facility reached from an offshore structure. It was pointed out that the UK has no present plans for such a radwaste repository. However, sub-seabed designs as a possibility for future repositories were not ruled out. NIREX has decided to concentrate its exploration work at two sites -Sellafield and Dounreay. Both sites are coastal locations and the government is aware that detailed geological exploration may favour extension of a radwaste repository beyond the shoreline, even if initially developed entirely on land. The design of such a radioactive waste repository is outlined. The position of NIREX and the Radioactive Waste Management Advisory Committee is discussed. (author)

  19. A tax reprieve for the North Sea?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kemp, A.

    1998-01-01

    The United Kingdom government has for the time being put to one side its intended review of the fiscal regime in the North Sea. Consistently low oil prices over the last year and the consequent effect on production have given rise to this decision. The ongoing debate on oil taxation in the UK over the past 18 months since the advent of a new government is examined. It has its roots in the last major changes to the oil tax regime which were made in 1993. It has been made clear by the government that the taxation review has not been abandoned and could come to the fore again should there be a substantial increase in oil and gas prices or if companies sought premature decommissioning of North Sea fields. (UK)

  20. Radioactive substances - fluxes, concentrations and possible effects in the Norwegian Sea.; Radioaktive stoffer: tilfoersler, konsentrasjoner og mulige effekter i Norskehavet.

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Liland, A.; Hosseini, A.; Iosjpe, M.; Nilsen, K.A.; Graefvert, T.; Skjerdal, H.

    2012-10-15

    Report for the comprehensive management plan for the Norwegian Sea. Different scenarios are modeled: an accident occurring while spent nuclear fuel is being transported, pollution from a submarine that sinks off the coast, discharges from Sellafield, and the consequences of discharges from the petroleum industry. Possible effects of ionising radiation to the marine environment, doses to marine organisms and contaminants in seafood, are considered. (Author)

  1. Regionalization of climate model results for the North Sea

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kauker, F.

    1999-07-01

    A dynamical downscaling is presented that allows an estimation of potential effects of climate change on the North Sea. Therefore, the ocean general circulation model OPYC is adapted for application on a shelf by adding a lateral boundary formulation and a tide model. In this set-up the model is forced, first, with data from the ECMWF reanalysis for model validation and the study of the natural variability, and, second, with data from climate change experiments to estimate the effects of climate change on the North Sea. (orig.)

  2. Elastic behaviour of North Sea chalk

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Gommesen, Lars; Fabricius, Ida Lykke; Mukerji, T.

    2007-01-01

    -consistent approximation, which here represents the unrelaxed scenario where the pore spaces of the rock are assumed to be isolated, and the Gassmann theory, which assumes that pore spaces are connected, as tools for predicting the effect of hydrocarbons from the elastic properties of brine-saturated North Sea reservoir...

  3. Micro contaminants in surface sediments and macrobenthic invertebrates of the North Sea

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Everaarts, J.M.; Fischer, C.V.

    1989-01-01

    Trace metal concentrations (copper, zinc, cadmium and lead) were measured in the silt fraction (grainsize < 63 µm) of surface sediment of the North Sea. The concentrations varied in different areas of the Dutch continental shelf of the North Sea. The trace metal concentrations were highly related

  4. RKU North Sea. Update on the regional consequence examination concerning the petroleum industry in the North Sea; RKU-Nordsjoeen. Oppdatering av regional konsekvensutredning for petroleumsvirksomhet i Nordsjoeen

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    2006-12-15

    An overview over prognoses for oil and gas production and the emissions related to these activities is provided for the years 2005-2025. A description of the Norwegian Continental Shelf's ecosystem, environmental technology employed, and considerations regarding the petroleum industry's effect on the ecosystem are considered. Emissions to air, planned emissions to the sea and accident emissions and spills are treated, as well as other possible environmental effects. Consequences for fishery, cultural monuments and for the society in general are also examined (ml)

  5. An Ichthyophonus hoferi epizootic in herring in the North Sea, the Skagerrak, the Kattegat and the Baltic Sea

    OpenAIRE

    Mellergaard, Stig; Spanggaard, Bettina

    1997-01-01

    An epizootic caused by the internal parasite Ichthyophonus hoferi in herring Clupea harengus was recorded from 1991 to 1993 in the waters around Denmark. A surveillance programme from research vessels and commercial fishing boats was conducted in the North Sea, Skagerrak, Kattegat and Baltic Sea. A total of 15769 hearts of adult herring were examined macroscopically for evidence of infection. The prevalence of the infection in this period decreased from 10.6 to 2.0% in the North Sea, from 8.0...

  6. Morphological response to a North Sea bed depression induced by gas mining

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Fluit, C.C.J.M.; Hulscher, Suzanne J.M.H.

    2002-01-01

    Gas mining leads to saucer-like surface depressions. In the North Sea, gas is currently mined at several offshore locations. The associated bed depression has a similar spatial extent as offshore tidal sandbanks, which are large-scale bed patterns covering a significant part of the North Sea bottom.

  7. Distribution and activity of petroleum hydrocarbon degrading bacteria in the North Sea and Baltic Sea

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bruns, K.; Dahlmann, G.; Gunkel, W.

    1993-01-01

    Data were collected in 1988 and 1989 on the distribution and activity of petroleum hydrocarbon degrading bacteria in the North Sea and Baltic Sea. Crude oil degrading bacteria and the number of bacteria which in particular degrade naphthalene were quantified using a modified dilution method (MPN). Crude oil degrading bacteria were present in all of about 100 water samples, with as many as 10 3 ml -1 in some samples. Numbers of naphthalene degrading bacteria were at least tenfold lower. There is obviously a greater connection between this bacteria group and petroleum hydrocarbon (PHC) contamination than between the more nonspecific group of crude oil degrading bacteria and PHC contamination. Data from the North Sea show an extremely high abundance of hydrocarbon degrading bacteria, even in winter, while in the southern Baltic Sea low numbers of bacteria were found and slower crude oil degradation was observed. (orig.)

  8. UK wants more revenue from North Sea oil

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    1973-03-09

    The first report from the Committee of Public Accounts of the UK Parliament on North Sea gas and oil has revealed a situation under which the UK Exchequer apparently does not receive cash intake comparable to the Exchequers of other oil producing countries. So important are these findings that some of them are presented so that the industry at large, and particularly those engaged in North Sea exploration and production, will be aware of the UK situation. Recomendations are made that the government should take action substantially to improve the effective tax yield from operations on the continental shelf, and should consider among other methods the possibility of imposing a system of quantity taxation.

  9. Spatial patterns of infauna, epifauna and demersal fish communities in the North Sea.

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Reiss, H.; Degraer, S.; Duineveld, G.C.A.; Craeymeersch, J.A.M.

    2010-01-01

    Understanding the structure and interrelationships of North Sea benthic invertebrate and fish communities and their underlying environmental drivers is an important prerequisite for conservation and spatial ecosystem management on scales relevant to ecological processes. Datasets of North Sea

  10. Arctic Intermediate Water in the Nordic Seas, 1991-2009

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jeansson, Emil; Olsen, Are; Jutterström, Sara

    2017-10-01

    The evolution of the different types of Arctic Intermediate Water (AIW) in the Nordic Seas is evaluated and compared utilising hydro-chemical data from 1991 to 2009. It has been suggested that these waters are important components of the Norwegian Sea Arctic Intermediate Water (NSAIW), and of the dense overflows to the North Atlantic. Thus, it is important to understand how their properties and distribution vary with time. The AIWs from the Greenland and Iceland Seas, show different degrees of variability during the studied period; however, only the Greenland Sea Arctic Intermediate Water (GSAIW) shows an increasing temperature and salinity throughout the 2000s, which considerably changed the properties of this water mass. Optimum multiparameter (OMP) analysis was conducted to assess the sources of the NSAIW. The analysis shows that the Iceland Sea Arctic Intermediate Water (ISAIW) and the GSAIW both contribute to NSAIW, at different densities corresponding to their respective density range. This illustrates that they flow largely isopycnally from their source regions to the Norwegian Sea. The main source of the NSAIW, however, is the upper Polar Deep Water, which explains the lower concentrations of oxygen and chlorofluorocarbons, and higher salinity and nutrient concentrations of the NSAIW layer compared with the ISAIW and GSAIW. This shows how vital it is to include chemical tracers in any water mass analysis to correctly assess the sources of the water mass being studied.

  11. The continuing investment attraction af the North Sea to a large oil company

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bijur, P.

    1992-01-01

    The North Sea is a success story of a partnership between government and industry in which everyone is winning. This paper considers what it will take to keep the success story going - to keep the North Sea attractive to large investors. First, the most significant of the future challenges facing investors here are outlined -competing investments, declining prospectivity and technical barriers. Some positive recommendations follow that may enable the oil industry to overcome the challenges and keep the North Sea a centre for petroleum investment into the next century. (author)

  12. RKU North Sea. Update on the regional consequence examination concerning the petroleum industry in the North Sea; RKU-Nordsjoeen. Oppdatering av regional konsekvensutredning for petroleumsvirksomhet i Nordsjoeen

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    2006-12-15

    An overview over prognoses for oil and gas production and the emissions related to these activities is provided for the years 2005-2025. A description of the Norwegian Continental Shelf's ecosystem, environmental technology employed, and considerations regarding the petroleum industry's effect on the ecosystem are considered. Emissions to air, planned emissions to the sea and accident emissions and spills are treated, as well as other possible environmental effects. Consequences for fishery, cultural monuments and for the society in general are also examined (ml)

  13. Technetium-99 in Fucus and seawater samples in the Finnish coastal area of the Baltic Sea, 1999

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ikaeheimonen, T.K.; Vartti, V.P.; Ilus, E.; Mattila, J.

    2002-01-01

    Liquid discharges of 99 Tc from the Sellafield nuclear facilities increased largely in the mid 90's. These releases are transported to the Nordic sea areas by the ocean currents. Results of the 99 Tc activities along the Norwegian coastal areas and in the North Sea have been reported but then again, the spreading of 99 Tc into Baltic Sea has not been studied thoroughly. Fucus vesiculosus and seawater samples were collected in the summer 1999 from the Finnish coastal areas for measuring 99 Tc in the Baltic Sea area. A modified analytical method for measuring 99 Tc in the environmental samples was developed at that time. The method based on extraction chromatography and liquid scintillation measurement of 99 Tc. The 99 Tc concentration in the Fucus vesiculosus in the Finnish coast of the Baltic Sea varied from 1.6 to 11.6 Bq/kg (dry weight) being highest at the most northern sampling sites. These values were considerable lower than those in the Danish and Norwegian coasts. The variation in the concentrations observed are probably due to biological factors. The 99 Tc concentration in the Baltic Sea water studied was below 0.2 Bq/m 3 . (author)

  14. Storing CO2 under the North Sea Basin - A key solution for combating climate change

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Skogen, T; Morris, B; Agerup, M; Svenningsen, S Oe; Kropelien, K F; Solheim, M; Northmore, B; Dixon, T; O'Carroll, K; Greaves, A; Golder, J; Selmer-Olsen, S; Sjoeveit, A; Kaarstad, O; Riley, N; Wright, I; Mansfield, C

    2007-06-01

    This report represents the first deliverable of the North Sea Basin Task Force, which Norway and the UK established in November 2005 to work together on issues surrounding the transport and storage of CO 2 beneath the North Sea. The North Sea represents the best geological opportunity for storing our CO 2 emissions away from the atmosphere for both the UK and Norway

  15. North Sea oil and the environment

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cairns, W.J.

    1992-01-01

    This book, which is arranged in five sections, provides an historical record of the development of North Sea oil and gas over the past twenty years and records the lessons learnt from this experience. This first section provides an introductory framework to the three main themes, namely resources, environment and development. Section 2 is primarily concerned with the economic and social consequences of oil related development at two levels; firstly on the national economy and secondly the impact on local communities. Section 3 deals with impacts upon the physical environment and introduces the statutory land use planning system in Scotland. The Scottish approach to environmental assessment is reviewed and the need for mitigation by design explored. Section 4 examines specific field developments, and reviews the statutory controls and international initiatives regulating the extent of environmental disturbance and pollution from offshore operations. The effects of oil spillage and submarine pipelines on the environment and their impact on the fishing industry is followed by a discussion on the decommissioning and abandonment of offshore installations. Section 5 deals with the role and value of hazard and risk analysis in the siting, layout and safety zoning of onshore facilities and develops a case study on a major fractionation facility. The means of mitigating acute and chronic environmental risks are considered. A postscript provides a range of past comments and criticisms and finally draws some conclusions on the performance of environmental management and North Sea oil development. The North Sea oil and gas development experience proves that with wisdom, forethought and goodwill, industrial exploiters of natural resources can operate economically within legislative, policy, scientific, technical and design parameters without causing long-term irreversible environmental damage. (author)

  16. Quarter-Century Offshore Winds from SSM/I and WRF in the North Sea and South China Sea

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hasager, Charlotte Bay; Astrup, Poul; Zhu, Rong

    2016-01-01

    We study the wind climate and its long-term variability in the North Sea and South China Sea, areas relevant for offshore wind energy development, using satellite-based wind data, because very few reliable long-term in-situ sea surface wind observations are available. The Special Sensor Microwave...

  17. Exploration and development of offshore oil and gas fields. [North Sea

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    1979-01-01

    In the last 9 years, the British companies, based on their rich engineering and commercial experience, have directed a considerable part of their material and manpower resources at developing oil and gas fields in the North Sea. The technological innovations used by British industry are: aero- and marine surveys to prospect for oil, underwater laying of pipelines, arrangement of platforms, etc.; exploratory drilling in the open sea and on dry land; design of platforms with regard for the depth of the water and unique weather conditions of the North Sea, their assembly and development; use of auxiliary ships and helicopters, and diving equipment.

  18. Interannual variability of north Atlantic Sea surface temperatures

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bhatt, U.S.; Battisiti, D.S.; Alexander, M.A.

    1994-01-01

    In the midlatitude north Atlantic Ocean the pattern of sea surface temperature anomalies (ssta) is characterized by a north-south dipole. Bjerknes was the first to propose that the banded structure was associated with the interannual variability. Recently, these patterns have been studied more extensively. In this study the quantitative aspects of these patterns are examined through the use of a mixed-layer model (MLM)

  19. Airborne gravity survey of Lincoln Sea and Wandel Sea, north Greenland

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Olesen, Arne Vestergaard; Forsberg, René; Keller, K.

    2000-01-01

    In June 1998 National Survey and Cadastre Denmark (KMS) carried out an airborne gravity survey over the Polar Sea to the north of Greenland. A Twin Otter from Greenlandair, equipped with autopilot and additional fuel tanks, was employed for the survey. A modified marine LaCoste & Romberg gravimet...

  20. Phase equilibrium of North Sea oils with polar chemicals: Experiments and CPA modeling

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Frost, Michael Grynnerup; Kontogeorgis, Georgios M.; von Solms, Nicolas

    2016-01-01

    This work consists of a combined experimental and modeling study for oil - MEG - water systems, of relevance to petroleum applications. We present new experimental liquid-liquid equilibrium data for the mutual solubility of two North Sea oils + MEG and North Sea oils + MEG + water systems...

  1. Dispersion of radionuclides in the European north-western seas: observations and modelling

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bailly du Bois, Pascal

    2013-01-01

    In this report for an Accreditation to supervise research (HDR), the author reports the use over 30 years by the Cherbourg-Octeville IRSN Laboratory of artificial radionuclides in solution in sea water as oceanographic markers. Such measurements on radio-markers which are soluble in sea water, enabled a better knowledge of dissolved substance displacements in north-western seas of Europe, notably the Channel, the North Sea, the Celtic Sea, and the Irish Sea. The author reports researches which aimed at studying the dispersion of radionuclides in seawater and their use as water mass markers, at validating hydrodynamic models of dispersion at different time-space scales, at the understanding and simulation of the sedimentary transport, and at studying the transfer to living species. These different topics give the document its structure [fr

  2. Surfactant control of air-sea gas exchange from North Sea coastal waters and the Atlantic Meridional Transect

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pereira, R.

    2016-02-01

    Suppression of gas transfer velocity (kw) by surfactants are well established, both in laboratory wind flumes and purposeful oceanic releases. However, the effects on kw of time and space varying concentrations of natural surfactant are inadequately studied. We have developed an automated gas exchange tank for simultaneous high precision measurement of kw in unmodified seawater samples. Here we present data from two studies along a coastal North Sea transect during 2012-2013 and the Atlantic Meridional Transect (AMT) 24 from September to November 2014. Measurements of surfactant activity (SA), CDOM absorbance and chlorophyll-a have enabled us to characterize the effects of variable amounts of natural surfactant on kw. North Sea coastal waters range in k660 (kw normalized to the value for CO2 in freshwater at 20oC) was 6.8-24.5 cm hr-1 (n=20), with the ranges of SA, total CDOM absorbance (200-450 nm) and chlorophyll-a measured in the surface microlayer (SML) of our seawater samples were 0.08-0.38 mg l-1 T-X-100, 0.13-4.7 and 0.09-1.54 µg l-1, respectively. The AMT k660 ranged from 7.0-23.9 cm hr-1 (n=22), with SA measured in the SML and subsurface water (SSW) of our seawater samples ranging from 0.15-1.08 mg l-1 T-X-100 and 0.07-0.43 mg l-1 T-X-100, respectively. Importantly, we found 12-45% (North Sea) and 1-43% (AMT) k660 suppression relative to Milli-Q water that relate to seasonal and spatial differences in SA. The North Sea demonstrated notable seasonal influences on k660 suppression that were related to CDOM absorbance and chlorophyll-a. The degree of k660 suppression was highest in summer consistent with k660 control by natural surfactant. The degree of k660 suppression decreased with distance offshore in the North Sea and displayed a strong relationship with SA (r2 = 0.51-0.64, p = 0.02, n = 20). The AMT demonstrated notable differences in k660 suppression between hemispheres and across the Longhurst Provinces but the overall relationship between k660

  3. Bacterial and archaeal communities in sediments of the north Chinese marginal seas.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Jiwen; Liu, Xiaoshou; Wang, Min; Qiao, Yanlu; Zheng, Yanfen; Zhang, Xiao-Hua

    2015-07-01

    Microbial communities of the Chinese marginal seas have rarely been reported. Here, bacterial and archaeal community structures and abundance in the surface sediment of four sea areas including the Bohai Sea (BS), North Yellow Sea (NYS), South Yellow Sea (SYS), and the north East China Sea (NECS) were surveyed by 16S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) gene pyrosequencing and quantitative PCR. The results showed that microbial communities of the four geographic areas were distinct from each other at the operational taxonomic unit (OTU) level, whereas the microbial communities of the BS, NYS, and SYS were more similar to each other than to the NECS at higher taxonomic levels. Across all samples, Bacteria were numerically dominant relative to Archaea, and among them, Gammaproteobacteria and Euryarchaeota were predominant in the BS, NYS, and SYS, while Deltaproteobacteria and Thaumarchaeota were prevalent in the NECS. The most abundant bacterial genera were putative sulfur oxidizer and sulfate reducer, suggesting that sulfur cycle processes might prevail in these areas, and the high abundance of dsrB (10(7)-10(8) copies g(-1)) in all sites verified the dominance of sulfate reducer in the north Chinese marginal seas. The differences in sediment sources among the sampling areas were potential explanations for the observed microbial community variations. Furthermore, temperature and dissolved oxygen of bottom water were significant environmental factors in determining both bacterial and archaeal communities, whereas chlorophyll a in sediment was significant only in structuring archaeal community. This study presented an outline of benthic microbial communities and provided insights into understanding the biogeochemical cycles in sediments of the north Chinese marginal seas.

  4. Diversity and community structure of epibenthic invertebrates and fish in the North Sea

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Callaway, R.; Alsväg, J.; de Boois, I.

    2002-01-01

    The structure of North Sea benthic invertebrate and fish communities is an important indicator of anthropogenic and environmental impacts. Although North Sea fish stocks are monitored regularly, benthic fauna are not. Here, we report the results of a survey carried out in 2000, in which five...

  5. The Pleistocene reindeer of the North Sea - initial palaeontological data and archaeological remarks

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Glimmerveen, J; Mol, D; van der Plicht, H

    The interdisciplinary North Sea Project aims at investigating the biotic history of the Pleistocene in the Southern Bight of the North Sea. Humans were part of these biotopes too as Palaeolithic flint artefacts prove. Based on a large fossil record and radiocarbon dating, it becomes clear that

  6. Avatars using computer/smartphone mediated communication and social networking in prevention of sexually transmitted diseases among North-Norwegian youngsters

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gabarron Elia

    2012-10-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs, especially the Chlamydia trachomatis bacterial infection, a common cause of infertility, are highly prevalent in developed countries, and a worrying problem in North Norway, where the incidence of chlamydia twice the Norwegian average. Seventy percent of reported chlamydia cases are found in people below 25 years of age, and although its spread could be controlled with proper prevention, young people are more aware of the risks of unwanted pregnancy than their risk of acquiring a STD. Information and Communication Technologies, including, the Internet, social media and/or smartphones, should be valued for sexual health promotion for their potential to engage young audiences. And in these media, avatars guarantee anonymity to users when handling sensitive information. The main objective of this project is to achieve that North Norwegian youngsters become more aware of STDs through the use of popular technologies among young people. Methods A Virtual Clinic for Sexually Transmitted Diseases (VCSTD will be developed. The VCSTD will provide early guidance and reliable information sources concerning reproductive health, delivered in a novel and innovative way to the younger population. The VCSTD consists of an “avatar” supported intervention in a serious gaming and e-learning environment, which will bypass direct physical access (in person to reliable medical information, as well as allowing the youngsters to share that information in social media, and thus helping the VCSTD to be disseminated to more people. Data analyses will be conducted on publically available health data relevant to STDs in Troms and Finnmark, like the absolute number of chlamydia tests, the amount of emergency contraception medication sold, and the number of abortions. Also, usage data of the system and experiences of usefulness will be explored through participants’ voluntary responses to a feedback form available

  7. Marine 14C reservoir ages for 19th century whales and molluscs from the North Atlantic

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mangerud, Jan; Bondevik, Stein; Gulliksen, Steinar; Karin Hufthammer, Anne; Høisæter, Tore

    2006-12-01

    In order to compare radiocarbon dates on marine and terrestrial samples the former have to be corrected for a reservoir age. We present reservoir ages from dating 21 whales collected 1860-1901 and recalculating dates of 23 molluscs collected 1857-1926. Most of the whales were caught along the coast of Norway, but one is from France and one from Iceland. We assume the former mainly lived in the North and equatorial Atlantic and in the Norwegian Sea. Whales feed only on pelagic organisms and will provide the reservoir age for the open ocean surface water. However, they travel long distances and will integrate the reservoir ages of the different water masses along their way. Molluscs (dated from Norway, Spitsbergen and Arctic Canada) are stationary and monitor the sea water passing their dwelling site, but some also take up carbon from particulate food or sediment pore water. Coastal water also often contains some continental carbon. We present two different views on how to analyze and interpret the data. Mangerud recommends to use reservoir ages based on a combination of the whale and mollusc dates, i.e. 380±30 and 360±30 yr relative to Intcal04 and British oak, respectively, and a Δ R value of 20±30 for the surface water in the N-Atlantic and Norwegian Sea. Bondevik and Gulliksen maintain that the reservoir age—and Δ R—along the Norwegian coast is latitude dependant, with Δ R-values increasing from -3±22 in the South to 105±24 at Spitsbergen. Whales, reflecting North Atlantic open ocean surface water have lower Δ R (7±11) than most molluscs.

  8. Palaeoenvironmental changes across the Danian–Selandian boundary in the North Sea Basin

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Clemmensen, Anne; Thomsen, Erik

    2005-01-01

    cores from Storebælt in the eastern part of the North Sea Basin, we have reconstructed the palaeoenvironmental changes across the boundary. The benthic foraminiferal faunas belong to the “Midway-type fauna”. They are extremely rich and more than 260 taxa have been recognized. Q-mode cluster analysis......, the sea bottom conditions became colder and more acidic. This resulted in partial dissolution of the carbonates and the deposition shifted from marl to clay. Comparison with records from the Western Pyrenees, the Nile Basin and the eastern North America suggests that sea-level changes across the Danian......The Danian–Selandian boundary (not, vert, similar60 Ma) marks the cessation of 40 million years of carbonate deposition in the North Sea Basin and a shift to siliciclastic deposition. On the basis of variations in lithology, benthic and planktonic foraminifera and calcareous nannofossils in three...

  9. Ecology of the North Sea: Problems, successes, failures, future needs

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kinne, O.

    1995-03-01

    After defining ‘ecology’, outlining the basic categories of ecological research and listing examples of modern ecological investigations, this introductory paper focusses on basic considerations; it is, in essence, a programmatic contribution. Research details on the ecology of the North Sea are the subject of the following papers. The problems of ecological North Sea research are formidable. Hydrological and biological fluctuations and variabilities are pronounced. Exchange patterns with the Atlantic are complex, and the inputs of rivers and rain defy exact measurement and prediction. Season, weather, climate—and as yet insufficiently known and controlled human-caused impacts—further complicate the situation. All this results in an unusually high degree of uncertainty. New questions and problems arise before the old ones can be answered or solved. Nevertheless, ecological North Sea research has achieved many successes. The North Sea is the most intensively investigated sea area on our planet. Generations of zoologists, botanists and hydrographers — and more recently microbiologists, meteorologists, climatologists, chemists, pathologists and toxicologists — have produced an impressive body of knowledge. Slowly we are beginning to understand the forces that govern energy budgets and balances, material fluxes, and the factors that control and direct ecosystem dynamics. Essential driving forces of ecosystem dynamics result from microbial, especially bacterial, activities. Ecological modelling has paved the way for new theories and insights, and holds promise for progress towards a predictive ecology. Failures and shortcomings include insufficient long-term research, inadequately designed experiments, and misconceptions in environmental protection. Net changes in ecological processes of an heterogeneous and intensely varying environment such as the North Sea can only be comprehended adequately against the background of sustained measurements over decades

  10. Air-sea exchange fluxes of synthetic polycyclic musks in the North Sea and the Arctic.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xie, Zhiyong; Ebinghaus, Ralf; Temme, Christian; Heemken, Olaf; Ruck, Wolfgang

    2007-08-15

    Synthetic polycyclic musk fragrances Galaxolide (HHCB) and Tonalide (AHTN) were measured simultaneously in air and seawater in the Arctic and the North Sea and in the rural air of northern Germany. Median concentrations of gas-phase HHCB and AHTN were 4 and 18 pg m(-3) in the Arctic, 28 and 18 pg m(-3) in the North Sea, and 71 and 21 pg m(-3) in northern Germany, respectively. Various ratios of HHCB/AHTN implied that HHCB is quickly removed by atmospheric degradation, while AHTN is relatively persistent in the atmosphere. Dissolved concentrations ranged from 12 to 2030 pg L(-1) for HHCB and from below the method detection limit (3 pg L(-1)) to 965 pg L(-1) for AHTN with median values of 59 and 23 pg L(-1), respectively. The medians of volatilization fluxes for HHCB and AHTN were 27.2 and 14.2 ng m(-2) day(-1) and the depositional fluxes were 5.9 and 3.3 ng m(-2) day(-1), respectively, indicating water-to-air volatilization is a significant process to eliminate HHCB and AHTN from the North Sea. In the Arctic, deposition fluxes dominated the air-sea gas exchange of HHCB and AHTN, suggesting atmospheric input controls the levels of HHCB and AHTN in the polar region.

  11. Virulence Profiles of Vibrio vulnificus in German Coastal Waters, a Comparison of North Sea and Baltic Sea Isolates

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nadja Bier

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available Vibrio vulnificus is a halophilic bacterium of coastal environments known for sporadically causing severe foodborne or wound infections. Global warming is expected to lead to a rising occurrence of V. vulnificus and an increasing incidence of human infections in Northern Europe. So far, infections in Germany were exclusively documented for the Baltic Sea coast, while no cases from the North Sea region have been reported. Regional variations in the prevalence of infections may be influenced by differences in the pathogenicity of V. vulnificus populations in both areas. This study aimed to compare the distribution of virulence-associated traits and genotypes among 101 V. vulnificus isolates from the Baltic Sea and North Sea in order to assess their pathogenicity potential. Furthermore, genetic relationships were examined by multilocus sequence typing (MLST. A high diversity of MLST sequences (74 sequence types and differences regarding the presence of six potential pathogenicity markers were observed in the V. vulnificus populations of both areas. Strains with genotypes and markers associated with pathogenicity are not restricted to a particular geographic region. This indicates that lack of reported cases in the North Sea region is not caused by the absence of potentially pathogenic strains.

  12. Shallow gas in Cenozoic sediments of the Southern North Sea

    Science.gov (United States)

    Trampe, Anna F.; Lutz, Rüdiger; Franke, Dieter; Thöle, Hauke; Arfai, Jashar

    2013-04-01

    Shallow petroleum systems in the southern North Sea are known for several decades but they were not actively explored for a long time. In recent years these unconventional shallow petroleum systems are studied in greater detail and one shallow gas field (A-12) is in production in the Netherlands. Additionally, oil was encountered in Miocene sandstones in the southern Danish North Sea (Lille John well) just north of the Danish-German border. Seismic amplitude anomalies are an indication for hydrocarbons in sediments. Therefore we have mapped the occurrence of seismic amplitude anomalies in the German North Sea based on more than 25.000 km of 2D seismic data and around 4.000 km2 of 3D seismic data. Amplitude anomalies are ubiquitous phenomena in the study area. These anomalies are not only caused by hydrocarbons but also by changing lithologies e.g. peat or fluid migration. Therefore several classes of seismic anomalies, e.g. bright spots, chimneys, blanking areas and velocity pull-down were mapped. Examples for these classes were studied with AVO (amplitude variation with offset) analyses to verify the existence or non-existence of gas in the sediments. Shallow gas can be produced and transported through the dense pipeline grid of the southern and central North Sea or it could be burned offshore close to wind parks in small power plants and the electric energy then transported through the existing power connections of the wind parks. Thus enabling a continuous energy supply during calm wind periods. This study is carried out within the framework of the project "Geoscientific Potential of the German North Sea (GPDN)" in which the Cenozoic sedimentary system was mapped in great detail. A detailed model of delta evolution (Baltic river system) was developed which serves as a structural framework. The studied interval is time equivalent to the Utsira formation which is used offshore Norway for sequestration of CO2. These different possibilities of using or exploiting

  13. Retardation and Sedimentation of Chernobyl-derived Radiocesium in the Photic Zone Sedimenttrap Deployment Studies in the Norwegian Sea

    Science.gov (United States)

    Baumann, Marion

    One long-term and three short-term sedimenttrap-deployments have been installed in the Norwegian Sea shortly after the reactor-accident at Chernobyl in April 1986. Radiocesium investigations of the sedimenttrap material were combined with detailed biological investigations on sedimentation processes in the photic Zone. Lacking efficient export processes in the photic Zone, radiocesium first was retained in the photic Zone for several weeks. Then the break down and successive sedimentation of the heterotrophic community exported about 10 % of surface deposition of radiocesium to larger water depths and to the seafloor at 1450 m.

  14. Particle mixing processes of Chernobyl fallout in deep Norwegian Sea sediments: Evidence for seasonal effects

    Science.gov (United States)

    Balzer, W.

    1996-09-01

    A 1430 m deep station in the Norwegian Sea (Voering Plateau) was occupied five times between May 1986 and February 1987 to investigate the seasonal variation in sediment mixing rates. Cherbnbyl-derived radiocesium, identified by its high proportion of short-lived 134Cs, was used as a tracer for mixing. Most of the nuclide input arrived at the sediment within a narrow time span in June/early July during the beginning of the seasonal biogenic sedimentation pulse. Measured 137Cs profiles in the sediment over time were compared with modelled distributions calculated with a finite difference scheme. The input function of radiocesium to the sea floor was evaluated from the increase of the total inventory with time. Time-invariant mixing coefficients did not provide reasonable fits to either summer or winter distributions. The best fit was obtained with a rate of mixing proportional to the radiocesium input flux, with an average enhancement factor of 6.6 during the two summer months. It appears that the benthic macrofauna are more active during the food supply season and rapidly ingest/bury freshly sedimented materials.

  15. Draft Memorandum for the North Sea

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2008-12-01

    In the National Water Plan it is described which measures must be taken to keep the Netherlands safe and livable for future generations and to make use of the chances offered by water. This memorandum serves as a document by means of which political choices for the North Sea policy, as formulated in the National Water Plan, are made more transparent [nl

  16. Discussion on final rifting evolution and breakup : insights from the Mid Norwegian - North East Greenland rifted system

    Science.gov (United States)

    Peron-Pinvidic, Gwenn; Terje Osmundsen, Per

    2016-04-01

    In terms of rifted margin studies, the characteristics of the distal and outer domains are among the today's most debated questions. The architecture and composition of deep margins are rarely well constrained and hence little understood. Except from in a handful number of cases (eg. Iberia-Newfoundland, Southern Australia, Red Sea), basement samples are not available to decipher between the various interpretations allowed by geophysical models. No consensus has been reached on the basement composition, tectonic structures, sedimentary geometries or magmatic content. The result is that non-unique end-member interpretations and models are still proposed in the literature. So, although these domains mark the connection between continents and oceans, and thus correspond to unique stages in the Earth's lithospheric life cycle, their spatial and temporal evolution are still unresolved. The Norwegian-Greenland Sea rift system represents an exceptional laboratory to work on questions related to rifting, rifted margin formation and sedimentary basin evolution. It has been extensively studied for decades by both the academic and the industry communities. The proven and expected oil and gas potentials led to the methodical acquisition of world-class geophysical datasets, which permit the detailed research and thorough testing of concepts at local and regional scales. This contribution is issued from a three years project funded by ExxonMobil aiming at better understanding the crustal-scale nature and evolution of the Norwegian-Greenland Sea. The idea was to take advantage of the data availability on this specific rift system to investigate further the full crustal conjugate scale history of rifting, confronting the various available datasets. In this contribution, we will review the possible structural and sedimentary geometries of the distal margin, and their connection to the oceanic domain. We will discuss the definition of 'breakup' and introduce a first order conceptual

  17. Partial pressure (or fugacity) of carbon dioxide, dissolved inorganic carbon, temperature, salinity and other variables collected from discrete sample and profile observations using CTD, bottle and other instruments from the JOHAN HJORT in the North Atlantic Ocean, North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from 1992-07-12 to 1992-07-28 (NODC Accession 0113558)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NODC Accession 0113558 includes chemical, discrete sample, physical and profile data collected from JOHAN HJORT in the North Atlantic Ocean, North Greenland Sea and...

  18. Partial pressure (or fugacity) of carbon dioxide, dissolved inorganic carbon, temperature, salinity and other variables collected from discrete sample and profile observations using CTD, bottle and other instruments from the JOHAN HJORT in the North Atlantic Ocean, North Greenland Sea and Norwegian Sea from 1994-07-23 to 1994-08-16 (NODC Accession 0113560)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NODC Accession 0113560 includes chemical, discrete sample, physical and profile data collected from JOHAN HJORT in the North Atlantic Ocean, North Greenland Sea and...

  19. EDXRS study of aerosol composition variations in air masses crossing the North Sea

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Injuk, J.; Malderen, H. van; Grieken, R. van; Swietlicki, E.; Knox, J.M.; Schofield, R.

    1993-01-01

    X-ray emission techniques for bulk and individual particle analysis (EDXRF, EPXMA, micro-PIXE) were combined and applied in atmospheric research on the North Sea area as part of a field-study on air-sea exchange processes of particulate matter. The atmospheric loading for a number of elements was determined by EDXRF, yielding bulk concentrations for Mg, Al, Si, S, Cl, K, Ca, Cr, Mn, Fe, Ni, Cu, Zn, Br and Sr. From these EDXRF data, deposition rates were derived and, based on a classical multivariate statistical approach, different aerosol sources were identified. Complementary to this work, EPXMA combined with automated image analysis was applied to individual size-segregated aerosol particles to determine their inorganic composition, physical size and shape. Also, the first results of micro-PIXE analyses on individual North Sea aerosol particles, particularly their large-size fraction, are discussed and compared with the corresponding EPXMA results. In summary, such a joint approach with the use of different x-ray emission techniques contributed to the resolution of the mixed structure of the lower North Sea troposphere and to the determination of the atmospheric supply of material to the North Sea environment. (author)

  20. Climate change facilitated range expansion of the non-native angular crab Goneplax rhomboides into the North Sea

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Neumann, H.; Boois, de I.J.; Kroncke, I.; Reiss, H.

    2013-01-01

    The angular crab Goneplax rhomboides is native to the north-eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean Sea. It has rarely been reported from the North Sea, with no evidence of sustainable populations. Compiled survey data, however, revealed an increasing abundance of this species in the North Sea since

  1. Evaluation of harvest and information needs for North American sea ducks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Koneff, Mark D; Zimmerman, Guthrie S; Dwyer, Chris P; Fleming, Kathleen K; Padding, Paul I; Devers, Patrick K; Johnson, Fred A; Runge, Michael C; Roberts, Anthony J

    2017-01-01

    Wildlife managers routinely seek to establish sustainable limits of sport harvest or other regulated forms of take while confronted with considerable uncertainty. A growing body of ecological research focuses on methods to describe and account for uncertainty in management decision-making and to prioritize research and monitoring investments to reduce the most influential uncertainties. We used simulation methods incorporating measures of demographic uncertainty to evaluate risk of overharvest and prioritize information needs for North American sea ducks (Tribe Mergini). Sea ducks are popular game birds in North America, yet they are poorly monitored and their population dynamics are poorly understood relative to other North American waterfowl. There have been few attempts to assess the sustainability of harvest of North American sea ducks, and no formal harvest strategy exists in the U.S. or Canada to guide management. The popularity of sea duck hunting, extended hunting opportunity for some populations (i.e., special seasons and/or bag limits), and population declines have led to concern about potential overharvest. We used Monte Carlo simulation to contrast estimates of allowable harvest and observed harvest and assess risk of overharvest for 7 populations of North American sea ducks: the American subspecies of common eider (Somateria mollissima dresseri), eastern and western populations of black scoter (Melanitta americana) and surf scoter (M. perspicillata), and continental populations of white-winged scoter (M. fusca) and long-tailed duck (Clangula hyemalis). We combined information from empirical studies and the opinions of experts through formal elicitation to create probability distributions reflecting uncertainty in the individual demographic parameters used in this assessment. Estimates of maximum growth (rmax), and therefore of allowable harvest, were highly uncertain for all populations. Long-tailed duck and American common eider appeared to be at high

  2. A decision support system for assessing offshore wind energy potential in the North Sea

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Schillings, Christoph; Wanderer, Thomas; Cameron, Lachlan; Tjalling van der Wal, Jan; Jacquemin, Jerome; Veum, Karina

    2012-01-01

    Offshore wind energy (OWE) in the North Sea has the potential to meet large share of Europe’s future electricity demand. To deploy offshore wind parks in a rational way, the overall OWE potential has to be realistically determined. This has to be done on an international, cross-border level and by taking into account the existing man-made and nature-related uses of the North Sea. As spatial conflicts will arise between existing uses and the new OWE uses, a Decision Support System (DSS) based on a Geographic Information System (GIS) was developed. Based on data of existing sea uses and calculation rules for spatial prioritisation analysis, the DSS helps in identifying areas that are (1) generally suitable for offshore wind power, (2) strictly excluded or (3) negotiable with respect to other existing sea uses. The combination of this conflict analysis together with cost assumptions for offshore wind farms and their expected electricity yield leads to identification of favourable areas for OWE deployment in the North Sea. This approach helps to reduce the conflict between offshore wind deployment and existing sea uses in the North Sea for future planning. The results can assist decision makers in developing transnational roadmaps for OWE. - Highlights: ► Decision Support System (DSS) to identify offshore wind energy (OWE) potential in the North Sea. ► Spatial analysis of existing sea use functions and offshore wind energy potential. ► Input parameters of DSS depend on the level of OWE spatial priority assumed by the user. ► DSS performs the required calculations and provides results in form of maps and statistics. ► DSS available after registration at (www.windspeed.eu).

  3. Low-frequency variability in North Sea and Baltic Sea identified through simulations with the 3-D coupled physical–biogeochemical model ECOSMO

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    U. Daewel

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available Here we present results from a long-term model simulation of the 3-D coupled ecosystem model ECOSMO II for a North Sea and Baltic Sea set-up. The model allows both multi-decadal hindcast simulation of the marine system and specific process studies under controlled environmental conditions. Model results have been analysed with respect to long-term multi-decadal variability in both physical and biological parameters with the help of empirical orthogonal function (EOF analysis. The analysis of a 61-year (1948–2008 hindcast reveals a quasi-decadal variation in salinity, temperature and current fields in the North Sea in addition to singular events of major changes during restricted time frames. These changes in hydrodynamic variables were found to be associated with changes in ecosystem productivity that are temporally aligned with the timing of reported regime shifts in the areas. Our results clearly indicate that for analysing ecosystem productivity, spatially explicit methods are indispensable. Especially in the North Sea, a correlation analysis between atmospheric forcing and primary production (PP reveals significant correlations between PP and the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO and wind forcing for the central part of the region, while the Atlantic Multi-decadal Oscillation (AMO and air temperature are correlated to long-term changes in PP in the southern North Sea frontal areas. Since correlations cannot serve to identify causal relationship, we performed scenario model runs perturbing the temporal variability in forcing condition to emphasize specifically the role of solar radiation, wind and eutrophication. The results revealed that, although all parameters are relevant for the magnitude of PP in the North Sea and Baltic Sea, the dominant impact on long-term variability and major shifts in ecosystem productivity was introduced by modulations of the wind fields.

  4. Characteristics of the Nordic Seas overflows in a set of Norwegian Earth System Model experiments

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guo, Chuncheng; Ilicak, Mehmet; Bentsen, Mats; Fer, Ilker

    2016-08-01

    Global ocean models with an isopycnic vertical coordinate are advantageous in representing overflows, as they do not suffer from topography-induced spurious numerical mixing commonly seen in geopotential coordinate models. In this paper, we present a quantitative diagnosis of the Nordic Seas overflows in four configurations of the Norwegian Earth System Model (NorESM) family that features an isopycnic ocean model. For intercomparison, two coupled ocean-sea ice and two fully coupled (atmosphere-land-ocean-sea ice) experiments are considered. Each pair consists of a (non-eddying) 1° and a (eddy-permitting) 1/4° horizontal resolution ocean model. In all experiments, overflow waters remain dense and descend to the deep basins, entraining ambient water en route. Results from the 1/4° pair show similar behavior in the overflows, whereas the 1° pair show distinct differences, including temperature/salinity properties, volume transport (Q), and large scale features such as the strength of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC). The volume transport of the overflows and degree of entrainment are underestimated in the 1° experiments, whereas in the 1/4° experiments, there is a two-fold downstream increase in Q, which matches observations well. In contrast to the 1/4° experiments, the coarse 1° experiments do not capture the inclined isopycnals of the overflows or the western boundary current off the Flemish Cap. In all experiments, the pathway of the Iceland-Scotland Overflow Water is misrepresented: a major fraction of the overflow proceeds southward into the West European Basin, instead of turning westward into the Irminger Sea. This discrepancy is attributed to excessive production of Labrador Sea Water in the model. The mean state and variability of the Nordic Seas overflows have significant consequences on the response of the AMOC, hence their correct representations are of vital importance in global ocean and climate modelling.

  5. A decision support system for assessing offshore wind energy potential in the North Sea

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Wanderer, T.; Schillings, C. [German Aerospace Center (DLR), Systems Analysis and Technology Assessment, Stuttgart (Germany); Cameron, L.; Veum, K. [Energy research Center of the Netherlands ECN, Policy Studies Department, Amsterdam (Netherlands); Tjalling van der Wal, J. [IMARES, Wageningen UR, Den Helder (Netherlands); Jacquemin, J. [GL Garrad Hassan, Paris (France)

    2012-10-15

    Offshore wind energy (OWE) in the North Sea has the potential to meet large share of Europe's future electricity demand. To deploy offshore wind parks in a rational way, the overall OWE potential has to be realistically determined. This has to be done on an international, cross-border level and by taking into account the existing man-made and nature-related uses of the North Sea. As spatial conflicts will arise between existing uses and the new OWE uses, a Decision Support System (DSS) based on a Geographic Information System (GIS) was developed. Based on data of existing sea uses and calculation rules for spatial prioritisation analysis, the DSS helps in identifying areas that are (1) generally suitable for offshore wind power, (2) strictly excluded or (3) negotiable with respect to other existing sea uses. The combination of this conflict analysis together with cost assumptions for offshore wind farms and their expected electricity yield leads to identification of favourable areas for OWE deployment in the North Sea. This approach helps to reduce the conflict between offshore wind deployment and existing sea uses in the North Sea for future planning. The results can assist decision makers in developing transnational roadmaps for OWE.

  6. Transport and hydraulically-induced recycling of phosphorous in the North Sea-Baltic Sea transition zone

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kepp, Rikke; Struve, Anke; Christiansen, Christian

    2006-01-01

    to barotropic and tidal currents the gross transport is 5 times larger. The net transport is directed towards the North Sea mainly in the top 32 m of the water column but towards the Baltic Sea it occurs in the lower 5 m of the water column. The resulting transport of phosphorus is strongly affected by vertical...

  7. Sea Surface Temperature Climate Data Record for the North Sea and Baltic Sea

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Høyer, Jacob L.; Karagali, Ioanna

    2016-01-01

    A 30-yr climate data record (CDR) of sea surface temperature (SST) has been produced with daily gap-free analysis fields for the North Sea and the Baltic Sea region from 1982 to 2012 by combining the Pathfinder AVHRR satellite data record with the Along-Track Scanning Radiometer (ATSR) Reprocessing...... for Climate (ARC) dataset and with in situ observations. A dynamical bias correction scheme adjusts the Pathfinder observations toward the ARC and in situ observations. Largest Pathfinder-ARC differences are found in the summer months, when the Pathfinder observations are up to 0.4 °C colder than the ARC...... observations on average. Validation against independent in situ observations shows a very stable performance of the data record, with a mean difference of -0.06 °C compared to moored buoys and a 0.46 °C standard deviation of the differences. The mean annual biases of the SST CDR are small for all years...

  8. Investigation and evaluation of airborne pollution in the framework of PARCOM (North Sea) and HELCOM (Baltic Sea) - subproject: Measurements of trace metals

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Schneider, B.

    1993-01-01

    On the basis of measurements of the deposition and concentrations of atmospheric trace metals the annual input of some selected elements (Pb, Zn, Cd, Ni, V) into the North Sea and the Baltic Sea was estimated. For the Baltic Sea, deposition measurements with a buoy system in the Kiel Bight and data from the EGAP(HELCOM)-monitoring network were used. Data from the measurement stations were extrapolated to related sub-basins according to the deposition fields obtained from model calculations (EMEP). For the North Sea, a mean atmospheric trace metal distribution was determined from numerous measurements at a coastal site and over the central North Sea and the annual input was calculated by multiplication with corresponding deposition velocities and scavenging ratios. A comparison of the deposition data based on measurements with those from model calculations show good agreement in the case of Pb in the Baltic Sea as well as in the North Sea. However, for Zn and Cd large discrepancies are observed. Additionally, deposition processes were studied. Scavenging ratios were determined and dry deposition velocities were estimated by the use of a new method for high time resolution measurements of atmospheric trace metal concentrations (impactor/TXRF). (orig.). 9 figs., 14 tabs [de

  9. What is the pollution status of North Sea sediments?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chapman, P.M.; Heip, C.; Cofino, W.

    1993-01-01

    A March 1990 international sea-going workshop in Bremerhaven, Germany provided the opportunity to conduct detailed sediment toxicity testing in concert with studies of fish histopathology, bioaccumulation, benthic community structure, and sediment chemical contamination in the North Sea. Two gradients of sediment chemical contamination were tested, one from an abandoned oil platform and the other from the mouth of the Elbe River northward to the Dogger Bank. Using a preponderance of evidence approach, it was determined that sediments nearest the Elbe are moderately polluted (pollution is defined as contamination, toxicity, and community alteration) and that sediments offshore and at the Dogger Bank are unpolluted. Sediments nearest the oil platform showed evidence for a low level of pollution, but there was no evidence of pollution 125 m from the platform. The results suggest the testable hypothesis that North Sea sediments away from point sources of pollution such as coastal areas and drilling platforms are presently not polluted. 46 refs., 2 figs., 6 tabs

  10. The transfer of reprocessing wastes from north-west Europe to the Arctic

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kershaw, Peter; Baxter, Amanda

    The discharge of radioactive waste, from nuclear fuel reprocessing facilities, into the coastal waters of north-west Europe has resulted in a significant increase in the inventories of a number of artificial radionuclides in the North Atlantic. Radiocaesium, 90Sr and 99Tc, which behave conservatively in seawater, have been used widely as tracers of water movement through the North Sea, Norwegian Coastal Current, Barents Sea, Greenland Sea, Fram Strait, Eurasian Basin, East Greenland Current and Denmark Strait overflow. These studies are summarised in the present paper. It has been estimated that 22% of the 137Cs Sellafield discharge has passed into the Barents Sea, en route to the Nansen Basin, via the Bjomoya-Fugloya Section, with another 13% passing through the Fram Strait. This amounts to 14 PBq 137Cs. Quantifying the influx of other radionuclides has been more problematic. The inflowing Atlantic water now appears to be diluting waters in the Arctic Basin, which were contaminated in the late 1970s and early 1980s as a result of the substantial decrease in the discharge of reprocessing wastes. Sellafield (U.K.) has dominated the supply of 134Cs, 137Cs, 90Sr, 99Tc and Pu, whereas La Hague (France) has contributed a larger proportion of 129I and 125Sb.

  11. Storing CO{sub 2} under the North Sea Basin - A key solution for combating climate change

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Skogen, T; Morris, B; Agerup, M; Svenningsen, S Oe; Kropelien, K F; Solheim, M; Northmore, B; Dixon, T; O' Carroll, K; Greaves, A; Golder, J; Selmer-Olsen, S; Sjoeveit, A; Kaarstad, O; Riley, N; Wright, I; Mansfield, C

    2007-06-15

    This report represents the first deliverable of the North Sea Basin Task Force, which Norway and the UK established in November 2005 to work together on issues surrounding the transport and storage of CO{sub 2} beneath the North Sea. The North Sea represents the best geological opportunity for storing our CO{sub 2} emissions away from the atmosphere for both the UK and Norway

  12. The introduction of radionuclides over the atmosphere into the North Sea

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kautsky, H.

    1983-01-01

    Although it is barely possible to provide exact data concerning the aerosol entry and the quantities of precipitation in the region of the North Sea, an attempt will be made to estimate the annual entry of radionuclides in the North Sea. As data for the calculations, available estimations of the quantity of precipitation over the sea, the content of radionuclides in the air and in the rain over land and the activities conveyed thereby to the earth, as well as the emission quantities of radionuclides with the exhaust air from nuclear power plants, are applied. It is quite clear that Tritium represents by far the main part of the radionuclides which enter the sea via precipitation. The majority of the other artificial radio nuclides, on the other hand, are to be viewed as being quantitatively insignificant. (orig./HP) [de

  13. Temperature and salinity profile data collected by bottle on multiple cruises in the Baltic Sea, Baffin Bay, Davis Strait, the North Atlantic Ocean, and the North Sea from 02 January 1985 to 13 November 1989 (NODC Accession 0000056)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Temperature profile and nutrients data were collected using bottle casts from DANA and other platforms in Baffin Sea, Baltic Sea, Davis Strait, North Sea, and North...

  14. Recruitment in a changing environment: the 2000s North Sea herring recruitment failure

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Payne, Mark; Hatfield, E.M.C.; Dickey-Collas, M.

    2009-01-01

    Environmentally induced change appears to be impacting the recruitment of North Sea herring (Clupea harengus). Despite simultaneously having a large adult population, historically low exploitation, and Marine Stewardship Council accreditation (implying sustainability), there have been an unpreced......Environmentally induced change appears to be impacting the recruitment of North Sea herring (Clupea harengus). Despite simultaneously having a large adult population, historically low exploitation, and Marine Stewardship Council accreditation (implying sustainability), there have been...... an unprecedented 6 sequential years of poor juvenile production (recruitment). Analysis suggests that the poor recruitment arises during the larval overwintering phase, with recent survival rates greatly reduced. Contemporary warming of the North Sea has caused significant changes in the plankton community...

  15. Zooplankton biomass data collected by Research Institute of Marine Fisheries & Oceanography (PINRO) from 1958-03-25 to 1964-06-18 (NODC Accession 0070127)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Zooplankton biomass data collected in North Atlantic Ocean, Greenland Sea, North Sea, Norwegian Sea, and Bering Sea from 03 Mar 1958 to 18 Jun 1964 by PINRO. Data...

  16. The Petroleum resources on the Norwegian Continental Shelf. 2011

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    2011-07-01

    This resource report provides a survey of petroleum resources on the NCS. Content: Resource account; Unconventional oil and gas resources; Future oil and gas production; Challenges for producing fields; Discoveries; Undiscovered resources; Curbing greenhouse gas emissions; Technology and talent; Exploration and new areas; How undiscovered resources are calculated; The NPD's project database; Play analysis; Changes to and reductions in estimated undiscovered resources; Unconventional petroleum resources; Many wells, Increased exploration, Every little helps; Varied discovery success; Sub-basalt in the Norwegian Sea; High exploration costs; Profitable exploration; Unopened areas - mostly in the far north; Resource base; Small discoveries; Location; Development solutions, Profitability of discoveries; Things may take time; Area perspective; Development of production; Remaining reserves and resources in fields; Target for reserve growth; Existing technology; Water and gas injection; Drilling and wells; Infrastructure challenges; New methods and technology; Challenges for pilot projects; Long-term thinking and creativity. (eb)

  17. Sleep and Alertness in North Sea Helicopter Operations

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Simons, M.; Wilschut, E.S.; Valk, P.J.L.

    2011-01-01

    Introduction : Dutch North Sea helicopter operations are characterized by multiple sector flights to offshore platforms under difficult environmental conditions. In the context of a Ministry of Transport program to improve safety levels of helicopter operations, we assessed effects of pre-duty

  18. A southern North Sea Miocene dinoflagellate cyst zonation

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Munsterman, D.K.; Brinkhuis, H.

    2004-01-01

    An integrated stratigraphical analysis emphasizing organic-walled dinoflagellate cyst (dinocyst) distribution has been carried out on multiple boreholes penetrating the Miocene in the subsurface of the Netherlands (southern North Sea Basin). The bulk of the investigated successions is attributed to

  19. Prey selection by North Sea herring (Clupea harengus) with special reference to fish eggs

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Segers, F.H.I.D.; Dickey-Collas, M.; Rijnsdorp, A.D.

    2007-01-01

    The herring stock in the North Sea in recent years has recovered to a relatively high biomass, and here we investigate prey selection of individual North Sea herring when population numbers are high. The diet composition, and specifically pelagic fish eggs, was investigated in February 2004. Samples

  20. Seamount physiography and biology in the north-east Atlantic and Mediterranean Sea

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    T. Morato

    2013-05-01

    Full Text Available This work aims at characterising the seamount physiography and biology in the OSPAR Convention limits (north-east Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea. We first inferred potential abundance, location and morphological characteristics of seamounts, and secondly, summarized the existing biological, geological and oceanographic in situ research, identifying examples of well-studied seamounts. Our study showed that the seamount population in the OSPAR area (north-east Atlantic and in the Mediterranean Sea is large with around 557 and 101 seamount-like features, respectively. Similarly, seamounts occupy large areas of about 616 000 km2 in the OSPAR region and of about 89 500 km2 in the Mediterranean Sea. The presence of seamounts in the north-east Atlantic has been known since the late 19th century, but overall knowledge regarding seamount ecology and geology is still relatively poor. Only 37 seamounts in the OSPAR area (3.5% of all seamounts in the region, 22 in the Mediterranean Sea (9.2% of all seamounts in the region and 25 in the north-east Atlantic south of the OSPAR area have in situ information. Seamounts mapped in both areas are in general very heterogeneous, showing diverse geophysical characteristics. These differences will likely affect the biological diversity and production of resident and associated organisms.

  1. Deglacial and Holocene sea-ice variability north of Iceland and response to ocean circulation changes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xiao, Xiaotong; Zhao, Meixun; Knudsen, Karen Luise; Sha, Longbin; Eiríksson, Jón; Gudmundsdóttir, Esther; Jiang, Hui; Guo, Zhigang

    2017-08-01

    Sea-ice conditions on the North Icelandic shelf constitute a key component for the study of the climatic gradients between the Arctic and the North Atlantic Oceans at the Polar Front between the cold East Icelandic Current delivering Polar surface water and the relatively warm Irminger Current derived from the North Atlantic Current. The variability of sea ice contributes to heat reduction (albedo) and gas exchange between the ocean and the atmosphere, and further affects the deep-water formation. However, lack of long-term and high-resolution sea-ice records in the region hinders the understanding of palaeoceanographic change mechanisms during the last glacial-interglacial cycle. Here, we present a sea-ice record back to 15 ka (cal. ka BP) based on the sea-ice biomarker IP25, phytoplankton biomarker brassicasterol and terrestrial biomarker long-chain n-alkanols in piston core MD99-2272 from the North Icelandic shelf. During the Bølling/Allerød (14.7-12.9 ka), the North Icelandic shelf was characterized by extensive spring sea-ice cover linked to reduced flow of warm Atlantic Water and dominant Polar water influence, as well as strong meltwater input in the area. This pattern showed an anti-phase relationship with the ice-free/less ice conditions in marginal areas of the eastern Nordic Seas, where the Atlantic Water inflow was strong, and contributed to an enhanced deep-water formation. Prolonged sea-ice cover with occasional occurrence of seasonal sea ice prevailed during the Younger Dryas (12.9-11.7 ka) interrupted by a brief interval of enhanced Irminger Current and deposition of the Vedde Ash, as opposed to abruptly increased sea-ice conditions in the eastern Nordic Seas. The seasonal sea ice decreased gradually from the Younger Dryas to the onset of the Holocene corresponding to increasing insolation. Ice-free conditions and sea surface warming were observed for the Early Holocene, followed by expansion of sea ice during the Mid-Holocene.

  2. Two centuries of observed atmospheric variability and change over the North Sea region

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stendel, Martin; van den Besselaar, Else; Hannachi, Abdel; Kent, Elizabeth; Lefebvre, Christiana; Rosenhagen, Gudrun; Schenk, Frederik; van der Schrier, Gerard; Woollings, Tim

    2016-04-01

    In the upcoming North Sea Region Climate Change Assessment (NOSCCA), we present a synthesis of current knowledge about past, present and possible future climate change in the North Sea region. A climate change assessment from published scientific work has been conducted as a kind of regional IPCC report, and a book has been produced that will be published by Springer in 2016. In the framework of the NOSCCA project, we examine past and present studies of variability and changes in atmospheric variables within the North Sea region over the instrumental period, roughly the past 200 years, based on observations and reanalyses. The variables addressed in this presentation are large-scale circulation, pressure and wind, surface air temperature, precipitation and radiative properties (clouds, solar radiation, and sunshine duration). While air temperature over land, not unexpectedly, has increased everywhere in the North Sea region, with strongest trends in spring and in the north of the region, a precipitation increase has been observed in the north and a decrease in the south of the region. This pattern goes along with a north-eastward shift of storm tracks and is in agreement with climate model projections under enhanced greenhouse gas concentrations. For other variables, it is not obvious which part of the observed changes may be due to anthropogenic activities and which is internally forced. It remains also unclear to what extent atmospheric circulation over the North Sea region is influenced by distant factors, in particular Arctic sea-ice decline in recent decades. There are indications of an increase in the number of deep cyclones (but not in the total number of cyclones), while storminess since the late 19th century shows no robust trends. The persistence of circulation types appears to have increased over the last century, and consequently, there is an indication for 'more extreme' extreme events. However, changes in extreme weather events are difficult to assess

  3. Impact of North Atlantic Current changes on the Nordic Seas and the Arctic Ocean

    OpenAIRE

    Kauker, Frank; Gerdes, Rüdiger; Karcher, Michael; Köberle, Cornelia

    2005-01-01

    The impact of North Atlantic Current (NAC) volume, heat, and salt transport variability onto the NordicSeas and the Arctic Ocean is investigated using numerical hindcast and sensitivity experiments. Theocean-sea ice model reproduces observed propagation pathways and speeds of SST anomalies.Part of the signal reaching the entrance to the Nordic Seas between Iceland and Scotland originatesin the lower latitude North Atlantic. Response experiments with different prescribed conditionsat 50N show ...

  4. Evidence for a Middle Pleistocene glaciation of MIS 8 age in the southern North Sea

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Beets, C.J.

    2005-01-01

    In the coresof borehole 89/2, situated at 541 00 010N and 51 00 040E about 70 km north of the Frisian Islands in the southern North Sea, two diamictonsle vels are found at 770 and 100m below sea floor (i.e. 7110 and 140 below present sea level), respectively. Both diamictonsap pear to be older than

  5. The North Sea contracting industry

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wright, P.J.C.

    1996-09-01

    The North Sea Contracting Industry provides in-depth profiles of major contracting organisations including manpower, facilities, expertise, future directions and financial details. It addresses key issues such as: how will the role of operators and contractors change toward 2000 and beyond?; how will the contractor-operator relationship develop?; will the contractors take a more speculative role in projects such as leasing and contract to produce?; does the future belong to broad skilled providers or small specialised niche players, or both?; and how will rapid technological improvements affect the industry? (author)

  6. North America-Greenland-Eurasian relative motions: implications for circum-arctic tectonic reconstructions

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Rowley, D.B.; Lottes, A.L.; Ziegler, A.M.

    1985-02-01

    The Mesozoic-Cenozoic tectonic evolution of the Circum-Arctic region is based on constraints imposed by (1) relative motion histories of the three major plates (North America, Greenland, and Eurasia) and a number of smaller pieces, and (2) distribution and age of sutures, accretionary prisms, volcanic arcs, fold-thrust belts, stretched continental crust, strike-slip faults, and ocean floor. The authors conclude that: (1) North America and Eurasia remained relatively fixed to each other until the latest Cretaceous-Paleocene opening of the Labrador Sea-Baffin Bay and Greenland-Norwegian and Eurasian basins (earlier convergence between North America and Eurasia in the Bering Sea region shown on many reconstructions are artifacts of incorrect plate reconstructions); (2) the North Slope-Seward-Chukotka block has constituted an isthmus connection between North America and northeast Asia since at least the middle Paleozoic and did not rotate away from the Canadian Arctic; (3) the Canada basin opened behind a clockwise-rotating Alpha Cordillera-Mendeleyev ridge arc during the Early to middle Cretaceous and consumed older, Paleozoic(.) Makarov basin ocean floor (the Chukchi cap is a detached continental fragment derived from the Beaufort Sea; the North Slope Arctic margin is a left-lateral transform fault associated with the opening of the Canada basin); and (4) the Nares Strait fault has a net relative displacement of approximately 25 km, but actual motion between Greenland and northern Ellesmere was about 250 km of strongly transpressive motion that resulted in the Eurekan and Svalbardian orogenies.

  7. Importance of ocean circulation in ecological modeling: An example from the North Sea

    Science.gov (United States)

    Skogen, Morten D.; Moll, Andreas

    2005-09-01

    There is an increasing number of ecological models for the North Sea around. Skogen and Moll (2000) [Skogen, M.D., Moll, A. 2000. Interannual variability of the North Sea primary production: comparison from two model studies. Continental Shelf Research 20 (2), 129-151] compared the interannual variability of the North Sea primary production using two state-of-the-art ecological models, NORWECOM and ECOHAM1. Their conclusion was that the two models agreed on an annual mean primary production, its variability and the timing and size of the peak production. On the other hand, there was a low (even negative dependent of area) correlation in the production in different years between the two models. In the present work, these conclusions are brought further. To try to better understand the observed differences between the two models, the two ecological models are run in an identical physical setting. With such a set-up also the interannual variability between the two models is in agreement, and it is concluded that the single most important factor for a reliable modeling of phytoplankton and nutrient distributions and transports within the North Sea is a proper physical model.

  8. Phytoplankton of the North Sea and its dynamics: A review

    Science.gov (United States)

    Reid, P. C.; Lancelot, C.; Gieskes, W. W. C.; Hagmeier, E.; Weichart, G.

    Phytoplankton is the major contributor to algal biomass and primary production of the North Sea, although crops of macroalgae can locally be up to 2000 g C.m -2 along the coast of the U.K. and Norway, and microphytobenthos dominates production in the shallow tidal flat areas bordering the coasts of England, the Netherlands, Germany and Denmark. Data collected since 1932 during the Continuous Plankton Recorder Survey show consistent patterns of geographical, seasonal and annual variation in the distribution of phytoplankton and its major taxonomic components. There is a trend of increased colouration in Recorder silks in the southern North Sea until approximately 1975 since when Colour levels (assumed to be indicative of algal biomass) have declined. In the eutrophic Dutch Wadden Sea the algal crop continued to increase; in Dutch coastal North Sea waters a trend of biomass increase reversed since 1984, apparently due to a reduction in Rhine river outflow. Long-term observations made at Helgoland since the 60's also show trends of increasing nutrients and phytoplankton biomass only to 1984. Adverse effects such as deoxygenation, foam formation and toxin production have been linked to mass concentrations of algae known as blooms. There is no evidence from existing reports for an increase in their frequency, although some years stand out with larger numbers. Occurrence of blooms can partly be explained by hydrographic conditions. More than 30 taxa are recognised as occurring in bloom proportions in the North Sea, approximately one third of which can be toxic. The crop of Bacillariophyceae (diatoms) is not likely to increase with eutrophication due to silicate limitation. An extensive subsurface maximum of armoured dinoflagellates, its abundance gouverned by hydrographic conditions, is the most characteristic feature of the central and northern North Sea in the summer months. Abundance, sometimes dominance, of picoplankton and of species that are not readily detected by

  9. Norwegian Ocean Observatory Network (NOON)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ferré, Bénédicte; Mienert, Jürgen; Winther, Svein; Hageberg, Anne; Rune Godoe, Olav; Partners, Noon

    2010-05-01

    The Norwegian Ocean Observatory Network (NOON) is led by the University of Tromsø and collaborates with the Universities of Oslo and Bergen, UniResearch, Institute of Marine Research, Christian Michelsen Research and SINTEF. It is supported by the Research Council of Norway and oil and gas (O&G) industries like Statoil to develop science, technology and new educational programs. Main topics relate to ocean climate and environment as well as marine resources offshore Norway from the northern North Atlantic to the Arctic Ocean. NOON's vision is to bring Norway to the international forefront in using cable based ocean observatory technology for marine science and management, by establishing an infrastructure that enables real-time and long term monitoring of processes and interactions between hydrosphere, geosphere and biosphere. This activity is in concert with the EU funded European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures (ESFRI) roadmap and European Multidisciplinary Seafloor Observation (EMSO) project to attract international leading research developments. NOON envisions developing towards a European Research Infrastructure Consortium (ERIC). Beside, the research community in Norway already possesses a considerable marine infrastructure that can expand towards an international focus for real-time multidisciplinary observations in times of rapid climate change. PIC The presently established cable-based fjord observatory, followed by the establishment of a cable-based ocean observatory network towards the Arctic from an O&G installation, will provide invaluable knowledge and experience necessary to make a successful larger cable-based observatory network at the Norwegian and Arctic margin (figure 1). Access to large quantities of real-time observation from the deep sea, including high definition video, could be used to provide the public and future recruits to science a fascinating insight into an almost unexplored part of the Earth beyond the Arctic Circle

  10. Grey gurnard ( Eutrigla gurnadus ) in the North Sea: an emerging key predator?

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Floeter, J.; Kempf, A.; Vinther, Morten

    2005-01-01

    Grey gurnard (Eutrigla gurnadus) is a widely distributed demersal species in the North Sea that has been ranked frequently among the 10 dominant species. Since the late 1980s, grey gurnard catch rates in the international bottom trawl surveys showed a pronounced increase and it was included...... as an "other predator" in the North Sea multispecies virtual population analysis (MSVPA) in 1997. The MSVPA results estimated grey gurnard to be responsible for approximately 60% of the total predation mortality on age-0 Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua). Long-term MSVPA predictions led to the extinction of North...... Sea cod. As a possible technical reason, the Holling type II functional response implemented in the model was discussed. In the current analysis, it was demonstrated that the Holling type II functional response was not responsible for the extinction of cod in the model, which was rather a true effect...

  11. Experience with the use of copper alloys in seawater systems in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Johnsen, Roy [Norwegian University of Science and Technology, NO-7491 Trondheim (Norway)

    2004-07-01

    Offshore oil and gas has been produced on the Norwegian Continental Shelf (NCS) for nearly 30 years. Seawater has been used extensively as cooling medium and firewater. Copper alloys have been an alternative material both for piping and equipment like pumps, valves, heat exchangers and screens. In this presentation the experience from the use from different oil companies will be presented. The paper will also contain a discussion about the future for copper alloys in seawater systems. This part will be based on input and discussions with senior corrosion specialists in oil companies. (authors)

  12. Phosphorus binding by poorly crystalline iron oxides in North Sea sediments

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Slomp, C.P.; Gaast, S. J. van der; Raaphorst, W. van

    1996-01-01

    Differential X-ray powder diffraction (DXRD) and extraction procedures were used to characterize the iron oxides present in four sediments from contrasting environments in the North Sea. Stations were located in depositional areas on the southern shelf (German Bight) and on the north-eastern

  13. Microbial water diversion technique-designed for near well treatment in low temperature sandstone reservoirs in the North Sea

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Paulsen, J.E.; Vatland, A. [RF-Rogaland Research, Stavanger (Norway); Sorheim, R. [SINTEF, Oslo (Norway)] [and others

    1995-12-31

    A Norwegian Research Program on Improved Oil Recovery (IOR) in North Sea reservoirs was launched in 1992. Microbial methods, applied in this context, is a part of this program. The scope, the methodological approach, and results from the three first years are presented. Water profile control, using biomass to block high permeable zones of a reservoir, has been investigated using nitrate-reducing bacteria in the injected sea water as plugging agents. Emphasis has been put on developing a process that does not have disadvantages secondary to the process itself, such as souring and impairment of the overall injectivity of the field. Data from continuous culture studies indicate that souring may successfully be mitigated by adding nitrite to the injected seawater. The morphology and size of generic-nitrate-reducing seawater bacteria have been investigated. Screening of growth-promoting nutrients has been carried out, and some sources were detected as favorable. Transport and penetration of bacteria in porous media have been given special attention. Investigations with sand packs, core models, and pore micromodels have been carried out. The inherent problems connected with permeability contrasts and flow patterns, versus bacterial behavior, are believed to be critical for the success of this technology. Data from the transport and blocking experiments with the porous matrices confirm this concern. The technology is primarily being developed for temperatures less than 40{degrees}C.

  14. Not normally manned compression platforms for the North Sea

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kumaran, K.S.

    1994-01-01

    Gas turbine driven gas compressors have been widely used on manned offshore facilities. Similarly unmanned gas turbine driven compressor stations have been in operation onshore with major gas transmission companies in Europe, North America and elsewhere. This paper summarizes a recent joint industry study to investigate the technical and economic feasibility of Not Normally Manned (NNM) Offshore Compression Facilities in terms of reliability, availability and maintainability. Classification of not normally manned (or unmanned) offshore facilities in the UK North Sea is in accordance with HSE Operations Notice 8. ON8 specifies criteria for offshore visits, visit hours and number of personnel on board for the operation of NNM platforms. This paper describes a typical Southern North Sea gas platform being considered for NNM compressor application. The conclusions from the study was that NNM compression is technically feasible with the facilities being able to provide an availability in excess of 98%. Life cycle costs were of the order of 70% of manned facilities thus significantly improving field development economics

  15. Inter-annual variability of North Sea plaice spawning habitat

    Science.gov (United States)

    Loots, C.; Vaz, S.; Koubbi, P.; Planque, B.; Coppin, F.; Verin, Y.

    2010-11-01

    Potential spawning habitat is defined as the area where environmental conditions are suitable for spawning to occur. Spawning adult data from the first quarter (January-March) of the International Bottom Trawl Survey have been used to study the inter-annual variability of the potential spawning habitat of North Sea plaice from 1980 to 2007. Generalised additive models (GAM) were used to create a model that related five environmental variables (depth, bottom temperature and salinity, seabed stress and sediment type) to presence-absence and abundance of spawning adults. Then, the habitat model was applied each year from 1970 to 2007 to predict inter-annual variability of the potential spawning habitat. Predicted responses obtained by GAM for each year were mapped using kriging. A hierarchical classification associated with a correspondence analysis was performed to cluster spawning suitable areas and to determine how they evolved across years. The potential spawning habitat was consistent with historical spawning ground locations described in the literature from eggs surveys. It was also found that the potential spawning habitat varied across years. Suitable areas were located in the southern part of the North Sea and along the eastern coast of England and Scotland in the eighties; they expanded further north from the nineties. Annual survey distributions did not show such northward expansion and remained located in the southern North Sea. This suggests that this species' actual spatial distribution remains stable against changing environmental conditions, and that the potential spawning habitat is not fully occupied. Changes in environmental conditions appear to remain within plaice environmental ranges, meaning that other factors may control the spatial distribution of plaice spawning habitat.

  16. Mechanisms controlling the intra-annual mesoscale variability of SST and SPM in the southern North Sea

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pietrzak, Julie D.; de Boer, Gerben J.; Eleveld, Marieke A.

    2011-04-01

    Thermal and optical remote sensing data were used to investigate the spatial and temporal distribution of sea surface temperature (SST) and of suspended particulate matter (SPM) in the southern North Sea. Monthly SST composites showed pronounced seasonal warming of the southern North Sea and delineated the English coastal and continental coastal waters. The East-Anglia Plume is the dominant feature of the English coastal waters in the winter and autumn SPM composites, and the Rhine region of freshwater influence (ROFI), including the Flemish Banks, is the dominant feature of the continental waters. These mesoscale spatial structures are also influenced by the evolution of fronts, such as the seasonal front separating well-mixed water in the southern Bight, from the seasonally stratified central North Sea waters. A harmonic analysis of the SST and SPM images showed pronounced seasonal variability, as well as spring-neap variations in the level of tidal mixing in the East Anglia Plume, the Rhine ROFI and central North Sea. The harmonic analysis indicates the important role played by the local meteorology and tides in governing the SST and near-surface SPM concentrations in the southern North Sea. In the summer, thermal stratification affects the visibility of SPM to satellite sensors in the waters to the north of the Flamborough and Frisian Fronts. Haline stratification plays an important role in the visibility of SPM in the Rhine ROFI throughout the year. When stratified, both regions typically exhibit low surface SPM values. A numerical model study, together with the harmonic analysis, highlights the importance of tides and waves in controlling the stratification in the southern North Sea and hence the visibility of SPM.

  17. Norwegian implementation of the Climate Convention; Norsk gjennomfoering av Klimakonvensjonen

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    1997-12-31

    The international climate cooperation has become one of the most important results of the UN conference on environment and development that took place in Rio in 1992. This report examines whether Norway has fulfilled the goal of the Climate Convention. Norway played an important role in the negotiations of the Climate Convention, on issues of joint implementation, on the need for a just sharing of burden and on the goal of cost effectiveness. Since the end of the 1980s, Norway has implemented a series of climate measures, although probably not all directly due to the Climate Convention. A carbon dioxide tax was introduced already in 1991. The effects of the measures are still uncertain, but they appear to be insufficient. Norwegian gas emissions are increasing. The increased oil- and gas activities in the North Sea and plans for a gas power station in the western part of Norway make it very difficult to attain the goal of stabilising the CO{sub 2} emissions on the 1989 level within the year 2000. The oil- and energy policy of the Norwegian government is being criticised by the opposition and by the environmental movement. It seems that it will become difficult for Norway to assume a leading role in international climate policy that is compatible with the same country`s business interests in the energy sector. 29 refs., 3 figs.

  18. New morphological and molecular evidence confirm the presence of the Norwegian skate Dipturus nidarosiensis (Storm, 1881) in the Mediterranean Sea and extend its distribution to the western basin

    OpenAIRE

    RAMÍREZ-AMARO, S.; ORDINES, F.; ÁNGEL PUERTO, M.; GARCÍA, C.; RAMON, C.; TERRASA, B.; MASSUTÍ, E.

    2017-01-01

    The present study confirms the presence of the Norwegian skate Dipturus nidarosiensis (Storm, 1881) in the Mediterranean Sea, by means of morphological traits and molecular markers providing the first record of this species in the Alboran Sea. Cannas et al. (2010) reported D. nidarosiensis for the first time in the Mediterranean from specimens captured in the central western basin, but Ebert & Stehmann (2013) and Stehmann et al. (2015) considered these records "likely refer to the smaller mor...

  19. An Ichthyophonus hoferi epizootic in herring in the North Sea, the Skagerrak, the Kattegat and the Baltic Sea

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Mellergaard, Stig; Spanggaard, Bettina

    1997-01-01

    An epizootic caused by the internal parasite Ichthyophonus hoferi in herring Clupea harengus was recorded from 1991 to 1993 in the waters around Denmark. A surveillance programme from research vessels and commercial fishing boats was conducted in the North Sea, Skagerrak, Kattegat and Baltic Sea...

  20. The North Atlantic Oscillation: variability and interactions with the North Atlantic ocean and Artic sea ice

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Jung, T

    2000-07-01

    The North Atlantic oscillation (NAO) represents the dominant mode of atmospheric variability in the North Atlantic region and describes the strengthening and weakening of the midlatitude westerlies. In this study, variability of the NAO during wintertime and its relationship to the North Atlantic ocean and Arctic sea ice is investigated. For this purpose, observational data are analyzed along with integrations of models for the Atlantic ocean, Arctic sea ice, and the coupled global climate system. From a statistical point of view, the observed NAO index shows unusually high variance on interdecadal time scales during the 20th century. Variability on other time scales is consistent with realizations of random processes (''white noise''). Recurrence of wintertime NAO anomalies from winter-to-winter with missing signals during the inbetween nonwinter seasons is primarily associated with interdecadal variability of the NAO. This recurrence indicates that low-frequency changes of the NAO during the 20th century were in part externally forced. (orig.)

  1. The North Atlantic Oscillation: variability and interactions with the North Atlantic ocean and Artic sea ice

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Jung, T.

    2000-07-01

    The North Atlantic oscillation (NAO) represents the dominant mode of atmospheric variability in the North Atlantic region and describes the strengthening and weakening of the midlatitude westerlies. In this study, variability of the NAO during wintertime and its relationship to the North Atlantic ocean and Arctic sea ice is investigated. For this purpose, observational data are analyzed along with integrations of models for the Atlantic ocean, Arctic sea ice, and the coupled global climate system. From a statistical point of view, the observed NAO index shows unusually high variance on interdecadal time scales during the 20th century. Variability on other time scales is consistent with realizations of random processes (''white noise''). Recurrence of wintertime NAO anomalies from winter-to-winter with missing signals during the inbetween nonwinter seasons is primarily associated with interdecadal variability of the NAO. This recurrence indicates that low-frequency changes of the NAO during the 20th century were in part externally forced. (orig.)

  2. Paleoenvironmental Reconstruction of the North Atlantic Current Variations from MIS 3 to Holocene Based on Multiproxy Record from the North-East Scotland Continental Margin.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ovsepyan, Y.; Tikhonova, A.; Novichkova, E.; Gupta, R. M.; Korsun, S.; Matul, A.

    2017-12-01

    In order to reconstruct the history of water mass interaction between the North Atlantic and the Nordic Seas since MIS 3 to the present, the sediment core from the North-East Scotland continental slope was investigated. The site of core AI-3521 (59°30.009 N, 7°20.062 E) from the 1051 m water depth is located beneath the pathway of the North Atlantic current which transports warm and saline Atlantic surface water to the Norwegian Sea. The age model of the sequence is based on stable isotope record of benthic Cassidulina neoteretis and planktic Neogloboquadrina pachyderma sin. and Globigerina bulloides. The Holocene interval of the upper 1.5 m is characterized by high sedimentation rates and the high biodiversity of microfauna. The distribution of ice rafted debris and CaCO3 content; benthic and planktic foraminiferal assemblages; oxygen, carbon and boron isotopes, Mg/Ca ratio were used to reconstruct the regional paleoceanographic conditions (bioproductivity, temperature, salinity) and to compare with the paleoclimatic events in the subpolar North Atlantic in the frame of the global environmental changes during the Late Pleistocene and Holocene. The research was supported by Russian Science Foundation projects 16-47-02009 and 14-50-00095.

  3. Effects of air-sea coupling over the North Sea and the Baltic Sea on simulated summer precipitation over Central Europe

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ho-Hagemann, Ha Thi Minh; Gröger, Matthias; Rockel, Burkhardt; Zahn, Matthias; Geyer, Beate; Meier, H. E. Markus

    2017-12-01

    This study introduces a new approach to investigate the potential effects of air-sea coupling on simulated precipitation inland over Central Europe. We present an inter-comparison of two regional climate models (RCMs), namely, the COSMO-CLM (hereafter CCLM) and RCA4 models, which are configured for the EURO-CORDEX domain in the coupled and atmosphere-only modes. Two versions of the CCLM model, namely, 4.8 and 5.0, join the inter-comparison being almost two different models while providing pronouncedly different summer precipitation simulations because of many changes in the dynamics and physics of CCLM in version 5.0. The coupling effect on the prominent summer dry bias over Central Europe is analysed using seasonal (JJA) mean statistics for the 30-year period from 1979 to 2009, with a focus on extreme precipitation under specific weather regimes. The weather regimes are compared between the coupled and uncoupled simulations to better understand the mechanism of the coupling effects. The comparisons of the coupled systems with the atmosphere-only models show that coupling clearly reduces the dry bias over Central Europe for CCLM 4.8, which has a large dry summer bias, but not for CCLM 5.0 and RCA4, which have smaller dry biases. This result implies that if the atmosphere-only model already yields reasonable summer precipitation over Central Europe, not much room for improvement exists that can be caused by the air-sea coupling over the North Sea and the Baltic Sea. However, if the atmosphere-only model shows a pronounced summer dry bias because of a lack of moisture transport from the seas into the region, the considered coupling may create an improved simulation of summer precipitation over Central Europe, such as for CCLM 4.8. For the latter, the benefit of coupling varies over the considered timescales. The precipitation simulations that are generated by the coupled system COSTRICE 4.8 and the atmosphere-only CCLM 4.8 are mostly identical for the summer mean

  4. Carbon and nutrient mixed layer dynamics in the Norwegian Sea

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    H. S. Findlay

    2008-10-01

    Full Text Available A coupled carbon-ecosystem model is compared to recent data from Ocean Weather Station M (66° N, 02° E and used as a tool to investigate nutrient and carbon processes within the Norwegian Sea. Nitrate is consumed by phytoplankton in the surface layers over the summer; however the data show that silicate does not become rapidly limiting for diatoms, in contrast to the model prediction and in contrast to data from other temperate locations. The model estimates atmosphere-ocean CO2 flux to be 37 g C m−2 yr−1. The seasonal cycle of the carbonate system at OWS M resembles the cycles suggested by data from other high-latitude ocean locations. The seasonal cycles of calcite saturation state and [CO32-] are similar in the model and in data at OWS M: values range from ~3 and ~120 μmol kg−1 respectively in winter, to ~4 and ~170 μmol kg−1 respectively in summer. The model and data provide further evidence (supporting previous modelling work that the summer is a time of high saturation state within the annual cycle at high-latitude locations. This is also the time of year that coccolithophore blooms occur at high latitudes.

  5. Buried paleo-sedimentary basins in the north-eastern Black Sea-Azov Sea area and tectonic implications (DOBRE-2)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Starostenko, Vitaly; Stephenson, Randell; Janik, Tomasz; Tolkunov, Anatoly

    2014-05-01

    A number of independent but inter-related projects carried out under the auspices of various national and international programmes in Ukraine including DARIUS were aimed at imaging the upper lithosphere, crustal and sedimentary basin architecture in the north-eastern Black Sea, southern Crimea and Kerch peninsulas and the Azov Sea. This region marks the transition from relatively undisturbed Precambrian European cratonic crust and lithosphere north of the Azov Sea to areas of significant Phanerozoic tectonics and basin development, in both extensional as well as compressional environments, to the south, including the eastern Black Sea rift, which is the main sedimentary basin of the study area. The wide-angle reflection and refraction (WARR) profile DOBRE-2, a Ukrainian national project with international participation (see below), overlapping some 115 km of the southern end of the DOBREfraction'99 profile (that crosses the intracratonic Donbas Foldbelt) in the north and running to the eastern Black Sea basin in the south, utilised on- and offshore recording and energy sources. It maps crustal velocity structure across the craton margin and documents, among other things, that the Moho deepens from 40 km to ~47 km to the southwest below the Azov Sea and Crimean-Caucasus deformed zone. A regional CDP seismic profile coincident with DOBRE-2, crossing the Azov Sea, Kerch Peninsula and the north-eastern Black Sea southwest to the Ukraine-Turkey border, acquired by Ukrgeofisika (the Ukrainian national geophysical company) reveals in its inferred structural relationships the ages of Cretaceous and younger extensional and subsequent basin inversion tectonic events as well as the 2D geometry of basement displacement associated with post mid-Eocene inversion. A direct comparison of the results of the WARR velocity model and the near-vertical reflection structural image has been made by converting the former into the time domain. The results dramatically demonstrate that

  6. Distribution and sources of dissolved black carbon in surface waters of the Chukchi Sea, Bering Sea, and the North Pacific Ocean

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nakane, Motohiro; Ajioka, Taku; Yamashita, Youhei

    2017-05-01

    Pyrogenic carbon, also called black carbon (BC), is an important component in the global carbon cycle. BC produced by biomass burning or fossil fuel combustion is transported to oceans by the atmosphere or rivers. However, environmental dynamics (i.e., major sources and sinks) of BC in marine environments have not been well documented. In this study, dissolved BC (DBC) collected from surface waters of the Chukchi Sea, the Bering Sea, and the subarctic and subtropical North Pacific were analyzed using the benzene polycarboxylic acid (BPCA) method. The DBC concentration and the ratio of B5CA and B6CA to all BPCAs (an index of the DBC condensation degree) ranged from 4.8 to 15.5 µg-C L-1 and from 0.20 to 0.43, respectively, in surface waters of the Chukchi/Bering Seas and the North Pacific Ocean. The concentration and condensation degree of DBC in the Chukchi/Bering Seas were higher and more variable than those in the subarctic and subtropical North Pacific, which implies that the major factors controlling DBC distribution were different in these marine provinces. In the Chukchi/Bering Seas, the DBC concentration was negatively correlated to salinity but positively correlated to chromophoric dissolved organic matter (CDOM) quantity and total dissolved lignin phenol concentration estimated by CDOM parameters. These correlations indicated that the possible major source of DBC in the Chukchi/Bering Seas was Arctic rivers. However, in the North Pacific, where riverine inputs are negligible for most sampling sites, DBC was possibly derived from the atmosphere. Although spectral slopes of CDOM at 275-295 nm (an index of the photodegradation degree of CDOM) differed widely between the subarctic and subtropical North Pacific, the concentration and condensation degrees of DBC were similar between the subarctic and subtropical North Pacific, which suggests that photodegradation was not the only major factor controlling DBC distribution. Therefore, DBC distributions of the

  7. Arctic fox (Alopex lagopus) from the North Sea

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Langeveld, Bram W.; Mol, Dick; van der Plicht, Hans

    2018-01-01

    The first record of arctic fox Alopex lagopus (Linnaeus, 1758) from the Eurogeul area (North Sea) is reported based on a distal humerus fragment collected by private collectors from dredged sediments on ‘De Zandmotor’. It was radiocarbon dated to 29,900 + 550/- 490 BP (GrA-69520), which is younger

  8. Analysis of North Sea Offshore Wind Power Variability

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Buatois, A.; Gibescu, M.; Rawn, B.G.; Van der Meijden, M.A.M.M.

    2014-01-01

    This paper evaluates, for a 2030 scenario, the impact on onshore power systems in terms of the variability of the power generated by 81 GW of offshore wind farms installed in the North Sea. Meso-scale reanalysis data are used as input for computing the hourly power production for offshore wind

  9. The caesium 137 content in the water of the North Sea during the years 1969 to 1975

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kautsky, H.

    1976-01-01

    In April 1975, about 34,000 Ci Caesium 137 in a water mass of about 30,500 km 3 was found in the area of the North Sea that we investigated between 51 0 N to 60 0 N and 4 0 W to 10 0 E. This represented a mean concentration of about 1.1 Ci/km 3 or 1.1 pCi/l water. Concentration variations of between 0.44 to 2.2 pCi/l in the different areas of the North Sea were measured. As compared with ICRP Standards, 137 Cs concentrations in sea water of up to some 900 pCi/l may be viewed as a still permissible limit (IAEA, 1970). The development of the 137 Cs content in the North Sea from 1969 to 1975 is discussed. Especially, the temporal changes in concentrations in different sections of the North Sea will be compared. These clearly show the different influence in different sections of the radioactive waste waters of the three coastal European nuclear fuel reprocessing plants on the content of radioactive fission products as well as their spreading in the water of the North Sea. (orig./HP) [de

  10. Warming in the Nordic Seas, North Atlantic storms and thinning Arctic sea ice

    Science.gov (United States)

    Alexeev, Vladimir A.; Walsh, John E.; Ivanov, Vladimir V.; Semenov, Vladimir A.; Smirnov, Alexander V.

    2017-08-01

    Arctic sea ice over the last few decades has experienced a significant decline in coverage both in summer and winter. The currently warming Atlantic Water layer has a pronounced impact on sea ice in the Nordic Seas (including the Barents Sea). More open water combined with the prevailing atmospheric pattern of airflow from the southeast, and persistent North Atlantic storms such as the recent extremely strong Storm Frank in December 2015, lead to increased energy transport to the high Arctic. Each of these storms brings sizeable anomalies of heat to the high Arctic, resulting in significant warming and slowing down of sea ice growth or even melting. Our analysis indicates that the recently observed sea ice decline in the Nordic Seas during the cold season around Svalbard, Franz Joseph Land and Novaya Zemlya, and the associated heat release from open water into the atmosphere, contributed significantly to the increase in the downward longwave radiation throughout the entire Arctic. Added to other changes in the surface energy budget, this increase since the 1960s to the present is estimated to be at least 10 W m-2, which can result in thinner (up to at least 15-20 cm) Arctic ice at the end of the winter. This change in the surface budget is an important contributing factor accelerating the thinning of Arctic sea ice.

  11. Modelling thermal stratification in the North Sea: Application of a 2-D potential energy model

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nielsen, Morten Holtegaard; St. John, Michael

    2001-01-01

    is forced with wind, dew point temperature from Ekofisk oilfield in the central North Sea, and tidal current and atmospheric radiation. The model is used to simulate the seasonal cycle of stratification in the central North Sea in the years 1988, 1989 and 1990 and is compared to density profiles...

  12. Plutonium and americium in arctic waters, the North Sea and Scottish and Irish coastal zones

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hallstadius, L.; Aarkrog, Asker; Dahlgaard, Henning

    1986-01-01

    Plutonium and americium have been measured in surface waters of the Greenland and Barents Seas and in the northern North Sea from 1980 through 1984. Measurements in water and biota, Fucus, Mytilus and Patella, were carried out in North-English and Scottish waters in 1982 and Fucus samples were co...

  13. Cloud amount/frequency, NITRATE and other data from POISK, FRITJOF NANSEN and other platforms in the NE Atlantic and Norwegian Sea from 1969-04-17 to 1980-09-28 (NODC Accession 9000077)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Russian Ocean Station data was collected in Norwegian Sea and NE Atlantic (limit-40 W) using four different Ships by Polar Research and Designing Institute of...

  14. Pelagic origin and fate of sedimenting particles in the Norwegian Sea

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bathmann, Ulrich V.; Peinert, Rolf; Noji, Thomas T.; Bodungen, Bodo V.

    A 17 month record of vertical particle flux of dry weight, carbonate and organic carbon were 25.8, 9.4 and 2.4g.m -2y -1, respectively. Parallel to trap deployments, pelagic system structure was recorded with high vertical and temporal resolution. Within a distinct seasonal cycle of vertical particle flux, zooplankton faecal pellets of various sizes, shapes and contents were collected by the traps in different proportions and quantities throughout the year (range: 0-4,500 10 3m -2d -1). The remains of different groups of organisms showed distinct seasonal variations in abundance. In early summer there was a small maximum in the diatom flux and this was followed by pulses of tinntinids, radiolarians, foraminiferans and pteropods between July and November. Food web interactions in the water column were important in controlling the quality and quantity of sinking materials. For example, changes in the population structure of dominant herbivores, the break-down of regenerating summer populations of microflagellates and protozooplankton and the collapse of a pteropod dominated community, each resulted in marked sedimentation pulses. These data from the Norwegian Sea indicate those mechanisms which either accelerate or counteract loss of material via sedimentation. These involve variations in the structure of the pelagic system and they operatè on long (e.g. annual plankton succession) and short (e.g. the end of new production, sporadic grazing of swarm feeders) time scales. Connecting investigation of the water column with a high resolution in time in parallel with drifting sediment trap deployments and shipboard experiments with the dominant zooplankters is a promising approach for giving a better understanding of both the origin and the fate of material sinking to the sea floor.

  15. Radioactive inputs to the North Sea and the Channel

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1984-01-01

    The subject is covered in sections: introduction (radioactivity; radioisotopes; discharges from nuclear establishments); data sources (statutory requirements); sources of liquid radioactive waste (figure showing location of principal sources of radioactive discharges; tables listing principal discharges by activity and by nature of radioisotope); Central Electricity Generating Board nuclear power stations; research and industrial establishments; Ministy of Defence establishments; other UK inputs of radioactive waste; total inputs to the North Sea and the Channel (direct inputs; river inputs; adjacent sea areas); conclusions. (U.K.)

  16. Formation of Barents Sea Branch Water in the north-eastern Barents Sea

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vidar S. Lien

    2013-09-01

    Full Text Available The Barents Sea throughflow accounts for approximately half of the Atlantic Water advection to the Arctic Ocean, while the other half flows through Fram Strait. Within the Barents Sea, the Atlantic Water undergoes considerable modifications before entering the Arctic Ocean through the St. Anna Trough. While the inflow area in the south-western Barents Sea is regularly monitored, oceanographic data from the outflow area to the north-east are very scarce. Here, we use conductivity, temperature and depth data from August/September 2008 to describe in detail the water masses present in the downstream area of the Barents Sea, their spatial distribution and transformations. Both Cold Deep Water, formed locally through winter convection and ice-freezing processes, and Atlantic Water, modified mainly through atmospheric cooling, contribute directly to the Barents Sea Branch Water. As a consequence, it consists of a dense core characterized by a temperature and salinity maximum associated with the Atlantic Water, in addition to the colder, less saline and less dense core commonly referred to as the Barents Sea Branch Water core. The denser core likely constitutes a substantial part of the total flow, and it is more saline and considerably denser than the Fram Strait branch as observed within the St. Anna Trough. Despite the recent warming of the Barents Sea, the Barents Sea Branch Water is denser than observed in the 1990s, and the bottom water observed in the St. Anna Trough matches the potential density at 2000 m depth in the Arctic Ocean.

  17. Temperature, salinity, and nutrients data collected from North Atlantic Ocean, White Sea, Mediterranean Sea, Black Sea, and Sea of Azov from 1924-03-19 to 1989-11-19 by multiple Soviet Union institutes (NODC Accession 0077413)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Temperature, salinity, and nutrients data collected from North Atlantic Ocean, White Sea, Mediterranean Sea, Black Sea, and Sea of Azov from 1924-03-19 to 1989-11-19...

  18. Transport, preservation and accumulation of organic carbon in the North Sea

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Haas, H. de

    1997-01-01

    This thesis contains the results of the research on the burial of organic carbon in the North Sea as it was carried out at the Netherlands Institute for Sea Research in the period 1993-1997. Carbon in the form of carbon dioxide (C02 ) is one of the major contributors to the natural greenhouse

  19. Transport, preservation and accumulation of organic carbon in the North Sea

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    de Haas, H.

    1997-01-01

    This thesis contains the results of the research on the burial of organic carbon in the North Sea as it was carried out at the Netherlands Institute for Sea Research in the period 1993-1997. Carbon in the form of carbon dioxide (CO2 ) is one of the major contributors to the natural greenhouse

  20. Land-sea coupling of early Pleistocene glacial cycles in the southern North Sea exhibit dominant Northern Hemisphere forcing

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Donders, Timme; Van Helmond, Niels A.G.M.; Verreussel, Roel; Munsterman, Dirk; Veen, Johan Ten; Speijer, Robert P.; Weijers, Johan W.H.; Sangiorgi, Francesca; Peterse, Francien; Reichart, Gert-Jan; Sinninghe Damsté, Jaap S.; Lourens, Lucas; Kuhlmann, Gesa; Brinkhuis, Henk

    2018-01-01

    We assess the disputed phase relations between forcing and climatic response in the early Pleistocene with a spliced Gelasian (ĝ1/4 2.6-1.8ĝ€Ma) multi-proxy record from the southern North Sea basin. The cored sections couple climate evolution on both land and sea during the intensification of

  1. Detection of oil spills near offshore installations using synthetic aperture radar (SAR)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Espedal, H.A.; Johannessen, O.M.

    2000-01-01

    Remote sensing using synthetic aperture radar (SAR) is attracting increasing interest for the detection of oil spills from offshore oil installations. Three systems are already operating and three more are planned. SAR can provide high spatial resolution and is not affected by the time of day or cloud conditions. Examples of images obtained from UK and Norwegian offshore installations are shown and their interpretation are explained. SAR image analysis is used by a satellite-based oil spill monitoring service covering the Norwegian sector of the North Sea and part of the North Sea, the Norwegian Sea and the Baltic Sea. An algorithm has been developed at the Nansen Environmental and Remote Sensing Centre (NERSC) in Norway to help distinguish between oil spills, natural films, current shear zones and rain cells

  2. Petroleum Economist's 1993 North Sea survey

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anon.

    1993-01-01

    A survey is presented for 51 oil fields in the North Sea belonging to the United Kingdom, 17 belonging to Norway, 4 belonging to the Netherlands and 7 belonging to Denmark. Similarly data is presented for 32 gas fields belonging to the United Kingdom, 5 belonging to Norway, 42 belonging to the Netherlands, and 1 belonging to Denmark. The information given in the surveys includes the original recoverable reserves, remaining reserves, water depth, gravity, sulphur content, discovery date, start-up date, participants and production. (U.K.)

  3. Environment 2004. The Norwegian petroleum sector

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gooderham, Rolf E. (ed.)

    2004-07-01

    The Ministry of Petroleum and Energy produces an annual environmental review in cooperation with the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate. The purpose of this publication is threefold: (1) to increase knowledge about the environmental aspects of Norwegian oil and gas activities, (2) to take a more detailed look at a specific topic which particularly concerns both the industry and the authorities, and identify the challenges and options faced, (3) to emphasise the government's goal of ensuring that Norway reconciles its role as a large energy producer with a pioneering position on environmental issues. This year's edition focuses on the topic of produced water treatment techniques. It demonstrates that new Norwegian technology helps to limit the risk of environmental harm. New treatment techniques have been developed and adopted, but it can be difficult to understand why a specific solution is not applicable to every field. Through the thematic section in part 2, we endeavour to explain why the choice of solution will vary from field to field, and how that reflects such considerations as technical reservoir conditions and costs. The strong focus on the environmental aspects of Norwegian oil and gas production has undoubtedly helped to make the Norwegian petroleum sector a leader in this area. That reflects both the way the authorities have incorporated environmental considerations extensively into the industry's frame conditions, and from the commitment made by the industry itself. Environment 2004 also incorporates a factual section, which covers the status of emissions discharges, environmental impacts, measures to reduce discharges to the sea and emissions to the air from petroleum activities.

  4. Assessment of the environmental status for the North Sea and Baltic Sea

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Larsen, Martin Mørk; Fryer, Rob; Andersen, Jesper H.

    to or at background”, green for “no harmful effect to the environment” and red for unacceptable. The HELCOM goals set out in the Baltic Sea action plan are similar, “concentrations of hazardous substances close to natural levels”, “all fish safe to eat”, and “healthy wildlife”. The assessment criteria used......The two Conventions for the Baltic Sea (Helsinki, HELCOM) and the North Sea (Oslo-Paris, OSPAR) both are in the process of assessing the state of the marine environment and producing Quality Status reports for their regions for publication in 2010. These assessments will be part of the basis...... for Marine Strategy work in the EU. An overview of the time trends and status for metals, PCBs and PAHs in biota and sediment for the convention areas will be presented, and the scientific basis for the assessments and how results from different contaminant groups and wider areas are aggregated...

  5. Sensitivity of Calanus spp. copepods to environmental changes in the North Sea using life-stage structured models

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Maar, Marie; Møller, Eva Friis; Gürkan, Zeren

    2013-01-01

    Sea because it allows them to utilize the spring bloom more efficiently and independently of the timing and amount of oceanic inflow. The combination of lower temperatures, higher overwintering and oceanic inflow simulating the situation in the 1960s largely favoured C. finmarchicus and their relative......, overwintering and oceanic inflow in the North Sea. Life-stage structured models are validated against CPR data and vertical distributions north of the Dogger Bank in the North Sea for the reference year 2005. The model shows that 1) ± 2°C changes from the current level mainly influence the seasonal patterns...... and not the relative occurrence of the two species, 2) changes due to oceanic inflow mainly appeared in the northern and southern part of the North Sea connected to the NE Atlantic and not in the central part and 3) the abundance of Calanus species were very sensitive to the degree of overwintering within the North...

  6. Remarks on the sea level records of the north Indian ocean

    Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

    Unnikrishnan, A.S.

    variability in the tide gauge records along the coasts of the north Indian Ocean A. S. Unnikrishnan National Institute of Oceanography, Dona Paula, Goa, India 403004 e-mail: unni@nio.org Introduction Global sea-level rise has been relatively well... studied by making use of the coastal tide gauge data that are available (Woodworth and Player, 2003) through the Permanent Service for Mean Sea Level (PSMSL). However, studies on regional sea level rise have not gathered momentum, similar to those on a...

  7. The contribution of ship emissions to air pollution in the North Sea regions

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Matthias, Volker, E-mail: volker.matthias@gkss.d [GKSS Research Centre Geesthacht, Institute for Coastal Research, Max-Planck-Strasse 1, 21502 Geesthacht (Germany); Bewersdorff, Ines [GKSS Research Centre Geesthacht, Institute for Coastal Research, Max-Planck-Strasse 1, 21502 Geesthacht (Germany); Aulinger, Armin, E-mail: armin.aulinger@gkss.d [GKSS Research Centre Geesthacht, Institute for Coastal Research, Max-Planck-Strasse 1, 21502 Geesthacht (Germany); Quante, Markus, E-mail: markus.quante@gkss.d [GKSS Research Centre Geesthacht, Institute for Coastal Research, Max-Planck-Strasse 1, 21502 Geesthacht (Germany)

    2010-06-15

    As a consequence of the global distribution of manufacturing sites and the increasing international division of labour, ship traffic is steadily increasing and is becoming more and more important as an origin of air pollution. This study investigates the impact of ship emissions in coastal areas of the North Sea under conditions of the year 2000 by means of a regional chemistry transport model which runs on a sufficiently high resolution to study air pollution in coastal regions. It was found that northern Germany and Denmark in summer suffer from more than 50% higher sulphate, nitrate and ammonium aerosol concentrations due to contributions from ships. The implementation of a sulphur emission control area (SECA) in the North Sea, as it was implemented at the end of 2007, directly results in reduced sulphur dioxide and sulphate aerosol concentrations while nitrate aerosol concentrations are slightly increased. - Ship emissions lead to significantly enhanced air pollution by secondary inorganic aerosols in North Sea coastal areas.

  8. Radioactive contamination at dumping sites for nuclear waste in the Kara Sea. Results from the Russian-Norwegian 1993 expedition to the Kara Sea

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Strand, P; Rudjord, A L [Statens Straalevern, Oesteraas (Norway); Salbu, B [Norges Landbrukshoegskole, Vollebekk (Norway); and others

    1994-11-01

    During the 1993 Joint Russian-Norwegian Expedition to the Kara Sea, three dumping sites for nuclear waste were investigated: The Tsivolky Bay, the Stepovogo bay and an area in the open Kara Sea (The Novaya Zemlya Trough). Dumped waste was localized and inspected in the Tsivolky Bay and in the Stepovogo Bay using side scanning sonar and underwater camera. In the Stepovogo Bay, the dumped nuclear submarine no. 601, containing spent nuclear fuel was localized. Samples of waters, sediments and biota were collected at nine stations and later analyzed for several radionuclides (gammaemitters, {sup 90}Sr, {sup 238}Pu, {sup 239,240}Pu and {sup 241}Am). The analyses of the samples al the following conclusions to be drawn: (1) Elevated levels of {sup 137}Cs and {sup 90}Sr and presence of {sup 60}Co were observed in the inner part of the Stepovogo Bay, and in one sample collected close to the hull of the dumped nuclear submarine in the Stepovogo Bay. {sup 60}Co was also observed in the Tsivolky Bay. This radioactive contamination most likely originates from the dumped radioactive material. It may be due to leaching from the waste. (2) The enhanced levels of contamination caused by dumped nuclear waste are still low and restricted to small areas. Thus, radiation doses from the existing contamination would be negligible. Radioactive contamination outside these areas is similar to the activity levels in the open Kara Sea. 46 refs.

  9. Radioactive contamination at dumping sites for nuclear waste in the Kara Sea. Results from the Russian-Norwegian 1993 expedition to the Kara Sea

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Strand, P.; Rudjord, A.L.; Salbu, B.

    1994-11-01

    During the 1993 Joint Russian-Norwegian Expedition to the Kara Sea, three dumping sites for nuclear waste were investigated: The Tsivolky Bay, the Stepovogo bay and an area in the open Kara Sea (The Novaya Zemlya Trough). Dumped waste was localized and inspected in the Tsivolky Bay and in the Stepovogo Bay using side scanning sonar and underwater camera. In the Stepovogo Bay, the dumped nuclear submarine no. 601, containing spent nuclear fuel was localized. Samples of waters, sediments and biota were collected at nine stations and later analyzed for several radionuclides (gammaemitters, 90 Sr, 238 Pu, 239,240 Pu and 241 Am). The analyses of the samples al the following conclusions to be drawn: 1) Elevated levels of 137 Cs and 90 Sr and presence of 60 Co were observed in the inner part of the Stepovogo Bay, and in one sample collected close to the hull of the dumped nuclear submarine in the Stepovogo Bay. 60 Co was also observed in the Tsivolky Bay. This radioactive contamination most likely originates from the dumped radioactive material. It may be due to leaching from the waste. 2) The enhanced levels of contamination caused by dumped nuclear waste are still low and restricted to small areas. Thus, radiation doses from the existing contamination would be negligible. Radioactive contamination outside these areas is similar to the activity levels in the open Kara Sea. 46 refs

  10. Temporal Variation of Iodine Isotopes in the North Sea

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    He, Peng; Aldahan, Ala; Possnert, Göran

    2014-01-01

    Monitoring temporal variability of 129I in the North Sea, a relatively large reservoir of radioactive discharges from the nuclear fuel reprocessing facilities, is vital for the environmental situation in the region. New information on concentration levels and distribution of 129I and 127I and the...

  11. Seabird biomass and food consumption in the North Sea

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Furness, R.W.

    1984-07-01

    Calculations presented by Bourne contain some order-of-magnitude errors, and give the misleading impression that estimates of fish consumption by seabirds in the North Sea may be as low as 0.25%, or as high as 48%, of fish production, depending on the method of calculation. It is likely that the true figure is closer to 20% once the errors in Bourne's calculations are corrected, but several areas of uncertainty require further study; particularly seabird diets and foraging ranges, fish distribution and movements. Studies from other parts of the world show that seabird numbers can dramatically alter in response to changes in food abundance. Some changes result from natural perturbations and others from effects of overexploitation of fish stocks by man. Effects of overfishing seem likely to be potentially, at least as serious, as effects of oil or chemical pollution in many regions, possibly including the North Sea. 48 references.

  12. Quantifying pelagic-benthic coupling in the North Sea: Are we asking the right question?

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Richardson, K.; Cedhagen, T.

    2002-01-01

    is devoted to obtaining more and better data describing this exchange. Efforts to quantify exchange between the water column and the sediment must continue. However, such studies will not, in themselves, lead to a quantification of pelagic-benthic coupling in the North Sea. We identify here other areas......The coupling between pelagic and benthic processes occurs through the signals sent between the water column and the seabed. Huge methodological challenges are associated with the quantification of the signals being sent between these two domains - especially in a relatively shallow and heavily...... fished region such as the North Sea where deployment of sediment traps or bottom mounted cameras or samplers is difficult. Thus, there are relatively few sites in the North Sea for which good data are available for describing pelagic-benthic (or near shore-offsbore) coupling and considerable effort...

  13. The radon-222 transfer coefficients across air-sea interface determined in the Bering Sea, the Okhotsk Sea and the North Pacific Ocean

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kholujskij, S.N.; Anikiev, V.V.; Popov, N.I.

    1995-01-01

    Determination of velocity coefficient for gas flow transfer across the natural sea surface into the atmosphere (K v ) was attempted by means of radon method on board the SRS Academician Alexander Nesmeyanov (July-August 1992). The measurements were conducted in the Bering Sea, the Okhotsk Sea and in the North Pacific Ocean. It is shown that the total range of the K v observed values equaled from 1.8 up to 5.4 m.day, which is within the known limits for other regions of the world ocean. 9 refs., 1 fig

  14. Contrasting records of sea-level change in the eastern and western North Atlantic during the last 300 years

    Science.gov (United States)

    Long, A. J.; Barlow, N. L. M.; Gehrels, W. R.; Saher, M. H.; Woodworth, P. L.; Scaife, R. G.; Brain, M. J.; Cahill, N.

    2014-02-01

    We present a new 300-year sea-level reconstruction from a salt marsh on the Isle of Wight (central English Channel, UK) that we compare to other salt-marsh and long tide-gauge records to examine spatial and temporal variability in sea-level change in the North Atlantic. Our new reconstruction identifies an overall rise in relative sea level (RSL) of c. 0.30 m since the start of the eighteenth century at a rate of 0.9±0.3 mm yr. Error-in-variables changepoint analysis indicates that there is no statistically significant deviation from a constant rate within the dataset. The reconstruction is broadly comparable to other tide-gauge and salt-marsh records from the European Atlantic, demonstrating coherence in sea level in this region over the last 150-300 years. In contrast, we identify significant differences in the rate and timing of RSL with records from the east coast of North America. The absence of a strong late 19th/early 20th century RSL acceleration contrasts with that recorded in salt marsh sediments along the eastern USA coastline, in particular in a well-dated and precise sea-level reconstruction from North Carolina. This suggests that this part of the North Carolina sea level record represents a regionally specific sea level acceleration. This is significant because the North Carolina record has been used as if it were globally representative within semi-empirical parameterisations of past and future sea-level change. We conclude that regional-scale differences of sea-level change highlight the value of using several, regionally representative RSL records when calibrating and testing semi-empirical models of sea level against palaeo-records. This is because by using records that potentially over-estimate sea-level rise in the past such models risk over-estimating sea-level rise in the future.

  15. Independent companies in the North Sea - exploration and operations opportunities

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Greentree, C.

    1992-01-01

    The North Sea was the launching pad for many independent oil companies, particularly through exploration success in the UK and the Netherlands. Norway has an excellent history of oil exploration but, for the independents, the onerous tax regime, long lead times, and terms of trade are simply not conducive to the higher rate of return demanded by shareholders of independent E and P companies in exchange for shouldering the heavy burden of risk. The UK in particular has pursued imaginative licensing, tax and legislative policies which have allowed the independents an opportunity to participate and grow. The attraction of the UK is clearly reflected by the constant arrival of new entrants, even at this stage of maturity. This was demonstrated in the recent round of license awards. Such has been the success of the independents in the UK that, beginning with virtually nothing, they now hold a net 28% of the UK North Sea acreage, and a net 25% of its oil reserves. Equally, the independents play an important role in ensuring the comprehensive exploration of the offshore areas. Because of size and significance, a prime objective of the independents will remain the early evaluation, through drilling, and development of offshore interests to generate a financial return. This paper addresses the question of how independent companies can expand in the North Sea when the size and quality of new range acreage available through new license awards is reducing. (author)

  16. The North Sea Bird Club

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Doyle, P.A.T.; Gorman, M.L.; Patterson, I.J.; Howe, S.

    1991-01-01

    This paper reports that the creation of a club for the purpose of encouraging oil and gas workers to watch birds may not at first seem a viable proposition. To the layperson, birds offshore conjures up an image of hundreds of seagulls following fishing boats, and very little else. Also, the act of birdwatching is not seen as a typical offshore worker's activity. Anyone who has worked on an installation offshore and who has any interest in wildlife will be aware of the occasional presence of land-birds. Two decades ago, prompted by some keen offshore workers, a single oil company set up a monitoring program, which quickly became popular with a number of its employees. Birds seem offshore were recorded on data forms and collected together. At this stage the club was purely another recreation facility; however, when the data were collated it was soon realized that installations offshore were being used as staging posts by birds on migration, and that the information being collected would be of great interest in the study of bird movements. All over Britain, at strategic points on the coastline, there are bird observatories which record the arrival and departure of migrating birds. The presence of several hundred solid structures up and down the North Sea, which are used by birds en route, represents a huge, unique bird observatory, capable of uncovering facts about bird migration which have long eluded land-based scientists. Eleven years ago, the North Sea Bird Club began, composed of eight member companies, a recorder from Aberdeen University and a representative from the Nature Conservancy Council. The club received data from 41 installations, and the recorder collated these on Aberdeen University's computer and produced an annual report of sightings

  17. Radiological implications from the temporal development of radioactivity in marine food from the North Sea

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kanisch, G.; Nagel, G.; Krueger, A.; Kellermann, H.-J.

    2000-01-01

    A subject of the revision of authorised limits in 1994 for the discharge of liquid radioactive waste by the reprocessing plant Sellafield (UK) was an increase of these limits for certain radionuclides ( 3 H, 14 C, 60 Co, 99 Tc and 129 I). It is investigated now how the radioactivity in marine biota from the North Sea and subsequently the public radiation exposure of seafood consumers has developed in the years since 1994. This is based on a compartment model for dispersion in the North-East Atlantic. Discharges from the reprocessing plants Dounreay (UK) and La Hague (F) are included in the assessment. It is deduced that about 60% of 137 Cs in the North Sea originate presently in the remobilisation of old Sellafield discharges from the Irish Sea sediment. A comparison with measured biota data shows that the model is conservative in most cases. The public radiation exposure (artificial radionuclides) from ingestion of fish, crustaceans and molluscs from the central North Sea as the sum over 12 considered radionuclides has decreased from 1992 to 1998 from 0.13 to 0.08 μSv y -1 . (orig.)

  18. Glaciotectonic deformations in the Jammerbugt and glaciodynamic development in the eastern North Sea

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Pedersen, Stig A. Schack; Boldreel, Lars Ole

    2017-01-01

    –Early Weichselian Skærumhede Group, indicating a Saalian age of the glaciotectonic deformation. The balancing of the thrust fault structures shows that the thrust sheets in the tailing end of the complex had their source in the Skagerrak sea. The hole caused by displacement contributed to formation of the Skagerrak......The Quaternary geology in the eastern part of the North Sea is characterized by large-scale glaciotectonic complexes. The northernmost complex is the Jammerbugt Glaciotectonic Complex here addressed, which occupies an area of more than 300km2. It was recently recognized during an investigation...... of conventional seismic profiles located about 10km offshore the west coast of northern Denmark. The deformed bedrock includes the main part of the Cretaceous Chalk Group in the North Sea. In the northern part of the complex the detachment surface is situated in Lower Cretaceous greensand about 400m below sea...

  19. Avian Influenza Ecology in North Atlantic Sea Ducks: Not All Ducks Are Created Equal

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hall, Jeffrey S.; Russell, Robin E.; Franson, J. Christian; Soos, Catherine; Dusek, Robert J.; Allen, R. Bradford; Nashold, Sean W.; TeSlaa, Joshua L.; Jónsson, Jón Eínar; Ballard, Jennifer R.; Harms, Naomi Jane; Brown, Justin D.

    2015-01-01

    Wild waterfowl are primary reservoirs of avian influenza viruses (AIV). However the role of sea ducks in the ecology of avian influenza, and how that role differs from freshwater ducks, has not been examined. We obtained and analyzed sera from North Atlantic sea ducks and determined the seroprevalence in those populations. We also tested swab samples from North Atlantic sea ducks for the presence of AIV. We found relatively high serological prevalence (61%) in these sea duck populations but low virus prevalence (0.3%). Using these data we estimated that an antibody half-life of 141 weeks (3.2 years) would be required to attain these prevalences. These findings are much different than what is known in freshwater waterfowl and have implications for surveillance efforts, AIV in marine environments, and the roles of sea ducks and other long-lived waterfowl in avian influenza ecology. PMID:26677841

  20. Avian influenza ecology in North Atlantic sea ducks: Not all ducks are created equal

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hall, Jeffrey S.; Russell, Robin E.; Franson, J. Christian; Soos, Catherine; Dusek, Robert J.; Allen, R. Bradford; Nashold, Sean W.; Teslaa, Joshua L.; Jónsson, Jón Einar; Ballard, Jennifer R.; Harms, Naomi Jnae; Brown, Justin D.

    2015-01-01

    Wild waterfowl are primary reservoirs of avian influenza viruses (AIV). However the role of sea ducks in the ecology of avian influenza, and how that role differs from freshwater ducks, has not been examined. We obtained and analyzed sera from North Atlantic sea ducks and determined the seroprevalence in those populations. We also tested swab samples from North Atlantic sea ducks for the presence of AIV. We found relatively high serological prevalence (61%) in these sea duck populations but low virus prevalence (0.3%). Using these data we estimated that an antibody half-life of 141 weeks (3.2 years) would be required to attain these prevalences. These findings are much different than what is known in freshwater waterfowl and have implications for surveillance efforts, AIV in marine environments, and the roles of sea ducks and other long-lived waterfowl in avian influenza ecology.

  1. Variability along the Atlantic water pathway in the forced Norwegian Earth System Model

    Science.gov (United States)

    Langehaug, H. R.; Sandø, A. B.; Årthun, M.; Ilıcak, M.

    2018-03-01

    The growing attention on mechanisms that can provide predictability on interannual-to-decadal time scales, makes it necessary to identify how well climate models represent such mechanisms. In this study we use a high (0.25° horizontal grid) and a medium (1°) resolution version of a forced global ocean-sea ice model, utilising the Norwegian Earth System Model, to assess the impact of increased ocean resolution. Our target is the simulation of temperature and salinity anomalies along the pathway of warm Atlantic water in the subpolar North Atlantic and the Nordic Seas. Although the high resolution version has larger biases in general at the ocean surface, the poleward propagation of thermohaline anomalies is better resolved in this version, i.e., the time for an anomaly to travel northward is more similar to observation based estimates. The extent of these anomalies can be rather large in both model versions, as also seen in observations, e.g., stretching from Scotland to northern Norway. The easternmost branch into the Nordic and Barents Seas, carrying warm Atlantic water, is also improved by higher resolution, both in terms of mean heat transport and variability in thermohaline properties. A more detailed assessment of the link between the North Atlantic Ocean circulation and the thermohaline anomalies at the entrance of the Nordic Seas reveals that the high resolution is more consistent with mechanisms that are previously published. This suggests better dynamics and variability in the subpolar region and the Nordic Seas in the high resolution compared to the medium resolution. This is most likely due a better representation of the mean circulation in the studied region when using higher resolution. As the poleward propagation of ocean heat anomalies is considered to be a key source of climate predictability, we recommend that similar methodology presented herein should be performed on coupled climate models that are used for climate prediction.

  2. Shifts in North Sea forage fish productivity and potential fisheries yield

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Worsøe Clausen, Lotte; Rindorf, Anna; van Deurs, Mikael

    2018-01-01

    productivity. Furthermore, from an ecosystem-based fisheries management perspective, a link between functional complementarity and productivity, indicates that ecosystem resilience may decline with productivity. Based on this, we advise that system productivity, perhaps monitored as forage fish growth, becomes......1. Forage fish populations support large scale fisheries and are key components of marine ecosystems across the world, linking secondary production to higher trophic levels. While climate-induced changes in the North Sea zooplankton community are described and documented in literature......, the associated bottom-up effects and consequences for fisheries remain largely unidentified. 2. We investigated the temporal development in forage fish productivity and the associated influence on fisheries yield of herring, sprat, Norway pout and sandeel in the North Sea. Using principal component analysis, we...

  3. Wind Profiles and Wave Spectra for Potential Wind Farms in South China Sea. Part II: Wave Spectrum Model

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yichao Liu

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Along with the commercialization of offshore wind energy in China, the South China Sea has been identified as ideal for constructing offshore wind farms, especially for farms consisting of floating wind turbines over deep waters. Since the wind profiles and wave spectra are somewhat primitive for the design of an offshore wind turbine, engineering models describing the wind and wave characteristics in the South China Sea area are necessary for the offshore wind energy exploitation given the meteorological, hydrological, and geographical differences between the South China Sea and the North/Norwegian Sea, where the commonly used wind profile and wave spectrum models were designated. In the present study; a series of numerical simulations were conducted to reveal the wave characteristics in the South China Sea under both typhoon and non-typhoon conditions. By analyzing the simulation results; the applicability of the Joint North Sea Wave Project (JONSWAP spectrum model; in terms of characterizing the wind-induced wave fields in the South China Sea; was discussed. In detail; the key parameters of the JONSWAP spectrum model; such as the Phillips constant; spectral width parameter; peak-enhancement factor, and high frequency tail decay; were investigated in the context of finding suitable values.

  4. Simulated wind-generated inertial oscillations compared to current measurements in the northern North Sea

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bruserud, Kjersti; Haver, Sverre; Myrhaug, Dag

    2018-04-01

    Measured current speed data show that episodes of wind-generated inertial oscillations dominate the current conditions in parts of the northern North Sea. In order to acquire current data of sufficient duration for robust estimation of joint metocean design conditions, such as wind, waves, and currents, a simple model for episodes of wind-generated inertial oscillations is adapted for the northern North Sea. The model is validated with and compared against measured current data at one location in the northern North Sea and found to reproduce the measured maximum current speed in each episode with considerable accuracy. The comparison is further improved when a small general background current is added to the simulated maximum current speeds. Extreme values of measured and simulated current speed are estimated and found to compare well. To assess the robustness of the model and the sensitivity of current conditions from location to location, the validated model is applied at three other locations in the northern North Sea. In general, the simulated maximum current speeds are smaller than the measured, suggesting that wind-generated inertial oscillations are not as prominent at these locations and that other current conditions may be governing. Further analysis of the simulated current speed and joint distribution of wind, waves, and currents for design of offshore structures will be presented in a separate paper.

  5. Sensitivity of modeled atmospheric nitrogen species and nitrogen deposition to variations in sea salt emissions in the North Sea and Baltic Sea regions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    D. Neumann

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available Coarse sea salt particles are emitted ubiquitously from the ocean surface by wave-breaking and bubble-bursting processes. These particles impact the atmospheric chemistry by affecting the condensation of gas-phase species and, thus, indirectly the nucleation of new fine particles, particularly in regions with significant air pollution. In this study, atmospheric particle concentrations are modeled for the North Sea and Baltic Sea regions in northwestern Europe using the Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ modeling system and are compared to European Monitoring and Evaluation Programme (EMEP measurement data. The sea salt emission module is extended by a salinity-dependent scaling of the sea salt emissions because the salinity in large parts of the Baltic Sea is very low, which leads to considerably lower sea salt mass emissions compared to other oceanic regions. The resulting improvement in predicted sea salt concentrations is assessed. The contribution of surf zone emissions is considered separately. Additionally, the impacts of sea salt particles on atmospheric nitrate and ammonium concentrations and on nitrogen deposition are evaluated. The comparisons with observational data show that sea salt concentrations are commonly overestimated at coastal stations and partly underestimated farther inland. The introduced salinity scaling improves the predicted Baltic Sea sea salt concentrations considerably. The dates of measured peak concentrations are appropriately reproduced by the model. The impact of surf zone emissions is negligible in both seas. Nevertheless, they might be relevant because surf zone emissions were cut at an upper threshold in this study. Deactivating sea salt leads to minor increases in NH3 +  NH4+ and HNO3 +  NO3− and a decrease in NO3− concentrations. However, the overall effect on NH3 +  NH4+ and HNO3 +  NO3− concentrations is smaller than the deviation from the measurements. Nitrogen wet deposition is

  6. Sea-ice evaluation of NEMO-Nordic 1.0: a NEMO-LIM3.6-based ocean-sea-ice model setup for the North Sea and Baltic Sea

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pemberton, Per; Löptien, Ulrike; Hordoir, Robinson; Höglund, Anders; Schimanke, Semjon; Axell, Lars; Haapala, Jari

    2017-08-01

    The Baltic Sea is a seasonally ice-covered marginal sea in northern Europe with intense wintertime ship traffic and a sensitive ecosystem. Understanding and modeling the evolution of the sea-ice pack is important for climate effect studies and forecasting purposes. Here we present and evaluate the sea-ice component of a new NEMO-LIM3.6-based ocean-sea-ice setup for the North Sea and Baltic Sea region (NEMO-Nordic). The setup includes a new depth-based fast-ice parametrization for the Baltic Sea. The evaluation focuses on long-term statistics, from a 45-year long hindcast, although short-term daily performance is also briefly evaluated. We show that NEMO-Nordic is well suited for simulating the mean sea-ice extent, concentration, and thickness as compared to the best available observational data set. The variability of the annual maximum Baltic Sea ice extent is well in line with the observations, but the 1961-2006 trend is underestimated. Capturing the correct ice thickness distribution is more challenging. Based on the simulated ice thickness distribution we estimate the undeformed and deformed ice thickness and concentration in the Baltic Sea, which compares reasonably well with observations.

  7. Warming of the West Spitsbergen Current and sea ice north of Svalbard

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jan Piechura

    2009-06-01

    Full Text Available This research was supported by a grant from the Fifth European Union Frame-work Programme project ASOF-N, contract EVK2-CT-200200139, the Sixth Frame-work Programme DAMOCLES, contract 018509GOCE, and grants from the Polish Ministry of Science and Higher Education, decisions 61/N-IPY/2007/0 and 175/IPY/2007/01.AbstractAccording to the results of recent research, besides the atmospheric circulation, it is heat transport to the Arctic Ocean (AO by ocean currents, the West Spitsbergen Current (WSC in particular, that is playing a significant role in the process of Arctic warming. Data collected by the Institute of Oceanology, Polish Academy of Sciences (IO PAS, in the Norwegian and Greenland Seas, and Fram Strait during the last 20 years reveal considerable changes in the amount of heat transported by the WSC into the Arctic Ocean. An increase in Atlantic Water (AW temperature and the intensification of heat transport were observed in 2004-06; after this period, both parameters decreased. The aim of this study was to find out whether the fluctuations in heat input by the WSC have influenced the sea-ice distribution around Svalbard. In fact they do, but oceanic heat transport should nonetheless be regarded as just one of many processes influencing sea-ice behaviour.

  8. Monitoring plastic ingestion by the northern fulmar Fulmarus glacialis in the North Sea

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Franeker, Jan A. van, E-mail: Jan.vanfraneker@wur.nl [IMARES Institute for Marine Resources and Ecosystem Studies, Wageningen-UR, PO Box 167, 1790AD Den Burg, Texel (Netherlands); Blaize, Christine [Le CHENE, Centre de Sauvegarde de la Faune Sauvage et Musee de la Nature, 12 Rue du Musee, F-76190 Allouville-Bellefosse (France); Danielsen, Johannis [Norouri i Sundum 7, FO-410 Kollafjorour (Faroe Islands); Fairclough, Keith [Fairclough Ecological Orkney FEO Viewforth, Swannay by Evie, Orkney, KW17 2NR, Scotland (United Kingdom); Gollan, Jane [Kermouroux, FR-56 470 Saint Philibert (France); Guse, Nils [Research and Technology Centre West coast FTZ, University of Kiel, Hafentoern 1, D-25761 Buesum (Germany); Hansen, Poul-Lindhard [Naturhistorisk Museum Skagen, Skagen Naturcenter, Flagbakkevej 30, DK-9990 Skagen (Denmark); Heubeck, Martin [University of Aberdeen (SOTEAG), Sumburgh Head Lighthouse, Virkie, Shetland ZE3 9JN, Scotland (United Kingdom); Jensen, Jens-Kjeld [Zoological conservator, I Geilini 37, FO-270 Nolsoy (Faroe Islands); Le Guillou, Gilles [Groupe Ornithologique Normand, 118 route d' ORCHER, F-76700 Gonfreville l' Orcher (France); Olsen, Bergur [Faroe Marine Research Institute c/o Natturugripasavnio, Futalag 40, FO-100 Torshavn (Faroe Islands); Olsen, Kare-Olav [Postveien 43, N-4563 Borhaug (Norway); Pedersen, John [Skagen Uddannelsescenter SUC, Vestmolen 15, DK-9990 Skagen (Denmark); Stienen, Eric W.M. [Research Institute for Nature and Forest, Kliniekstraat 25, B-1070 Brussels (Belgium); Turner, Daniel M. [9 Haswell Gardens, North Shields, Tyne and Wear, NE30 2DP, England (United Kingdom)

    2011-10-15

    The abundance of plastics in stomachs of northern fulmars from the North Sea is used in the OSPAR Ecological Quality Objective (EcoQO) for marine litter. The preliminary EcoQO defines acceptable ecological quality as the situation where no more than 10% of fulmars exceed a critical level of 0.1 g of plastic in the stomach. During 2003-2007, 95% of 1295 fulmars sampled in the North Sea had plastic in the stomach (on average 35 pieces weighing 0.31 g) and the critical level of 0.1 g of plastic was exceeded by 58% of birds, with regional variations ranging from 48 to 78%. Long term data for the Netherlands since the 1980s show a decrease of industrial, but an increase of user plastics, with shipping and fisheries as the main sources. The EcoQO is now also used as an indicator for Good Environmental Status in the European Marine Strategy Framework Directive. - Highlights: > Trends in marine debris can be monitored by plastics in stomachs of seabirds. > In the North Sea 95% of Fulmars has plastic in the stomach (35 particles; 0.31 g). > The policy target is that less than 10% of Fulmars has over 0.1 g of plastic. > Currently 58% of North Sea fulmars exceeds the 0.1 g critical limit. > Over the past 30 years industrial plastics decreased and user plastic increased. - Trends and patterns in the abundance of plastics in northern fulmar stomachs show that seabirds can be a valuable tool for monitoring marine litter.

  9. Monitoring plastic ingestion by the northern fulmar Fulmarus glacialis in the North Sea

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Franeker, Jan A. van; Blaize, Christine; Danielsen, Johannis; Fairclough, Keith; Gollan, Jane; Guse, Nils; Hansen, Poul-Lindhard; Heubeck, Martin; Jensen, Jens-Kjeld; Le Guillou, Gilles; Olsen, Bergur; Olsen, Kare-Olav; Pedersen, John; Stienen, Eric W.M.; Turner, Daniel M.

    2011-01-01

    The abundance of plastics in stomachs of northern fulmars from the North Sea is used in the OSPAR Ecological Quality Objective (EcoQO) for marine litter. The preliminary EcoQO defines acceptable ecological quality as the situation where no more than 10% of fulmars exceed a critical level of 0.1 g of plastic in the stomach. During 2003-2007, 95% of 1295 fulmars sampled in the North Sea had plastic in the stomach (on average 35 pieces weighing 0.31 g) and the critical level of 0.1 g of plastic was exceeded by 58% of birds, with regional variations ranging from 48 to 78%. Long term data for the Netherlands since the 1980s show a decrease of industrial, but an increase of user plastics, with shipping and fisheries as the main sources. The EcoQO is now also used as an indicator for Good Environmental Status in the European Marine Strategy Framework Directive. - Highlights: → Trends in marine debris can be monitored by plastics in stomachs of seabirds. → In the North Sea 95% of Fulmars has plastic in the stomach (35 particles; 0.31 g). → The policy target is that less than 10% of Fulmars has over 0.1 g of plastic. → Currently 58% of North Sea fulmars exceeds the 0.1 g critical limit. → Over the past 30 years industrial plastics decreased and user plastic increased. - Trends and patterns in the abundance of plastics in northern fulmar stomachs show that seabirds can be a valuable tool for monitoring marine litter.

  10. Seamount physiography and biology in North-East Atlantic and Mediterranean Sea

    OpenAIRE

    T. Morato; K. Ø. Kvile; G. H. Taranto; F. Tempera; B. E. Narayanaswamy; D. Hebbeln; G. Menezes; C. Wienberg; R. S. Santos; T. J. Pitcher

    2012-01-01

    This work aims at characterising the seamount physiography and biology in the OSPAR Convention limits (North-East Atlantic Ocean) and Mediterranean Sea. We first inferred potential abundance, location and morphological characteristics of seamounts, and secondly, summarized the existing biological, geological and oceanographic in-situ research, identifying examples of well-studied seamounts. Our study showed that the seamount population in the OSPAR area (North-East Atlantic) and in Mediterran...

  11. Impact of Seawater Nonlinearities on Nordic Seas Circulation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Helber, R. W.; Wallcraft, A. J.; Shriver, J. F.

    2017-12-01

    The Nordic Seas (Greenland, Iceland, and Norwegian Seas) form an ocean basin important for Arctic-mid-latitude climate linkages. Cold fresh water from the Arctic Ocean and warm salty water from the North Atlantic Ocean meet in the Nordic Seas, where a delicate balance between temperature and salinity variability results in deep water formation. Seawater non-linearities are stronger at low temperatures and salinities making high-latitude oceans highly subject to thermbaricity and cabbeling. This presentation highlights and quantifies the impact of seawater non-linearities on the Nordic Seas circulation. We use two layered ocean circulation models, the Hybrid Coordinate Ocean Model (HYOCM) and the Modular Ocean Model version 6 (MOM6), that enable accurate representation of processes along and across density or neutral density surfaces. Different equations-of-state and vertical coordinates are evaluated to clarify the impact of seawater non-linearities. Present Navy systems, however, do not capture some features in the Nrodic Seas vertical structure. For example, observations from the Greenland Sea reveal a subsurface temperature maximum that deepens from approximately 1500 m during 1998 to 1800 m during 2005. We demonstrate that in terms of density, salinity is the largest source of error in Nordic Seas Navy forecasts, regional scale models can represent mesoscale features driven by thermobaricity, vertical coordinates are a critical issue in Nordic Sea circulation modeling.

  12. Polyunsaturated fatty acids in various macroalgal species from north Atlantic and tropical seas

    OpenAIRE

    van Ginneken, Vincent JT; Helsper, Johannes PFG; de Visser, Willem; van Keulen, Herman; Brandenburg, Willem A

    2011-01-01

    Abstract Background In this study the efficacy of using marine macroalgae as a source for polyunsaturated fatty acids, which are associated with the prevention of inflammation, cardiovascular diseases and mental disorders, was investigated. Methods The fatty acid (FA) composition in lipids from seven sea weed species from the North Sea (Ulva lactuca, Chondrus crispus, Laminaria hyperborea, Fucus serratus, Undaria pinnatifida, Palmaria palmata, Ascophyllum nodosum) and two from tropical seas (...

  13. The occurrence of the Flying Fish, Hirundichthys speculiger (Valenciennes, 1847), in the North Sea (Pisces, Atheriniformes, Exocoetidae)

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Boer, P.; Nijssen, H.

    1972-01-01

    The occurrence of a specimen of the Flying Fish Hirundichthys speculiger (Valenciennes, 1847) in the North Sea is recorded. This is the first record of a member of the family Exocoetidae in the coastal waters of the Netherlands. The specimen is illustrated, and its occurrence in the North Sea is

  14. Water scaling in the North Sea oil and gas fields and scale prediction: An overview

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Yuan, M

    1997-12-31

    Water-scaling is a common and major production chemistry problem in the North Sea oil and gas fields and scale prediction has been an important means to assess the potential and extent of scale deposition. This paper presents an overview of sulphate and carbonate scaling problems in the North Sea and a review of several widely used and commercially available scale prediction software. In the paper, the water chemistries and scale types and severities are discussed relative of the geographical distribution of the fields in the North Sea. The theories behind scale prediction are then briefly described. Five scale or geochemical models are presented and various definitions of saturation index are compared and correlated. Views are the expressed on how to predict scale precipitation under some extreme conditions such as that encountered in HPHT reservoirs. 15 refs., 7 figs., 9 tabs.

  15. Quantifying the ocean, freshwater and human effects on year-to-year variability of one-sea-winter Atlantic salmon angled in multiple Norwegian rivers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Otero, Jaime; Jensen, Arne J; L'Abée-Lund, Jan Henning; Stenseth, Nils Chr; Storvik, Geir O; Vøllestad, Leif Asbjørn

    2011-01-01

    Many Atlantic salmon, Salmo salar, populations are decreasing throughout the species' distributional range probably due to several factors acting in concert. A number of studies have documented the influence of freshwater and ocean conditions, climate variability and human impacts resulting from impoundment and aquaculture. However, most previous research has focused on analyzing single or only a few populations, and quantified isolated effects rather than handling multiple factors in conjunction. By using a multi-river mixed-effects model we estimated the effects of oceanic and river conditions, as well as human impacts, on year-to-year and between-river variability across 60 time series of recreational catch of one-sea-winter salmon (grilse) from Norwegian rivers over 29 years (1979-2007). Warm coastal temperatures at the time of smolt entrance into the sea and increased water discharge during upstream migration of mature fish were associated with higher rod catches of grilse. When hydropower stations were present in the course of the river systems the strength of the relationship with runoff was reduced. Catches of grilse in the river increased significantly following the reduction of the harvesting of this life-stage at sea. However, an average decreasing temporal trend was still detected and appeared to be stronger in the presence of salmon farms on the migration route of smolts in coastal/fjord areas. These results suggest that both ocean and freshwater conditions in conjunction with various human impacts contribute to shape interannual fluctuations and between-river variability of wild Atlantic salmon in Norwegian rivers. Current global change altering coastal temperature and water flow patterns might have implications for future grilse catches, moreover, positioning of aquaculture facilities as well as the implementation of hydropower schemes or other encroachments should be made with care when implementing management actions and searching for solutions to

  16. Quantifying the ocean, freshwater and human effects on year-to-year variability of one-sea-winter Atlantic salmon angled in multiple Norwegian rivers.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jaime Otero

    Full Text Available Many Atlantic salmon, Salmo salar, populations are decreasing throughout the species' distributional range probably due to several factors acting in concert. A number of studies have documented the influence of freshwater and ocean conditions, climate variability and human impacts resulting from impoundment and aquaculture. However, most previous research has focused on analyzing single or only a few populations, and quantified isolated effects rather than handling multiple factors in conjunction. By using a multi-river mixed-effects model we estimated the effects of oceanic and river conditions, as well as human impacts, on year-to-year and between-river variability across 60 time series of recreational catch of one-sea-winter salmon (grilse from Norwegian rivers over 29 years (1979-2007. Warm coastal temperatures at the time of smolt entrance into the sea and increased water discharge during upstream migration of mature fish were associated with higher rod catches of grilse. When hydropower stations were present in the course of the river systems the strength of the relationship with runoff was reduced. Catches of grilse in the river increased significantly following the reduction of the harvesting of this life-stage at sea. However, an average decreasing temporal trend was still detected and appeared to be stronger in the presence of salmon farms on the migration route of smolts in coastal/fjord areas. These results suggest that both ocean and freshwater conditions in conjunction with various human impacts contribute to shape interannual fluctuations and between-river variability of wild Atlantic salmon in Norwegian rivers. Current global change altering coastal temperature and water flow patterns might have implications for future grilse catches, moreover, positioning of aquaculture facilities as well as the implementation of hydropower schemes or other encroachments should be made with care when implementing management actions and searching

  17. The European anchovy (Engraulis encrasicolus) increase in the North Sea

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Raab, K.E.

    2013-01-01

    Small pelagic fish such as anchovy are of high socio-economic importance worldwide. They are known for strong fluctuations in abundance, for which the mechanisms are not always understood. European anchovy (Engraulis encrasicolus) increased its population in the North Sea starting in

  18. The maximum significant wave height in the Southern North Sea

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Bouws, E.; Tolman, H.L.; Holthuijsen, L.H.; Eldeberky, Y.; Booij, N.; Ferier, P.

    1995-01-01

    The maximum possible wave conditions along the Dutch coast, which seem to be dominated by the limited water depth, have been estimated in the present study with numerical simulations. Discussions with meteorologists suggest that the maximum possible sustained wind speed in North Sea conditions is

  19. A System of Oceanic Reanalysis (SOR) fot the Nordic Seas

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pnyushkov, A.

    2009-04-01

    A system of oceanic reanalysis of the Nordic seas (Norwegian, Greenland and Barents seas) directed to the investigations of long period changes in the oceanic climate of the Arctic sub-polar seas was developed. The system of oceanic reanalysys (SOR) includes hybrid coordinate 22-th level ocean model HYCOM [Bleck,2002] and modern oceanographic data assimilation technique based on spectral nudging method. A series of test experiments was carried out and optimal parameters for assimilation routine were choused. These parameters take into account the accuracy of spatial restoring by means objective analysis procedure and phase distortion in modeling fields during monotonous assimilation of monthly distributions. On the basis of modeling results a set of monthly mean hydrological distributions of thermohaline parameters was created for the Nordic seas that was used for climatic field compilations on the standard levels for period 1957-1990. The data of reanalysis system projections allow us to restore the information about structure and dynamic of oceanographic fields for the periods and areas with a small number of direct measurements, for example East-Greenland currents area, north and north-east parts of the Barents sea. A series of additional experiments with SOR were performed directed to the simple assimilation of sea ice concentration data. A significant improvement of the system of objectively analyzed field preparation was done during 2008 including additional validation procedure of gridded arrays with using the direct data of oceanographic stations. This work was supported by Russian Foundation for Basic Research (grant 07-05-00393).

  20. Causes of accelerating sea level on the East Coast of North America.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Davis, James L; Vinogradova, Nadya T

    2017-05-28

    The tide-gauge record from the North American East Coast reveals significant accelerations in sea level starting in the late twentieth century. The estimated post-1990 accelerations range from near zero to ∼0.3 mm yr -2 . We find that the observed sea level acceleration is well modeled using several processes: mass change in Greenland and Antarctica as measured by the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment satellites; ocean dynamic and steric variability provided by the GECCO2 ocean synthesis; and the inverted barometer effect. However, to achieve this fit requires estimation of an admittance for the dynamical and steric contribution, possibly due to the coarse resolution of this analysis or to simplifications associated with parameterization of bottom friction in the shallow coastal areas. The acceleration from ice loss alone is equivalent to a regional sea level rise in one century of 0.2 m in the north and 0.75 m in the south of this region.

  1. Structural geology of the North and Middle Caspian sea on the new geophysical data interpretation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Boris, V.S; Rais, V.Sh; Victor, L.U

    2002-01-01

    Full text:A structural and tectonic map of the North and Middle Caspian Sea is made on the basis of seismic and other geological and geophysical data analysis. According to the plotting results the total amplitude range of the heterogeneous basement depths are in the North Caspian Sea (Ukatnensky depression-over 12 km and Prorva depression-over 16 km). In the middle Caspian Sea the deppest basement point is supposed in Sulak basin (over 12 km). The least basement depths are marked in Karpinsky ridge,Buzachinky and Karabogazsky arches (1-3 km). On the whole the morphology and structure of the basement confirms the conclusion previously made by many researches that the Caspian Sea is a heterogeneous depression superimposed on the junction of regional tectonic elements of various ages.The ancient East-European platform represented by Pricaspiisky depression (Donetsko-Astrakhanskaya fault system limits the latter in the south) is situated on the North. The middle Caspian Sea is occupied with the offshore continuation of Terek-Caspian foredeep is represented by Sulak basin clearly limited in the south by a system of upthrusts and thrusts falling under North Caucasus foreland.Geological interpretation of the Yuzhmorgeologiya Center new geophysical data allows making an assumption about the biohermexistence within TriassicSea sediments on Kuma-Manychsky depression offshore continuation. Seismic exploration works show strike-slip faults and thrust structure development within the sedimentary cover on the offshore continuation of Karpinsky ridge.Some strike-slipped blocks are separated by left-side shifts of the northeast stretch.The pool location at the left-side (east) blocks of the shift areas is marked.

  2. Supertankers are threatening the Norwegian coast

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Steensen, Anders J.; Haaland, Leif

    2003-01-01

    The article has three sections. The first discusses the environmental problems the tanker traffic poses to the Norwegian coastal waters and shores. Various precautionary measures and requirements are briefly presented. The size of the present marine transportation and the future Russian marine petroleum activity in the Barents area are briefly mentioned. The second named, conflicting exploration drilling, presents the conflicting interests regarding exploratory drilling in the Barents Sea in Norway. The environmental problems are large and have lead to an on-going reevaluation. Some pollution abatement measures are mentioned. The regional economic development is briefly outlined. The third deals with the Norwegian governmental safety activities and presents a brief survey of the official safety activities in the petroleum sector in Norway and the international cooperation particularly with the Russian Federation. The emphasis is on the maritime security, the safety of the maritime transportation systems, the environmental aspects such as pollution management and on the legal frameworks

  3. Anchovy Engraulis encrasicolus diet in the North and Baltic Seas

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Raab, K.E.; Nagelkerke, L.A.J.; Boerée, L.A.J.; Rijnsdorp, A.D.; Temming, A.; Dickey-Collas, M.

    2011-01-01

    The diet of anchovy (Engraulis encrasicolus) in the North and Baltic Seas was studied using stomach analysis from four sampling events in different areas. Zooplanktivory was confirmed; the most frequent prey items (in over 40% of stomachs) were copepods, malacostracan larvae and fish larvae. In the

  4. Effects of wave-induced forcing on a circulation model of the North Sea

    Science.gov (United States)

    Staneva, Joanna; Alari, Victor; Breivik, Øyvind; Bidlot, Jean-Raymond; Mogensen, Kristian

    2017-04-01

    The effect of wind waves on water level and currents during two storms in the North Sea is investigated using a high-resolution NEMO model forced with fluxes and fields from a high-resolution wave model. The additional terms accounting for wave-current interaction that are considered in this study are the Stokes-Coriolis force and the sea-state dependent energy and momentum fluxes. The individual and collective role of these processes is quantified and the results are compared with a control run without wave effects as well as against current and water level measurements from coastal stations. We find a better agreement with observations when the circulation model is forced by sea-state dependent fluxes, especially in extreme events. The two extreme events, the storm Christian (25-27 October 2013), and about a month later, the storm Xaver (5-7 December 2013), induce different wave and surge conditions over the North Sea. Including the wave effects in the circulation model for the storm Xaver raises the modelled surge by more than 40 cm compared with the control run in the German Bight area. For the storm Christian, a difference of 20-30 cm in the surge level between the wave-forced and the stand-alone ocean model is found over the whole southern part of the North Sea. Moreover, the modelled vertical velocity profile fits the observations very well when the wave forcing is accounted for. The contribution of wave-induced forcing has been quantified indicating that this represents an important mechanism for improving water level and current predictions.

  5. Analysis of North Sea Offshore Wind Power Variability

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Aymeric Buatois

    2014-05-01

    Full Text Available This paper evaluates, for a 2030 scenario, the impact on onshore power systems in terms of the variability of the power generated by 81 GW of offshore wind farms installed in the North Sea. Meso-scale reanalysis data are used as input for computing the hourly power production for offshore wind farms, and this total production is analyzed to identify the largest aggregated hourly power variations. Based on publicly available information, a simplified representation of the coastal power grid is built for the countries bordering the North Sea. Wind farms less than 60 km from shore are connected radially to the mainland, while the rest are connected to a hypothetical offshore HVDC (High-Voltage Direct Current power grid, designed such that wind curtailment does not exceed 1% of production. Loads and conventional power plants by technology and associated cost curves are computed for the various national power systems, based on 2030 projections. Using the MATLAB-based MATPOWER toolbox, the hourly optimal power flow for this regional hybrid AC/DC grid is computed for high, low and medium years from the meso-scale database. The largest net load variations are evaluated per market area and related to the extra load-following reserves that may be needed from conventional generators.

  6. Radioactivity in Norwegian Waters: Distribution in seawater and sediments, and uptake in marine organisms

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Heldal, Hilde Elise

    2001-01-01

    Prior to the detonation of the first thermonuclear bomb, small amounts of radioactivity, for example in mineral water, were considered to be health enriching. Negative experiences related to thermonuclear bombs and several nuclear accidents have, however, changed people's attitude towards radioactivity during the past 40-50 years. Today, there is a common concern for regular and potential accidental releases of radioactivity from sources such as Sellafield. Although this is important, incorrect assessments of the effects of these releases (e.g. created by uncritical journalism) have the potential to harm the country's fisheries and economy. Therefore, it is of major importance to document up-to-date levels of radioactive contamination of the marine environment, and be able to place these into the proper perspectives. The main topics of the thesis may be summarised as follows: (1) Distribution of Caesium-137, Plutonium-238, Plutonium-239,240 and Americium-241 in sediments with emphasis on the Spitsbergen-Bear Island area, (2) Uptake of Caesium-137 in phytoplankton representative for the Barents and Norwegian Seas phytoplankton communities (laboratory experiments), (3) Bioaccumulation of Caesium-137 in food webs in the Barents and Norwegian Seas, (4) Geographical variations of Caesium-137 in harbour porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) along the Norwegian coast, (5) Transport times for Technetium-99 from Sellafield to various locations along the Norwegian coast and the Arctic Ocean

  7. Radioactivity in Norwegian Waters: Distribution in seawater and sediments, and uptake in marine organisms

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Heldal, Hilde Elise

    2001-07-01

    Prior to the detonation of the first thermonuclear bomb, small amounts of radioactivity, for example in mineral water, were considered to be health enriching. Negative experiences related to thermonuclear bombs and several nuclear accidents have, however, changed people's attitude towards radioactivity during the past 40-50 years. Today, there is a common concern for regular and potential accidental releases of radioactivity from sources such as Sellafield. Although this is important, incorrect assessments of the effects of these releases (e.g. created by uncritical journalism) have the potential to harm the country's fisheries and economy. Therefore, it is of major importance to document up-to-date levels of radioactive contamination of the marine environment, and be able to place these into the proper perspectives. The main topics of the thesis may be summarised as follows: (1) Distribution of Caesium-137, Plutonium-238, Plutonium-239,240 and Americium-241 in sediments with emphasis on the Spitsbergen-Bear Island area, (2) Uptake of Caesium-137 in phytoplankton representative for the Barents and Norwegian Seas phytoplankton communities (laboratory experiments), (3) Bioaccumulation of Caesium-137 in food webs in the Barents and Norwegian Seas, (4) Geographical variations of Caesium-137 in harbour porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) along the Norwegian coast, (5) Transport times for Technetium-99 from Sellafield to various locations along the Norwegian coast and the Arctic Ocean.

  8. Radioactivity in Norwegian Waters: Distribution in seawater and sediments, and uptake in marine organisms

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Heldal, Hilde Elise

    2001-07-01

    Prior to the detonation of the first thermonuclear bomb, small amounts of radioactivity, for example in mineral water, were considered to be health enriching. Negative experiences related to thermonuclear bombs and several nuclear accidents have, however, changed people's attitude towards radioactivity during the past 40-50 years. Today, there is a common concern for regular and potential accidental releases of radioactivity from sources such as Sellafield. Although this is important, incorrect assessments of the effects of these releases (e.g. created by uncritical journalism) have the potential to harm the country's fisheries and economy. Therefore, it is of major importance to document up-to-date levels of radioactive contamination of the marine environment, and be able to place these into the proper perspectives. The main topics of the thesis may be summarised as follows: (1) Distribution of Caesium-137, Plutonium-238, Plutonium-239,240 and Americium-241 in sediments with emphasis on the Spitsbergen-Bear Island area, (2) Uptake of Caesium-137 in phytoplankton representative for the Barents and Norwegian Seas phytoplankton communities (laboratory experiments), (3) Bioaccumulation of Caesium-137 in food webs in the Barents and Norwegian Seas, (4) Geographical variations of Caesium-137 in harbour porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) along the Norwegian coast, (5) Transport times for Technetium-99 from Sellafield to various locations along the Norwegian coast and the Arctic Ocean.

  9. Critical report of current fisheries management measures implemented for the North Sea mixed demersal fisheries

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nielsen, J. Rasmus; Ulrich, Clara; Hegland, Troels J.

    the scientific advice, the development in recent years has been towards this gap being reduced. Management of the fisheries has undergone a number of structural and behavioral changes, and these have already yielded some positive results as the state of the demersal stocks in the North Sea have globally improved......, at least in the prosperous countries around the North Sea, provides only few jobs. Despite the above trends indicating positive effects of the most recent fisheries management of the North Sea mixed demersal fisheries there are a row of general problems in the present management. Population dynamics...... states’ ministers in the Council have exercised strong control over the fisheries management measures which have been developed and adopted on the background of proposals from the Commission and the Parliament, though since the ratification of the Lisbon Treaty the Parliament has assumed a role of co...

  10. Observed sea-level rise in the north Indian Ocean coasts during the past century

    Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

    Unnikrishnan, A.S.

    Content-Type text/plain; charset=UTF-8 91 Observed sea-level rise in the north Indian Ocean coasts during the past century A. S. Unnikrishnan National Institute of Oceanography, Dona Paula, Goa-403004 unni@nio.org Introduction Sea-level... rise is one of the good indicators of global warming. Rise in sea level occurs mainly through melting of glaciers, thermal expansion due to ocean warming and some other processes of relatively smaller magnitudes. Sea level rise is a global...

  11. Chemical and temperature profile data from CTD casts in the East China Sea, Sea of Japan, and North Pacific Ocean (NODC Accession 9700022)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Chemical and temperature profile data were collected from CTD casts in the East China Sea, Sea of Japan, and North Pacific Ocean. Data were submitted by the Japan...

  12. Cenozoic structures and the tectonic evolution of the eastern North Sea

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Clausen, O.R.; Nielsen, S.B.; Egholm, D.L.

    2011-01-01

    Abundant seismic sections and well data from the Cenozoic succession in the eastern North Sea area generally reveal normal faulting, salt tectonics and localized tectonic inversion. However, inferences on the Cenozoic dynamic evolution of the region require thorough analysis of interactions between...... or cover tectonism took place. Our objectives are thus 1) to analyze the interaction between basement and cover structures, and if possible 2) to relate the structures to the regional tectonic evolution. The Zechstein evaporites pinch out onto the Ringkøbing-Fyn High, which in the eastern North Sea...... influencede.g. Miocene deposition and controlled the generation of second order faults. The latter detached along the top Chalk Group due to the topography generated during faulting, i.e. they are second order detachment surfaces. We conclude that the regional tectonic significance of the Cenozoic structures...

  13. Impacts of the north and tropical Atlantic Ocean on the Antarctic Peninsula and sea ice.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Xichen; Holland, David M; Gerber, Edwin P; Yoo, Changhyun

    2014-01-23

    In recent decades, Antarctica has experienced pronounced climate changes. The Antarctic Peninsula exhibited the strongest warming of any region on the planet, causing rapid changes in land ice. Additionally, in contrast to the sea-ice decline over the Arctic, Antarctic sea ice has not declined, but has instead undergone a perplexing redistribution. Antarctic climate is influenced by, among other factors, changes in radiative forcing and remote Pacific climate variability, but none explains the observed Antarctic Peninsula warming or the sea-ice redistribution in austral winter. However, in the north and tropical Atlantic Ocean, the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation (a leading mode of sea surface temperature variability) has been overlooked in this context. Here we show that sea surface warming related to the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation reduces the surface pressure in the Amundsen Sea and contributes to the observed dipole-like sea-ice redistribution between the Ross and Amundsen-Bellingshausen-Weddell seas and to the Antarctic Peninsula warming. Support for these findings comes from analysis of observational and reanalysis data, and independently from both comprehensive and idealized atmospheric model simulations. We suggest that the north and tropical Atlantic is important for projections of future climate change in Antarctica, and has the potential to affect the global thermohaline circulation and sea-level change.

  14. 150 years of ecosystem evolution in the North Sea - from pristine conditions to acidification

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pätsch, Johannes; Lorkowski, Ina; Kühn, Wilfried; Moll, Andreas; Serna, Alexandra

    2010-05-01

    The 3-d coupled physical-biogeochemical model ECOHAM was applied to the Northwest European Shelf (47° 41‘ - 63° 53' N, 15° 5' W - 13° 55' E) for the years 1860, 1960 and continuously for the time interval 1970 - 2006. From stable nitrogen isotope analysis in sediment cores of the German Bight in the southeastern part of the North Sea (inner shelf) we found the period before 1860 unaffected by anthropogenic river inputs of nitrogen. After this period the delta15N-ratios significantly increased from ~6 per mil to more than 8 per mil in recent sediments indicating eutrophication by anthropogenic nitrate mainly from intensive agriculture fertilization. We deduced from the successful simulation of delta15N patterns in recent sediments that during pristine conditions nitrogen loads of the main continental rivers were about 10% of the modern input while the deposition of inorganic atmospheric nitrogen was 28% of the recent atmospheric flux. The 1960-sediment exhibited similar delta15N-values as the recent sediment which allows the conclusion that eutrophication in the German Bight predates the 1960 period of rapidly increasing river loads. By comparing model results with observational data in the North Sea we analyzed the variability of simulated carbon fluxes (1970-2006) constituting the so called "shelf pump" which transports atmospheric CO2 via biological fixation, vertical export and advection into the adjacent North Atlantic. Even though the highly variable North Atlantic water-inflow which correlated with the North Atlantic Oscillation Index (NAOI) supplied the northern North Sea with strongly varying nutrient inputs, the interannual variability of the strength of the shelf pump was mainly governed by the variability of the southern basin's biological productivity. The net ecosystem production (NEP) in the southern North Sea varies around zero inducing CO2 exchange with the atmosphere which is near equilibrium. In the northern North Sea the strong positive

  15. Distribution patterns of wintering sea ducks in relation to the North Atlantic Oscillation and local environmental characteristics

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zipkin, Elise F.; Gardner, Beth; Gilbert, Andrew T.; O'Connell, Allan F.; Royle, J. Andrew; Silverman, Emily D.

    2010-01-01

    Twelve species of North American sea ducks (Tribe Mergini) winter off the eastern coast of the United States and Canada. Yet, despite their seasonal proximity to urbanized areas in this region, there is limited information on patterns of wintering sea duck habitat use. It is difficult to gather information on sea ducks because of the relative inaccessibility of their offshore locations, their high degree of mobility, and their aggregated distributions. To characterize environmental conditions that affect wintering distributions, as well as their geographic ranges, we analyzed count data on five species of sea ducks (black scoters Melanitta nigra americana, surf scoters M. perspicillata, white-winged scoters M. fusca, common eiders Somateria mollissima, and long-tailed ducks Clangula hyemalis) that were collected during the Atlantic Flyway Sea Duck Survey for ten years starting in the early 1990s. We modeled count data for each species within ten-nautical-mile linear survey segments using a zero-inflated negative binomial model that included four local-scale habitat covariates (sea surface temperature, mean bottom depth, maximum bottom slope, and a variable to indicate if the segment was in a bay or not), one broad-scale covariate (the North Atlantic Oscillation), and a temporal correlation component. Our results indicate that species distributions have strong latitudinal gradients and consistency in local habitat use. The North Atlantic Oscillation was the only environmental covariate that had a significant (but variable) effect on the expected count for all five species, suggesting that broad-scale climatic conditions may be directly or indirectly important to the distributions of wintering sea ducks. Our results provide critical information on species-habitat associations, elucidate the complicated relationship between the North Atlantic Oscillation, sea surface temperature, and local sea duck abundances, and should be useful in assessing the impacts of climate

  16. Prevalence and molecular characterisation of Acanthocephala in pinnipedia of the North and Baltic Seas

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Patrick Waindok

    2018-04-01

    Full Text Available Harbour seals (Phoca vitulina and grey seals (Halichoerus grypus are final hosts of acanthocephalans in the German North and Baltic Seas. Parasitic infections in seals can cause pathological changes, which may result in deteriorated health of the host. Common gastrointestinal parasites of harbour and grey seals are acanthocephalans and a number of 275 of 2460 (11.2% investigated seals from 1996 to 2013 were infected with Corynosoma spp. (Acanthocephala, Polymorphidae. The prevalence showed a wave-like pattern: it increased from 1.2% and 0.4% in 1996 and 1997, respectively, to 23.9% during the second phocine distemper epizootic in 2002 and decreased to 6.2% in 2004. In 2005, prevalence peaked again with 25.0% followed by a decrease to 9.3% in 2009 and an increase to 38.5% in 2012. Statistical analysis revealed that harbour seals originating from the North Sea showed a higher prevalence than grey seals, whereas no significant difference between grey and harbour seals from the Baltic Sea was observed. Furthermore, juvenile pinnipedia from the North Sea were significantly less infected with Corynosoma spp. than seals older than seven month. Molecular species identification as well as phylogenetic relationship analysis among the detected Corynosoma species were achieved by sequencing and comparisons of the ribosomal ITS1-5.8S-ITS2-complex and cytochrome-c-oxidase I gene. Molecular analysis resulted in a newly arranged distribution of Acanthocephala in the North Sea as in contrast to previous studies, C. strumosum could not be confirmed as predominant species. Instead, C. magdaleni and a C. magdaleni isolate (isolate Pv1NS with an atypical number of longitudinal rows of hooks at the proboscis were detected. Furthermore, morphological and molecular analyses indicate the possible finding of a cryptic species (Candidatus Corynosoma nortmeri sp. nov.. Keywords: Acanthocephala, Acantocephalans, Corynosoma, Seals, ITS, Cytochrome-c-oxidase, Marine parasites

  17. Temperature, salinity and other variables collected from discrete sample and profile observations using CTD, bottle and other instruments from the JAN MAYEN in the Norwegian Sea from 1993-04-01 to 1995-11-01 (NODC Accession 0115677)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NODC Accession 0115677 includes chemical, discrete sample, physical and profile data collected from JAN MAYEN in the Norwegian Sea from 1993-04-01 to 1995-11-01 and...

  18. Historical marine ecology: examining the role of fisheries in changes in North Sea benthos.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Robinson, Leonie A; Frid, Chris L J

    2008-07-01

    The organisms living on and in the sea floor, the benthos, represent an important ecological group. Although some (shellfish) have an economic value, most do not, and so little long-term data are available. We have identified three sources of historic benthic data for the North Sea, a regional sea that has been subjected to multiple human impacts for at least several hundred years. Each dataset has its limitations, but by their use together some issues emerge. Wider community shifts were observed in the shorter term and a number of extirpations at the scale of the North Sea were seen over longer time scales. The extirpated taxa share a number of characteristics consistent with an effect of fisheries such as fragile morphology. We must concentrate now on furthering our understanding of the ecological significance of shifts in dominance of particular functional units and protecting those habitats and species most vulnerable to fisheries-driven extirpation.

  19. Evaluation of harvest and information needs for North American sea ducks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Koneff, Mark D.; Zimmerman, Guthrie S.; Dwyer, Chris P.; Fleming, Kathleen K.; Padding, Paul I.; Devers, Patrick K.; Johnson, Fred A.; Runge, Michael C.; Roberts, Anthony J.

    2017-01-01

    Wildlife managers routinely seek to establish sustainable limits of sport harvest or other regulated forms of take while confronted with considerable uncertainty. A growing body of ecological research focuses on methods to describe and account for uncertainty in management decision-making and to prioritize research and monitoring investments to reduce the most influential uncertainties. We used simulation methods incorporating measures of demographic uncertainty to evaluate risk of overharvest and prioritize information needs for North American sea ducks (Tribe Mergini). Sea ducks are popular game birds in North America, yet they are poorly monitored and their population dynamics are poorly understood relative to other North American waterfowl. There have been few attempts to assess the sustainability of harvest of North American sea ducks, and no formal harvest strategy exists in the U.S. or Canada to guide management. The popularity of sea duck hunting, extended hunting opportunity for some populations (i.e., special seasons and/or bag limits), and population declines have led to concern about potential overharvest. We used Monte Carlo simulation to contrast estimates of allowable harvest and observed harvest and assess risk of overharvest for 7 populations of North American sea ducks: the American subspecies of common eider (Somateria mollissima dresseri), eastern and western populations of black scoter (Melanitta americana) and surf scoter (M. perspicillata), and continental populations of white-winged scoter (M. fusca) and long-tailed duck (Clangula hyemalis). We combined information from empirical studies and the opinions of experts through formal elicitation to create probability distributions reflecting uncertainty in the individual demographic parameters used in this assessment. Estimates of maximum growth (rmax), and therefore of allowable harvest, were highly uncertain for all populations. Long-tailed duck and American common eider appeared to be at high

  20. Variability and connectivity of plaice populations from the Eastern North Sea to the Western Baltic Sea, and implications for assessment and management

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Ulrich, Clara; Boje, Jesper; Cardinale, Massimiliano

    2013-01-01

    and management. Plaice in Kattegat and Skagerrak have traditionally been considered as one stock unit. Current understanding indicates that several plaice components may exist in the transition area between the North Sea and the Baltic Sea. A comprehensive review of all available biological knowledge on plaice...

  1. North sea: a quarter of total's reserves (excluding the Middle East)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anon.

    1995-01-01

    In 1994, for the fifth successive year, Total increased its proven reserves of hydrocarbons which reach 4.3 Gboe (+ 6% compared to 1993). Outside the Middle East, the reserves show a development of 9% and reach the threshold of 2 Gboe. In 1994, Total's production of hydrocarbons reached 633,000 boe/d (+ 4%), despite a fall of 3% in oil production in the Middle East. Excluding the Middle East, production was increased to 345,000 boe/d (+ 12%), including 212,000 boe/d for gas (+ 20%). Exploration/production investments were 5.8 GF in 1994 (excluding labour) and the development program for reserves and production for the coming years is based on yearly investments of some 6 GF. Total's production in Europe, essentially in the North Sea, was 154,000 boe/d in 1994 (+ 12%). This zone has potential for significant growth for the group which has undertaken exploration surveys in the Western Shetlands and in Haltenbanken. In the British zone, the Dunbar field and its neighbour Ellon were brought into production in December 1994. In the Norwegian zone, the Froy field, was brought into production last June. In the Lille-Frigg field, whose production started in May, initial reserves are estimated at 6,7 Bcm of gas. Total Norge AS also has interests in the producing fields of Ekofisk, Frigg, East-Frigg, Heimdal, Sleipner East, Veslefrikk, Oseberg, Brage, in those of Sleipner West and Huldra (start-up scheduled for 1997) and in Troll (phase 1) which should be producing in 1996. In the Dutch zone, the K4b and K5a blocks brought into production last November hold reserves estimated at 20 Bcm; their production could reach 2 Bcm/year as from 1995. (authors). 1 tab., 1 photo

  2. Assessment of undiscovered conventional oil and gas resources in the West Korea Bay–North Yellow Sea Basin, North Korea and China, 2017

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schenk, Christopher J.; Tennyson, Marilyn E.; Mercier, Tracey J.; Hawkins, Sarah J.; Finn, Thomas M.; Gaswirth, Stephanie B.; Marra, Kristen R.; Klett, Timothy R.; Le, Phuong A.; Leathers-Miller, Heidi M.; Woodall, Cheryl A.

    2017-07-11

    Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated mean undiscovered, technically recoverable conventional resources of 1.1 billion barrels of oil and 2.2 trillion cubic feet of gas in the West Korea Bay–North Yellow Sea Basin, North Korea and China.

  3. Variability and connectivity of plaice populations from the Eastern North Sea to the Baltic Sea, part II. Biological evidence of population mixing

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Ulrich, Clara; Hansen, Jakob Hemmer; Boje, Jesper

    2016-01-01

    in parallel. Genetic markers suggested the existence of different genetic populations in the transition area. Growth backcalculation with otoliths resulted in significant although limited differences in growth rates between North Sea and Skagerrak, indicating weak differentiation or important mixing......A multi-disciplinary study was conducted to clarify stock identity and connectivity patterns in the populations of European plaice (Pleuronectes platessa) in the Skagerrak-Kattegat transition area between the Eastern North Sea and the Baltic Sea. Five independent biological studies were carried out...... constitute a large share of the catches in this area. The mixing of different populations within a management area has implications for stock assessment and management. Choice must be made to either lump or split the populations, and the feasibility and constraints of both options are discussed. The outcomes...

  4. Shifts in North Sea forage fish productivity and potential fisheries yield

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Clausen, Lotte W.; Rindorf, Anna; Deurs, van Mikael; Dickey-Collas, Mark; Hintzen, Niels T.

    2018-01-01

    1. Forage fish populations support large scale fisheries and are key components of marine ecosystems across the world, linking secondary production to higher trophic levels. While climate-induced changes in the North Sea zooplankton community are described and documented in literature, the

  5. Quaternary evolution of the North Sea and the English Channel

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Gibbard, P.L.; Cohen, K.M.

    The island of Britain is surrounded by a ‘moat’ of water, of which the English Channel and the North Sea are two major components. This talk described some major events that occurred to shape these seaways and, in particular, the evidence preserved on the Channel seabed. Here a system of valleys

  6. PHYTOPLANKTON OF THE NORTH-SEA AND ITS DYNAMICS - A REVIEW

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    REID, PC; LANCELOT, C; GIESKES, WWC; HAGMEIER, E; WEICHART, G

    Phytoplankton is the major contributor to algal biomass and primary production of the North Sea, although crops of macroalgae can locally be up to 2000 g C.m-2 along the coast of the U.K. and Norway, and microphytobenthos dominates production in the shallow tidal flat areas bordering the coasts of

  7. PHYTOPLANKTON OF THE NORTH-SEA AND ITS DYNAMICS - A REVIEW

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    REID, PC; LANCELOT, C; GIESKES, WWC; HAGMEIER, E; WEICHART, G

    1990-01-01

    Phytoplankton is the major contributor to algal biomass and primary production of the North Sea, although crops of macroalgae can locally be up to 2000 g C.m-2 along the coast of the U.K. and Norway, and microphytobenthos dominates production in the shallow tidal flat areas bordering the coasts of

  8. Seamount physiography and biology in the north-east Atlantic and Mediterranean Sea

    OpenAIRE

    Morato, T.; Kvile, K. Ø.; Taranto, G. H.; Tempera, F.; Narayanaswamy, B. E.; Hebbeln, D.; Menezes, G. M.; Wienberg, C.; Santos, R. S.; Pitcher, T. J.

    2013-01-01

    This work aims at characterising the seamount physiography and biology in the OSPAR Convention limits (north-east Atlantic Ocean) and Mediterranean Sea. We first inferred potential abundance, location and morphological characteristics of seamounts, and secondly, summarized the existing biological, geological and oceanographic in situ research, identifying examples of well-studied seamounts. Our study showed that the seamount population in the OSPAR area (north-east Atlantic) and in the Medite...

  9. Exchanges between the open Black Sea and its North West shelf

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shapiro, Georgy; Wobus, Fred; Zhou, Feng

    2014-05-01

    Exchanges between the vast NW shelf and the deep basin of the Black Sea play a significant role in maintaining the balance of nutrients, heat content and salinity of the shelf waters. Nearly 87 % of the Black Sea is entirely anoxic below 70 to 200m and contains high levels of hydrogen sulphide (Zaitsev et al, 2001), and this makes the shelf waters particularly valuable for maintaining the Black Sea ecosystem in good health. The increase in salinity of shelf waters occurs partially due to exchanges with more saline open sea waters and represents a threat to relics and endemic species. The shelf-break is commonly considered the bottle-neck of the shelf-deep sea exchanges (e.g. (Huthnance, 1995, Ivanov et al, 1997). Due to conservation of potential vorticity, the geostrophic currents flow along the contours of constant depth. However the ageostrophic flows (Ekman drift, mesoscale eddies, filaments, internal waves) are not subject to the same constraints. It has been shown that during the winter well mixed cold waters formed on the North West shelf propagate into the deep sea, providing an important mechanism for the replenishment of the Cold Intermediate Layer ( Staneva and Stanev, 1997). However, much less is known about exchanges in the warm season. In this study, the transports of water, heat and salt between the northwestern shelf and the adjacent deep basin of the Black Sea are investigated using a high-resolution three-dimensional primitive equation model, NEMO-SHELF-BLS (Shapiro et al, 2013). It is shown that during the period from April to August, 2005, both onshore and offshore cross-shelf break transports in the top 20 m were as high as 0.24 Sv on average, which was equivalent to the replacement of 60% of the volume of surface shelf waters (0 - 20 m) per month. Two main exchange mechanisms are studied: (i) Ekman transport, and (ii) transport by mesoscale eddies and associated meanders of the Rim Current. The Ekman drift causes nearly uniform onshore or

  10. Recruitment decline in North Sea herring is accompanied by reduced larval growth rates

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Payne, Mark; Ross, Stine Dalmann; Worsøe Clausen, Lotte

    2013-01-01

    The stock of North Sea autumn spawning herring (Clupea harengus L.) has shown an unprecedented sequence of ten years of sharply reduced recruitment, in spite of a high spawning biomass. Recent work has identified this below-expected recruitment as being determined during the larval phase: however...... rate of 8%, concurrent with the reduced larval survival and recruitment, was identified: after correcting for the effect of other explanatory variables (e.g. temperature changes), the gross reduction was found to be 12%. This reduction is most probably due to changes in either the amount or quality...... and larvae survival, thereby narrowing the range of potential mechanisms underlying the observed reduction in the recruitment of North Sea autumn spawning herring...

  11. Spatio-temporal variability of the North Sea cod recruitment in relation to temperature and zooplankton.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Delphine Nicolas

    Full Text Available The North Sea cod (Gadus morhua, L. stock has continuously declined over the past four decades linked with overfishing and climate change. Changes in stock structure due to overfishing have made the stock largely dependent on its recruitment success, which greatly relies on environmental conditions. Here we focus on the spatio-temporal variability of cod recruitment in an effort to detect changes during the critical early life stages. Using International Bottom Trawl Survey (IBTS data from 1974 to 2011, a major spatio-temporal change in the distribution of cod recruits was identified in the late 1990s, characterized by a pronounced decrease in the central and southeastern North Sea stock. Other minor spatial changes were also recorded in the mid-1980s and early 1990s. We tested whether the observed changes in recruits distribution could be related with direct (i.e. temperature and/or indirect (i.e. changes in the quantity and quality of zooplankton prey effects of climate variability. The analyses were based on spatially-resolved time series, i.e. sea surface temperature (SST from the Hadley Center and zooplankton records from the Continuous Plankton Recorder Survey. We showed that spring SST increase was the main driver for the most recent decrease in cod recruitment. The late 1990s were also characterized by relatively low total zooplankton biomass, particularly of energy-rich zooplankton such as the copepod Calanus finmarchicus, which have further contributed to the decline of North Sea cod recruitment. Long-term spatially-resolved observations were used to produce regional distribution models that could further be used to predict the abundance of North Sea cod recruits based on temperature and zooplankton food availability.

  12. Dual hydraulic behaviour of the Chalk in the Netherlands North Sea

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Verweij, H.

    2006-01-01

    Information on the sedimentary development, seismic stratigraphy and burial compaction of the Chalk Group in the Netherlands North Sea was combined with pressure data and basin modelling to investigate the hydraulic behaviour of the Chalk Group in the Central Graben and Schill Grund High. The

  13. Satellite monitoring temperature conditions spawning area of the Northeast Arctic cod in the Norwegian Sea and assessment its abundance

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vanyushin, George; Bulatova, Tatiana; Klochkov, Dmitriy; Troshkov, Anatoliy; Kruzhalov, Michail

    2013-04-01

    In this study, the attempt to consider the relationship between sea surface anomalies of temperature (SST anomalies °C) in spawning area of the Norwegian Arctic cod off the Lofoten islands in coastal zone of the Norwegian Sea and modern cod total stock biomass including forecasting assessment of future cod generation success. Continuous long-term database of the sea surface temperature (SST) was created on the NOAA satellites data. Mean monthly SST and SST anomalies are computed for the selected area on the basis of the weekly SST maps for the period of 1998-2012. These maps were plotted with the satellite SST data, as well as information of vessels, byoies and coastal stations. All data were classified by spawning seasons (March-April) and years. The results indicate that poor and low middle generations of cod (2001, 2006, 2007) occurred in years with negative or extremely high positive anomalies in the spawning area. The SST anomalies in years which were close to normal or some more normal significances provide conditions for appearance strong or very strong generations of cod (1998, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009). Temperature conditions in concrete years influence on different indexes of cod directly. So, the mean temperature in spawning seasons in years 1999-2005 was ≈5,0°C and SST anomaly - +0,35°C, by the way average year significances indexes of cod were: total stock biomass - 1425,0 th.t., total spawning biomass - 460,0 th.t., recruitment (age 3+) - 535,0 mln. units and landings - 530,0 th.t. In spawning seasons 2006-2012 years the average data were following: mean SST ≈6,0°C, SST anomaly - +1,29°C, total stock biomass - 2185,0 th.t., total spawning biomass - 1211,0 th.t., recruitment (age 3+) - 821,0 mln. units and landings - 600,0 th.t. The SST and SST anomalies (the NOAA satellite data) characterize increase of decrease in input of warm Atlantic waters which form numerous eddies along the flows of the main warm currents thus creating

  14. Estimation of new production in the North Sea: consequences for temporal and spatial variability of phytoplankton

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Richardson, Katherine; Bo Pedersen, Flemming

    1998-01-01

    By coupling knowledge of oceanographic processes and phytoplankton responses to light and nutrient availability, we estimate a total potential new (sensu Dugdale and Goering,1967) production for the North Sea of approximately 15.6 million tons C per year. In a typical year, about 40......% of this production will be associated with the spring bloom in the surface waters of the seasonally stratified (central and northern) North Sea. About 40% is predicted to occur in the coastal waters while the remaining new production is predicted to take place in sub-surface chlorophyll peaks occuring in association...... with fronts in the North Sea during summer month. By considering the inter-annual variation in heat, wind and nutrient availability (light and tidal energy input are treated as non-varying from year to year), the inter-annual variability in the new production occuring in these different regions is estimated...

  15. Environmental pollutants in endangered vs. increasing subspecies of the lesser black-backed gull on the Norwegian Coast

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bustnes, Jan Ove; Helberg, Morten; Strann, Karl-Birger; Skaare, Janneche Utne

    2006-01-01

    Organochlorine (OC) residues were measured in eggs and blood of different subspecies of the lesser black-backed gull, Larus fuscus, on the Norwegian coast: a) increasing L. f. intermedius in the North Sea; b) endangered L. f. fuscus near the Arctic Circle; c) L. f. fuscus and greyish-mantled gulls, with a L. f. intermedius appearance, in the Barents Sea region. The dominating OCs in lesser black-backed gulls were polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) and p,p'-dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene (DDE). DDE and β-hexachlorocyclohexane (β-HCH) residues were higher in L. f. fuscus compared to L. f. intermedius and greyish-mantled birds in the Barents Sea region. In the latter area, blood residues of PCB and DDE in lesser black-backed gulls were as high as in great black-backed gulls, Larus marinus, while in the other regions they were lower. The higher DDE residues in endangered L. f. fuscus compared to increasing L. f. intermedius and greyish-mantled birds, which are invading northern Norway, suggest that OCs may have played a role in the population decline of L. f. fuscus, possibly in combination with nutrient stress. - DDE and β-HCH residues were higher in an endangered compared to an increasing subspecies of lesser black-backed gulls in Norway

  16. Patterns of Cenozoic sediment flux from western Scandinavia

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Gołędowski, Bartosz; Nielsen, S.B.; Clausen, O.R.

    2012-01-01

    deposits in the North Sea, the post-mid-Miocene Molo and Kai Formations of the Norwegian Shelf, the southern North Sea delta system and large volumes of the Late Pliocene-Holocene Naust Formation. The sediment flux from Scandinavia during the Cenozoic is in general agreement with the detrital flux...

  17. Discharges and Emissions on the Norwegian Continental Shelf : Oil, chemicals and emissions to air; Utslipp paa norsk kontinentalsokkel 2000. Olje, kjemikalier og utslipp til luft

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    2002-07-01

    The report gives an overview of the discharges of oil and chemicals to sea and emissions to air from the Norwegian Continental Shelf for 2000. This report is based on the operators annual report to the Norwegian Pollution Control Authorities. (author)

  18. Temporal and spatial variability of nutrients and oxygen in the North Aegean Sea during the last thirty years

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ε. SOUVERMEZOGLOU

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available Inorganic nutrient and dissolved oxygen data collected in the North Aegean Sea during 1986 - 2008 were analyzed in order to evaluate the role of the inflowing Black Sea originated surface water (BSW in the nutrient regime of the area.  In periods of high buoyancy inflow from Dardanelles strait, a reduction of inorganic nutrients in the surface layer is observed along the north-west route of the BSW; in parallel, the underlying layer of Levantine intermediate water revealed an increase of inorganic nutrients, receiving the degradation material from the surface layer. The above spatial patterns suggest a contribution of the BSW to the observed enhanced production of the North Aegean Sea. Anomalously low buoyancy inflow of BSW combined with severe winter meteorological conditions promote deep water formation events. The physical and chemical characteristics of the deep waters found in the different basins of the North Aegean Sea in 1997 (following the deep water formation in winters of 1992-1993 differed from those observed after the formation in winter 1987. These differences were probably related to the drastic changes occurred in the deep waters of the Eastern Mediterranean in the early 1990, by the Eastern Mediterranean Transient. Considering that deep water formation processes provide occasionally inorganic nutrients to the euphotic layer, it seems that BSW through its uninterrupted supply of small quantities of nutrients should play an additional role in the production in the North Aegean Sea.

  19. Role of North Indian Ocean Air-Sea Interaction in Summer Monsoon Intraseasonal Oscillation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, L.; Han, W.; Li, Y.

    2017-12-01

    Air-sea coupling processes over the North Indian Ocean associated with Indian summer monsoon intraseasonal oscillation (MISO) are analyzed. Observations show that MISO convection anomalies affect underlying sea surface temperature (SST) through changes in surface shortwave radiation (via cloud cover change) and surface latent heat flux (associated with surface wind speed change). In turn, SST anomalies determine the changing rate of MISO precipitation (dP/dt): warm (cold) SST anomalies cause increasing (decreasing) precipitation rate through increasing (decreasing) surface convergence. Air-sea interaction gives rise to a quadrature relationship between MISO precipitation and SST anomalies. A local air-sea coupling model (LACM) is established based on these observed physical processes, which is a damped oscillatory system with no external forcing. The period of LACM is proportional to the square root of mean state mixed layer depth , assuming other physical parameters remain unchanged. Hence, LACM predicts a relatively short (long) MISO period over the North Indian Ocean during the May-June monsoon developing (July-August mature) phase when is shallow (deep). This result is consistent with observed MISO statistics. An oscillatory external forcing of a typical 30-day period is added to LACM, representing intraseasonal oscillations originated from the equatorial Indian Ocean and propagate into the North Indian Ocean. The period of LACM is then determined by both the inherent period associated with local air-sea coupling and the period of external forcing. It is found that resonance occurs when , amplifying the MISO in situ. This result explains the larger MISO amplitude during the monsoon developing phase compared to the mature phase, which is associated with seasonal cycle of . LACM, however, fails to predict the observed small MISO amplitude during the September-October monsoon decaying phase, when is also shallow. This deficiency might be associated with the

  20. Fulmar Litter EcoQO monitoring along Durch and North Sea coasts

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Franeker, van J.A.

    2011-01-01

    Wastes from ships are an important source of litter in the marine environment in the Southern North Sea and cause serious economic and ecological damage. Inadequacies in the ship to shore waste delivery procedures are considered a major factor in illegal discharges. The European Union addressed the

  1. The paleocene in north Africa - Sea-level changes and paleoproductivity in Tunisa, Libya and Egypt using microfossils

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Guasti, E.; Lüning, S.

    2009-01-01

    The Paleocene is a time of warm oceans and generally high sea levels. In North Africa, vast epicontinental seas extended far inside the African continent. In this paper we correlate sea level, primary paleoproductivity and facies distribution of the proximal, carbonate-dominated Paleocene deposits

  2. Finance and North Sea oil: the challenge of non-recourse finance

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    White, N A

    1976-04-01

    Many companies operating in the North Sea feel that the financial community is not responding to the complexity of their situation brought about by the interplay between national legislation and fiscal measures, technological development, extreme weather conditions, OPEC decisions, or falling oil demand. The financial community feels it is lending its depositors' money and the kind of innovations required by some companies in the oil industry would reduce its level of security. After reviewing the possible solutions, the author concludes that it is highly unlikely that non-resource finance in large amounts will be available without collateral, or other security, from outside the North Sea area. The author offers his suggestion and preference for a new kind of vehicle to be designed by the financial institutions that would provide the necessary guarantees to the lending consortium in accordance with the needs of the individual participant in the license or field project. (MCW)

  3. Dissolved inorganic carbon, alkalinity, temperature and salinity collected from discrete sample and profile observations using CTD, bottle and other instruments from G.O. SARS in the Norwegian Sea from 2012-03-20 to 2012-03-22 (NCEI Accession 0156922)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NCEI Accession 0156922 includes chemical, discrete sample, physical and profile data collected from G.O. SARS in the Norwegian Sea from 2012-03-20 to 2012-03-22....

  4. Coastal Sea Level along the North Eastern Atlantic Shelf from Delay Doppler Altimetry

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fenoglio-Marc, L.; Benveniste, J.; Andersen, O. B.; Gravelle, M.; Dinardo, S.; Uebbing, B.; Scharroo, R.; Kusche, J.; Kern, M.; Buchhaupt, C.

    2017-12-01

    Satellite altimetry data of the CryoSat-2 and Sentinel-3 missions processed with Delay Doppler methodology (DDA) provide improved coastal sea level measurements up to 2-4 km from coast, thanks to an along-track resolution of about 300m and a higher signal to noise ratio. We investigate the 10 Kilometre stripe along the North-Eastern Atlantic shelf from Lisbon to Bergen to detect the possible impacts in sea level change studies of this enhanced dataset. We consider SAR CryoSat-2 and Sentinel-3 altimetry products from the ESA GPOD processor and in-house reduced SAR altimetry (RDSAR) products. Improved processing includes in RDSAR the application of enhanced retrackers for the RDSAR waveform. Improved processing in SAR includes modification both in the generation of SAR waveforms, (as Hamming weighting window on the burst data prior to the azimuth FFT, zero-padding prior to the range FFT, doubling of the extension for the radar range swath) and in the SAMOSA2 retracker. Data cover the full lifetime of CryoSat-2 (6 years) and Sentinel-3 (1 year). Conventional altimetry are from the sea level CCI database. First we analyse the impact of these SAR altimeter data on the sea level trend and on the estimation of vertical motion from the altimeter minus tide gauge differences. VLM along the North-Eastern Atlantic shelf is generally small compared to the North-Western Atlantic Coast VLM, with a smaller signal to noise ratio. Second we investigate impact on the coastal mean sea level surface and the mean dynamic topography. We evaluate a mean surface from the new altimeter data to be combined to state of the art geoid models to derive the mean dynamic topography. We compare the results to existing oceanographic and geodetic mean dynamic topography solutions, both on grid and pointwise at the tide gauge stations. This study is supported by ESA through the Sea Level CCI and the GOCE++DYCOT projects

  5. Organophosphorus flame retardants and plasticizers in the atmosphere of the North Sea

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Moeller, Axel; Xie Zhiyong; Caba, Armando; Sturm, Renate; Ebinghaus, Ralf

    2011-01-01

    Air samples collected in the German part of the North Sea from March to July 2010 were investigated for organophosphorus compounds (OPs) being applied as flame retardants and plasticizers. The Σ 8 OPs concentration ranged from 110 to 1400 pg m -3 while tris(2-chloroisopropyl) phosphate (TCPP) dominated all samples with individual concentrations up to 1200 pg m -3 . The highest concentrations were observed in continental air masses showing the high influence of industrialized regions including production sites on atmospheric emissions and concentrations. The occurrence of OPs even in oceanic/Arctic air masses shows that OPs can undergo long-range atmospheric transport. Dry particle-bound deposition fluxes from 9 to 240 ng m -2 d -1 for Σ 8 OPs were estimated leading to a minimum annual flux of 710 ± 580 kg y -1 OPs into the German North Sea. This study presents the first occurrence of OPs in the marine atmosphere together with important information on their long-range transport potential. - Highlights: → Organophosphorus flame retardants are detected for the first time in the marine atmosphere. → Organophosphorus compounds can undergo medium to long-range atmospheric transport. → Western Europe emits organophosphorus compounds to the marine atmosphere. → Marine air levels of organophosphorus flame retardants range up to 1 ng/m 3 . - Organophosphorus flame retardants, in particular tris(2-chloroisopropyl) phosphate, are emitted into the North Sea atmosphere by Western European countries.

  6. Norwegian monitoring (1990-2015) of the marine environment around the sunken nuclear submarine Komsomolets.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gwynn, Justin P; Heldal, Hilde Elise; Flo, Janita K; Sværen, Ingrid; Gäfvert, Torbjörn; Haanes, Hallvard; Føyn, Lars; Rudjord, Anne Liv

    2018-02-01

    Norway has monitored the marine environment around the sunken Russian nuclear submarine Komsomolets since 1990. This study presents an overview of 25 years of Norwegian monitoring data (1990-2015). Komsomolets sank in 1989 at a depth of 1680 m in the Norwegian Sea while carrying two nuclear torpedoes in its armament. Subsequent Soviet and Russian expeditions to Komsomolets have shown that releases from the reactor have occurred and that the submarine has suffered considerable damage to its hulls. Norwegian monitoring detected 134 Cs in surface sediments around Komsomolets in 1993 and 1994 and elevated activity concentrations of 137 Cs in bottom seawater between 1991 and 1993. Since then and up to 2015, no increased activity concentrations of radionuclides above values typical for the Norwegian Sea have been observed in any environmental sample collected by Norwegian monitoring. In 2013 and 2015, Norwegian monitoring was carried out using an acoustic transponder on the sampling gear that allowed samples to be collected at precise locations, ∼20 m from the hull of Komsomolets. The observed 238 Pu/ 239,240 Pu activity ratios and 240 Pu/ 239 Pu atom ratios in surface sediments sampled close to Komsomolets in 2013 did not indicate any releases of Pu isotopes from reactor or the torpedo warheads. Rather, these values probably reflect the overprinting of global fallout ratios with fluxes of these Pu isotopes from long-range transport of authorised discharges from nuclear reprocessing facilities in Northern Europe. However, due to the depth at which Komsomolets lies, the collection of seawater and sediment samples in the immediate area around the submarine using traditional sampling techniques from surface vessels is not possible, even with the use of acoustic transponders. Further monitoring is required in order to have a clear understanding of the current status of Komsomolets as a potential source of radioactive contamination to the Norwegian marine environment

  7. Dissolved inorganic carbon, alkalinity, temperature, salinity and other variables collected from discrete sample, profile and time series profile observations using Alkalinity titrator, CTD and other instruments from POLARFRONT in the Norwegian Sea from 2001-10-31 to 2007-11-29 (NODC Accession 0112884)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NCEI Accession 0112884 includes chemical, discrete sample, physical, profile and time series profile data collected from POLARFRONT in the Norwegian Sea from...

  8. Closing the Gaps in Offshore P&A: Lessons Learned From the North Sea

    Science.gov (United States)

    Torsater, M.

    2017-12-01

    This talk will give an overview of the major challenges related to offshore well plugging and abandonment (P&A) with examples from the North Sea. The talk will outline why today's P&A operations are so time consuming and expensive, and it will point out current technology gaps and issues related to standards and regulations in the North Sea countries. Emerging P&A solutions will be discussed, and results from large ongoing research projects in Norway will be shared. Special emphasis will be given to promising new concepts, such as using creeping shale formations as permanent well barriers, and using thermal methods for removal of tubing and casing. The long-term aspects of well plugging will also be discussed, together with methods available for minimizing leakage risk.

  9. Shallow Gas Migration along Hydrocarbon Wells-An Unconsidered, Anthropogenic Source of Biogenic Methane in the North Sea.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vielstädte, Lisa; Haeckel, Matthias; Karstens, Jens; Linke, Peter; Schmidt, Mark; Steinle, Lea; Wallmann, Klaus

    2017-09-05

    Shallow gas migration along hydrocarbon wells constitutes a potential methane emission pathway that currently is not recognized in any regulatory framework or greenhouse gas inventory. Recently, the first methane emission measurements at three abandoned offshore wells in the Central North Sea (CNS) were conducted showing that considerable amounts of biogenic methane originating from shallow gas accumulations in the overburden of deep reservoirs were released by the boreholes. Here, we identify numerous wells poking through shallow gas pockets in 3-D seismic data of the CNS indicating that about one-third of the wells may leak, potentially releasing a total of 3-17 kt of methane per year into the North Sea. This poses a significant contribution to the North Sea methane budget. A large fraction of this gas (∼42%) may reach the atmosphere via direct bubble transport (0-2 kt yr -1 ) and via diffusive exchange of methane dissolving in the surface mixed layer (1-5 kt yr -1 ), as indicated by numerical modeling. In the North Sea and in other hydrocarbon-prolific provinces of the world shallow gas pockets are frequently observed in the sedimentary overburden and aggregate leakages along the numerous wells drilled in those areas may be significant.

  10. Post-Glacial Development of Western North Atlantic - Labrador Sea Oceanographic Circulation

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Sheldon, Christina

    2015-01-01

    The subpolar North Atlantic Ocean – Labrador Sea region is an important site for both oceanographic and atmospheric circulation. The convergence of ocean currents causes downwelling of cold, saline water in the subpolar gyre, helping to drive the world-wide thermohaline circulation system. The main......, the subpolar gyre weakened, which carried less Gulf Stream-derived water to the western North Atlantic Ocean via the West Greenland Current and the Slopewater Current, south of Newfoundland. Changes in the subpolar gyre circulation had developed to be analogous to the modern climate by approximately 2 cal kyr...... surface currents involved in the gyre are the south-flowing, cold and relatively fresh Labrador Current and the north-flowing, warm and relatively saline Gulf Stream. The oceanic front between these two major currents moves north and south, dependent on the relative strengths of the currents, impacting...

  11. Occurrence of Ergasilus megaceros Wilson, 1916, in the sea lamprey and other fishes from North America

    Science.gov (United States)

    Muzzall, Patrick M.; Hudson, Patrick L.

    2004-01-01

    Ergasilus megaceros (Copepoda: Ergasilidae) was recovered from the nasal fossae (lamellae) of the olfactory sac in 1 (1.8%) of 56 sea lampreys, Petromyzon marinus Linne, 1758, collected in May 2002 from the Cheboygan River, Michigan. Although the sea lamprey is a new host record for E. megaceros, this fish species may not be a preferred host because of its low prevalence. Ergasilus megaceros is the second ergasilid species reported from the sea lamprey in North America. This is the third report of an ergasilid species infecting the nasal fossae of fishes in North America, with E. rhinos being the only other species reported from this site.

  12. Description of the North Sea wind climate for wind energy applications

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Coelingh, J.P.; Wijk, A.J.M. van; Cleijne, J.W.; Pleune, R.

    1992-01-01

    In The Netherlands it is foreseen that wind turbines will be installed on offshore locations in the North Sea before the year 2010. Therefore adequate knowledge of the offshore wind climate should be obtained, both for the estimation of energy yields and for the determination of wind load

  13. Aerosol properties over the Arabian Sea during the north east monsoon

    Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

    Suresh, T.; Dulac, F; Leon, G.F; Desa, E.

    440, 670, 870, 936, 940 and 1020 mm, in the Arabian Sea between 15.4-17.86 degrees N and 73.28-69.3 degrees E, during the North East monsoon period of 1-10 December, 1998. The aerosol optical properties derived from these data showed variations from...

  14. Quantification of seep-related methane gas emissions at Tommeliten, North Sea

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Schneider von Deimling, J.S.; Rehder, G.; Greinert, J.; McGinnnis, D.F.; Boetius, A.; Linke, P.

    2011-01-01

    Tommeliten is a prominent methane seep area in the Central North Sea. Previous surveys revealed shallow gas-bearing sediments and methane gas ebullition into the water column. In this study, the in situ methane flux at Tommeliten is re-assessed and the potential methane transport to the atmosphere

  15. Combining sea state and land subsidence rates in an assessment of flooding hazards at the Danish North Sea coast

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Sørensen, Carlo Sass; Broge, Niels; Knudsen, Per

    Sand nourishments (2-3 M3/y) counteract erosion on the central North Sea coast of Denmark and dikes and artificial dunes protect the low-lying hinterland from flooding. The fisheries towns of Thyboron, Thorsminde and Hvide Sande are all liable to flooding during storm surges. Tide gauge series fr...... the coast are presented and the town of Thyboron is used as a case where, in addition to SLR and extremes, analyses of land movement and ocean-groundwater interactions are included in an integrated method for assessing future coastal flooding hazards.......Sand nourishments (2-3 M3/y) counteract erosion on the central North Sea coast of Denmark and dikes and artificial dunes protect the low-lying hinterland from flooding. The fisheries towns of Thyboron, Thorsminde and Hvide Sande are all liable to flooding during storm surges. Tide gauge series from...

  16. Nutrients, chlorophyll, fractional primary productivity in water column of the North Arabian Sea in support of the North Arabian Sea Environment and Ecosystem Research from 1992-1994 (NODC Accession 0000778)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Five cruises were carried out under the Pak-US cooperative project 'North Arabian Sea Environment and Ecosystem Research' (NASEER) from 1992-1994. The main objective...

  17. Effort allocation of the Dutch beam trawl fleet in response to a temporarily closed area in the North Sea

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Rijnsdorp, A.D.; Piet, G.J.; Poos, J.J.

    2001-01-01

    The spawning stock of North Sea cod is at a historic low level and immediate management measures are needed to improve this situation. As a first step, the European Commission in 2001 closed a large area in the North Sea between February 15 and April 30 to all cod related fishing fleets in order to

  18. North Sea trends typify industry's worldwide adjustment to change

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nicandros, C.S.

    1993-01-01

    In response to rapid industry changes, oil companies are employing new practices and entering new relationships. In the U.K. North Sea's Britannia field, Conoco (U.K.) Ltd. and Chevron (U.K.) Ltd. share duties of field operator in the region's first such business arrangement. Here, the Neddrill 6 semisubmersible drills a Britannia appraisal well. This report tells how companies are using teamwork and other techniques to derive maximum value from their assets and technologies

  19. The development of radioactive contamination of the North Sea fish and in the lower course of the rivers Elbe and Weser

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Feldt, W.; Kanisch, G.

    1985-01-01

    The discharge of radioactive waste water from radwaste treatment plants in England and in France has led to an increase in contamination of North Sea fish. In 1982, following water measurements, fish were caught in many places in the North Sea. The comparison similar measurements carried out in 1965 proves that in 1982 the contamination of North Sea fish with Cs-137 had increased by a factor of about 3. Subsequent developments of contamination of several kind of fish until 1984 are shown and the radiation exposure of the population from eating shrimps, mussels and fish is estimated. The radionuclides Cs-137, Ru-106 and Co-60 can be used to show to what extent the lower course of the rivers Elbe and Weser are affected by North Sea contamination, in particular by discharges from La Hague. (orig./HP) [de

  20. Contrasting trends in North Atlantic deep-water formation in the Labrador Sea and Nordic Seas during the Holocene

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Renssen, H.; Goosse, H.; Fichefet, T.

    2005-01-01

    The Holocene North Atlantic deep-water formation is studied in a 9,000-year long simulation with a coupled climate model of intermediate complexity, forced by changes in orbital forcing and atmospheric trace gas concentrations. During the experiment, deep-water formation in the Nordic Seas is

  1. Improving the assessment and management of the plaice stock complex between the North Sea and the Baltic Sea

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Ulrich, Clara; Boje, Jesper; Cardinale, Massimiliano

    2012-01-01

    Plaice in Kattegat and Skagerrak have traditionally been considered as one stock unit. However the collected information on biology and fishery in areas between the North and Baltic Seas suggest changes are needed in assessment units as well as in management areas. Plaice in Skagerrak (Division 20...

  2. Radioelement studies in the oceans. Final report, 15 April 1981-14 September 1983

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cochran, J.K.; Livingston, H.D.; Sholkovitz, E.R.

    1983-09-01

    Significant advances into the post-depositional (or diagenetic) chemistry of radionuclides have been made by developing a method to study the pore water chemistry of 239 240 Pu, 137 Cs, 55 Fe, and several natural radionuclides (U, Th, Ra, 210 Po, 210 Pb). Field (box coring) and laboratory studies demonstrate that 239 240 Pu has an insignificant diagenetic mobility in nearshore sediments. 137 Cs, in contrast, appears to be significantly mobile and undergoes rapid ion-exchange reactions, while U has an active redox-complexation sediment chemistry. A major emphasis has been on Windscale nuclear fuel reprocessing radionuclide studies in the Irish Sea, Minch, North Sea, and Norwegian and Greenland Seas. This work has demonstrated the dramatic penetration of these radionuclides (especially 137 Cs) through the Irish Sea, Minch, and North Sea into the upper 1000 m of the Norwegian and Greenland Seas. Measurements of 137 Cs, 134 Cs, and 90 Sr from samples collected in the Arctic and North Atlantic Oceans during Transient Tracers in Oceanography (TTO) cruise in 1981 provide a valuable and unique set of data to the tracer studies in the North Atlantic Ocean

  3. Improved measurements of mean sea surface velocity in the Nordic Seas from synthetic aperture radar

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wergeland Hansen, Morten; Johnsen, Harald; Engen, Geir; Øie Nilsen, Jan Even

    2017-04-01

    The warm and saline surface Atlantic Water (AW) flowing into the Nordic Seas across the Greenland-Scotland ridge transports heat into the Arctic, maintaining the ice-free oceans and regulating sea-ice extent. The AW influences the region's relatively mild climate and is the northern branch of the global thermohaline overturning circulation. Heat loss in the Norwegian Sea is key for both heat transport and deep water formation. In general, the ocean currents in the Nordic Seas and the North Atlantic Ocean is a complex system of topographically steered barotropic and baroclinic currents of which the wind stress and its variability is a driver of major importance. The synthetic aperture radar (SAR) Doppler centroid shift has been demonstrated to contain geophysical information about sea surface wind, waves and current at an accuracy of 5 Hz and pixel spacing of 3.5 - 9 × 8 km2. This corresponds to a horizontal surface velocity of about 20 cm/s at 35° incidence angle. The ESA Prodex ISAR project aims to implement new and improved SAR Doppler shift processing routines to enable reprocessing of the wide swath acquisitions available from the Envisat ASAR archive (2002-2012) at higher resolution and better accuracy than previously obtained, allowing combined use with Sentinel-1 and Radarsat-2 retrievals to build timeseries of the sea surface velocity in the Nordic Seas. Estimation of the geophysical Doppler shift from new SAR Doppler centroid shift retrievals will be demonstrated, addressing key issues relating to geometric (satellite orbit and attitude) and electronic (antenna mis-pointing) contributions and corrections. Geophysical Doppler shift retrievals from one month of data in January 2010 and the inverted surface velocity in the Nordic Seas are then addressed and compared to other direct and indirect estimates of the upper ocean current, in particular those obtained in the ESA GlobCurrent project.

  4. Covariance among North Sea nutrient and climate drivers: consequences for plankton dynamics.

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    McQuatters-Gollop, A.; Vermaat, J.E.

    2011-01-01

    Regime shift and principal component analysis of a spatially disaggregated database capturing time-series of climatic, nutrient and plankton variables in the North Sea revealed considerable covariance between groups of ecosystem indicators. Plankton and climate time-series span the period 1958-2003,

  5. NORSE2015 - A Focused Experiment On Oil Emulsion Characterization Using PolSAR During the 2015 Norwegian Oil-On-Water Exercise

    Science.gov (United States)

    Holt, B.; Jones, C. E.; Brekke, C.; Breivik, O.; Skrunes, S.; Espeseth, M.

    2016-02-01

    A targeted experiment in characterizing the properties and development of mineral oil slicks was undertaken by NASA, UiT - The Arctic University of Norway, and the Norwegian Meteorological Institute during the 2015 Norwegian oil-on-water spill exercise in the North Sea (OPV2015). NORSE2015 (Norwegian Radar oil Spill Experiment) involved controlled release of plant oil and mineral emulsions of three different oil-to-water ratios, imaging of the slicks with satellite-borne synthetic aperture radars (SAR), and tracking their development with the NASA-UAVSAR instrument over a period of eight hours following release. During the experiment, in situ measurements were made from ship or aircraft with meteorological instruments, released drift buoys, and optical/IR imagers. The experiment was designed to provide validation data for development of a physical model relating polarization-dependent electromagnetic scattering to the dielectric properties of oil mixed with ocean water in a thick slick or emulsion. UAVSAR is a particularly low noise instrument, which enables detection of oil characteristics, and serves as the basis for a relative comparison of different radar frequencies and instruments in oil slick detection and characterization. The time series of UAVSAR polarimetric SAR (PolSAR) is used to track the spreading, movement, and change in backscatter of the different emulsion slicks and the plant oil, to look at movement relative to wind and wave directions, and to develop methods to differentiate between biogenic and mineral slicks based upon temporal changes in the slicks, including environment-driven changes. In this presentation, the experiment will be described and preliminary results presented. This work was carried out in part at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, under a contract with NASA. The Norwegian experiment was partly financed by CIRFA - Centre for integrated remote sensing and forecasting for arctic operations.

  6. Islands of steel rise over North Sea gas. Pt. 1

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hind, J A

    1965-10-27

    Nowhere is the offshore oil and gas prospecting boom more enthusiastic, urgent, and crowded than in the North Sea. The type of rig required for this type of offshore drilling mainly depends upon how far offshore drilling is to take place. The fixed jack-up type is most suitable where depth of water is not excessive and for actual drilling operations were the drill is most easily held steady over the hole. This type of rig presents a stability problem under tow from location to location with a shallow depth of hull. Depth of water limits the operational mobility of the submerged-type rig and it is the most prone to scouring effects. Fully floating and ship-mounted rigs solve the depth of water problem and many others associated with ocean transportation. However, this is at the expense of more difficult drilling operations and complexity of equipment. Semi-submersibles are a popular compromise between fixed sit-on-bottom rigs and fully floating types. From a naval architectural point of view they have much to recommend them as all- round units. Typical North Sea drill rigs are described and a table is given for complete details.

  7. Zooplankton data: Vertical distributions of zooplankton in the Norweigian and Greenland Seas during summer, 1989

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lane, P.V.Z.; Smith, S.L.; Schwarting, E.M.

    1993-08-01

    Recent studies of zooplankton populations in the Greenland Sea have focused on processes at the Marginal Ice Zone (MIZ) and the areas immediately adjacent to it under the ice and in open water. These studies have shown a relatively short period of intense secondary productivity which is closely linked temporally and spatially to phytoplankton blooms occurring near the ice edge in spring and early summer. During the summer of 1989 we participated in a project focusing on benthic and water column processes in the basins of the Norwegian and Greenland Seas. This study allowed us to compare biological processes at the MIZ with those occurring in the open waters of the Greenland Sea, and to compare processes at both of these locations with those in the Norwegian Sea. The data presented in this report are the results of zooplankton net tows covering the upper 1000 meters of the water column over the Norwegian Sea basin and the Greenland Sea basin, and the upper 500 meters of open water adjacent to the MIZ in the Greenland Sea. Sampling was conducted between 12 and 29 July 1989.

  8. Transport process of Pu isotope in marginal seas of the western North Pacific Ocean

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Yamada, Masatoshi [Department of Radiation Chemistry, Institute of Radiation Emergency Medicine, Hirosaki University, Hirosaki, 036-8564, Aomori (Japan); Zheng, Jian [Research Center for Radiation Protection, National Institute of Radiological Sciences, 4-9-1 Anagawa, Inage, 263-8555, Chiba (Japan)

    2014-07-01

    Significant quantities of Pu isotopes have been released into the marine environment as the result of atmospheric nuclear weapons testing. Most radionuclides globally dispersed in atmospheric nuclear weapons testing were released into the environment during the 1950's and 1960's. In the western North Pacific Ocean, the principal source can be further distinguished as two distinct sources of Pu: close-in tropospheric fallout from nuclear weapons testing at the Pacific Proving Grounds (PPG) in the Marshall Islands and global stratospheric fallout. Since the {sup 240}Pu/{sup 239}Pu atom ratio is characteristic for the Pu emission source, information on Pu isotopic signature is very useful to better understand the transport process in the oceans and to identify the sources of Pu. The mean atom ratio of {sup 240}Pu/{sup 239}Pu from the global stratospheric fallout is 0.180 ±0.014 based on soil sample data, whereas that from close-in tropospheric fallout from the PPG is 0.33 - 0.36. The {sup 240}Pu/{sup 239}Pu atom ratios in seawater samples collected in marginal seas of the western North Pacific Ocean will provide important and useful data for understanding the process controlling Pu transport and for distinguishing future Pu sources. The objectives of this study were to measure the {sup 239+240}Pu concentrations and {sup 240}Pu/{sup 239}Pu atom ratios in seawater from the Sea of Okhotsk, Japan Sea, South China Sea and Sulu Sea and to discuss the transport process of Pu. Large-volume seawater samples (250 L each) were collected from the surface to the bottom in marginal seas of the western North Pacific Ocean with acoustically triggered quadruple PVC sampling bottles during the R/V Hakuho-Maru cruise. The {sup 239}Pu and {sup 240}Pu concentrations and {sup 240}Pu/{sup 239}Pu atom ratios were measured with a double-focusing SF-ICP-MS, which was equipped with a guard electrode to eliminate secondary discharge in the plasma and to enhance overall sensitivity. In

  9. Norway and adjacent sedimentary basins during Cenozoic times - sediment fluxes, accumulation rates and mass balance

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Gołędowski, Bartosz; Nielsen, S.B.; Clausen, O.R.

    2011-01-01

    use offshore data from adjacent sedimentary basins (the North Sea and the Norwegian shelf) to calculate the amount of erosion. We have used a broad dataset of seismic 2D lines to map depositional units and a well dataset for the stratigraphic control and the velocity distribution in the sediments. We...... have therefore obtained accumulation rates in meters per million years for 5 depositional units in three areas - Southern North Sea, Central and Northern North Sea and the Norwegian shelf. Furthermore, taking into account the decay of porosity in sediments with burial depth, we have estimated...... the sediment volumes at the time of their deposition. Such calculation gives minimum values of erosion rates onshore and a mass balance can be approximated, when considering uncertainties like deposition of sediments outside study area, post-depositional sediment removal and loss of mass due to chemical...

  10. Evaluation of harvest and information needs for North American sea ducks.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mark D Koneff

    Full Text Available Wildlife managers routinely seek to establish sustainable limits of sport harvest or other regulated forms of take while confronted with considerable uncertainty. A growing body of ecological research focuses on methods to describe and account for uncertainty in management decision-making and to prioritize research and monitoring investments to reduce the most influential uncertainties. We used simulation methods incorporating measures of demographic uncertainty to evaluate risk of overharvest and prioritize information needs for North American sea ducks (Tribe Mergini. Sea ducks are popular game birds in North America, yet they are poorly monitored and their population dynamics are poorly understood relative to other North American waterfowl. There have been few attempts to assess the sustainability of harvest of North American sea ducks, and no formal harvest strategy exists in the U.S. or Canada to guide management. The popularity of sea duck hunting, extended hunting opportunity for some populations (i.e., special seasons and/or bag limits, and population declines have led to concern about potential overharvest. We used Monte Carlo simulation to contrast estimates of allowable harvest and observed harvest and assess risk of overharvest for 7 populations of North American sea ducks: the American subspecies of common eider (Somateria mollissima dresseri, eastern and western populations of black scoter (Melanitta americana and surf scoter (M. perspicillata, and continental populations of white-winged scoter (M. fusca and long-tailed duck (Clangula hyemalis. We combined information from empirical studies and the opinions of experts through formal elicitation to create probability distributions reflecting uncertainty in the individual demographic parameters used in this assessment. Estimates of maximum growth (rmax, and therefore of allowable harvest, were highly uncertain for all populations. Long-tailed duck and American common eider appeared

  11. Developments in the North Sea and their consequences for the marine environment

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Eisma, D.

    1981-01-01

    Summarizing, the marine environment of the North Sea is threatened in several ways: by waterpollution, by overfishing and by bottom disturbance. Fishing is now extremely regulated, but research on and control of stocks is only extended to commercial species. Strict regulations have been made for

  12. Decadal and multi-decadal variability of Labrador Sea Water in the north-western North Atlantic Ocean derived from tracer distributions: Heat budget, ventilation, and advection

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    van Aken, H.M.; de Jong, M.F.; Yashayaev, I.

    2011-01-01

    Time series of profiles of potential temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen, and planetary potential vorticity at intermediate depths in the Labrador Sea, the Irminger Sea, and the Iceland Basin have been constructed by combining the hydrographic sections crossing the sub-arctic gyre of the North

  13. Changes in pollution load and environmental trends in the North Sea

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Pawlak, Janet

    1998-12-01

    This publication relates to the quality of the marine environment in the North Sea. Changes in pollution load and environmental trends are analysed. Main themes discussed cover chemical contaminants, temporal trends contaminants in biota, inputs of contaminants to the marine environment, and biological effects of contaminants and biological monitoring. 14 refs., 5 figs., 4 tabs.

  14. Analysis of tidal currents in the North Sea from shipboard acoustic Doppler current profiler data

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vindenes, Håvard; Orvik, Kjell Arild; Søiland, Henrik; Wehde, Henning

    2018-06-01

    North Sea tidal currents are determined by applying harmonic analysis to ship-borne acoustic Doppler current profiler data recorded from 1999 to 2016, covering large areas of the northern North Sea. Direct current measurement data sets of this magnitude are rare in the otherwise well investigated North Sea, and thus it is a valuable asset in studying and expanding our understanding of its tidal currents and circulation in general. The harmonic analysis is applied to a least squares fit of the current observations at a set of knot points. Results from the harmonic analysis compare favorably to tidal parameters estimated from observations from moored instruments. The analysis shows that the tides are characterized by strong semi-diurnal component, with amplitudes of the principal Lunar constituent ranging from 1.6 cm/s in the Skagerrak to 67 cm/s in the Fair Isle Channel. Diurnal tides are found to be approximately one fifth the strength of the predominant semi-diurnal constituent. Output from a regional barotropic tide model compares well to tidal current determined from the harmonic analysis of the Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler data.

  15. Temperature affects the timing of spawning and migration of North Sea mackerel

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jansen, Teunis; Gislason, Henrik

    2011-01-01

    Climate change accentuates the need for knowing how temperature impacts the life history and productivity of economically and ecologically important species of fish. We examine the influence of temperature on the timing of the spawning and migrations of North Sea Mackerel using data from larvae C...

  16. Seasonal development of mixed layer depths, nutrients, chlorophyll and Calanus finmarchicus in the Norwegian Sea - A basin-scale habitat comparison

    KAUST Repository

    Bagø ien, Espen; Melle, Webjø rn; Kaartvedt, Stein

    2012-01-01

    Seasonal patterns for mixed layer depths, nutrients, chlorophyll, and Calanus finmarchicus in different water masses between 62 and 70°N of the Norwegian Sea were compared using spatiotemporally aggregated basin-scale data. Norwegian Coastal Water was stratified throughout the year due to a low-salinity upper layer. The winter mixed layer depth was typically about 50-60m, and the spring phytoplankton bloom peaked in late April. In Atlantic and Arctic Waters the winter mixed layer depths were much greater, typically about 175-250m. Due to the requirement for thermal stratification, the phytoplankton build-ups there were slower and the peaks were delayed until late May. Seasonal development of mixed layer depths, nutrient consumption and chlorophyll was similar for the Atlantic and Arctic areas. Young Calanus copepodites of the first new generation in Coastal Water peaked in early May, preceding the peak in Atlantic Water by about 2weeks, and that in Arctic Water by about 6weeks. While the young G 1 cohorts in Coastal and Atlantic waters coincided rather well in time with the phytoplankton blooms, the timing of the cohort in Arctic Water was delayed compared to the phytoplankton. Two or more Calanus generations in Coastal Water, and two generations in Atlantic Water were observed. Only one generation was found in Arctic Water, where scarce autumn data precludes evaluation of a possible second generation. © 2012 Elsevier Ltd.

  17. Seasonal development of mixed layer depths, nutrients, chlorophyll and Calanus finmarchicus in the Norwegian Sea - A basin-scale habitat comparison

    KAUST Repository

    Bagøien, Espen

    2012-09-01

    Seasonal patterns for mixed layer depths, nutrients, chlorophyll, and Calanus finmarchicus in different water masses between 62 and 70°N of the Norwegian Sea were compared using spatiotemporally aggregated basin-scale data. Norwegian Coastal Water was stratified throughout the year due to a low-salinity upper layer. The winter mixed layer depth was typically about 50-60m, and the spring phytoplankton bloom peaked in late April. In Atlantic and Arctic Waters the winter mixed layer depths were much greater, typically about 175-250m. Due to the requirement for thermal stratification, the phytoplankton build-ups there were slower and the peaks were delayed until late May. Seasonal development of mixed layer depths, nutrient consumption and chlorophyll was similar for the Atlantic and Arctic areas. Young Calanus copepodites of the first new generation in Coastal Water peaked in early May, preceding the peak in Atlantic Water by about 2weeks, and that in Arctic Water by about 6weeks. While the young G 1 cohorts in Coastal and Atlantic waters coincided rather well in time with the phytoplankton blooms, the timing of the cohort in Arctic Water was delayed compared to the phytoplankton. Two or more Calanus generations in Coastal Water, and two generations in Atlantic Water were observed. Only one generation was found in Arctic Water, where scarce autumn data precludes evaluation of a possible second generation. © 2012 Elsevier Ltd.

  18. Mapping Relative Sea Level Influences of the Cape Fear Arch in southern North Carolina

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hawkes, A.; Kemp, A.; Capar, P.

    2017-12-01

    Long-term relative sea-level (RSL) records are a necessary benchmark by which to gauge present accelerated rates of sea-level rise, future sea-level predictions, and their implications to the coastal zone. The east coast of the United States functions as a significant region of latitudinal RSL variability due to the continuous recovery of land from the deglaciation of the Laurentide Ice Sheet since the Last Glacial Maximum. Differential glacial isostatic adjustment (GIA) along the coastline has caused higher rates of subsidence in areas around the former forbulge maxima near New Jersey and Delaware and lower rates to the north and south of this maxima. However, the coast between southern North Carolina and northern South Carolina is experiencing a slower rate of RSL rise then is seen in reconstructed GIA latitudinal trends along the U.S. east coast. It was thought that this could have been attributed to non-isostatic, long-term tectonic processes causing less GIA subsidence of the lithosphere within the region impacted by uplift from the Cape Fear Arch (CFA), an underlying crystalline basement high. A recent study suggests that RSL rise is slower around the CFA than areas to the north and south due to suggested CFA uplift rates of 0.24+0.15mm a-1. An absence of RSL records for 200km north of the CFA make mapping of its influence difficult. Additional RSL records to the north of the CFA allow for a better understanding of the asymmetrical distribution in the rate of RSL rise in this region. Because the distribution in the rate of RSLR between records is not linear it is important for these low-lying coastal communities to better understand their risk to future RSLR.

  19. Bathymetric controls on Pliocene North Atlantic and Arctic sea surface temperature and deepwater production

    Science.gov (United States)

    Robinson, M.M.; Valdes, P.J.; Haywood, A.M.; Dowsett, H.J.; Hill, D.J.; Jones, S.M.

    2011-01-01

    The mid-Pliocene warm period (MPWP; ~. 3.3 to 3.0. Ma) is the most recent interval in Earth's history in which global temperatures reached and remained at levels similar to those projected for the near future. The distribution of global warmth, however, was different than today in that the high latitudes warmed more than the tropics. Multiple temperature proxies indicate significant sea surface warming in the North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans during the MPWP, but predictions from a fully coupled ocean-atmosphere model (HadCM3) have so far been unable to fully predict the large scale of sea surface warming in the high latitudes. If climate proxies accurately represent Pliocene conditions, and if no weakness exists in the physics of the model, then model boundary conditions may be in error. Here we alter a single boundary condition (bathymetry) to examine if Pliocene high latitude warming was aided by an increase in poleward heat transport due to changes in the subsidence of North Atlantic Ocean ridges. We find an increase in both Arctic sea surface temperature and deepwater production in model experiments that incorporate a deepened Greenland-Scotland Ridge. These results offer both a mechanism for the warming in the North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans indicated by numerous proxies and an explanation for the apparent disparity between proxy data and model simulations of Pliocene northern North Atlantic and Arctic Ocean conditions. Determining the causes of Pliocene warmth remains critical to fully understanding comparisons of the Pliocene warm period to possible future climate change scenarios. ?? 2011.

  20. Trophic impact of Atlantic bluefin tuna migrations in the North Sea

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Mariani, Patrizio; Andersen, Ken Haste; Lindegren, Martin

    2017-01-01

    and the stability of the fish community. The impact of a migrating top-predator is investigated here for Atlantic bluefin tuna in the North Sea. Bluefin tuna has been absent from the region for half-century, but recent years have seen recovery of migrations and a return of bluefin tuna in the area. We use a size...

  1. Integrated North Sea grids: The costs, the benefits and their distribution between countries

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Konstantelos, Ioannis; Pudjianto, Danny; Strbac, Goran; De Decker, Jan; Joseph, Pieter; Flament, Aurore; Kreutzkamp, Paul; Genoese, Fabio; Rehfeldt, Leif; Wallasch, Anna-Kathrin; Gerdes, Gerhard; Jafar, Muhammad; Yang, Yongtao; Tidemand, Nicolaj; Jansen, Jaap; Nieuwenhout, Frans; Welle, Adriaan van der; Veum, Karina

    2017-01-01

    A large number of offshore wind farms and interconnectors are expected to be constructed in the North Sea region over the coming decades, creating substantial opportunities for the deployment of integrated network solutions. Creating interconnected offshore grids that combine cross-border links and connections of offshore plants to shore offers multiple economic and environmental advantages for Europe's energy system. However, despite evidence that integrated solutions can be more beneficial than traditional radial connection practices, no such projects have been deployed yet. In this paper we quantify costs and benefits of integrated projects and investigate to which extent the cost-benefit sharing mechanism between participating countries can impede or encourage the development of integrated projects. Three concrete interconnection case studies in the North Sea area are analysed in detail using a national-level power system model. Model outputs are used to compute the net benefit of all involved stakeholders under different allocation schemes. Given the asymmetric distribution of costs and benefits, we recommend to consistently apply the Positive Net Benefit Differential mechanism as a starting point for negotiations on the financial closure of investments in integrated offshore infrastructure. - Highlights: • Three North Sea offshore gird case studies are analysed. • They are shown to have substantial net benefit over non-integrated network designs. • Asymmetric net benefit sharing between countries is shown to be a barrier. • Positive Net Benefit Differential method alleviates asymmetric benefits.

  2. Comparative study of air quality by the North Sea and Baltic Sea; Vergleichsuntersuchungen der Luftqualitaet an Nord- und Ostsee

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Moriske, H.J.; Turowski, E.; Klar, A.; Schoendube, M.; Ebert, G.; Konieczny, L. [Umweltbundesamt, Berlin (Germany). Inst. fuer Wasser-, Boden- und Lufthygiene

    2000-01-01

    Air quality measurements were carried out in the North Sea and Baltic Sea regions. The results are summarized in this contribution from the hygienic view. [German] Im Rahmen eines Forschungsprojektes des Umweltbundesamtes, das zwischen 1996 und 1998 mit dem Titel 'Erfassung gasfoermiger und partikelfoermiger Bestandteile der Umgebungsluft an Nord- und Ostsee - Untersuchungen zur hygienischen Bedeutung des maritimen Aerosols' durchgefuehrt wurde, sollte die Frage unterschiedlicher Luftqualitaet an Nord- und Ostsee beantwortet werden und eine aktuelle Bestandsaufnahme vorgenommen werden. Der Artikel fasst die Forschungsergebnisse aus hygienischer Sicht zusammen. (orig./SR)

  3. RESULTS OF THE STUDY ORIBATIDMITEIN THE COASTAL AREA OF THE NORTH-WEST OF THE CASPIAN SEA

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    A. A. Grikurova

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Aim . Studied the fauna of the soil mites of coastal and island ecosystems of the North-Western part of the Caspian sea (Bryansk spit, Strategiczne, Islands seal, Chechen and Nordby. Found 49 species and 39 genera and subgenera, and 24 families. Species composition of oribatidmite of theNorth-western part of the Caspian Sea remains not completely studied. The aim of the work was to study the species composition of oribatidmite ecosystems of the North-Western part of the Caspian Sea. Location. Coastal ecosystems north-western part of the Caspian Sea.Methods. The selection of soil samples in different habitats and MicroStation is the basis for studying the biodiversity and abundance of soil microarthropod. To extract small soil organisms method was used electoral forcing, which is based on the use of negative phototaxis soil organisms. When the definition of oribatid mites used the microscope MBI-6, Olympus CH-20.Results. As a result of studies 41 species of oribatidmites, 9 of which – new forthe fauna of the Caucasus, 17 species – new for the fauna of Dagestan, one species – new to science were identified. There sults can be used to compile regionallists, inventories and will be included in the list of directories oribatidmite of Caucasus.Main conclusions. There sults showed that for both are as of studies - 9 species, exclusively in coastal ecosystems of Bryansks pit 24 species, found only in ecosystems Staroterechnogo 9 species are common.

  4. A synthesis of Cenozoic sedimentation in the North Sea

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Anell, Ingrid Anna Margareta; Thybo, Hans; Rasmussen, E.S.

    2012-01-01

    study provides a regional synthesis of sedimentation based on a comprehensive interpretation of a regionally covering reflection seismic data set. We relate observations of sediment characteristics and unconformities to the geological evolution. The timing, regional expression and stratigraphic...... characteristics of many unconformities indicate that they were generated by eustatic sea-level fall, often in conjunction with other processes. Early Cenozoic unconformities, however, relate to tectonism associated with the opening of the North Atlantic. From observation on a regional scale, we infer...

  5. In situ flume measurements of resuspension in the North Sea

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thompson, C. E. L.; Couceiro, F.; Fones, G. R.; Helsby, R.; Amos, C. L.; Black, K.; Parker, E. R.; Greenwood, N.; Statham, P. J.; Kelly-Gerreyn, B. A.

    2011-07-01

    The in situ annular flume, Voyager II, was deployed at three sites in the North Sea in order to investigate resuspension events, to determine the physical characteristics of the seabed, to determine the threshold of resuspension of the bed and to quantify erosion rates and erosion depths. These are the first controlled, in situ flume experiments to study resuspension in the North Sea, and were combined with long-term measurements of waves and currents. Resuspension experiments were undertaken at two muddy, and one sandy site: north of the Dogger Bank (DG: water depths ˜80 m, very fine, poorly sorted, very fine-skewed sediment experiencing seasonal thermal stratification of the water column along with oxygen depletion); the Oyster Grounds (OG: ˜40 m, similar bed properties, year round water column thermal stratification, Atlantic forcing); and in the Sean Gas Field (SGF: ˜20 m, moderately sorted, very coarse-skewed sand, and well mixed water column). The erosion thresholds of the bed were found to be 0.66-1.04 Pa (DG) and 0.91-1.27 Pa (OG), with corresponding erosion depths of 0.1-0.15 mm and 0.02-0.06 mm throughout the experiments. Evaluation of a year of current velocities from 2007 indicated that at OG, resuspension of the consolidated bed was limited to on average ˜8% of the time as a result of tidal forcing alone for short (properties of the bed. Therefore, while complex variations in biogeophysical factors affected the critical threshold of erosion, once exceeded, erosion rates were related to the nature of the sediment.

  6. Submarine pipelines and the North Sea environment

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Haldane, D.; Paul, M.A.; Reuben, R.L.; Side, J.C.

    1992-01-01

    The function and design of pipelines for use on the United Kingdom continental shelf are described. Environmental influences which can threaten the integrity of seabed pipelines in the North Sea include hydrodynamic forces due to residual, tidal and wave currents, the nature of seabed sediments and corrosion by seawater. Damage may be caused to pipelines by interaction with vessel anchors and with fishing gear. Special care has to be taken over the selection of the general area for the landfall of a pipeline and the engineering of the installation where the pipeline comes ashore. Trenching and other protection techniques for pipelines are discussed together with hydrostatic testing and commissioning and subsequent inspection, maintenance and repair. (UK)

  7. Deposition of nitrogen into the North Sea

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Leeuw, G. de; Skjøth, C.A.; Hertel, O.

    2003-01-01

    The flux of nitrogen species from the atmosphere into the ocean, with emphasis on coastal waters, was addressed during the ANICE project (Atmospheric Nitrogen Inputs into the Coastal Ecosystem). ANICE focused on quantifying the deposition of atmospheric inputs of inorganic nitrogen compounds (HNO3...... and Harwich/Newcastle. These measurements provided data for sensitivity studies of a variety of problems associated with the coastal region that are not easily evaluated with larger scale models, to constrain models and to test model results. Concentrations of nitrogen compounds over the North Sea...... on experimental results and small-scale model studies. In particular, effects of the aerosol size distribution on the nitrogen deposition are discussed. (C) 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved....

  8. Early Permian intrusions in the Paleozoic sediments of the Eastern North Sea area

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Clausen, O.R.; Andresen, Katrine Juul; Rasmussen, Jens Andreas

    in the Northern Permian Basin which in the eastern North Sea is separated from the Southern Permian Basin by the Ringkøbing-Fyn High. The Permian basins were initiated during thermal subsidence following a late Carboniferous- early Permian rifting phase associated with extensive igneous activity recorded across...... the entire North Sea Basin. The easternmost intrusions and extrusions have been associated to the “Skagerrak-Centered Large Igneous Province” that has an early Permian age of c. 297 Ma. Compared to the Southern Permian Basin which historically has been intensely investigated because of the known presence...... of hydrocarbons within the Paleozoic sediments, the Northern Permian Basin has gained much less interest outside the hydrocarbon producing Mesozoic graben systems. This is mainly due to an apparent lack of potential source rocks. A major E-W striking northward dipping fault system characterizes the study area...

  9. Sea surface temperature and sea ice variability in the subpolar North Atlantic from explosive volcanism of the late thirteenth century

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Sicre, M. -A.; Khodri, M.; Mignot, J.

    2013-01-01

    In this study, we use IP25 and alkenone biomarker proxies to document the subdecadal variations of sea ice and sea surface temperature in the subpolar North Atlantic induced by the decadally paced explosive tropical volcanic eruptions of the second half of the thirteenth century. The short-and long......-term evolutions of both variables were investigated by cross analysis with a simulation of the IPSL-CM5A LR model. Our results show short-term ocean cooling and sea ice expansion in response to each volcanic eruption. They also highlight that the long response time of the ocean leads to cumulative surface cooling...... and subsurface heat buildup due to sea ice capping. As volcanic forcing relaxes, the surface ocean rapidly warms, likely amplified by subsurface heat, and remains almost ice free for several decades....

  10. Integrated management plan for the North Sea and the Skagerrak: Impact assessment for renewable energy production in the North Sea; Helhetlig forvaltningsplan for Nordsjoen og Skagerrak. Konsekvenser av fornybar energiproduksjon i Nordsjoen.

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Nybakke, Karen

    2011-07-01

    This is one of six sectorial assessments which will form the basis for a general management plan for the North Sea and the Skagerrak. The (environmental) impact assessment is limited to 6 areas.(Author)

  11. Emerald oil field on production in North Sea

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anon.

    1992-01-01

    This paper reports that Midland and Scottish Energy Ltd. (MSE) has placed Emerald oil field on stream in the U.K. North Sea with a floating production unit. Initial production, from two satellite wells, will be used to commission facilities. Three water injection wells have been unplugged and are ready for start-up. MSE will place a central cluster of wells-five producers and one water injector-on stream during the next few weeks. Production will build to an expected 25,000 b/d from 35 million bbl of reserves. Field development has undergone an unusually large number of setbacks and changes

  12. Marine radionuclide transport in the northern North Atlantic estimated with an eddy-permitting ocean model - Marine radionuclide transport in the Northern North Atlantic estimated with an Eddy-resolving ocean model

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Simonsen, Magne [Norwegian Meteorological institute, P.O. Box 43 Blindern, N-0313 Oslo (Norway); Norwegian University of Life Sciences, P.O. Box 5003, N-1432 Aas (Norway); Isachsen, Paal E.; Saetra, Oeyvind; Klein, Heiko; Bartnicki, Jerzy [Norwegian Meteorological institute, P.O. Box 43 Blindern, N-0313 Oslo (Norway); Salbu, Brit; Lind, Ole C. [Norwegian University of Life Sciences, P.O. Box 5003, N-1432 Aas (Norway)

    2014-07-01

    As a part of the Norwegian Centre for Environmental Radioactivity (CERAD), we have studied transport of radionuclides in the Nordic Seas using an eddy-resolving ocean model. Transport and dispersion is estimated by both Lagrangian (particle) and Eulerian (tracer) methods using currents generated by the Regional Ocean Model System (ROMS) at 4 km horizontal resolution. This relatively high resolution gives a more accurate description of the impact of macro-turbulent advection on transport paths and transport times than achieved in previous studies. The experiments cover historical discharges from the Sellafield reprocessing plant as well as hypothetical accident scenarios from power plants in Great Britain. For the historical Sellafield discharges, model calculations are compared to isotope concentrations observed along the Norwegian Coast and in the Barents Sea. For the accident scenarios, the likely impact on the Norwegian coastal zone is studied considering three different sources for the ocean: direct local discharge, far-field deposition from the atmosphere, and discharge via Norwegian rivers (via atmospheric deposition over land). (authors)

  13. Anthropogenic {sup 129}I in the North Pacific, Bering and Chukchi Seas, and Arctic Ocean in 2012–2013

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Nagai, H., E-mail: hnagai@chs.nihon-u.ac.jp [Department of Chemistry, College of Humanities and Sciences, Nihon University, Tokyo 156-8550 (Japan); Hasegawa, A. [Graduate School of Integrated Basic Sciences, Nihon University, Tokyo 156-8550 (Japan); Yamagata, T. [Department of Chemistry, College of Humanities and Sciences, Nihon University, Tokyo 156-8550 (Japan); Kumamoto, Y.; Nishino, S. [Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology, Kanagawa 237-0061 (Japan); Matsuzaki, H. [Department of Nuclear Engineering and Management, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0032 (Japan)

    2015-10-15

    Most of anthropogenic {sup 129}I in marine environment are due to discharge from the nuclear fuel reprocessing facilities at Sellafield (U.K.) and La Hague (France) for past few decades. The discharge raised {sup 129}I concentration in seawaters in the North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans to more than 10{sup 9} atoms L{sup −1}, which is two orders of magnitude higher than that in other region. Recently, in March 2011, a large quantity of {sup 129}I was released into the western North Pacific due to the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant (F1NPP) accident. To evaluate the influence of these events, we have measured {sup 129}I concentration in seawaters in the northern North Pacific Ocean, Bering and Chukchi Seas, and Arctic Ocean in 2012–2013. The {sup 129}I concentrations were 1.0–1.8 × 10{sup 7} atoms L{sup −1} in the surface waters in the vicinity of 47°N 150°E–130°W North Pacific Ocean, Bering Sea, and Chukchi Sea (<74°N), which are equal to or lower than the {sup 129}I concentration level in surface water in the North Pacific Ocean before the F1NPP accident. The vertical profiles in the North Pacific were almost same as that observed in the western North Pacific before the F1NPP accident. The {sup 129}I distribution in seawater in the North Pacific to the Chukchi Sea revealed no significant increase of {sup 129}I concentration caused by the F1NPP accident. The {sup 129}I concentrations were 13–14 × 10{sup 7} atoms L{sup −1} in surface waters and 80 × 10{sup 7} atoms L{sup −1} at depths of 300 and 800 m in the Arctic Ocean.

  14. Sulfate-Reducing Prokaryotes from North Sea Oil reservoirs; organisms, distribution and origin

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Beeder, Janiche

    1997-12-31

    During oil production in the North Sea, anaerobic seawater is pumped in which stimulates the growth of sulphate-reducing prokaryotes that produce hydrogen sulphide. This sulphide causes major health hazards, economical and operational problems. As told in this thesis, several strains of sulphate reducers have been isolated from North Sea oil field waters. Antibodies have been produced against these strains and used to investigate the distribution of sulphate reducers in a North Sea oil reservoir. The result showed a high diversity among sulphate reducers, with different strains belonging to different parts of the reservoir. Some of these strains have been further characterized. The physiological and phylogenetic characterization showed that strain 7324 was an archaean. Strain A8444 was a bacterium, representing a new species of a new genus. A benzoate degrading sulphate reducing bacterium was isolated from injection water, and later the same strain was detected in produced water. This is the first field observations indicating that sulphate reducers are able to penetrate an oil reservoir. It was found that the oil reservoir contains a diverse population of thermophilic sulphate reducers able to grow on carbon sources in the oil reservoir, and to live and grow in this extreme environment of high temperature and pressure. The mesophilic sulphate reducers are established in the injection water system and in the reservoir near the injection well during oil production. The thermophilic sulphate reducers are able to grow in the reservoir prior to, as well as during production. It appears that the oil reservoir is a natural habitat for thermophilic sulphate reducers and that they have been present in the reservoir long before production started. 322 refs., 9 figs., 11 tabs.

  15. Priority volatile organic compounds in surface waters of the southern North Sea

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Huybrechts, Tom; Dewulf, Jo; Langenhove, Herman van

    2005-01-01

    The occurrence of 25 volatile organic compounds (VOCs) was studied from April 1998 to October 2000 in the southern North Sea. Target VOCs were selected from lists of priority pollutants for the marine environment and included, e.g., chlorinated short-chain hydrocarbons (CHCs), monocyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (MAHs), and chlorinated monocyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (CMAHs). Water samples were taken from the Channel, the Belgian Continental Shelf, the mouth of the Scheldt estuary and the Southern Bight, and were analysed by purge-and-trap and high-resolution gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. All data were produced by analyses deemed 'in control' by a rigorous quality assurance/quality control program provided by QUASIMEME (Quality Assurance of Information for Marine Environmental Monitoring in Europe). Chloroform and trichloroethene were commonly detected at concentrations up to 1900 and 270 ng l -1 , respectively. The other CHCs were generally found below 5 ng l -1 , and rarely exceeded 10 ng l -1 . Concentrations of MAHs were at least one order of magnitude higher than those of the CHCs. The higher levels were attributed to anthropogenic emissions from oil-related activities in coastal areas. CMAHs, except chlorobenzene and 1,4-dichlorobenzene, were hardly detected in North Sea waters. The levels of several CHCs and MAHs were shown to decrease compared to previous investigations in 1994-1995, probably as a result of on-going emission reduction efforts. The occurrence of 1,1,1-trichloroethane, for instance, was substantially reduced since the Montreal Protocol was implemented in 1995. - Volatile aromatics are a major group of volatile organic compounds in the North Sea, and are attributed to discharges from shipping and oil related activities

  16. Sulfate-Reducing Prokaryotes from North Sea Oil reservoirs; organisms, distribution and origin

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Beeder, Janiche

    1996-12-31

    During oil production in the North Sea, anaerobic seawater is pumped in which stimulates the growth of sulphate-reducing prokaryotes that produce hydrogen sulphide. This sulphide causes major health hazards, economical and operational problems. As told in this thesis, several strains of sulphate reducers have been isolated from North Sea oil field waters. Antibodies have been produced against these strains and used to investigate the distribution of sulphate reducers in a North Sea oil reservoir. The result showed a high diversity among sulphate reducers, with different strains belonging to different parts of the reservoir. Some of these strains have been further characterized. The physiological and phylogenetic characterization showed that strain 7324 was an archaean. Strain A8444 was a bacterium, representing a new species of a new genus. A benzoate degrading sulphate reducing bacterium was isolated from injection water, and later the same strain was detected in produced water. This is the first field observations indicating that sulphate reducers are able to penetrate an oil reservoir. It was found that the oil reservoir contains a diverse population of thermophilic sulphate reducers able to grow on carbon sources in the oil reservoir, and to live and grow in this extreme environment of high temperature and pressure. The mesophilic sulphate reducers are established in the injection water system and in the reservoir near the injection well during oil production. The thermophilic sulphate reducers are able to grow in the reservoir prior to, as well as during production. It appears that the oil reservoir is a natural habitat for thermophilic sulphate reducers and that they have been present in the reservoir long before production started. 322 refs., 9 figs., 11 tabs.

  17. Methane emission and consumption at a North Sea gas seep (Tommeliten area

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    H. Niemann

    2005-01-01

    Full Text Available The Tommeliten seepage area is part of the Greater Ekofisk area, which is situated above the Tommeliten Delta salt diapir in the central North Sea (56°29.90' N, 2°59.80' E, Norwegian Block 1/9, 75 m water depth. Here, cracks in a buried marl horizon allow methane to migrate into overlying clay-silt and sandy sediments. Hydroacoustic sediment echosounding showed several venting spots coinciding with the apex of marl domes where methane is released into the water column and potentially to the atmosphere. In the vicinity of the gas seeps, sea floor observations showed small mats of giant sulphide-oxidizing bacteria above patches of black sediments as well as carbonate crusts, which are exposed 10 to 50 cm above seafloor forming small reefs. These Methane-Derived Authigenic Carbonates (MDACs contain 13C-depleted, archaeal lipids indicating previous gas seepage and AOM activity. High amounts of sn2-hydroxyarchaeol relative to archaeol and low abundances of biphytanes in the crusts give evidence that ANaerobic MEthane-oxidising archaea (ANME of the phylogenetic cluster ANME-2 were the potential mediators of Anaerobic Oxidation of Methane (AOM at the time of carbonate formation. Small pieces of MDACs were also found subsurface at about 1.7 m sediment depth, associated with the AOM zone. This zone is characterized by elevated AOM and Sulphate Reduction (SR rates, increased concentrations of 13C-depleted tetraether derived biphytanes, and specific bacterial Fatty Acids (FA. Further biomarker and 16S rDNA based analyses of this horizon give evidence that AOM is mediated by archaea belonging to the ANME-1b group and Sulphate Reducing Bacteria (SRB most likely belonging to the Seep-SRB1 cluster. The zone of active methane consumption was restricted to a distinct horizon of about 20 cm. Concentrations of 13C-depleted lipid biomarkers (e.g. 500 ng g-dw−1 biphythanes, 140 ng g-dw−1 fatty acid ai-C15:0, cell numbers (1.5×108 cells cm−3, AOM and SR

  18. Trophodynamics and functional feeding groups of North Sea fauna: a combined stable isotope and fatty acid approach

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Kürten, B.; Frutos, I.; Struck, U.; Painting, S.J.; Polunin, N.V.C.; Middelburg, J.J.

    The trophodynamics of pelagic and benthic animals of the North Sea, North Atlantic shelf, were assessed using stable isotope analysis (SIA) of natural abundance carbon and nitrogen isotopes, lipid fingerprinting and compound-specific SIA (CSIA) of phospholipid-derived fatty acids (PLFAs).

  19. Trophodynamics and functional feeding groups of North Sea fauna: a combined stable isotope and fatty acid approach

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Kürten, B.; Frutos, I.; Struck, U.; Painting, S.J.; Polunin, N.V.C.; Middelburg, J.J.

    2013-01-01

    The trophodynamics of pelagic and benthic animals of the North Sea, North Atlantic shelf, were assessed using stable isotope analysis (SIA) of natural abundance carbon and nitrogen isotopes, lipid fingerprinting and compound-specific SIA (CSIA) of phospholipid-derived fatty acids (PLFAs).

  20. Potential contribution of surface-dwelling Sargassum algae to deep-sea ecosystems in the southern North Atlantic

    Science.gov (United States)

    Baker, Philip; Minzlaff, Ulrike; Schoenle, Alexandra; Schwabe, Enrico; Hohlfeld, Manon; Jeuck, Alexandra; Brenke, Nils; Prausse, Dennis; Rothenbeck, Marcel; Brix, Saskia; Frutos, Inmaculada; Jörger, Katharina M.; Neusser, Timea P.; Koppelmann, Rolf; Devey, Colin; Brandt, Angelika; Arndt, Hartmut

    2018-02-01

    Deep-sea ecosystems, limited by their inability to use primary production as a source of carbon, rely on other sources to maintain life. Sedimentation of organic carbon into the deep sea has been previously studied, however, the high biomass of sedimented Sargassum algae discovered during the VEMA Transit expedition in 2014/2015 to the southern North Atlantic, and its potential as a regular carbon input, has been an underestimated phenomenon. To determine the potential for this carbon flux, a literature survey of previous studies that estimated the abundance of surface water Sargassum was conducted. We compared these estimates with quantitative analyses of sedimented Sargassum appearing on photos taken with an autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) directly above the abyssal sediment during the expedition. Organismal communities associated to Sargassum fluitans from surface waters were investigated and Sargassum samples collected from surface waters and the deep sea were biochemically analyzed (fatty acids, stable isotopes, C:N ratios) to determine degradation potential and the trophic significance within deep-sea communities. The estimated Sargassum biomass (fresh weight) in the deep sea (0.07-3.75 g/m2) was several times higher than that estimated from surface waters in the North Atlantic (0.024-0.84 g/m2). Biochemical analysis showed degradation of Sargassum occurring during sedimentation or in the deep sea, however, fatty acid and stable isotope analysis did not indicate direct trophic interactions between the algae and benthic organisms. Thus, it is assumed that components of the deep-sea microbial food web form an important link between the macroalgae and larger benthic organisms. Evaluation of the epifauna showed a diverse nano- micro-, meio, and macrofauna on surface Sargassum and maybe transported across the Atlantic, but we had no evidence for a vertical exchange of fauna components. The large-scale sedimentation of Sargassum forms an important trophic link

  1. Contamination of North Sea and Baltic Sea with long-living iodine-129 and other anthropogenic radionuclides; Kontamination von Nord- und Ostsee mit langlebigem Iod-129 und anderen anthropogenen Radionukliden

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Tosch, Luebbert

    2010-10-12

    The radionuclide iodine-129 (T{sub 1/2} = 15.7 Ma) is produced in nature by spontaneous fission of uranium-238 and by cosmic ray induced spallation of xenon. Due to the military and civil use of neutron-induced fission of uranium-235 and plutonium-239 a huge amount of iodine-129 has been released into the environment. The main sources of anthropogenic {sup 129}I are the reprocessing plants in La Hague (France) near the English Channel and in Sellafield (UK) close to the Irish Sea. The natural equilibrium {sup 129}I/{sup 127}I-isotopic ratios are estimated to 1.5 . 10{sup -12} for the marine hydrosphere and to 3.0 . 10{sup -13} for the terrestrial biosphere respectively. Due to the emissions of anthropogenic iodine-129 the {sup 129}I/{sup 127}I-isotopic ratios have been increased in all compartments of the environment. Surface water samples taken from the English Channel, the North Sea, the Baltic Sea, the Irish Sea, and the North Atlantic give information about anthropogenic changes. Iodine turns out to be a conservative tracer in seawater. The iodine-127 concentrations in seawater except for coastal areas are rather constant (40.7 ± 6.2 ng/g). The observed {sup 129}I/{sup 127}I-isotopic ratios range between 10{sup -10} and more than 10{sup -6}. The variation of the {sup 129}I/{sup 127}I-isotopic ratios is caused by the admixture of anthropogenic iodine-129. Water samples taken far away from the reprocessing plants show the lowest isotopic ratios. The highest {sup 129}I/{sup 127}I-isotopic ratios are found near the reprocessing plants. The transport of {sup 129}I from La Hague has a rather clear pattern. It can be observed along the coasts of France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany and Denmark. The iodine-129 emissions from Sellafield can be followed northbound along the Scottish coast. The results of other anthropogenic radionuclides are used for discussing transport processes in the North Sea and the Irish Sea. Large areas in the North Sea are characterised by

  2. Spatially-Resolved Influence of Temperature and Salinity on Stock and Recruitment Variability of Commercially Important Fishes in the North Sea.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Anna Akimova

    Full Text Available Understanding of the processes affecting recruitment of commercially important fish species is one of the major challenges in fisheries science. Towards this aim, we investigated the relation between North Sea hydrography (temperature and salinity and fish stock variables (recruitment, spawning stock biomass and pre-recruitment survival index for 9 commercially important fishes using spatially-resolved cross-correlation analysis. We used high-resolution (0.2° × 0.2° hydrographic data fields matching the maximal temporal extent of the fish population assessments (1948-2013. Our approach allowed for the identification of regions in the North Sea where environmental variables seem to be more influential on the fish stocks, as well as the regions of a lesser or nil influence. Our results confirmed previously demonstrated negative correlations between temperature and recruitment of cod and plaice and identified regions of the strongest correlations (German Bight for plaice and north-western North Sea for cod. We also revealed a positive correlation between herring spawning stock biomass and temperature in the Orkney-Shetland area, as well as a negative correlation between sole pre-recruitment survival index and temperature in the German Bight. A strong positive correlation between sprat stock variables and salinity in the central North Sea was also found. To our knowledge the results concerning correlations between North Sea hydrography and stocks' dynamics of herring, sole and sprat are novel. The new information about spatial distribution of the correlation provides an additional help to identify mechanisms underlying these correlations. As an illustration of the utility of these results for fishery management, an example is provided that incorporates the identified environmental covariates in stock-recruitment models.

  3. Benthic nutrient cycling and diagenetic pathways in the North-western Black Sea

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Friedrich, J.; Dinkel, C.; Friedl, G.; Pimenov, N.; Wijsman, J.W.M.; Gomoiu, M-T.; Cociasu, A.; Popa, L.; Wehrli, B.

    2002-01-01

    Benthic fluxes of nutrients and metals were measured in the coastal zone of the north-western Black Sea, which is influenced by the Danube and Dniestr rivers. The results from the benthic flux chambers deployed during two EROS 21 cruises in summer 1995 and in spring 1997 yield information on benthic

  4. Variability and Dynamics of Dissolved Oxygen in the Transition Zone of the North Sea and the Baltic Sea

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jonasson, Lars

    information about the seasonal to decadal oxygen variations in the bottom water of the Kattegat, the Danish Straits, the Sound and the Western Baltic Sea and investigates the relative importance of physical and biogeochemical processes, climate change and nutrient load reductions on the oxygen variability......The bottom water in the transition zone of the North Sea and Baltic Sea suffers from seasonal hypoxia, usually during late summer and autumn. Hypoxia is a natural phenomenon in this region because of the strong vertical stratification which prevents the bottom water to be ventilated by atmospheric...... concentrations by 15-30 μmol O2 l−1 yr−1 while the reduced nutrient concentration has increased the oxygen concentration with approximately the same amount. Thus, the positive effect on oxygen conditions from reduced nutrient concentrations have been counteracted by increased water temperatures. This has made...

  5. A Triple P review of the feasibility of sustainable offshore seaweed production in the North Sea

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Burg, van den S.W.K.; Stuiver, M.; Veenstra, F.A.; Bikker, P.; Lopez Contreras, A.M.; Palstra, A.P.; Broeze, J.; Jansen, H.M.; Jak, R.G.; Gerritsen, A.L.; Harmsen, P.F.H.; Kals, J.; Blanco Garcia, A.; Brandenburg, W.A.; Krimpen, van M.M.; Duijn, van A.P.; Mulder, W.J.; Raamsdonk, van L.W.D.

    2013-01-01

    This study focused on the potential of seaweed, cultivated in the North Sea, as a sustainable and profitable resource for feed and non-food applications. Seawood production can take place as part of multi-use platforms at sea (MUPS). A review of the state-of-the-art in seaweed production and its

  6. Climate drift of AMOC, North Atlantic salinity and arctic sea ice in CFSv2 decadal predictions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Huang, Bohua; Zhu, Jieshun; Marx, Lawrence; Wu, Xingren; Kumar, Arun; Hu, Zeng-Zhen; Balmaseda, Magdalena A.; Zhang, Shaoqing; Lu, Jian; Schneider, Edwin K.; Kinter, James L., III

    2015-01-01

    There are potential advantages to extending operational seasonal forecast models to predict decadal variability but major efforts are required to assess the model fidelity for this task. In this study, we examine the North Atlantic climate simulated by the NCEP Climate Forecast System, version 2 (CFSv2), using a set of ensemble decadal hindcasts and several 30-year simulations initialized from realistic ocean-atmosphere states. It is found that a substantial climate drift occurs in the first few years of the CFSv2 hindcasts, which represents a major systematic bias and may seriously affect the model's fidelity for decadal prediction. In particular, it is noted that a major reduction of the upper ocean salinity in the northern North Atlantic weakens the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC) significantly. This freshening is likely caused by the excessive freshwater transport from the Arctic Ocean and weakened subtropical water transport by the North Atlantic Current. A potential source of the excessive freshwater is the quick melting of sea ice, which also causes unrealistically thin ice cover in the Arctic Ocean. Our sensitivity experiments with adjusted sea ice albedo parameters produce a sustainable ice cover with realistic thickness distribution. It also leads to a moderate increase of the AMOC strength. This study suggests that a realistic freshwater balance, including a proper sea ice feedback, is crucial for simulating the North Atlantic climate and its variability.

  7. The Norwegian Plan of Action for nuclear safety issues

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1997-07-01

    The Plan of Action underlies Norwegian activities in the field of international co-operation to enhance nuclear safety and prevent radioactive contamination from activities in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union. Geographically the highest priority has been given to support for safety measures in north-west Russia. This information brochure outlines the main content of the Plan of Action for nuclear safety issues and lists a number of associated measures and projects

  8. The Norwegian Plan of Action for nuclear safety issues

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    1997-07-01

    The Plan of Action underlies Norwegian activities in the field of international co-operation to enhance nuclear safety and prevent radioactive contamination from activities in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union. Geographically the highest priority has been given to support for safety measures in north-west Russia. This information brochure outlines the main content of the Plan of Action for nuclear safety issues and lists a number of associated measures and projects.

  9. Mixed fisheries forecasts—lessons learned from their initial application to North Sea fisheries

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Holmes, S.J.; Ulrich, Clara; Reeves, S.A.

    2012-01-01

    the work with the existing single‐stock assessments. The explicit representation of the complexity of the fisheries also raises questions about the extent to which mixed fisheries science can be used to give ”advice” in the traditional sense. This paper addresses the challenges and issues that have arisen......Mixed fisheries and technical interactions in European fisheries have been a subject of research for many years. The establishment in 2010 of an ICES Working Group tasked with producing annual mixed fisheries forecasts and advice for North Sea demersal fisheries represents a commitment to use...... these approaches in routine scientific advice for the first time. The demersal fisheries of the North Sea provide a particularly interesting context for this work because of their high complexity in terms of the numbers of fleets, gears, métiers, and species involved, and also because mixedfishery effects have...

  10. 'Save the North Sea' Fulmar Study 2002-2004: a regional pilot project for the Fulmar-Litter-EcoQO in the OSPAR area

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Franeker, van J.A.; Heubeck, M.; Fairclough, K.; Turner, D.M.; Grantham, M.; Stienen, E.W.M.; Guse, N.; Pedersen, J.; Olsen, K.O.; Andersson, P.J.; Olsen, B.

    2005-01-01

    North Sea Ministers at the Bergen Conference in 2002 decided that monitoring of marine plastic litter in stomachs of seabirds should become one of the 'Ecological Quality Objectives for the North Sea (EcoQO's)'. The task of implementation was delegated to OSPAR, which covers the wider northeast

  11. Characteristics of the Norwegian Coastal Current during Years with High Recruitment of Norwegian Spring Spawning Herring (Clupea harengus L..

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Øystein Skagseth

    Full Text Available Norwegian Spring Spawning herring (NSSH Clupea harengus L. spawn on coastal banks along the west coast of Norway. The larvae are generally transported northward in the Norwegian Coastal Current (NCC with many individuals utilizing nursery grounds in the Barents Sea. The recruitment to this stock is highly variable with a few years having exceptionally good recruitment. The principal causes of recruitment variability of this herring population have been elusive. Here we undertake an event analysis using data between 1948 and 2010 to gain insight into the physical conditions in the NCC that coincide with years of high recruitment. In contrast to a typical year when northerly upwelling winds are prominent during spring, the years with high recruitment coincide with predominantly southwesterly winds and weak upwelling in spring and summer, which lead to an enhanced northward coastal current during the larval drift period. Also in most peak recruitment years, low-salinity anomalies are observed to propagate northward during the spring and summer. It is suggested that consistent southwesterly (downwelling winds and propagating low-salinity anomalies, both leading to an enhanced northward transport of larvae, are important factors for elevated recruitment. At the same time, these conditions stabilize the coastal waters, possibly leading to enhanced production and improved feeding potential along the drift route to Barents Sea. Further studies on the drivers of early life history mortality can now be undertaken with a better understanding of the physical conditions that prevail during years when elevated recruitment occurs in this herring stock.

  12. Marine environment protection for the North and Baltic Seas. Special Report - February 2004

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    2004-07-01

    The marine environment of the North Sea and Baltic Sea is still heavily polluted. The marine ecosystems are under severe stress from overfishing, water pollution, raw materials production and tourism. Environmental protection in this region necessitates decisive political initiatives and strict corrections especially in fishery policy, agricultural policy and chemical substances control. This is the balance of the special expert opinion of the Council of Environmental Experts. The publication specifies the main problem areas, the current pollution situation, the fields where action is most urgently required - especially in fishery, chemical substances, agricultural and sea travel policies - and presents suggestions for an integrated European and national marine protection policy including a regional development concept for the marine environment. (orig.)

  13. Lithostratigraphy of the Palaeogene - Lower Neogene succession of the Danish North Sea

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Schiøler, Poul-Henrik; Andsbjerg, Jan; Clausen, Ole Rønø

    2007-01-01

    sediments of the Danish sector of the North Sea is revised. The sediment package from the top of the Chalk Group to the base of the Nordland Group is subdivided into seven formations containing eleven new members. The existing Våle, Lista, Sele, Fur, Balder, Horda and Lark Formations of previously...

  14. The North Seas Countries' Offshore Grid Initiative. Initial Findings. Final Report. Working Group 1 - Grid Configuration

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    2012-11-15

    This report focuses on the tasks and results from Working Group 1 (WG1), grid configuration and integration, chaired jointly by representatives from Denmark and the Netherlands. The methodology, assumptions concerning generation portfolio, load situation, available technology and results are presented. This report presents the WG1 Offshore Grid Study that supports the North Seas Countries' Offshore Grid Initiative (NSCOGI) final report. The information contained in this report aims to evaluate the long-term development of an offshore grid structure in the North Seas by providing a view on how such a grid may possibly develop in the future, based on the assumptions made for this study. The report aims to compare and evaluate the possible advantages and disadvantages of the long term development of an optimised, integrated (or meshed) offshore grid in the North Seas by providing a view of how that possible grid might develop in the future against changes to the electricity energy requirements. To evaluate basic variants, different transmission design topologies (radial and meshed) were compared and analysed with respect to various aspects, such as cost/benefits, import and export levels and the systems' CO2 emissions.

  15. A novel marine nitrite-oxidizing Nitrospira species from Dutch coastal North Sea water

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Suzanne Caroline Marianne Haaijer

    2013-03-01

    Full Text Available Marine microorganisms are important for the global nitrogen cycle, but marine nitrifiers, especially aerobic nitrite-oxidizers, remain largely unexplored. To increase the number of cultured representatives of marine nitrite-oxidizing bacteria (NOB, a bioreactor cultivation approach was adopted to first enrich nitrifiers and ultimately nitrite oxidizers from Dutch coastal North Sea water. With solely ammonia as the substrate an active nitrifiying community consisting of novel marine Nitrosomonas aerobic ammonia oxidizers (AOB and Nitrospina and Nitrospira NOB was obtained which converted a maximum of 2 mmoles of ammonia per liter per day. Switching the feed of the culture to nitrite as a sole substrate resulted in a Nitrospira NOB dominated community (approximately 80% of the total microbial community based on FISH and metagenomic data converting a maximum of 3 mmoles of nitrite per liter per day. Phylogenetic analyses based on the 16S rRNA gene indicated that the Nitrospira enriched from the North Sea is a novel Nitrospira species with Nitrospira marina as the next taxonomically described relative (94% 16S rRNA sequence identity. Transmission electron microscopy analysis revealed a cell plan typical for Nitrospira species. The cytoplasm contained electron light particles that might represent glycogen storage. A large periplasmic space was present which was filled with electron dense particles. Nitrospira-targeted PCR analyses demonstrated the presence of the enriched Nitrospira species in a time series of North Sea genomic DNA samples. The availability of this new Nitrospira species enrichment culture facilitates further in-depth studies such as determination of physiological constraints, and comparison to other NOB species.

  16. Connectivity of larval cod in the transition area between North Sea and Baltic Sea and potential implications for fisheries management

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Huwer, Bastian; Hinrichsen, H.-H.; Hüssy, Karin

    2016-01-01

    in the transition area between North Sea and Baltic were investigated to (i) determine long-term trends and variability in advective transport of larvae from spawning grounds to juvenile nursery areas, (ii) estimate the degree of exchange between different management areas, and (iii) compare the results...

  17. Temporal changes in plankton of the North Sea: community shfits and environmental drivers

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Alvarez-Fernandez, S.; Lindeboom, H.J.; Meesters, H.W.G.

    2012-01-01

    This paper analyses long-term and seasonal changes in the North Sea plankton community during the period 1970 to 2008. Based on Continuous Plankton Recorder (CPR) data covering 38 yr, major changes in both phytoplankton and zooplankton abundance and community structure were identified. Regime

  18. Solar wind: A possible factor driving the interannual sea surface temperature tripolar mode over North Atlantic

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xiao, Ziniu; Li, Delin

    2016-06-01

    The effect of solar wind (SW) on the North Atlantic sea surface temperature (SST) in boreal winter is examined through an analysis of observational data during 1964-2013. The North Atlantic SSTs show a pronounced meridional tripolar pattern in response to solar wind speed (SWS) variations. This pattern is broadly similar to the leading empirical orthogonal function (EOF) mode of interannual variations in the wintertime SSTs over North Atlantic. The time series of this leading EOF mode of SST shows a significant interannual period, which is the same as that of wintertime SWS. This response also appears as a compact north-south seesaw of sea level pressure and a vertical tripolar structure of zonal wind, which simultaneously resembles the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) in the overlying atmosphere. As compared with the typical low SWS winters, during the typical high SWS winters, the stratospheric polar night jet (PNJ) is evidently enhanced and extends from the stratosphere to the troposphere, even down to the North Atlantic Ocean surface. Notably, the North Atlantic Ocean is an exclusive region in which the SW signal spreads downward from the stratosphere to the troposphere. Thus, it seems that the SW is a possible factor for this North Atlantic SST tripolar mode. The dynamical process of stratosphere-troposphere coupling, together with the global atmospheric electric circuit-cloud microphysical process, probably accounts for the particular downward propagation of the SW signal.

  19. Distribution of some chemical elements between dissolved and particulate phases in the ocean. Period covered: August 1, 1976--October 31, 1977

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Spencer, D.W.; Brewer, P.G.; Bacon, M.P.; Sachs, P.L.; Smith, C.L.; Fleer, A.; Kadar, S.

    1977-01-01

    Progress is reported on studies of the distribution of dissolved and particulate forms of naturally radioactive 210 Pb and 210 Po in ocean coastal waters, deep waters, and the continental shelf and slope. Data are included from measurements of 210 Pb and 210 Po in seawater and sediment samples collected in the Labrador Sea area, the North Sea, the Norwegian Sea, and the Iceland-Scotish Overflow area of the North Atlantic Ocean

  20. EU`s research programs - an important source for Norwegian innovation; EUs forskningsprogrammer - en viktig kilde til norsk innovasjon

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    1998-05-01

    This document presents some examples of the Norwegian participation in the research programs of the European Union (EU). By the end of 1997, Norwegian researchers had taken part in the formulation of more than 2400 applications. Over 660 applications with Norwegian participation have been granted support from the EU for common European projects. The examples most directly relating to energy technology and environment are from the following fields: (1) Well technology (CENET project). Utilization of abandoned oil- and gas installations to the benefit of the fisheries, (2) Climate research based on forest observations (FOREST project), (3) Improved methods of analysing and characterising the sea floor (ISACS project), (4) Water-based hydraulic systems, (5) Surface treatment of aluminium, (6) The Arctic environment, (7) Solar cells

  1. An isopycnal view of the Nordic Seas hydrography with focus on properties of the Lofoten Basin

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rossby, T.; Ozhigin, Vladimir; Ivshin, Victor; Bacon, Sheldon

    2009-11-01

    Few basins in the world exhibit such a wide range of water properties as those of the Nordic Seas with cold freshwaters from the Arctic in the western basins and warm saline waters from the Atlantic in the eastern basins. In this study we present a 50-year hydrographic climatology of the Nordic Seas in terms of depth and temperature patterns on four upper ocean specific volume anomaly surfaces. This approach allows us to better distinguish between change due to variations along such surfaces and change due to depth variations of the stratified water column. Depth variations indicate changes in the mass field while property variations along isopycnals give insight into isopycnal advection and mixing, as well as diapycnal processes. We find that the warmest waters on each surface are found in the north, close to where the isopycnal outcrops, a clear indication of downward mixing of the warmer, more saline waters on shallower isopycnals due to convective cooling at the surface. These saline waters come from the Norwegian Atlantic Slope Current by means of a very high level of eddy activity in the Lofoten Basin. The isopycnal analyses further show that the principal water mass boundary between the waters of Arctic origin in the west and Atlantic waters in the east aligns quite tightly with the Jan Mayen, Mohn, Knipovich Ridge system suggesting little cross-ridge exchange. Instead, the main routes of exchange between the eastern and western basins appear to be limited to the northern and southern ends of ridge system: Atlantic waters into the Greenland Sea in the Fram St and Artic waters into the southern Norwegian Sea just north of the Iceland-Faroe Ridge. Analysis of a representative isopycnal in the main pycnocline shows it to be stable over time with only small variations with season (except where it outcrops in winter in the Greenland and Iceland Seas). However, two very cold winters, 1968-1969, led to greater than average heat losses across the entire Lofoten

  2. Genetic population structure of turbot ( Scophthalmus maximus L.) supports the presence of multiple hybrid zones for marine fishes in the transition zone between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Eg Nielsen, Einar; Nielsen, P.H.; Meldrup, Dorte

    2004-01-01

    Sea, suggesting high gene flow among populations in these areas. In contrast, there was a sharp cline in genetic differentiation going from the low saline Baltic Sea to the high saline North Sea. The data were explained best by two divergent populations connected by a hybrid zone; however......, a mechanical mixing model could not be ruled out. A significant part of the genetic variance could be ascribed to variation among years within locality. Nevertheless, the population structure was relatively stable over time, suggesting that the observed pattern of genetic differentiation is biologically...... significant. This study suggests that hybrid zones are a common phenomenon for marine fishes in the transition area between the North Sea and the Baltic Sea and highlights the importance of using interspecific comparisons for inferring population structure in high gene flow species such as most marine fishes....

  3. Ecologically least vulnerable sites for exploration drilling in the Wadden Sea and the North Sea coastal area

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lindeboom, H.J.; Bergman, M.J.N.; De Gee, A.

    1996-01-01

    The Dutch Oil Company (NAM, abbreviated in Dutch) applied for a number of exploration drilling in the Dutch part of the Wadden Sea and the North Sea coastal area. NAM is obliged to draft a so-called MER (environmental impact report) to indicate the most environment-friendly alternative for the test drilling. By order of NAM, NIOZ and the IBN-DLO (Institute for Research on Forests and Nature) analyzed samples of the animal life in all the potential sites. Based on the results of the analyses, literature and expert knowledge the ecologically least vulnerable sites and the ecologically least vulnerable season were selected during a workshop. In this report the results are given of the workshop, the field sample analyses and a sailing trip along the sites

  4. The North Atlantic Ocean as habitat for Calanus finmarchicus: environmental factors and life history traits

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Melle, Webjørn; Runge, Jeffrey A.; Head, Erica

    2014-01-01

    in the deep waters adjacent to the lower latitude western North Atlantic shelves than in the east, (8) there are differences in stage-specific daily mortality rates between eastern and western shelves and basins, but the survival trajectories for cohort development from CI to CV are similar, and (9) early...... for understanding population responses of C. finmarchicus to climate forcing, (2) recruitment to the youngest copepodite stages occurs during or just after the phytoplankton bloom in the east whereas it occurs after the bloom at many western sites, with up to 3.5 months difference in recruitment timing, (3......) the deep basin and gyre of the southern Norwegian Sea is the centre of production and overwintering of C. finmarchicus, upon which the surrounding waters depend, whereas, in the Labrador/Irminger Seas production mainly occurs along the margins, such that the deep basins serve as collection areas...

  5. Recent increase of North Sea houting and prospects for recolonization in the Netherlands

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Kranenbarg, J.; Winter, H.V.; Backx, J.J.G.M.

    2002-01-01

    Two monitoring programmes in estuarine and freshwater systems in the Netherlands both show a recent increase in anadromous North Sea houting Coregonus oxyrhynchus after it disappeared there in the 1940s. Most houting were immature and caught during the feeding season indicating that at present the

  6. Orbital calibration of the late Campanian carbon isotope event in the North Sea

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Perdiou, Anastasios; Thibault, Nicolas; Anderskouv, Kresten

    2016-01-01

    A new record of carbon isotopes, nannofossil biostratigraphy, gamma-ray and Fe content variations is presented for the upper Campanian of the Adda-3 core, Danish Central Graben, North Sea. The studied interval provides a revision of previously assigned late Coniacian to early Santonian ages. New...

  7. Stylolites, porosity, depositional texture, and silicates in chalk facies sediments:Ontong Java Plateau - Gorm and Tyra fields, North Sea

    OpenAIRE

    Fabricius, Ida Lykke; Borre, Mai K.

    2007-01-01

    Comparison of chalk on the Ontong Java Plateau and chalk in the Central North Sea indicates that, whereas pressure dissolution is controlled by effective burial stress, pore-filling cementation is controlled by temperature. Effective burial stress is caused by the weight of all overlying water and sediments as counteracted by the pressure in the pore fluid, so the regional overpressure in the Central North Sea is one reason why the two localities have different relationships between temperatu...

  8. The new players - what's happening?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Johansen, Baard

    2005-01-01

    The oil company Talisman Energy and its activities in the North Sea are presented. The global corporation's strategy is briefly outlined, and this includes focus on upstream activities, area and product mix, having operator responsibility and exploration activities. North America and the North Sea represent 69 percent of the company's reserves and 76 percent of the production. the North Sea challenges for the future are among others the Norwegian fiscal system which does not stimulate marginal activities, leading to a lower level of activity, less focus on cost, premature removal of offshore infrastructure and fewer discoveries of new reserves (ml)

  9. The impact of shipping emissions on air pollution in the greater North Sea region - Part 1: Current emissions and concentrations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aulinger, A.; Matthias, V.; Zeretzke, M.; Bieser, J.; Quante, M.; Backes, A.

    2016-01-01

    The North Sea is one of the areas with the highest ship traffic densities worldwide. At any time, about 3000 ships are sailing its waterways. Previous scientific publications have shown that ships contribute significantly to atmospheric concentrations of NOx, particulate matter and ozone. Especially in the case of particulate matter and ozone, this influence can even be seen in regions far away from the main shipping routes. In order to quantify the effects of North Sea shipping on air quality in its bordering states, it is essential to determine the emissions from shipping as accurately as possible. Within Interreg IVb project Clean North Sea Shipping (CNSS), a bottom-up approach was developed and used to thoroughly compile such an emission inventory for 2011 that served as the base year for the current emission situation. The innovative aspect of this approach was to use load-dependent functions to calculate emissions from the ships' current activities instead of averaged emission factors for the entire range of the engine loads. These functions were applied to ship activities that were derived from hourly records of Automatic Identification System signals together with a database containing the engine characteristics of the vessels that traveled the North Sea in 2011. The emission model yielded ship emissions among others of NOx and SO2 at high temporal and spatial resolution that were subsequently used in a chemistry transport model in order to simulate the impact of the emissions on pollutant concentration levels. The total emissions of nitrogen reached 540 Gg and those of sulfur oxides 123 Gg within the North Sea - including the adjacent western part of the Baltic Sea until 5° W. This was about twice as much of those of a medium-sized industrialized European state like the Netherlands. The relative contribution of ships to, for example, NO2 concentration levels ashore close to the sea can reach up to 25 % in summer and 15 % in winter. Some hundred kilometers

  10. Mapping the spawning grounds of North Sea cod (Gadus morhua) by direct and indirect means.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fox, Clive J; Taylor, Martin; Dickey-Collas, Mark; Fossum, Petter; Kraus, Gerd; Rohlf, Norbert; Munk, Peter; van Damme, Cindy J G; Bolle, Loes J; Maxwell, David L; Wright, Peter J

    2008-07-07

    Despite recent evidence for sub-stock structuring, North Sea cod are assessed as a single unit. As a consequence, knowledge of sub-stock trends is poor. In particular, there are no recent evaluations of which spawning grounds are active. Here we report results from the first ichthyoplankton survey to cover the whole North Sea. Also, this survey, conducted in 2004, was the first to make extensive use of DNA-based molecular methods to unambiguously identify early developmental stage cod eggs. We compare the findings from the plankton survey with estimated egg production inferred from the distribution of mature cod in contemporaneous trawl surveys. Results from both approaches were in general agreement and showed hot spots of egg production around the southern and eastern edges of the Dogger Bank, in the German Bight, the Moray Firth and to the east of the Shetlands. These areas broadly coincide with known spawning locations from the period 1940 to 1970. We were, however, unable to directly detect significant numbers of cod eggs at the historic spawning ground off Flamborough (northeast coast of England). The results demonstrate that most of the major spawning grounds of cod in the North Sea are still active but that some localized populations may have been reduced to the point where it is now difficult to detect the presence of eggs in the plankton.

  11. Changes in the North Sea fish community: evidence of indirect effects of fishing?

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Daan, N.; Gislason, H.; Pope, J.G.; Rice, J.C.

    2005-01-01

    We investigate changes in the North Sea fish community with particular reference to possible indirect effects of fishing, mediated through the ecosystem. In the past, long-term changes in the slope of size spectra of research vessel catches have been related to changes in fishing effort, but such

  12. Coccolithophore assemblage response to Black Sea Water inflow into the North Aegean Sea (NE Mediterranean)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Karatsolis, B.-Th.; Triantaphyllou, M. V.; Dimiza, M. D.; Malinverno, E.; Lagaria, A.; Mara, P.; Archontikis, O.; Psarra, S.

    2017-10-01

    This study aims to presents the species composition of living coccolithophore communities in the NE Aegean Sea, investigating their spatial and temporal variations along a north-south transect in the area receiving the inflowing surface Black Sea Water (BSW) over the deeper Levantine Water (LW) layer. Coccolithophores in the area were relatively diverse and a total of 95 species over 3 sampling periods studied were recognized using Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) techniques. R-mode hierarchical cluster analysis distinguished two coccolithophore Groups (I, IIa, IIb, IIc) with different ecological preferences. Emiliania huxleyi was the most abundant species of Group I, whereas Syracosphaera spp., Rhabdosphaera spp. and holococcolithophores were prevailing in the highly diversified Group II assemblages. Biometric analysis conducted on E. huxleyi coccoliths from Aegean water column and Black Sea sediment trap samples, indicated that during autumn, NE Aegean specimens in samples under BSW influence were featured by unimodal distribution concerning the coccolith relative tube width, with values similar to those provided by the Black Sea specimens. In early spring, coccoliths in the stations with increased BSW influx displayed a bimodal pattern of relative tube width with smaller values found mostly in the surface layers, while the distribution became again unimodal and dominated by larger values within the deeper LW layers. In the summer period, the typical LW holococcolithophore species (Group II) presented low cell numbers in the surface layer (huxleyi was almost absent in the NE Aegean during the summer sampling period.

  13. Maps of mesoscale wind variability over the North Sea region

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Vincent, Claire Louise; Hahmann, Andrea N.; Badger, Jake

    Mesoscale wind fluctuations affect the operation of wind farms, particularly as the number of geographically concentrated wind farms in the North Sea increases (Akhmatov et al. 2007). The frequency and intensity of wind fluctuations could be considered as a new siting criterion, together with exi...... for a 1 year period. The model was run with a horizontal grid spacing of 2 km. The variability maps are created by integrating the average 24 hour spectra at every grid point over different time-scales....

  14. Amplified North Atlantic Warming in the Late Pliocene by Changes in Arctic Gateways

    Science.gov (United States)

    Otto-Bliesner, B. L.; Jahn, A.; Feng, R.; Brady, E. C.; Hu, A.; Lofverstrom, M.

    2017-12-01

    Reconstructions of the late Pliocene (mid-Piacenzian, 3.3 - 3.0 million years ago) sea surface temperature (SST) find much warmer conditions in the North Atlantic than modern. The much warmer SSTs, up to 8.8°C from sites with good dating and replicates from several different types of proxies, have been difficult for climate models to reproduce. Even with the slow feedbacks of a reduced Greenland ice sheet and expansion of boreal forests to the Arctic Ocean over Canada and Eurasia, models cannot warm the North Atlantic sufficiently to match the reconstructed SSTs. An enhancement of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) during the late Pliocene, proposed as a possible mechanism based on ocean core records of δ13C, also is not present in the model simulations. Here, we present CESM simulations using a new reconstruction of late Pliocene paleogeography that has the Bering Strait (BS) and Canadian Arctic Archipelago (CAA) Straits closed. We find that the closure of these small Arctic gateways strengthens the AMOC, by inhibiting freshwater (FW) transport from the Pacific to the Arctic Ocean and from the Arctic Ocean to the Labrador Sea, leading to warmer sea surface temperatures in the North Atlantic. The cutoff of the short export route through the CAA results in a more saline Labrador and south Greenland Sea with increased deep convection. At the same time, as all FW now leaves the Arctic east of Greenland, there is a freshening of and decreased deepwater formation in the Norwegian Sea. Overall, the AMOC strengthens. This past time period has implications for a future Earth under more responsible scenarios of emissions. Late Pliocene atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations are estimated to have ranged between 350 and 450 ppmv and the paleogeography is relatively similar to modern. Our study indicates that the state of the Arctic gateways may influence the sensitivity of the North Atlantic climate in complex ways, and better understanding of the

  15. On Apologizing in Norwegian

    OpenAIRE

    Awedyk, Witosław

    2011-01-01

    This paper discusses selected points concerning the verbal realization of the speech act of apology in Norwegian. It sets out to establish prevailing tendencies in the choice of apology strategies applied by the native speakers of Norwegian. The present findings, which seem to indicate that Norwegian apology strategies are fairly routinized, ought to be perceived as preliminary as a more detailed analysis of apology formulae will be presented in an upcoming article.

  16. The Norwegian Climate and Ozone Research Programme

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Dahlin, E. [ed.

    1996-03-01

    This report includes abstracts from a workshop arranged by the Norwegian Climate and Ozone Research Programme 11-12 March 1996. The abstracts are organized according to the sessions: (1) Regional effects of climate change with emphasis on ecology, (2) Climate research related to the North Atlantic, (3) What lessons can be drawn from paleoclimatology about changes in the current climate?, (4) Changes in the ozone layer and their effect on UV and biology. Abstracts of a selection of papers presented at the workshop can be found elsewhere in the present data base. 70 refs., 19 figs., 2 tabs.

  17. Risk and environmental impact assessments for the decommissioning of radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTGs) around the Baltic Sea area

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2009-01-01

    The removal and safe disposal of RTGs and their replacement with solar panel technology in the Baltic Sea is a priority area under the Norwegian Nuclear Action Plan. 26 of the 87 RTGs around the Baltic Sea have been removed as of 7th October 2009. The removal of RTGs around the Baltic Sea was initiated in 2009 as part of the Norwegian-Russian cooperation with funding from Norway, which requires that risk and environmental impact assessments are carried out during the planning phase. Finland and France will also be contributing to the work of removal and safe disposal of the RTGs around the Baltic Sea. (Author)

  18. The North Seas Countries' Offshore Grid Initiative. Initial Findings. Final Report. Working Group 1 - Grid Configuration

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    2012-11-15

    This report focuses on the tasks and results from Working Group 1 (WG1), grid configuration and integration, chaired jointly by representatives from Denmark and the Netherlands. The methodology, assumptions concerning generation portfolio, load situation, available technology and results are presented. This report presents the WG1 Offshore Grid Study that supports the North Seas Countries' Offshore Grid Initiative (NSCOGI) final report. The information contained in this report aims to evaluate the long-term development of an offshore grid structure in the North Seas by providing a view on how such a grid may possibly develop in the future, based on the assumptions made for this study. The report aims to compare and evaluate the possible advantages and disadvantages of the long term development of an optimised, integrated (or meshed) offshore grid in the North Seas by providing a view of how that possible grid might develop in the future against changes to the electricity energy requirements. To evaluate basic variants, different transmission design topologies (radial and meshed) were compared and analysed with respect to various aspects, such as cost/benefits, import and export levels and the systems' CO2 emissions.

  19. North Atlantic teleconnection patterns signature on sea level from satellite altimetry

    Science.gov (United States)

    Iglesias, Isabel; Lázaro, Clara; Joana Fernandes, M.; Bastos, Luísa

    2015-04-01

    Presently, satellite altimetry record is long enough to appropriately study inter-annual signals in sea level anomaly and ocean surface circulation, allowing the association of teleconnection patterns of low-frequency variability with the response of sea level. The variability of the Atlantic Ocean at basin-scale is known to be complex in space and time, with the dominant mode occurring on annual timescales. However, interannual and decadal variability have already been documented in sea surface temperature. Both modes are believed to be linked and are known to influence sea level along coastal regions. The analysis of the sea level multiannual variability is thus essential to understand the present climate and its long-term variability. While in the open-ocean sea level anomaly from satellite altimetry currently possesses centimetre-level accuracy, satellite altimetry measurements become invalid or of lower accuracy along the coast due to the invalidity of the wet tropospheric correction (WTC) derived from on-board microwave radiometers. In order to adequately analyse long-term changes in sea level in the coastal regions, satellite altimetry measurements can be recovered by using an improved WTC computed from recent algorithms that combine wet path delays from all available observations (remote sensing scanning imaging radiometers, GNSS stations, microwave radiometers on-board satellite altimetry missions and numerical weather models). In this study, a 20-year (1993-2013) time series of multi-mission satellite altimetry (TOPEX/Poseidon, Jason-1, OSTM/Jason-2, ERS-1/2, ENVISAT, CryoSat-2 and SARAL), are used to characterize the North Atlantic (NA) long-term variability on sea level at basin-scale and analyse its response to several atmospheric teleconnections known to operate on the NA. The altimetry record was generated using an improved coastal WTC computed from either the GNSS-derived path Delay or the Data Combination methodologies developed by University of

  20. Thermoluminescence dating of abyssal deposits in the north region of the South China Sea

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Peng Xiaoxian

    1988-01-01

    The ages of abyssal deposits have been studied by TL dating. The ages of the deposits from the wells Weima 1, 5 and 6 at the slope in the north of the South China Sea are 36,100 and 128 thousand years respectively

  1. The influence of riverine nitrogen on the dynamics of the North Sea oxygen minimum zone

    Science.gov (United States)

    Große, Fabian; Kreus, Markus; Lenhart, Hermann; Pätsch, Johannes

    2016-04-01

    The mitigation of eutrophication and its concomitants, like oxygen deficiency in bottom waters, is one of the major aspects of the ecological management of coastal marine ecosystems. In the past, biogeochemical models helped to significantly improve the understanding of the interaction of the physical and biological processes driving eutrophication. Anthropogenic river input of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) is the main driver for eutrophication. Nevertheless, the quantification of their influence in a specific region remains an important issue, since it is as crucial for an efficient management as it is difficult to obtain. During the past decade, a quantitative method applicable to biogeochemical models - often referred to as `trans-boundary nutrient transports' (TBNT) - became more and more popular in the context of marine ecosystem management. This method allows for the tracing of elements from various sources, e.g., nitrogen (N) from different rivers, throughout the whole process chain of the applied model. By this, it provides valuable information about the contributions from different sources to the overall amount and turnover of an element in different areas of the model domain. This information constitutes the basis for the quantification, evaluation and optimisation of river input reduction targets for the tributaries, which are defined in relation to their ecological consequences in the marine environment. In existing studies, the TBNT method has been applied to a variety of biogeochemical models, e.g. to quantify the atmospheric contribution to total N in the North Sea (Troost et al., 2013). This study presents a novel approach to link the TBNT method applied to N to the biological processes driving the oxygen dynamics in the bottom layer of the North Sea. For this purpose, simulations from the biogeochemical model ECOHAM (ECOlogical model HAMburg) are analysed for the years 2002 and 2010, with the focus on the southern central North Sea, the region of

  2. Fluid substitution studies for North Sea chalk logging data

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Gommesen, Lars; Mavko, G.; Mukerji, T.

    2002-01-01

    We have tested the application of respectively the Kuster-Toksöz and the Gassmann theory as a tool for predicting pore fluid from the elastic properties of brine-saturated North Sea reservoir chalk. We confirm that the Kuster-Toksöz model predicts a larger fluid effect thant the Gassmann model......, and show that the Kuster-Toksöz model fails to predict the presence of hydrocarbons. The Gassmann prediction for the near and potentially invaded zone corresponds more closely to logging data, than the Gassmann prediction for the far, virgin zone. We hereby conclude that the Gassmann theory predicts...

  3. Dissolved organic nitrogen dynamics in the North Sea: A time series analysis (1995-2005)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Van Engeland, T.; Soetaert, K.; Knuijt, A.; Laane, R. W. P. M.; Middelburg, J. J.

    2010-09-01

    Dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) dynamics in the North Sea was explored by means of long-term time series of nitrogen parameters from the Dutch national monitoring program. Generally, the data quality was good with little missing data points. Different imputation methods were used to verify the robustness of the patterns against these missing data. No long-term trends in DON concentrations were found over the sampling period (1995-2005). Inter-annual variability in the different time series showed both common and station-specific behavior. The stations could be divided into two regions, based on absolute concentrations and the dominant times scales of variability. Average DON concentrations were 11 μmol l -1 in the coastal region and 5 μmol l -1 in the open sea. Organic fractions of total dissolved nitrogen (TDN) averaged 38 and 71% in the coastal zone and open sea, respectively, but increased over time due to decreasing dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) concentrations. In both regions intra-annual variability dominated over inter-annual variability, but DON variation in the open sea was markedly shifted towards shorter time scales relative to coastal stations. In the coastal zone a consistent seasonal DON cycle existed with high values in spring-summer and low values in autumn-winter. In the open sea seasonality was weak. A marked shift in the seasonality was found at the Dogger Bank, with DON accumulation towards summer and low values in winter prior to 1999, and accumulation in spring and decline throughout summer after 1999. This study clearly shows that DON is a dynamic actor in the North Sea and should be monitored systematically to enable us to understand fully the functioning of this ecosystem.

  4. Impact of marine mercury cycling on coastal atmospheric mercury concentrations in the North- and Baltic Sea region

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Johannes Bieser

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available Abstract The cycling of mercury between ocean and atmosphere is an important part of the global Hg cycle. Here we study the regional contribution of the air-sea exchange in the North- and Baltic Sea region. We use a newly developed coupled regional chemistry transport modeling (CTM system to determine the flux between atmosphere and ocean based on the meteorological model COSMO-CLM, the ocean-ecosystem model ECOSMO, the atmospheric CTM CMAQ and a newly developed module for mercury partitioning and speciation in the ocean (MECOSMO. The model was evaluated using atmospheric observations of gaseous elemental mercury (GEM, surface concentrations of dissolved gaseous mercury (DGM, and air-sea flux (ASF calculations based on observations made on seven cruises in the western and central Baltic Sea and three cruises in the North Sea performed between 1991 and 2006. It was shown that the model is in good agreement with observations: DGM (Normalized Mean Bias NMB=-0.27 N=413, ASF (NMB=-0.32, N=413, GEM (NMB=0.07, N=2359. Generally, the model was able to reproduce the seasonal DGM cycle with the best agreement during winter and autumn (NMBWinter=-0.26, NMBSpring=-0.41, NMBSummer=-0.29, NMBAutumn=-0.03. The modelled mercury evasion from the Baltic Sea ranged from 3400 to 4000 kg/a for the simulation period 1994–2007 which is on the lower end of previous estimates. Modelled atmospheric deposition, river inflow and air-sea exchange lead to an annual net Hg accumulation in the Baltic Sea of 500 to 1000 kg/a. For the North Sea the model calculates an annual mercury flux into the atmosphere between 5700 and 6000 kg/a. The mercury flux from the ocean influenced coastal atmospheric mercury concentrations. Running CMAQ coupled with the ocean model lead to better agreement with GEM observations. Directly at the coast GEM concentrations could be increased by up to 10% on annual average and observed peaks could be reproduced much better. At stations 100km downwind

  5. A lasting legacy for the Baltic and North Sea GLOBEC Germany program

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Peck, M.A.; Dutz, Jörg; Voss, R.

    2012-01-01

    This preface introduces four manuscripts that form a special theme section of the GLOBEC Germany program within Progress in Oceanography. The four manuscripts link changes in physical forcing to the trophodynamic structure and function of the Baltic and North Seas. The target species of GLOBEC Ge...... Germany included various species of calanoid copepods and a small pelagic fish (Sprattus sprattus)...

  6. Data basis for materials for a new North Sea Agreement 1995 - Collecting and assembling of data basis for assigning priorities to possible Norwegian proposals for new materials in the North Sea Agreement; Datagrunnlag for stoffer til ny Nordsjoeavtale 1995. Innhenting og sammenstilling av datagrunnlag for prioritering av eventuelle norske forslag til nye stoffer i Nordsjoeavtalen

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hansen, H E; Tobiesen, A

    1994-03-12

    In connection with the new North Sea Agreement in 1995, Norway may propose that the addition of certain environmentally hazardous chemicals should be reduced. Norway may propose 5-10 substances or groups of substances. This report lists available information about 28 contaminants as a basis for prioritizing. The relevant data shown are physical and chemical properties, quantities produced, emissions, toxicity, decomposition and bioaccumulation. The report also suggests a rough priority. 36 refs., 3 tabs.

  7. Monitoring plastic ingestion by the northern fulmar Fulmarus glacialis in the North Sea

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Franeker, van J.A.; Blaize, C.; Danielsen, J.

    2011-01-01

    The abundance of plastics in stomachs of northern fulmars from the North Sea is used in the OSPAR Ecological Quality Objective (EcoQO) for marine litter. The preliminary EcoQO defines acceptable ecological quality as the situation where no more than 10% of fulmars exceed a critical level of 0.1 g of

  8. Comparison between predicted and observed sand waves and sand banks in the North Sea

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Hulscher, Suzanne J.M.H.; van den Brink, G.M.

    2001-01-01

    For the first time a prediction model of regular morphological patterns on the seabed was tested against observations of sand wave and sand bank occurrence in the entire North Sea. The model, which originates from first physical principles, predicts this occurrence via two dimensionless parameters

  9. Phytoplankton, chemical, physical, and other data were collected using bottle, CTD casts, and other instruments in the North Sea as part of the North Sea Project, 15 April 1988 - 30 July 1991 (NODC Accession 9300008)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Phytoplankton, chemical, physical, and other data were collected using bottle, current meter, net, pump, and CTD casts in the North Sea from April 15, 1988 to July...

  10. THE POLLUTION OF THE BOTTOM SEDIMENTSIN THE NORTH-WESTERN PART OF THE CASPIAN SEA HYDROCARBONS AND PERSISTENT ORGANIC POLLUTANTS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    E. V. Ostrovskaya

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Aim. The pollution of the bottom sediments in the north-western part of the Caspian sea hydrocarbons and persistent organic pollutants. Location.Caspian Sea. Methods. The materials for this article is based on the results of monitoring conducted in 2012-2013 years. Results. Sediments in the north-western part of the Caspian Sea as a whole slightly contaminated YV and SOZ, although localized areas of high pollution are marked, especially characteristic of the Middle Caspian. Mainconclusions.The studies were showed, PAY in the sediments are mixed genesis, but most of them, in all probability, were petroleum origin. The not weathered hydrocarbons are presented in sediments, which indicates to the presence of the local sources of the fresh oil pollution on the surveyed area.

  11. Modelling Local Sea-Breeze Flow and Associated Dispersion Patterns Over a Coastal Area in North-East Spain: A Case Study

    Science.gov (United States)

    Soler, M. R.; Arasa, R.; Merino, M.; Olid, M.; Ortega, S.

    2011-07-01

    The structure and evolution of the sea breeze in the north-west part of the Mediterranean (Catalonia, north-east Spain) is studied both experimentally and, predominantly, using numerical models to increase understanding of sea-breeze structure and three-dimensional (3D) pollution distributions in coastal environments. Sea-breeze components are modelled and analyzed using the fifth-generation Pennsylvania State University-National Centre for Atmospheric Research Mesoscale Model (MM5). The results show that the growth and structure of the sea-breeze circulation is modulated by the synoptic flow and especially by the complex topography of the area. 3D pollution transport in a sea breeze is modelled by coupling the MM5 to the Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ) model, with results indicating that topography and synoptic flow are the main factors modulating horizontal and vertical pollutant transport in sea-breeze episodes. In this way, horizontal dispersion is limited by the complex topography of the area, whilst the sea-breeze flow is intensified by anabatic upslope winds that contribute to vertical pollutant transport. The numerical model results also indicate that the sea-breeze circulation with a weak return flow at upper levels grows due to a synoptic onshore wind component. However, such a sea-breeze circulation is capable of transporting pollutants towards the coast.

  12. Arctic Sea Level Reconstruction

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Svendsen, Peter Limkilde

    Reconstruction of historical Arctic sea level is very difficult due to the limited coverage and quality of tide gauge and altimetry data in the area. This thesis addresses many of these issues, and discusses strategies to help achieve a stable and plausible reconstruction of Arctic sea level from...... 1950 to today.The primary record of historical sea level, on the order of several decades to a few centuries, is tide gauges. Tide gauge records from around the world are collected in the Permanent Service for Mean Sea Level (PSMSL) database, and includes data along the Arctic coasts. A reasonable...... amount of data is available along the Norwegian and Russian coasts since 1950, and most published research on Arctic sea level extends cautiously from these areas. Very little tide gauge data is available elsewhere in the Arctic, and records of a length of several decades,as generally recommended for sea...

  13. Brief: Refloating Maureen platform for reuse in waters away from the North Sea

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tilling, G.M.

    1996-01-01

    The Maureen platform in the U.K. sector of the North Sea is refloatable by virtue of being a steel, gravity-base structure with large oil storage tanks as legs. The fields producing into the Maureen platform will soon be depleted, and plans are to decommission the platform from its present location. The attractive disposal options all involve refloating the platform as a first step. Of these, reuse of the facility is potentially the most attractive. Once afloat, the platform becomes a towable 110,000-tonne vessel available for use in areas of the world away from the North Sea, with location determined by environmental conditions and water depth. The bulk of the weight (92,000 tonnes) is in the jacket structure; topsides weight is 18,000 tonnes. Subject to detailed tow-route and naval-stability calculations, moving the structure long distances appears to be feasible. This paper discusses the refloating and marine stability of the Maureen oil platform as a vessel under tow. Development and maintenance aspects are presented

  14. Dissolved organic nitrogen dynamics in the North Sea: A time series analysis (1995-2005)

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Van Engeland, T.; Soetaert, K.E.R.; Knuijt, A.; Laane, R.W.P.M.; Middelburg, J.J.

    2010-01-01

    Dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) dynamics in the North Sea was explored by means of long-term time series of nitrogen parameters from the Dutch national monitoring program. Generally, the data quality was good with little missing data points. Different imputation methods were used to verify the

  15. Certified reference material for radionuclides in fish flesh sample IAEA-414 (mixed fish from the Irish Sea and North Sea)

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Pham, M.K.; Sanchez-Cabeza, J.A.; Povinec, P.P.

    2006-01-01

    A certified reference material (CRM) for radionuclides in fish sample IAEA-414 (mixed fish from the Irish Sea and North Seas) is described and the results of the certification process are presented. Nine radionuclides (K-40, Cs-137, Th-232, U-234, U-235, U-238, Pu-238, Pu239+240 and Am-241) were...... ratios are also included. The CRM can be used for quality assurance/quality control of the analysis of radionuclides in fish sample, for the development and validation of analytical methods and for training purposes. The material is available from IAEA, Vienna, in 100 g units. (c) 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All...

  16. Wind power, network congestion and hydro resource utilisation in the Norwegian power market

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Foersund, Finn; Singh, Balbir; Jensen, Trond; Larsen, Cato

    2005-01-01

    Capacity constraints in electricity networks can have important impacts on utilization of new renewable energy (RE) capacity and incumbent generation resources. Neglect of such impacts in development of RE resources can result in crowding-out of incumbent generation. This trade-off is particularly problematic if the incumbent generation also consists of renewable sources, such as hydropower in the Norwegian electricity system. This paper presents a numerical analysis of the current wind-power development plans in North Norway and their impacts on utilization of hydropower. Policy simulations in paper are conducted using a dynamic partial equilibrium model that is calibrated to reflect the structure of the Nordic power market. The paper draws conclusion and policy implications for integration of RE resources in the Norwegian power market. (Author)

  17. Spectral Properties of ENVISAT ASAR and QuikSCAT Surface Winds in the North Sea

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Karagali, Ioanna; Larsén, Xiaoli Guo; Badger, Merete

    2013-01-01

    as an increase in spectral density over similar wavenumber ranges as the spatial resolution increases. The 600-m SAR wind product reveals a range of wavenumbers in which the exchange processes between micro- and meso-scales occur; this range is not captured by the wind products with a resolution of 1.5 km......Spectra derived from ENVISAT Advanced Synthetic Aperture Radar (ASAR) and QuikSCAT near-surface ocean winds are investigated over the North Sea. The two sensors offer a wide range of spatial resolutions, from 600 m to 25 km, with different spatial coverage over the area of interest. This provides...... a unique opportunity to study the impact of the spatial resolution on the spectral properties of the wind over a wide range of length scales. Initially, a sub-domain in the North Sea is chosen, due to the overlap of 87 wind scenes from both sensors. The impact of the spatial resolution is manifested...

  18. Temperature tracking by North Sea benthic invertebrates in response to climate change.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hiddink, Jan G; Burrows, Michael T; García Molinos, Jorge

    2015-01-01

    Climate change is a major threat to biodiversity and distributions shifts are one of the most significant threats to global warming, but the extent to which these shifts keep pace with a changing climate is yet uncertain. Understanding the factors governing range shifts is crucial for conservation management to anticipate patterns of biodiversity distribution under future anthropogenic climate change. Soft-sediment invertebrates are a key faunal group because of their role in marine biogeochemistry and as a food source for commercial fish species. However, little information exists on their response to climate change. Here, we evaluate changes in the distribution of 65 North Sea benthic invertebrate species between 1986 and 2000 by examining their geographic, bathymetric and thermal niche shifts and test whether species are tracking their thermal niche as defined by minimum, mean or maximum sea bottom (SBT) and surface (SST) temperatures. Temperatures increased in the whole North Sea with many benthic invertebrates showing north-westerly range shifts (leading/trailing edges as well as distribution centroids) and deepening. Nevertheless, distribution shifts for most species (3.8-7.3 km yr(-1) interquantile range) lagged behind shifts in both SBT and SST (mean 8.1 km yr(-1)), resulting in many species experiencing increasing temperatures. The velocity of climate change (VoCC) of mean SST accurately predicted both the direction and magnitude of distribution centroid shifts, while maximum SST did the same for contraction of the trailing edge. The VoCC of SBT was not a good predictor of range shifts. No good predictor of expansions of the leading edge was found. Our results show that invertebrates need to shift at different rates and directions to track the climate velocities of different temperature measures, and are therefore lagging behind most temperature measures. If these species cannot withstand a change in thermal habitat, this could ultimately lead to a drop in

  19. Neogene dinocyst zonation for the eastern North Sea Basin, Denmark

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Dybkjær, Karen; Piasecki, Stefan

    2010-01-01

    A dinocyst zonation for the Neogene succession in the eastern part of the North Sea Basin (Denmark) is presented. The zonation is based on an extensive database comprising data from more than fifty onshore and offshore boreholes and about twenty five outcrops. Most of the nineteen dinocyst zones......, of the Lower Miocene, and of the Upper Miocene and Pliocene successions. The previous zonation of the onshore Danish Middle Miocene is reconsidered and partly redefined. The zonation is correlated with other biostratigraphic subdivisions of the Neogene succession in the Danish region in addition to litho...

  20. Dispersal of the radionuclide caesium-137 (137Cs) from point sources in the Barents and Norwegian Seas and its potential contamination of the Arctic marine food chain: Coupling numerical ocean models with geographical fish distribution data

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Heldal, Hilde Elise; Vikebø, Frode; Johansen, Geir Odd

    2013-01-01

    Dispersal of 137 Cs from the nuclear submarine wrecks Komsomolets and K-159, which are resting on the seabed in the Norwegian and Barents Seas, respectively, is simulated using realistic rates and hypothetical scenarios. Furthermore, spatiotemporal 137 Cs concentrations in Northeast Arctic cod and capelin are estimated based on survey data. The results indicate that neither continuous leakages nor pulse discharges will cause concentrations of 137 Cs in cod muscle or whole body capelin exceeding the intervention level of 600 Bq/kg fw. Continuous leakages from Komsomolets and K-159 and pulse discharges from Komsomolets induced negligible activity concentrations in cod and capelin. A pulse discharge of 100% of the 137 Cs-inventory of K-159 will, however, result in concentrations in muscle of cod of above 100 times the present levels in the eastern Barents Sea. Within three years after the release, 137 Cs levels above 20 Bq/kg fw in cod are no longer occurring in the Barents Sea. -- Highlights: •The dispersal of 137 Cs from the wrecks of Komsomolets and K-159 are simulated. •The submarine wrecks are resting on the seabed in the Norwegian and Barents Seas. •Both realistic rates of discharges and what-if scenarios are simulated. •Concentrations of 137 Cs are estimated in observational records of cod and capelin. •Only pulse discharges from K-159 causes high 137 Cs concentrations in cod and capelin. -- A pulse discharge of 137 Cs from K-159 may cause concentrations in muscle of cod up to 63 and 123 Bq/kg fresh weight in the near-surface and near-bottom layer, respectively

  1. Assessment of 137Cs and 90Sr Fluxes in the Barents Sea

    Science.gov (United States)

    Matishov, Gennady; Usiagina, Irina; Kasatkina, Nadezhda; Ilin, Gennadii

    2014-05-01

    On the basis of published and own data the annual balance of radionuclide income/outcome was assessed for 137Cs and 90Sr in the Barents Sea for the period from 1950s to the presnt. The scheme of the isotope balance calculation in the Barents Sea included the following processes:atmospheric fallout; river run-off; liquid radioactive wastes releases, income from the Norwegian and the White Seas; outflow to the adjacent areas through the Novaya Zemlya straits and the transects Svalbard-Franz Josef Land and Franz Josef Land-Novaya Zemlya; radioactive decay. According to the multiyear dynamics, the inflow of 137Cs and 90Sr to the Barents Sea was significantly preconditioned by currents from the Norwegian Sea. Three peaks of 137Cs and 90Sr isotope concentrations were registered for the surface waters on the western border of the Barents Sea. The first one was observed in the mid-1960s and was conditioned by testing of nuclear weapons. The increase of isotope concentrations in 1975 and 1980 was preconditioned by the discharge of atomic waste by the Sellafield nuclear reprocessing plant. Nowadays, after the sewage disposal plant was built, the annual discharge of nuclear waste from Sellafield plant is low. The Norwegian Sea was a major source of 137Cs and 90Sr isotope income into the Barents Sea for the period of 1960-2014. Currently, the transborder transfer of 90Sr and 137Cs from the Norwegian Sea into the Barents Sea constitutes about 99% of income for each element. Atmospheric precipitation had a major impact in the 1950-1960s after the testing of the nuclear weapons, and in 1986 after the accident at Chernobyl Nuclear Power Station. In 1963, the atmospheric precipitation of 137Cs reached 1050 TBq; and that of 90Sr, 630 TBq. In 1986, a significant amount of 137Cs inflow (up to 1010 TBq/year) was registered. The 137Cs isotope income exceeded the 90Sr income in the 1960s-1980s, and equal amounts penetrated into the Barents Sea from the Norwegian Sea in the 1990s. Before

  2. Productivity and recovery of forage fish under climate change and fishing: North Sea sandeel as a case study

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Lindegren, Martin; van Deurs, Mikael; MacKenzie, Brian

    2018-01-01

    -east Atlantic, acting as a key prey for predatory fish and sea birds, as well as supporting a large commercial fishery. In this case study, we investigate the underlying factors affecting recruitment and how these in turn affect productivity of the North Sea sandeel using long-term data and modelling. Our...... results demonstrate how sandeel productivity in the central North Sea (Dogger Bank) depends on a combination of external and internal regulatory factors, including fishing and climate effects, as well as density dependence and food availability of the preferred zooplankton prey (Calanus finmarchicus...... and Temora longicornis). Furthermore, our model scenarios suggest that while fishing largely contributed to the abrupt stock decline during the late 1990s and the following period of low biomass, a complete recovery of the stock to the highly productive levels of the early 1980s would only be possible...

  3. Distribution of Polycystine Radiolarians in Bottom Surface Sediments and Its Relation to Summer Sea Temperature in the High-Latitude North Atlantic

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alexander Matul

    2017-10-01

    Full Text Available An objective of the study is to get new biogeographic information on the modern polycystine radiolarians from the high-latitude North Atlantic. The quantitative radiolarian dataset was compiled from publications and own micropaleontological counts from samples of the bottom surface sediments of the North Atlantic north of 40°N and Nordic Seas. Standard statistical treatment of micropaleontological data by factor analysis reveals five radiolarian assemblages which have their highest load at the specific temperature range in agreement with the oceanographic setting. An occurrence of radiolarian assemblages reflects extension and interaction of the warm North Atlantic and cold Polar/Arctic waters. Radiolarian distribution exhibits good correlation with the climatically averaged summer sea temperature on depth level of 200 m.

  4. Hierarchical modeling of bycatch rates of sea turtles in the western North Atlantic

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gardner, B.; Sullivan, P.J.; Epperly, S.; Morreale, S.J.

    2008-01-01

    Previous studies indicate that the locations of the endangered loggerhead Caretta caretta and critically endangered leatherback Dermochelys coriacea sea turtles are influenced by water temperatures, and that incidental catch rates in the pelagic longline fishery vary by region. We present a Bayesian hierarchical model to examine the effects of environmental variables, including water temperature, on the number of sea turtles captured in the US pelagic longline fishery in the western North Atlantic. The modeling structure is highly flexible, utilizes a Bayesian model selection technique, and is fully implemented in the software program WinBUGS. The number of sea turtles captured is modeled as a zero-inflated Poisson distribution and the model incorporates fixed effects to examine region-specific differences in the parameter estimates. Results indicate that water temperature, region, bottom depth, and target species are all significant predictors of the number of loggerhead sea turtles captured. For leatherback sea turtles, the model with only target species had the most posterior model weight, though a re-parameterization of the model indicates that temperature influences the zero-inflation parameter. The relationship between the number of sea turtles captured and the variables of interest all varied by region. This suggests that management decisions aimed at reducing sea turtle bycatch may be more effective if they are spatially explicit. ?? Inter-Research 2008.

  5. Holocene relative sea-level changes from North America and the Caribbean

    Science.gov (United States)

    Horton, Benjamin; Engelhart, Simon; Vacchi, Matteo; Khan, Nicole; Peltier, Dick; Roy, Keven

    2014-05-01

    Reconstructions of Holocene relative sea level (RSL) are important for identifying the ice equivalent meltwater contribution to sea-level change during deglaciation. Holocene RSL reconstructions from near, intermediate and far field regions enable the assessment of earth and ice parameters of Glacial Isostatic Adjustment (GIA) models. RSL reconstructions provide data for estimating rates of spatially variable and ongoing vertical land motion; a requirement for understanding the variation in modern and late Holocene sea level as recorded by instrumental and proxy records. Here we explain the methodology employed to reconstruct former sea levels, which follows the practice of the International Geoscience Programme (IGCP). We produce sea level index points from the Pacific and Atlantic coasts of North America and the Caribbean. Index points are defined as the most reliable observations of former sea levels. They consist of an estimate of X (age) and Y (the position of former RSL). Where a suite of index points are developed for a locality or region, they describe changes in RSL through time and estimate rates of change. A valid index point must meet the following four criteria; (1) location of the sample is known; (2) the altitude of the sample (and the error associated with measuring that altitude) is known; (3) the indicative meaning (the relationship between the sample and a tide level) is estimated; and (4) the age of the sample, which is commonly radiocarbon dated is calibrated to sidereal years using the latest calibration curves. In total databases have over 2000 sea-level index points from formerly ice covered, uplifting regions of Canada, to the region of forebulge collapse along the subsiding mid-Atlantic and mid-Pacific coastlines of the United States, to the tropical regions of the Caribbean. Recent analyses of these new published databases have led to a further refinement of the most recent of the ICE-NG (VMX) series of global models of GIA. The records

  6. Facts 2010 - The Norwegian petroleum sector

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    2010-07-01

    The publication provides a general overview of information regarding the petroleum activities on the Norwegian continental shelf. Content; Foreword; The petroleum sector - Norway's largest industry; Organisation of Norwegian petroleum activity; Government petroleum revenues; Exploration activities; Development and operations; Norwegian gas exports; Decommissioning; Research, technology and industrial development; Environmental considerations in the Norwegian petroleum sector; Petroleum resources; Fields in production; Fields under development; Future developments; Fields where production has ceased; Pipelines and onshore facilities. (AG)

  7. Towards harmonised assessment and classification of "biodiversity status" in the North Sea eco-region

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Skov, H.; Andersen, Jesper; Vinther, M.

    As one of the milestones in the HARMONY-project a demonstration of the application of the integrative indicator based biodiversity assessment tool (BEAT) was undertaken for the Greater North Sea sub-region across a range of coastal and offshore areas. The first version of the BEAT tool was applie...

  8. Biogeochemical consequences of vertical and lateral transport of particulate organic matter in the southern North Sea: A multiproxy approach

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Le Guitton, M.; Soetaert, K.; Sinninghe Damsté, J.S.; Middelburg, J.J.

    2015-01-01

    Vertical and lateral transports are of importance in continental shelf systems such as the North Sea andplay a major role in the processing of organic matter. We investigated the biogeochemical consequencesof these transports on particulate organic matter at the molecular level in the southern North

  9. Norwegian company suppliers for the oil and gas exploitation in Norway and abroad 2003

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kristiansen, Frode; Heum, Per; Vatne, Eirik; Wiig, Wibecke

    2004-09-01

    The Institute for Research in Economics and Business Administration has for the forth time monitored how Norwegian suppliers to the petroleum activity find their way to various markets. The data are valid for activities during 2003. The study is carried out among 413 companies at the business level and for 21 at the corporation level. The companies are mainly small and middle sized while the corporations that comprises several companies, are to be considered as large in the Norwegian context. 204 of the small and middle sized companies replied. In the group of larger corporations about 95 % replied. As the latter group is responsible for 80-90 % of the turnover in the Norwegian petroleum sector the total estimates in the investigation should be quite accurate. More than 90 % of the registered sales abroad may be contributed to 22 companies. It should therefore be possible to catch important development characteristics in the petroleum sector by focusing on 30-40 companies. Another structural characteristic is that the companies involved in petroleum activities rarely involve themselves in pure research and development activities. The current innovation is made in the context of solving specific challenges connected to reservoir, ocean depth, climate and distance and usually in relation to customers and suppliers. The petroleum sector had an average turnover of 39 % in their trade with foreign countries in 2003 which is an increase. The majority of the companies have a registered sale abroad. The tendency is increasing. The petroleum regions that receive the majority of the Norwegian sales during 2003 as previously, are the UK/North Sea, the USA/Canada and South East Asia/Australia. The sales to the Western Africa and South America are also considerable. The petroleum sector in Norway has achieved market positions over almost the entire globe in less than 10 years. With the collected data material as a basis it is estimated a 34 thousand million NOK petroleum

  10. A model study of the seasonality of sea surface temperature and circulation in the Atlantic North-Eastern Tropical Upwelling System.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Saliou eFaye

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available The climatological seasonal cycle of the sea surface temperature (SST in the north-eastern tropical Atlantic (7-25°N, 26-12°W is studied using a mixed layer heat budget in a regional ocean general circulation model. The region, which experiences one of the larger SST cycle in the tropics, forms the main part of the Guinea Gyre. It is characterized by a seasonally varying open ocean and coastal upwelling system, driven by the movements of the intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ. The model annual mean heat budget has two regimes schematically. South of roughly 12°N, advection of equatorial waters, mostly warm, and warming by vertical mixing, is balanced by net air-sea flux. In the rest of the domain, a cooling by vertical mixing, reinforced by advection at the coast, is balanced by the air-sea fluxes. Regarding the seasonal cycle, within a narrow continental band, in zonal mean, the SST early decrease (from September, depending on latitude, until December is driven by upwelling dynamics off Senegal and Mauritania (15°-20°N, and instead by air-sea fluxes north and south of these latitudes. Paradoxically, the later peaks of upwelling intensity (from March to July, with increasing latitude essentially damp the warming phase, driven by air-sea fluxes. The open ocean cycle to the west, is entirely driven by the seasonal net air-sea fluxes. The oceanic processes significantly oppose it, but for winter north of ~18°N. Vertical mixing in summer-autumn tends to cool (warm the surface north (south of the ITCZ, and advective cooling or warming by the geostrophic Guinea Gyre currents and the Ekman drift. This analysis supports previous findings on the importance of air-sea fluxes offshore. It mainly offers quantitative elements on the modulation of the SST seasonal cycle by the ocean circulation, and particularly by the upwelling dynamics.Keywords: SST, upwelling, circulation, heat budget, observations, modeling

  11. Derived concentration factors for caesium-137 in edible species of North Sea fish

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Steele, A.K.

    1990-01-01

    Concentration factor (CF=Bq kg -1 fillet/Bg kg -1 filtered sea water) values for 137 Cs in fillets of cod (Gadus morhua), haddock (Merlanogrammus aeglefinus), plaice (Pleuronectes platessa) and whiting (Merlangius merlangius), were derived from fish and filtered seawater concentrations. Samples were collected in twelve sampling boxes in the North Sea over an eight-year period - 1978-1985. The range of results with species, between species, and between surveys are discussed. Mean CF values of 92, 58, 39 and 150 were found in cod, haddock, plaice and whiting respectively. These support the International Atomic Energy Authority recommended CF value of 100 for fish in generalised dose assessments. (author)

  12. Organohalogen compounds in deep-sea fishes from the western North Pacific, off-Tohoku, Japan: Contamination status and bioaccumulation profiles

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Takahashi, Shin; Oshihoi, Tomoko; Ramu, Karri; Isobe, Tomohiko; Ohmori, Koji; Kubodera, Tsunemi; Tanabe, Shinsuke

    2010-01-01

    Twelve species of deep-sea fishes collected in 2005 from the western North Pacific, off-Tohoku, Japan were analyzed for organohalogen compounds. Among the compounds analyzed, concentrations of DDTs and PCBs (up to 23,000 and 12,400 ng/g lipid wt, respectively) were the highest. The present study is the foremost to report the occurrence of brominated flame retardants such as PBDEs and HBCDs in deep-sea organisms from the North Pacific region. Significant positive correlations found between δ 15 N ( per mille ) and PCBs, DDTs and PBDEs suggest the high biomagnification potential of these contaminants in food web. The large variation in δ 13 C ( per mille ) values observed between the species indicate multiple sources of carbon in the food web and specific accumulation of hydrophobic organohalogen compounds in benthic dwelling carnivore species like snubnosed eel. The results obtained in this study highlight the usefulness of deep-sea fishes as sentinel species to monitor the deep-sea environment.

  13. The importance of predator–prey overlap: predicting North Sea cod recovery with a multispecies assessment model

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kempf, Alexander; Dingsør, Gjert Endre; Huse, Geir

    2010-01-01

    The overlap between predator and prey is known as a sensitive parameter in multispecies assessment models for fish, and its parameterization is notoriously difficult. Overlap indices were derived from trawl surveys and used to parametrize the North Sea stochastic multispecies model. The effect...... of time-invariant and year- and quarter-specific overlap estimates on the historical (1991–2007) and predicted trophic interactions, as well as the development of predator and prey stocks, was investigated. The focus was set on a general comparison between single-species and multispecies forecasts...... and the sensitivity of the predicted development of North Sea cod for the two types of overlap implementation. The spatial–temporal overlap between cod and its predators increased with increasing temperature, indicating that foodweb processes might reduce the recovery potential of cod during warm periods...

  14. Facts 2011 - The Norwegian petroleum sector

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    2011-07-15

    The publication provides a general overview of information regarding the petroleum activities on the Norwegian continental shelf. Content; Foreword; The petroleum sector - Norway's largest industry; Organisation of Norwegian petroleum activity; Government petroleum revenues; Exploration activities; Development and operations; Norwegian gas exports; Decommissioning; Research, technology and industrial development; Environmental considerations in the Norwegian petroleum sector; Petroleum resources; Fields in production; Fields under development; Future developments; Fields where production has ceased; Pipelines and onshore facilities. (AG)

  15. Facts 2010 - The Norwegian petroleum sector

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    2010-07-01

    The publication provides a general overview of information regarding the petroleum activities on the Norwegian continental shelf. Content; Foreword; The petroleum sector - Norway's largest industry; Organisation of Norwegian petroleum activity; Government petroleum revenues; Exploration activities; Development and operations; Norwegian gas exports; Decommissioning; Research, technology and industrial development; Environmental considerations in the Norwegian petroleum sector; Petroleum resources; Fields in production; Fields under development; Future developments; Fields where production has ceased; Pipelines and onshore facilities. (AG)

  16. Sea Spray Aerosol Production over the North Atlantic

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bates, T. S.; Quinn, P.

    2017-12-01

    Breaking waves on the ocean surface generate air bubbles that scavenge organic matter from the surrounding seawater. When injected into the atmosphere, these bubbles burst, yielding sea spray aerosol (SSA), a mixture of organic and inorganic compounds with the organic matter enriched relative to seawater. SSA mass is well documented as the dominant component of aerosol light scattering over the remote oceans. The importance of SSA number to marine boundary layer cloud condensation nuclei (CCN) is much less certain. During the Western Atlantic Climate Study cruises (WACS-1 - August 2012 and WACS-2 - May-June 2014) and the North Atlantic Aerosols and Marine Ecosystem Study cruises (NAAMES-1 - November 2015, NAAMES-2 - May 2016, and NAAMES-3 - September 2017), we generated and measured freshly emitted SSA using the Sea Sweep SSA generator. During the 2017 cruise we also generated SSA with a Marine Aerosol Reference Tank (MART). Using the data generated on these 5 cruises and a large database of remote marine boundary layer aerosol measurements we will address three questions during this presentation: 1 - Do phytoplankton ecosystems affect the organic enrichment of freshly emitted SSA?, 2 - Do plankton ecosystems affect the number production flux of SSA?, and 3 - Is SSA a significant source of atmospheric CCN?

  17. Polonium-210 in mussels and fish from the Baltic-North Sea estuary

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Dahlgaard, H.

    1996-01-01

    Polonium-210 has been measured in Danish fish meat caught in the North Sea, the Kattegat and the Baltic in 1991-1994. Average values of 0.35, 0.65 and 0.96 Bq Po-210 kg(-1) fresh weight were observed for cod, herring and plaice fillets, respectively. The difference between species is statistically...... in fish and mussels may represent a natural baseline. Copyright (C) 1996 Elsevier Science Ltd....

  18. Observations of copepod feeding and vertical distribution under natural turbulent conditions in the North Sea

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Visser, Andre; Saito, H.; Saiz, E.

    2001-01-01

    We present results of simultaneous measurements of turbulent- dissipation rate, zooplankton vertical distribution and copepod gut pigments in the northern North Sea. Analysis shows that some, but not all, copepods (by species, sex and stage) exhibit significant dependence on turbulence in respect...

  19. Amino acids and hexosamines as indicators of organic matter degradation state in North Sea sediments

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Dauwe, B.; Middelburg, J.J.

    1998-01-01

    Sediment cores from six stations in the eastern North Sea were analyzed for protein amino acids, the nonprotein amino acids beta-alanine and gamma-aminobutyric acid and the hexosamines galactosamine and glucosamine, and bulk parameters (organic carbon, nitrogen, total hydrolyzable amino acids and

  20. Modelling and analysis of offshore energy systems on North Sea oil and gas platforms

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nguyen, Tuong-Van; Elmegaard, Brian; Pierobon, Leonardo

    2012-01-01

    export, and power generation. In this paper, a generic model of a North Sea oil and gas platform is described and the most thermodynamically inefficient processes are identified by performing an exergy analysis. Models and simulations are built and run with the tools Aspen Plus R, DNA and Aspen HYSYS R...