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This study was conducted to explore the contribution of silicon dissolution from beach sediments to the dissolved silicon budget in the coastal waters. From March to September in 2017, six field surveying cruises were conducted in the Muping offshore area (Yantai, China), the southern North Yellow Sea. By investigating monthly distributions and the averaged values of dissolved inorganic nutrients, monthly accumulation of dissolved silicate anomaly (ΔSi, as defined with the difference between dissolved inorganic nitrogen and silicate concentrations)of 1.5 μmol·L^-1 was observed in this offshore area with weak circulation from May to August. Further combining laboratory incubation experiments, theoretical calculation and field data analyses, It was found that the permeable particles in beaches could be dissolved, leaching active silicate to seawater, and increasing the offshore silicate concentration by 0.7~2.0 μmol·L^-1 every month, roughly consistent with the monthly accumulation rate of field ΔSi. Extrapolating the beach silicate-leaching flux to the length of the coastline rounding the Yellow Sea, the previously reported imbalance in silicate budget in this coastal sea could roughly be bridged. This study indicated again that the dissolving of permeable particles might contribute significantly to coastal silicate budget.

To reveal the spatial and temporal distribution patterns of internal wave-induced mixing in global ocean and investigate its influencing factors, this study employs an internal wave fine-scale parameterization method to statistically analyze Argo temperature and salinity data at 250-500 m depth from 2006 to 2021. The analysis characterizes the spatial and temporal features of internal wave mixing and identifies the impact of wind-induced near-inertial energy flux on mixing across global oceans under varying seasonal conditions. In space, there is strong wind-induced near-inertial energy flux in the four seasons of the North Atlantic and Southern Ocean in the whole year, resulting in significant internal wave mixing. However, in the western Pacific and the north of 40°N in the North Pacific, the spatial distribution of internal wave-induced mixing are inconsistent with the wind-induced near-inertial energy flux. Instead, it follows the spatial distribution of eddy kinetic energy since internal wave-driven mixing can be also regulated by eddies. In terms of time, the strongest internal wave-induced mixing of global occurs from December to February, followed by September to November and March to May, and June to August. This is consistent with the seasonal variation of global wind-induced near-inertial energy flux. In the northern hemisphere, the wind-induced near-inertial energy flux and mixing are the strongest in winter, while the weakest in summer. In the southern hemisphere, the variation of wind-induced near-inertial energy flux and mixing over four seasons is inconsistent. However, the seasonal cycles of mixing and wind-induced near-inertial energy flux in the northern and southern hemispheres are roughly consistent, especially in the North Atlantic, where the wind-induced near-inertial energy flux and mixing match well.

During satellite operation, sensor malfunctions can lead to irregular strip-like missing areas in imagery, which compromises the integrity of observed information. To address this issue in geostationary satellite remote sensing imagery, a reconstruction model based on convolutional neural networks (CNN)is proposed. The model’s performance is evaluated under different combinations of temporal input data to identify the optimal configuration of consecutive temporal auxiliary data. In the auxiliary data combination, (taking the generation time of the image to be restored as the current time t), when the model takes the previous four phases (t-4, t-3, t-2, t-1)and the previous and subsequent three phases (t-3, t-2, t-1, t+1, t+2, t+3)as inputs respectively, the restoration effect is excellent and can be used for data restoration and reconstruction in real-time and delayed scenarios respectively. Compared with models that use only a single time point as auxiliary data, the proposed model utilizing multi-temporal inputs demonstrates better reconstruction results and higher accuracy. The model is also applicable to the restoration of missing information in other geostationary satellite images.

Coastal estuaries are influenced by terrestrial inputs and usually act as sources of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO₂), whereas mangrove ecosystems generally serve as sinks of atmospheric CO₂. Therefore, accurately measuring the CO₂ emissions at mangrove estuaries is of great significance for constructing regional and global carbon budgets. Dongzhai Harbor locates in the northeastern of Hainan Island, and connects to the Qiongzhou Strait outward, surrounding by 5 major small rivers. Mangroves are mainly distributed in the west and south of Dongzhai Harbor. This study conducted four field surveys in Dongzhaigang, the surrounding major rivers and the adjacent sea areas in December 2022 (dry season), December 2023 (dry season), May 2022 (wet season) and August 2023 (wet season) respectively. The results show that the surface water partial pressure of CO₂ (pCO₂) presents a decreasing trend from rivers to inner and outer harbor. Temperature, river-sea mixing, and biological respiration jointly affect the spatial distributions of pCO₂ in the dry and wet seasons. The CO₂ flux in wet season (8.8±8.2 mmol·m^-2·d^-1) is greater than that in dry season (3.4±3.6 mmol·m^-2·d^-1), and the annual CO₂ flux (6.1±6.3 mmol·m^-2·d^-1) is lower than that in other tropical mangrove estuaries around the world. This study estimates that the estuarine CO₂ emission could offset about 10.4%~21.9% of the carbon sequestration by plants in Dongzhai Harbor.

To assess the potential impact of plumes generated by deep-sea mining on the midwater ocean, this study systematically analyzed the flow field characteristics of the intermediate currents at the 1 000 m and 2 000 m in deep-sea mining areas of the Pacific Ocean (Western Pacific: Block C, Block M, Block CW, Block WJ; Eastern Pacific: Block A5, Block KW, Block EK, Block A12678, Block A3, Block A4) and predicted the zonal movement trend of midwater plumes. The analysis was based on the global Argo float trajectory and mid-depth current dataset from the China Argo Real-Time Data Center covering the period from August 1997 to October 2024, combined with data from 3 moored observation stations. The results show that: (1)The currents at the 1 000 m layer in the Pacific mining areas are mainly controlled by zonal currents, with the velocity of eastward jets being greater than that of westward jets. The velocity and direction of currents in the mining areas are sensitive to changes in latitude. (2)The eastward jets that affect the 1 000 m flow field in the Western Pacific mining area have the center located at 14°N (weak) and 18°N (strong). Under their influence, in the southern part of the Block M, the midwater plumes move eastward. In other areas, the midwater plumes move slowly westward.(3) The eastward jets that affect the 1 000 m layer of the Eastern Pacific mining areas have the centers located at 7°N and 9°N. They are stronger in summer and autumn, and weaker in winter and spring. (4)The flow field directional characteristics in the 2 000 m area of Block M, Block A5, Block KW and Block EK are the same as those in the 1 000 m layer, indicating that the depth affected by jets can reach 2 000 m.

In December 2023, the project “Construction of Regional Deep-Argo Observation Network” sponsored by Laoshan Laboratory deployed a domestically-produced HM4000 profiling float with the maximum profiling depth of 4 000 m (the World Meteorological Organization number is 2902895) in the Philippine Sea, which was equipped with an RBRargo³ deep 6k Temperature-Conductivity-Depth (CTD) sensor produced by RBR, Canada. It was found that the salinity observation data reported by the float exhibited a systematic deviation compared to the shipboard CTD and climatological salinity. In order to correct the salinity data of the float, the conductivity slope of the RBR CTD was calculated by using bottle salinity measured by the Autosal 8400B salinometer and salinity measurements from the shipboard CTD cast. Salinity profiles of the float were then calibrated, and the calibrated salinity was found to be basically consistent with the nearby float and the climatological data. With the implementation of the “Construction of Regional Deep-Argo Observation Network” project, an increasing number of domestically-produced deep Argo floats will be deployed. Compared to the Core Argo floats that measure temperature and salinity profiles in the upper 2 000 m of the ocean, Deep-Argo requires higher accuracy to resolve smaller variations in deep waters. Currently, technical problems are still found in deep CTD sensors, and improper handling and operation during storage, transportation, and usage of some floats and sensors are inevitable, resulting in large errors in the observations, especially the salinity data. Therefore, this study proposes a method of calibrating Deep-Argo floats’ observation data using in-situ shipboard CTD cast, which can provide essential technical support for quality control of the Deep-Argo floats.

The anaerobic oxidation of methane (AOM) is a pivotal component of elemental cycling within cold seep sediments. This process is usually performed by anaerobic methanotrophic archaea (ANME) and sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB), which usually exist as symbionts. However, pure cultures of ANME have not yet been obtained, and their slow metabolism hinders further exploration and research into their metabolic characteristics and collaborative mechanisms. In this study, we utilized hybridization chain reaction-fluorescence in situ hybridization (HCR-FISH) technology and high-throughput 16S rRNA gene sequencing to investigate the composition and state of ANME communities at different depths of the sediments in the black microbial mat area of the South China Sea Formosa cold seep. The results showed that ANME-1 and ANME-2 were the dominant groups in the sampled Formosa cold seep sediments. Specifically, ANME-2 was found to form consortia with SRB, while no such associations were detected for ANME-1. This observation suggested that ANME-2 and SRB primarily engage in symbiotic AOM processes, highlighting potential differences in physiological roles and methane metabolism pathways between ANME-1 and ANME-2. Furthermore, in sediment samples of all layers, the diameters of ANME-2/SRB consortia were predominantly concentrated between 3-10 μm. Correlation analysis indicated a significant link between the distribution of consortium diameters and environmental factors such as sulfate concentration in the sediment, underscoring the impact of environmental factors on the growth of ANME/SRB consortia. Additionally, using HCR-FISH, we further discovered the presence of multiple consortium clusters in the Formosa cold seep sediment, characterized by orderly connected and uniform-sized consortium, implying possible connections or cooperative relationships among consortia. This study revealed the presence and distribution patterns of ANME groups and sizes of symbiotic microbial consortia in sediment samples from different depths of the Formosa cold seep, laying the foundation for further understanding methane metabolism mechanisms and ecological functions of different ANME groups in situ cold seep sediments.

Based on the satellite altimeter data from January 1993 to December 2021, the least squares method and the ensemble empirical mode decomposition (EEMD) were used to analyze the long-term changes of the sea level in Zhoushan and the adjacent East China Sea and its influencing factors. The study found that the sea level in the study area was generally on an upward trend, and the upward trend was more obvious in the coastal waters on the east side of the Zhoushan Islands. The average linear rate was 0.36±0.10 cm/a, and the upward trend had been somewhat mitigated since 2018. The sea level in the study area showed obvious seasonal differences. Its linear rate was the largest in autumn (0.37±0.12 cm/a), followed by in winter, and slightly smaller in spring and summer (approximately 0.34±0.10 cm/a). The nonlinear change trend over the past 30 years showed that the upward rates in summer and autumn had almost remained unchanged, the upward rate in winter had shown a slowdown trend, and the upward trend in spring had been accelerating. There was a trend of increasing annual amplitude of the sea level in the study area. The long-term changes of the sea level were closely related to the seawater thermal expansion effect caused by temperature and the water increase-decrease effect caused by changes in wind stress.

Deep-sea sediments and polymetallic nodules are rich habitats for microorganisms. Exploring their community structure and functionality is crucial for understanding microbial genetic resources and their role in mineral formation. Current research on the bacterial diversity and structure within the nodules and surrounding sediments is limited, especially regarding microbial contributions to nodule formation. Using full-length 16S rRNA sequencing, we analyzed the bacterial composition of various nodule types and surrounding sediments in the Pacific Ocean. Scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive spectroscopy revealed bacterial-like microsphere structures and metal element distribution on their surfaces. The bacterial community composition varied among different nodules and sediments, with Proteobacteria and Bacteroidetes dominating. Functional groups like Shewanella and Colwellia, known for metal oxidation-reduction and biofilm formation, may contribute to nodule formation. These microsphere structures promoted metal aggregation, potentially serving as mineral precipitation sites. This study enhanced our understanding of microbial functions and mineral interactions, crucial for insights into deep-sea biogeochemical cycles and microbial mineralization.

The Zengmu-Beikang Basin, located in the southern South China Sea, was formed under a complex geological background, with a large number of oil and gas reservoirs developed, and various types of fluid flow structures widely distributed. Seismic data indicate that the fluid flow system composed of gas chimneys, faults, tubular channels, mud volcanoes, and mud diapirs in the southern South China Sea may be related to the accumulation of gas hydrates. Seabed seepage and bottom simulating reflection (BSR) indicate the possible existence of gas hydrates. The formation of gas chimneys originates from hydraulic fracturing caused by deep oil-gas accumulation, which transports fluids to shallow areas. The gas chimneys are related to BSR, indicating the enrichment of gas hydrates. Faults developed in deep and were connected to potential source rocks or reservoirs, thus accumulating a large amount of shallow gas and gas hydrates around the faults. Pockmark is also an indicative structure for seabed seepage and an area where cold seepage gas hydrates are usually enriched. The formation of mud volcanoes and mud diapirs not only leads to vertical fluid migration, but also triggers the shallow strata deformation and fault development. Therefore, the development areas of mud volcanoes and mud diapirs are also potential areas for gas hydrate enrichment. In addition, this article uses the volume method to estimate the gas hydrate resources in the Zengmu-Beikang Basin in the southern South China Sea. The results show that the gas hydrate resources in the Zengmu-Beikang Basin are approximately 1.62×10¹³ m³. The Zengmu-Beikang Basin has strong potential for gas hydrate resources and is a region worthy of attention for future gas hydrate exploration activities.

Based on the field survey in May 2023 along with data obtained from indoor culture experiments, the distribution characteristics of seawater partial pressure of carbon dioxide (pCO₂) and its main control mechanisms in Daao Bay (coral reefs region) in spring were explored. The pCO₂ in Daao Bay ranged from 412.9 to 555.7 μatm in spring, and the study area acted as a source for atmospheric CO₂ with the average efflux of 0.53±0.90 mmol·m^-2·d^-1. During the survey period, the horizontal distribution of pCO₂ was generally higher in nearshore area than that in offshore zone, which was mainly controlled by biological activities (net respiration) and coastal terrestrial input. In addition, pCO₂ showed significant diurnal variation with a maximum difference of 168 μatm. Diurnal differences in biological activities (photosynthesis and respiration) were the main factors leading to changes in pCO₂, contributing 89.4% and 66.4% of pCO₂ in the reef and non-reef areas, respectively. In comparison, physical processes (temperature and tidal effects) had a weak effect on the pCO₂ dynamic, and the temperature effect contributed 12.7% and 21.5% of pCO₂, which was much lower than that of biological processes. Furthermore, the metabolic activity of corals might increase the pCO₂ in the local (reef area) of Daao Bay and enhance the CO₂ source properties of the sea area.

The interaction between deep-ocean geostrophic current and seamounts can generate near-inertial internal waves (NIWs). While the intensity of these waves relates to the seamount height, its dependence on seamount width remains elusive. This study employs a two-dimensional, non-hydrostatic numerical model based on MITgcm to investigate the interaction of geostrophic current with deep-sea seamounts and examine how differing seamount widths influence the generation and dissipation of NIWs. Our results demonstrate that topographic forcing triggers robust nonlinear wave-wave interactions along the summit edges on the downstream flank of the seamount. This process generates energetic near-inertial internal waves that radiate away and develop, facilitating energy transfer from the geostrophic mean flow to the NIWs. For a fixed seamount height, narrower seamounts induce stronger near-inertial waves, characterized by more rapid wave development and decay. Moreover, the downstream flank exhibits significantly enhanced vertical shears within the near-inertial internal waves, driving greater turbulent dissipation compared to the upstream flank. Therefore, our findings highlight that, in addition to seamount height, seamount width is also a critical factor governing the generation and subsequent evolution of near-inertial internal waves.

Using the measured data of extreme waves causing by 6 typhoons and 2 cold waves (caused by typhoon is called typhoon wave, caused by cold wave is called cold wave)during a one-year wave observation process in the Cangnan sea area of Zhejiang Province, the distribution and variation characteristics of wave parameters for each extreme wave as well as the typical characteristics of typhoon waves during Typhoon “Lekima” and “Mitag” were analyzed. The results show that the typhoon waves in the study sea area were significantly affected by the typhoon track and intensity, the stronger the typhoon intensity and the closer its proximity to the study area, the more significant and intense the process of typhoon waves, the higher the wave height and spectral peak density of typhoon waves. Both summer and autumn could be affected by extreme typhoons and lead to extreme typhoon waves. Extreme waves caused by cold wave occured both in winter and spring, of which intensity were directly affected by the intensity of cold waves, overall, extreme waves caused by cold wave were not as severe as typhoon waves. The duration of the impact of typhoon waves was two to three days, and the duration of the impact of extreme waves caused by cold wave was about 1 day; the maximum wave height and spectral peak density during extreme waves exhibited a synchronous development process of initially increasing and then decreasing. During the impact of Typhoon “Lekima”, the maximum wave height in the studied sea area was 10.80 m, with a maximum spectral peak density of 55.10 m²/Hz, the development and change process of wave spectrum was bimodal spectrum-unimodal spectrum-bimodal spectrum, and the development and change process of wave types was mixed waves dominated by swell-wind wave-mixed waves dominated by wind wave. During the impact of Typhoon “Mitag”, the maximum wave height in the studied sea area was 8.89 m, with a maximum spectral peak density of 36.37 m²/Hz, the wave spectrum was mainly composed of unimodal spectrum, with occasional bimodal spectrum. The wave type was mainly swell, with occasional mixed waves dominated by swell.

The global ionospheric model based on the global navigation satellite systems (GNSS)reference stations is currently the most widely used global ionospheric product. The analysis and evaluation of the reliability and accuracy of the global ionospheric model during magnetic storms is a necessary prerequisite for the rational use of the model. In this study, the data of the reference stations near the South China Sea were used to verify the reliability of the ionospheric vertial total electron content (VTEC)calculated from shipboard GNSS data, and the accuracy of the global ionospheric model in the South China Sea during magnetic storms was preliminarily analyzed and evaluated using the shipboard GNSS observation data and reference stations data. The results show that the ionospheric VTEC calculated from the shipboard data and the reference stations data have the same trend of change. During the magnetic storm, the error between the global ionospheric model value in the South China Sea region of China and the shipboard observation data and the reference stations (HKSL, PIMO)data increases, and the daily average RMSE values are 41.21, 27.40 and 30.86 TECU, respectively, which indicates that the disturbance of the ionosphere by the magnetic storm activity has led to a significant decrease in the accuracy of the global ionospheric model.

In 1988, the tropical Pacific experienced a strong La Niña event, during which significant equatorial Pacific easterly wind surges were observed. Analysis based on reanalysis data indicates that the intensity of the 1988 surges reached the highest level during 1982-2020. Linear regression results show that the equatorial Pacific SST gradient contributed 70.59% to the surge intensity index in 1988. Further examination of wind field characteristics after removing the influence of the SST gradient reveals that, apart from the enhanced spatial extent of the surge event in late February, both the frequency and magnitude of surges decreased significantly from mid-March onward. To gain deeper insight into the specific causes of the easterly wind surges, a typical case analysis was then conducted to investigate the triggering mechanism of a representative event. Composite analysis confirms that the strong easterly wind surge at the end of March 1988 was closely linked to the convectively active phase of a Madden-Julian Oscillation (MJO) event over the Maritime Continent, which contributed approximately 42.96% to the surge’s formation.

Oyster reefs are one of the important coastal habitats. Over the past century, oyster reefs have been severely degraded worldwide. However, with the gradual recognition of the irreplaceable ecosystem service functions of oyster reefs, the significance of oyster reef conservation and restoration has become prominent in the global efforts to restore and protect degraded coastal ecosystems. This study systematically collects and collates the distribution information of natural oyster reefs and artificially restored oyster reefs in China, summarizes the main work and achievements in the field of oyster reef conservation and restoration in China since the beginning of this century. Combined with the author’s practical experience in the Wenzhou coastal zone protection and restoration project (oyster reef), the technical process of restoration is described in detail, with emphasis on the design and structure of the inclined support composite oyster reef and the artificial seedling attachment technology used in the restoration project. Corresponding suggestions are put forward, which can provide references for future oyster reef conservation and restoration work.

Total nitrogen (TN)is an important indicator for measuring water eutrophication, and understanding its spatiotemporal variation is crucial for marine ecological protection. This study selected the Pearl River Estuary-Jiangmen sea area as the research area and utilized TN measurement data from 2021 to 2023, as well as the MODIS data from 2003 to 2023 and the Sentinel-3 remote sensing images from 2017 to 2023. By selecting high-correlation band combinations and constructing random forest regression models to invert TN mass concentration, the spatiotemporal variation characteristics of TN mass concentration in the region from 2003 to 2023 were analyzed. The results indicated that the inversion model achieved good fitting accuracy (R²=0.797-0.931). From 2003 to 2023, the TN mass concentration in the Pearl River Estuary-Jiangmen sea area showed an overall decreasing trend, with relatively high mass concentrations from 2003 to 2015, followed by a significant decline after 2016. TN showed obvious dry/wet seasonal variations, and the variations within the year in the estuary and shallow water areas were also significant. This study revealed the trend and distribution characteristics of TN in the study area through remote sensing inversion, which can provide a basis and reference for the formulation of pollution control measures in the coastal waters.

Island ecosystems are characterized by resource specificity and ecosystem vulnerability, thus, the scientific assessment of the impact of land use change on the carbon sequestration and other ecosystem service functions of island ecosystems is of great significance to the sustainability management of islands. The Dongtou Islands in Zhejiang Province represents a typical island ecosystem that has undergone developmental utilization such as land reclamation and conservation-restoration initiatives like the Blue Bay Project. It serves as an ideal case study for establishing assessment methods of how land use changes affecting the carbon sequestration service function of island coastal ecosystems and others, and for exploring the effectiveness of management measures. In this study, a land classification model based on XGBoost algorithm was used to obtain land use classification data of the Dongtou Islands in 12 phases (3 years as a phase)from 1988 to 2023 (with accuracy of 91.52%). On this basis, the changes in carbon sequestration amounts of major ecosystems, including woodland, salt marshes, and tidal flats, in the Dongtou Islands were calculated. A coupling coordination degree model of “economic development-land use-carbon sequestration function” was constructed by combining the socio-economic statistical data, and the degree of coupling coordination between the economy and ecosystem of the Dongtou Islands for more than 30 years was explored. The study found that from 1988 to 2023, the total land area of the Dongtou Islands increased by 34.97% due to natural silt deposition and sea reclamation efforts. The cumulative total of ecosystem carbon sequestration amount and net carbon sequestration amount for the main ecosystems amounted to 49.45×10⁴ t and 46.13×10⁴ t, respectively, basically showing an oscillating upward trend. Carbon sequestration mainly resulted from woodland and coastal wetlands (including tidal flats and salt marshes), with cumulative carbon sequestration amount of 25.44×10⁴ t and 24.01×10⁴ t, respectively. The “economic development-land use-carbon sequestration function” coupling coordination degrees of the Dongtou Islands were in a coordinated state from 2006 to 2023. Overall, the coupling coordination degree is greatly affected by the land use changes. Ecological restoration projects can enhance the comprehensive evaluation index of the land use and carbon sequestration function system, and then improve the coupling coordination degree. This study can provide a scientific theories and data foundation for the socio-economic development and ecological environmental protection planning of the Dongtou Islands.

Tidal flats are influenced by tides, experiencing periodic inundation and exposure, thus the inundation frequency reflects the elevation of tidal flats. This study utilizes time-series SAR satellite remote sensing data to conduct research on the remote sensing inversion method of tidal flat topography based on tidal level complementary cumulative distribution function. The key lies in proposing a new method for inundation frequency correction based on the weighting scale of remote sensing observation counts. And, based on the mathematical definition of inundation frequency, the functional relationship between inundation frequency and tidal flat elevation was explored, leading to the construction of a tidal flat topography inversion model based on the tidal level complementary cumulative distribution function. Then, the validation of the method was conducted in the Yueqing Bay. Based on the time-series Sentinel-1 satellite SAR remote sensing data, the tidal flat topographies for the periods 2019-2020 and 2021-2022 were successfully inverted. The accuracy assessment was conducted based on the corresponding period’s ICESat-2 satellite laser altimetry data. The root mean square errors (RMSE)of the tidal flat topographies for the periods 2019-2020 and 2021-2022 were 0.41 m and 0.51 m, respectively. Additionally, the RMSE of topography for the period of 2019-2020 using in-situ data was 0.48 m. The accuracy assessment suggest that the proposed method in this study can achieve high-precision tidal flat topography without field-measured topographic data. It is expected to be applicable to the monitoring of tidal flat topography in more regions.