Tidally Driven Dispersion of a Deep-Sea Sediment Plume Originating from Seafloor Disturbance in the DISCOL Area (SE-Pacific Ocean)

The purpose of the study was to measure in situ the background suspended particulate matter concentration (SPMC) in the DISCOL area (SE Pacific) and its increase due to mechanical mobilization of the seabed. The disturbance experiment imitated future manganese nodule exploitations and was designed to measure the sediment plume generated by such activities. In the direct vicinity of the disturbance, landers equipped with acoustic and optical sensors measured the current velocities and the SPMC. The SPMC at the disturbance was easily up to 10 mg/L and thus about 200 times higher than the background concentration. The downstream sediment plume, measured by the lander, had a SPMC of about 1 mg/L. After tide reversal, the sediment plume was recorded a second time. A sediment transport model reproduced the plume dispersion. After rapid settling of the coarser fraction, a plume of hardly settling fine particles remained in suspension (and no deposition–resuspension cycles). The transport was controlled by the tides and by the vertical velocity component that resulted from bathymetrical differences. The plume may continue to disperse up to 100+ days (up to hundreds of km) depending on the particle size and until background concentration is reached.

Consistency of Suspended Particulate Matter Concentration in Turbid Water Retrieved from Sentinel-2 MSI and Landsat-8 OLI Sensors

Research on the consistency of suspended particulate matter (SPM) concentration retrieved from multisource satellite sensors can serve as long-time monitoring of water quality. To explore the influence of the atmospheric correction (AC) algorithm and the retrieval model on the consistency of the SPM concentration values, Landsat 8 Operational Land Imager (OLI) and Sentinel 2 MultiSpectral Imager (MSI) images acquired on the same day are used to compare the remote sensing reflectance (Rrs) SPM retrieval values in two high-turbidity lakes. An SPM retrieval model for Shengjin Lake is established based on field measurements and applied to OLI and MSI images: two SPM concentration products are highly consistent (R2 = 0.93, Root Mean Squared Error (RMSE) = 20.67 mg/L, Mean Absolute Percentage Error (MAPE) = 6.59%), and the desired results are also obtained in Chaohu Lake. Among the four AC algorithms (Management Unit of the North Seas Mathematical Models (MUMM), Atmospheric Correction for OLI’lite’(ACOLITE), Second Simulation of Satellite Signal in the Solar Spectrum (6S), Landsat 8 Surface Reflectance Code & Sen2cor (LaSRC & Sen2cor)), the two Rrs products, as well as the final SPM concentration products retrieved from OLI and MSI images, have the best consistency when using the MUMM algorithm in SeaWIFS Data Analyst System (SeaDAS) software. The consistency of SPM concentration values retrieved from OLI and MSI images using the same model or same form of models is significantly better than that retrieved by applying the optimal models with different forms.

Analysis of the Chemical and Physical Environmental Aspects that Promoted the Spread of SARS-CoV-2 in the Lombard Area

Recent works have demonstrated that particulate matter (PM) and specific meteorological conditions played an important role in the airborne transmission of the SARS-CoV-1 and MERS-CoV. These studies suggest that these parameters could influence the transmission of SARS-CoV-2. In the present investigation, we sought to investigate the association between air pollution, meteorological data, and the Lombardy region COVID-19 outbreak caused by SARS-CoV-2. We considered the number of detected infected people at the regional and provincial scale from February to March 2020. Air pollution data were collected over the Lombardy region, nominally, sulphur dioxide, ammonia, nitrogen dioxide, nitrogen monoxide, carbon monoxide, ozone, and suspended particulate matter measuring less than 10 μm (PM10) and less than 2.5 μm (PM2.5). Meteorological data have been collected over the same region for temperature, relative humidity, and wind speed. In this work, we evaluated the combined impact of environmental pollutants and climate conditions on the COVID-19 outbreak. The analysis evidenced a positive correlation between spatial distribution of COVID-19 infection cases with high concentrations of suspended particulate matter and a negative relationship with ozone. Moreover, suspended particulate matter concentration peaks in February correlated positively with infection peaks according to the virus incubation period. The obtained results suggested that seasonal weather conditions and concentration of air pollutants seemed to influence COVID-19 epidemics in Lombardy region.

Comparison of In Situ and Remote-Sensing Methods to Determine Turbidity and Concentration of Suspended Matter in the Estuary Zone of the Mzymta River, Black Sea

The paper presents the results of a comparison of water turbidity and suspended particulate matter concentration (SPM) obtained from quasi-synchronous in situ and satellite remote-sensing data. Field measurements from a small boat were performed in April and May 2019, in the northeastern part of the Black Sea, in the mouth area of the Mzymta River. The measuring instruments and methods included a turbidity sensor mounted on a CTD (Conductivity, Temperature, Depth), probe, a portable turbidimeter, water sampling for further laboratory analysis and collecting meteorological information from boat and ground-based weather stations. Remote-sensing methods included turbidity and SPM estimation using the C2RCC (Case 2 Regional Coast Color) and Atmospheric correction for OLI ‘lite’ (ACOLITE) ACOLITE processors that were run on Landsat-8 Operational Land Imager (OLI) and Sentinel-2A/2B Multispectral Instrument (MSI) satellite data. The highest correlation between the satellite SPM and the water sampling SPM for the study area in conditions of spring flooding was achieved using C2RCC, but only for measurements undertaken almost synchronously with satellite imaging because of the high mobility of the Mzymta plume. Within the few hours when all the stations were completed, its boundary could shift considerably. The ACOLITE algorithms overestimated by 1.5 times the water sampling SPM in the low value range up to 15 g/m3. For SPM over 20–25 g/m3, a high correlation was observed both with the in situ measurements and the C2RCC results. It was demonstrated that quantitative turbidity and SPM values retrieved from Landsat-8 OLI and Sentinel-2A/2B MSI data can adequately reflect the real situation even using standard retrieval algorithms, not regional ones, provided the best suited algorithm is selected for the study region.

Suspended particulate matter in a submarine canyon: What are we looking at?

<p>Throughout the world’s oceans, water layers with increased suspended particulate matter concentrations, so called nepheloid layers, play an important role in the lateral transport of sediment, organic matter and pollutants. Nepheloid layers are persistent features in submarine canyons, where they are formed under influence of energetic hydrodynamics. To evaluate their importance it is crucial to properly quantify the amount and type of material that is transported. However, interpretation of turbidity data is not straightforward, since the detected signal is not only dependent on the concentration of particles, but also on the physical characteristics. Therefore we investigated how turbidity fluctuations induced by internal tides in the Whittard Canyon (northern Bay of Biscay, NE Atlantic Ocean) are reflected in time series data, recorded by different types of commonly used optical and acoustic sensors. Results show that in the surface water the transmitted light signal is strongly affected by the chlorophyll-bearing phytoplankton, whilst only a modest response is found in backscattered light. If left unaccounted for, this would result in an overestimation of the suspended particulate matter concentration in this layer. At the bottom of the canyon optical and acoustic sensors responded differently during one tidal cycle, interpreted as cyclic resuspension, whereby different phases of disaggregation, reaggregation and settling of particulate matter were observed. The differences in the records have important implications on the estimation of mass fluxes of suspended particulate matter, which are vital for understanding for instance carbon transport processes in the bottom boundary layer.</p>

METAL POLLUTANT PATHWAYS IN COHESIVE COASTAL CATCHMENTS: INFLUENCE OF FLOCCULATION ON PARTITIONING AND FLUX

Potentially toxic metals (PTMs) dispersed within catchments from land-based sources pose serious, long-term threats to aquatic ecology and human health. Their chemical state or form affects the potential for transportation and bioavailability and ultimate environmental fate. PTMs are transported either as (1) particulates adsorbed onto sediments, or 2) solutes in groundwater and open channel flow. Cohesive sediment occupies a major part of the world’s coastlines. PTMs are readily sorbed onto clay/silt and consequently particulate-borne PTMs dominate in estuaries and coastal waters. Sediments also represent a considerable ‘sink’ of contaminants which can be periodically remobilized. The role of suspended particulates in the uptake, release, and transport of heavy metals is thus a crucial link in understanding PTM dispersion in these environments. Cohesive sediment is subject to flocculation which dictates the behaviour of suspended sediment. PTM partitioning, flocculation and particulate-borne PTM dynamics are spatially and temporally variable in response to a complex array of inter-related physical and chemical factors exhibited within tidal catchments. However, knowledge of the dispersion and accumulation of both particulate and soluble forms of PTMs within cohesive coastal catchments is limited by little understanding of the association of PTMs with flocculated sediments and their subsequent deposition. This study investigates the influence of changing hydrodynamics and salinities to reveal the partitioning coefficients (Kp) and PTM settling flux (PTMSF) for different spatial and temporal locations within an idealized mesotidal catchment. The data show that the ratio of soluble and particulate-borne PTMs are dependent on salinity and flocculation, and that PTMSF is dependent upon partitioning and flocculation dynamics. Kp is largely dictated by salinity, but floc size and suspended particulate matter concentration (SPMC) are also influential, particular for PTMs with low chloride complexation and in freshwater. PTMSF is a function of Kp, floc size and settling velocity and varies by up to 3 orders of magnitude in response to changing environmental conditions. Findings will improve our ability to predict and monitor contaminant transport for PTMs generated by industries such as agriculture, mining, fisheries, aquaculture & marine engineers. They can be incorporated in existing decision making tools, and help improve numerical modelling parameteristion, to maintain environmental quality standards and limit the impacts of bioavailability of metals in aquatic environment.