ALBERT

Description: Deepwater spills pose a unique challenge for reliable predictions of oil transport and fate, since live oil spewing under very high hydrostatic pressure has characteristics remarkably distinct from oil spilling in shallow water. It is thus important to describe in detail the complex thermodynamic processes occurring in the near-field, meters above the wellhead, and the hydrodynamic processes in the far-field, up to kilometers away. However, these processes are typically modeled separately since they occur at different scales. Here we directly couple two oil prediction applications developed during the Deepwater Horizon blowout operating at different scales: the near-field Texas A&M Oilspill Calculator (TAMOC) and the far-field oil application of the Connectivity Modeling System (oil-CMS). To achieve this coupling, new oil-CMS modules were developed to read TAMOC output, which consists of the description of distinct oil droplet “types,” each of specific size and pseudo-component mixture that enters at a given mass flow rate, time, and position into the far field. These variables are transformed for use in the individual-based framework of CMS, where each droplet type fits into a droplet size distribution (DSD). Here we used 19 pseudo-components representing a large range of hydrocarbon compounds and their respective thermodynamic properties. Simulation results show that the dispersion pathway of the different droplet types varies significantly. Indeed, some droplet types remain suspended in the subsea over months, while others accumulate in the surface layers. In addition, the decay rate of oil pseudo-components significantly alters the dispersion, denoting the importance of more biodegradation and dissolution studies of chemically and naturally dispersed live oil at high pressure. This new modeling tool shows the potential for improved accuracy in predictions of oil partition in the water column and of advancing impact assessment and response during a deepwater spill.

Description: Petroleum is one of the most complex naturally occurring organic mixtures. The physical and chemical properties of petroleum in a reservoir depend on its molecular composition and the reservoir conditions (temperature, pressure). The composition of petroleum varies greatly, ranging from the simplest gas (methane), condensates, conventional crude oil to heavy oil and oil sands bitumen with complex molecules having molecular weights in excess of 1000 daltons (Da). The distribution of petroleum constituents in a reservoir largely depends on source facies (original organic material buried), age (evolution of organisms), depositional environment (dysoxic versus anoxic), maturity of the source rock (kerogen) at time of expulsion, primary/secondary migration, and in-reservoir alteration such as biodegradation, gas washing, water washing, segregation, and/or mixing from different oil charges. These geochemical aspects define the physical characteristics of a petroleum in the reservoir, including its density and viscosity. When the petroleum is released from the reservoir through an oil exploration accident like in the case of the Deepwater Horizon event, several processes are affecting the physical and chemical properties of the petroleum from the well head into the deep sea. A better understanding of these properties is crucial for the development of near-field oil spill models, oil droplet and gas bubble calculations, and partitioning behavior of oil components in the water. Section 3.1 introduces general aspects of the origin of petroleum, the impact of geochemical processes on the composition of a petroleum, and some molecular compositional and physicochemical background information of the Macondo well oil. Section 3.2 gives an overview over experimental determination of all relevant physicochemical properties of petroleum, especially of petroleum under reservoir conditions. Based on the phase equilibrium modeling using equations of state (EOS), a number of these properties can be predicted which is presented in Sect. 3.3 along with a comparison to experimental data obtained with methods described in Sect. 3.2.

Description: Landslide is one of the dangerous types of natural hazards. This phenomenon causes damages in many countries every year. A detailed landslide hazard assessment is necessary to reduce these damages. This research aims to map the landslide susceptibility zoning (LSZ) using the fuzzy logic method and GIS in the Sorkhab basin as a part of the Zagros fold and thrust belt (FTB), northwestern Iran. All slide types were recorded in fieldwork as landslide inventory. Based on the results, four types, i.e., debris slide, earth slide, and rock fall and complex of landslides, was identified in the region. Then, the effect of each landslide contributing factor including topographical elevation heights, slope classes, aspect classes, geological units, proximity to faults, land covers, rainfall classes, and proximity to streams was constructed in GIS and subsequently normalized using fuzzy membership functions. Finally, by combining all standardized layers using the fuzzy gamma operator, a final map of LSZ was produced. The results showed that a 0.9 fuzzy gamma operator has a high accuracy for the LSZ map in the study area. Besides, the accuracy of the LSZ map revealed a strong relationship (R2) between susceptibility classes, and landslide inventory was calculated using a scatter plot equal to 0.79. Hence, the method represented an appropriate accuracy in predicting the landslide susceptibility in the study area.

Description: Maria S. Merian - MSM94 - SNAP Westlicher Subpolarer Atlantik 02.08.2020 - 06.09.2020

Description: 31.8.-6.9.2020

Description: 7.9.-13.9.2020

Description: 17.-23.8.2020

Description: 14.9.-20.9.2020

Description: 21.07 – 31.07.2020, Warnemünde (Germany) – Kiel (Germany) BALTEACH - 1

Description: 14. - 16.08.2020

Description: 28.9.-3.10.2020

Description: UVic-updates-opem introduces optimality-based phytoplankton and zooplankton into the UVic-ESCM (version 2.9) with variable C:N:P(:Chl) stoichiometry for phytoplankton, diazotrophs, and detritus. Code development started with and has incorporated updates provided by David Keller, Karin Kvale, and Levin Nickelsen.

Description: Maria S. Merian - MSM94 - SNAP Westlicher Subpolarer Atlantik 02.08.2020 - 06.09.2020

Description: 25.05. – 04.06.2020 Kiel – Heiligenhafen – Stohl – Schönhagen Cruise L10-20 was carried out in the framework of the project ‘Morphologische Projektionen Ostseeküste 2100’ (Morphological projections Baltic Sea Coast; financed by MELUND). The purpose of this cruise was to collect information on seafloor topography and sedimentology and shallow sub-seafloor stratigraphy of the morphodynamically active coastal zone of the focus areas Heiligenhafen,Stohl and Schönhagen. All three areas feature erosional cliff coasts acting as a sediment sources during high energy wave events. One of the aims of the project is to identify sediment transport pathways from the cliffs to the nearshore zone and to quantify the sediment budget in the coastal transport cells. This cruise served as a baseline study to be complemented during repetitive future cruises to the focus areas.

Description: The COVID-19 pandemic necessitates a change in conference formats for 2020. This shift offers a unique opportunity to address long-standing inequities in access and issues of sustainability associated with traditional conference formats, through testing online platforms. However, moving online is not a panacea for all of these concerns, particularly those arising from uneven distribution of access to the Internet and other technology. With conferences and events being forced to move online, this is a critical juncture to examine how online formats can be used to best effect and to reduce the inequities of in-person meetings. In this article, we highlight that a thoughtful and equitable move to online formats could vastly strengthen the global socio-ecological research community and foster cohesive and effective collaborations, with ecology and society being the ultimate beneficiaries.

Description: Radiocarbon (14C) ages cannot provide absolutely dated chronologies for archaeological or paleoenvironmental studies directly but must be converted to calendar age equivalents using a calibration curve compensating for fluctuations in atmospheric 14C concentration. Although calibration curves are constructed from independently dated archives, they invariably require revision as new data become available and our understanding of the Earth system improves. In this volume the international 14C calibration curves for both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres, as well as for the ocean surface layer, have been updated to include a wealth of new data and extended to 55,000 cal BP. Based on tree rings, IntCal20 now extends as a fully atmospheric record to ca. 13,900 cal BP. For the older part of the timescale, IntCal20 comprises statistically integrated evidence from floating tree-ring chronologies, lacustrine and marine sediments, speleothems, and corals. We utilized improved evaluation of the timescales and location variable 14C offsets from the atmosphere (reservoir age, dead carbon fraction) for each dataset. New statistical methods have refined the structure of the calibration curves while maintaining a robust treatment of uncertainties in the 14C ages, the calendar ages and other corrections. The inclusion of modeled marine reservoir ages derived from a three-dimensional ocean circulation model has allowed us to apply more appropriate reservoir corrections to the marine 14C data rather than the previous use of constant regional offsets from the atmosphere. Here we provide an overview of the new and revised datasets and the associated methods used for the construction of the IntCal20 curve and explore potential regional offsets for tree-ring data. We discuss the main differences with respect to the previous calibration curve, IntCal13, and some of the implications for archaeology and geosciences ranging from the recent past to the time of the extinction of the Neanderthals.

Description: The Bokanjac–Poličnik system, as a complex set of mutually interrelated Dinaric karst catchments and sub-catchments, is a highly vulnerable and limited groundwater source for the wider Zadar area in northern Dalmatia, Croatia. Based on hydrogeological, hydrochemical, and hydrological research, including the prediction of groundwater discharge by the end of the twenty-first century, a complex study was performed with the following main aims: (1) groundwater protection in the present state, (2) assessment of future groundwater protection, and (3) prediction of drinking water availability and quality under the predicted climate change conditions. Long-term prediction of changes in groundwater quantity, as well as investigations of trends in groundwater quality, will allow us to protect this essential natural resource with respect to possible negative trends. The results showed that a significant decrease in the quantity of available groundwater is possible and that extraction will have to be well planned because any decrease in the groundwater pressure in this area will cause a further decrease in quality, especially regarding the possibility of seawater intrusions into the aquifer. The results of this study were incorporated in sanitary protection zones.

Description: 21.9.-27.9.2020

Description: Maria S. Merian - MSM94 - SNAP Westlicher Subpolarer Atlantik 02.08.2020 - 06.09.2020

Description: We examined small-scale distribution and feeding ecology of a non-native fish species, round goby (Neogobius melanostomus (Pallas, 1814)), in different habitats of a coastal lagoon situated in the south-western Baltic Sea. First observations of round goby in this lagoon were reported in 2011, 3 years before the current study was conducted, and information on this species’ basic ecology in different habitats is limited. We found that mainly juvenile round gobies are non-randomly distributed between habitats and that abundances potentially correlate positively with vegetation density and thus structural complexity of the environment. Abundances were highest in shallower, more densely vegetated habitats indicating that these areas might act as a refuge for small round gobies by possibly offering decreased predation risk and better feeding resources. Round goby diet composition was distinct for several length classes suggesting an ontogenetic diet shift concerning crustacean prey taxa between small (≤ 50 mm total length, feeding mainly on zooplankton) and medium individuals (51–100 mm, feeding mainly on benthic crustaceans) and another diet shift of increasing molluscivory with increasing body size across all length classes. Differences in round goby diet between habitats within the smallest length class might potentially be related to prey availability in the environment, which would point to an opportunistic feeding strategy. Here, we offer new insights into the basic ecology of round goby in littoral habitats, providing a better understanding of the ecological role of this invasive species in its non-native range, which might help to assess potential consequences for native fauna and ecosystems.

Description: 24.-30.8.2020

Description: 15.06. - 19.06.2020 Areas of research: Public relations and Aquarium West Shore Port Calls: Grenå DK (15.06. - 18.06.2020, 3 nights) Acquisition of living marine organisms for the public relations division (GEOMAR), the institute´s own aquarium and the Multimar Wattforum (Tönning) in the northern Kattegat.

Description: Maria S. Merian - MSM94 - SNAP Westlicher Subpolarer Atlantik 02.08.2020 - 06.09.2020

Description: MSM94 – Maria S. Merian - SNAP Westlicher Subpolarer Atlantik 02.08.2020 - 06.09.2020

Description: The concentration of radiocarbon (14C) differs between ocean and atmosphere. Radiocarbon determinations from samples which obtained their 14C in the marine environment therefore need a marine-specific calibration curve and cannot be calibrated directly against the atmospheric-based IntCal20 curve. This paper presents Marine20, an update to the internationally agreed marine radiocarbon age calibration curve that provides a non-polar global-average marine record of radiocarbon from 0–55 cal kBP and serves as a baseline for regional oceanic variation. Marine20 is intended for calibration of marine radiocarbon samples from non-polar regions; it is not suitable for calibration in polar regions where variability in sea ice extent, ocean upwelling and air-sea gas exchange may have caused larger changes to concentrations of marine radiocarbon. The Marine20 curve is based upon 500 simulations with an ocean/atmosphere/biosphere box-model of the global carbon cycle that has been forced by posterior realizations of our Northern Hemispheric atmospheric IntCal20 14C curve and reconstructed changes in CO2 obtained from ice core data. These forcings enable us to incorporate carbon cycle dynamics and temporal changes in the atmospheric 14C level. The box-model simulations of the global-average marine radiocarbon reservoir age are similar to those of a more complex three-dimensional ocean general circulation model. However, simplicity and speed of the box model allow us to use a Monte Carlo approach to rigorously propagate the uncertainty in both the historic concentration of atmospheric 14C and other key parameters of the carbon cycle through to our final Marine20 calibration curve. This robust propagation of uncertainty is fundamental to providing reliable precision for the radiocarbon age calibration of marine based samples. We make a first step towards deconvolving the contributions of different processes to the total uncertainty; discuss the main differences of Marine20 from the previous age calibration curve Marine13; and identify the limitations of our approach together with key areas for further work. The updated values for ΔR, the regional marine radiocarbon reservoir age corrections required to calibrate against Marine20, can be found at the data base http://calib.org/marine/.

Description: MSM89 – Bridgetown/Barbados – Bridgetown/Barbados 2. Wochenbericht – MARIA S. MERIAN - MSM89 20.-26.01.2020

Description: MSM89 – Bridgetown/Barbados – Bridgetown/Barbados 1. Wochenbericht – MARIA S. MERIAN - MSM89 14.-19.01.2020

Description: MSM89 – Bridgetown/Barbados – Bridgetown/Barbados 3. Wochenbericht – MARIA S. MERIAN - MSM89 27.01.-02.02.2020