Polymetalic sulfide is the main product of sea-floor hydrothermal venting, and has become an important sea-floor mineral resources for its rich in many kinds of precious metal elements. Since 2007, a number of investigations have been carried out by the China Ocean Mineral Resources Research and Development Association (COMRA ) cruises (CCCs) along the Southwest Indian Ridge (SWIR). In 2011, the COMRA signed an exploration contract of sea-floor polymetallic sulfides of 10 000 km² on the SWIR with the International Seabed Authority. Based on the multibeam data and shipborne gravity data obtained in 2010 by the R/V Dayang Yihao during the leg 6 of CCCs 21, together with the global satellite surveys, the characteristics of gravity anomalies are analyzed in the Duanqiao hydrothermal field (37°39′S, 50°24′E). The “subarea calibration” terrain-correcting method is employed to calculate the Bouguer gravity anomaly, and the ocean bottom seismometer (OBS) profile is used to constrain the two-dimensional gravity anomaly simulation. The absent Moho in a previous seismic model is also calculated. The results show that the crustal thickness varies between 3 and 10 km along the profile, and the maximum crustal thickness reaches up to 10 km in the Duanqiao hydrothermal field with an average of 7.5 km. It is by far the most thicker crust discovered along the SWIR. The calculated crust thickness at the Longqi hydrothermal field is approximately 3 km, 1 km less than that indicated by seismic models, possibly due to the outcome of an oceanic core complex (OCC).

Sediment resuspension is commonly assumed to be eroded from the seabed surface by an excess bottom shear stress and evolves in layers from the top down. Although considerable investigations have argued the importance of wave-induced seabed fluidization in affecting the sediment resuspension, few studies have been able to reliably evaluate its quantitative contribution till now. Attempt is made to preliminarily quantify the contribution of fluidization to resuspension using a series of large-scale wave flume experiments. The experimental results indicated that fluidization of the sandy silts of the Huanghe Delta account for 52.5% and 66.8% of the total resuspension under model scales of 4/20 and 6/20 (i.e., relative water depth: the ratio of wave height to water depth), respectively. Some previously reported results obtained using the same flume and sediments are also summarized for a contrastive analysis, through which not only the positive correlation is confirmed, but also a parametric equation for depicting the relationship between the contribution of fluidization and the model scale is established. Finally, the contribution of fluidization is attributed to two physical mechanisms: (1) an attenuation of the erosion resistance of fluidized sediments in surface layers due to the disappearing of original cohesion and the uplifting effect resulting from upward seepage flows, and (2) seepage pumping of fines from the interior to the surface of fluidized seabed.

As one of the important sea state parameters for navigation safety and coastal resource management, the ocean wave direction represents the propagation direction of the wave. A novel algorithm based on an optical flow method is developed for the ocean wave direction inversion of the ocean wave fields imaged by the X-band radar continuously. The proposed algorithm utilizes the echo images received by the X-band wave monitoring radar to estimate the optical flow motion, and then the actual wave propagation direction can be obtained by taking a weighted average of the motion vector for each pixel. Compared with the traditional ocean wave direction inversion method based on frequency-domain, the novel algorithm is fully using a time-domain signal processing method without determination of a current velocity and a modulation transfer function (MTF). In the meantime, the novel algorithm is simple, efficient and there is no need to do something more complicated here. Compared with traditional ocean wave direction inversion method, the ocean wave direction of derived by using this proposed method matches well with that measured by an in situ buoy nearby and the simulation data. These promising results demonstrate the efficiency and accuracy of the algorithm proposed in the paper.

Although the complex Wishart distribution has been widely used to analyze the statistic properties of quad-pol SAR spatial data, the applicability of this complex distribution to the time series of sea clutter is rarely discussed. The measured data of the quad-pol X-band marine radar demonstrate that the time series of the sea echoes are also satisfied the circular Gaussian distributions if the low intensity signals, which are mainly dominated by a radar noise, in the shadow regions of the large-scale waves are removed. On the basis of this fact, the probability density functions (PDFs) of the intensity as well as the phase, the real and the imaginary parts of the sea echoes obtained by the marine radar have been derived, and the theoretical models are all expressed in closed forms. In order to validate the theoretical results, the PDFs are compared with the experimental data collected by the McMaster IPIX radar. And the comparisons show that the PDF models are in good agreement with the experimental data.

A new method for estimating significant wave height (SWH) from advanced synthetic aperture radar (ASAR) wave mode data based on a support vector machine (SVM) regression model is presented. The model is established based on a nonlinear relationship between σ⁰, the variance of the normalized SAR image, SAR image spectrum spectral decomposition parameters and ocean wave SWH. The feature parameters of the SAR images are the input parameters of the SVM regression model, and the SWH provided by the European Centre for Medium-range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) is the output parameter. On the basis of ASAR matching data set, a particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm is used to optimize the input kernel parameters of the SVM regression model and to establish the SVM model. The SWH estimation results yielded by this model are compared with the ECMWF reanalysis data and the buoy data. The RMSE values of the SWH are 0.34 and 0.48 m, and the correlation coefficient is 0.94 and 0.81, respectively. The results show that the SVM regression model is an effective method for estimating the SWH from the SAR data. The advantage of this model is that SAR data may serve as an independent data source for retrieving the SWH, which can avoid the complicated solution process associated with wave spectra.

The routine operational sigma0 regrouping method is proposed for a HY-2A scatterometer (HSCAT) that maps time-ordered sigma0s and related parameters into a subtrack aligned grid of wind vector cells (WVCs). The regrouping method consists of two critical steps: ground grid generation and sigma0 resampling. The HSCAT uses subtrack swath coordinates, in which the nadir track of the satellite represents the center and the designated positions are specified in terms of a pair of along-track and cross-track coordinates. To calculate the subtrack coordinates for each sigma0, a “triangle marking” resampling method is developed. Three points, including the point of intersection, the center of a pulse footprint, and the origin of the subtrack coordinate system, form a right triangle; the length of the two right-angled sides is used to represent the cross-track and the along-track coordinates in the subtrack coordinate system. In addition, a nadir point interpolation correction is used to ensure the operation of the regrouping algorithm when the nadir point positional information is missing. To illustrate the ability of the proposed regrouping algorithm, the distribution of the WVC positions and wind vector retrieval results are analyzed, which show that the proposed regrouping algorithm meets the requirements for high-quality sea surface wind field retrieval.

One of the key concerns in estuarine and coastal environments is eutrophication, which is known to be closely connected to nutrient enrichment. To control and improve surface water quality, nutrient criteria are recommended in order to provide reference conditions for the environment. However, the current datasets of nutrient criteria in China are either designed for surface water or sea water, and as such these are not suitable for assessing estuarine water quality, especially given the unique ecosystem and dynamic properties of estuaries. To address this issue in current estuarine water management, nutrient criteria have been developed for a local estuary in the southeast of China. Segmentation of the Jiulong River Estuary, China was firstly analysed through field investigations carried out during 2013–2014, which resulted in the delineation of three segments characterized by their distinct properties in relation to salinity, hydrology, ecosystems, etc. Historical records from 1997 to 2014 were then analysed using statistical modelling to develop candidate nutrient criteria for the estuary. This stage of the analysis was undertaken in combination with the study of nutrient status records from the 1980s, which were used to establish a baseline reference condition. The recommended criteria values of dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) in Segments I, II and III of the Jiulong River Estuary are 64, 21 and 14 μmol/L, respectively, and the corresponding values for soluble reactive phosphorus (SRP) are 0.89, 0.76 and 0.89 μmol/L, respectively. It should be emphasised that these values are site-dependent, and that different results may be achieved at other locations depending on the physical and biogeochemical characteristics of an estuary, or even a single site within a catchment. It is hoped that by demonstrating a possible methodological approach and methods of nutrient criteria derivation in the Jiulong River Estuary, the current study will offer researchers some fundamental basis from which to begin to develop more complete nutrient criteria indices for the study of nutrient conditions in other estuaries throughout China.

The Okinawa Trough (OT) is a back-arc basin at an initial spreading stage that is under the influence of subduction of the Philippine Sea Plate. In this study, we analyzed the geochemical compositions of basaltic glass in the OT and discussed the effects of different magmatic sources, evolution, and subducted components in basalts. Our results showed that the middle and southern regions of the OT exhibit characteristics consistent with an iron-rich tholeiite series. Trace element proportions conform to the typical spider diagram pattern characteristic of back-arc basin basalts, rich in large ion lithophile elements (LILEs) including Rb, Ba, Pb, U, and Th, while depleted in high field-strength elements (HFSEs) including Nb, Ta, Zr, Hf, and Ti. The distribution of rare earth elements (REEs) is also consistent with enrichment by right-leaning light rare earth elements (LREEs). The addition of enriched mantle type I (EMI) materials as well as mantle heterogeneity may have led to variable degrees of enrichment in different regions. The magma source of the middle trough has undergone crystallization towards pyroxene, while development of plagioclase was restricted partly, and the crystallization of spinel and olivine ceased altogether. At the same time, crystallization of the southern OT magma source was dominated by olivine and including the formation of plagioclase, pyroxene, and magnetite (or titanomagnetite). Finally, the results of this study showed that 90% Th, 95% Ba in the southern basalt, 50%–70% Th and 70%–90% Ba in the middle basalt originated from subducted component. Different subducted component influence may be due to different subduction zone structural feature.

The Oligocene Huagang Formation is the main sandstone reservoir in the Xihu Sag, situated in the east of the East China Sea Shelf Basin. With an integrated approach of thin-section petrography, ultra-violet fluorescence microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and isotope geochemistry, the different diagenetic features were identified, the typical diagenetic parasequences were established, and the diagenetic fluids evolution history were reconstructed for the Oligocene Huagang Formation sandstone reservoir in the south of Xihu Sag. The Huagang Formation sandstone reservoir is now in Period B of the mesodiagenesis, which has undergone significant diagenetic alterations such as mechanical compaction, Pore-lining chlorite cement, feldspar dissolution, quartz cementation and dissolution, and carbonate cementation. Three types of carbonate cements (early siderite, medium ferrocalcite and late ankerite) were identified in the Huagang Formation sandstone reservoir. The carbon and oxygen isotopic compositions of carbonate cements show that the early calcite precipitate from alkaline lacustrine environment whereas the late carbonate cements were closely related to the organic acids. To the Huagang Formation sandstone reservoir, it has experienced two main episodes of dissolution during diagenesis. The early dissolution is that unstable components such as feldspar, lithic fragments, and carbonate cement were dissolved by acidic water. The second dissolution is that quartz and other silicate minerals were dissolved under the alkaline condition. Two main phases of hydrocarbon charging occurred in this study area. The first hydrocarbon emplacement was prior to the medium carbonate cementation but posterior to feldspar dissolution and the onset of quartz cementation at the end of the Miocene. The second hydrocarbon charging occurred in the Quaternary period after the late carbonate precipitation.

Geochemical and detrital zircon U-Pb dating data for drilled sediments from the Baiyun deepwater area of the northern South China Sea demonstrate a change of sedimentary sources from the Oligocene to the Miocene. Zircon ages of the pre-rift Eocene sequences are dominated by Yanshanian ages with various peak values (110–115 Ma for U1435 and L21; 150 Ma for H1), indicating local sediment supply from the pre-existing Mesozoic magmatic belt. For the Oligocene sediments in the northern part of the basin, the rare earth elements show different distribution characteristics, indicating sediment supply from the paleo-Zhujiang River (Pearl River), as also confirmed by the multimodal zircon age spectra of the Lower Oligocene strata in Well X28. By contrast, a positive Eu anomaly characterizes sediments from the western and southern parts of the basin, indicating potential provenances from intermediate to basic volcanic rock materials. The Baiyun Movement at the end of the Oligocene contributed to a large-scale subsidence in the deepwater area and also a northward retreat of continental shelf break, leading to deepening depositional environment in the basin. As a result, all the detrital zircon ages of the Upper Oligocene strata from Wells X28, L13, and L21 share a similar distribution, implying the possible control of a common source like the Zhujiang River. During the Miocene, whereas sediments in the northern area were mainly sourced from the Zhujiang River Delta, and those in the southern deepwater area continued to be affected by basic volcanic activities, the Dongsha Uplift could have contributed as the main source to the eastern area.