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- Impact of outflow from the Guadiana River on the distribution of suspended particulate matter and nutrients in the adjacent coastal zonePublication . Cravo, Alexandra; Madureira, Pedro Miguel; Felícia, Helena; Rita, F.; Bebianno, MariaIn this study we collected surface water samples from the coastal area adjacent to the Guadiana estuary during winter for 3 consecutive years to assess the impact of the Guadiana outflow upon the concentration and spatial distribution of suspended particulate matter and nutrients (nitrate, phosphate, and silicate). Deeper water samples were also collected near the river mouth in water greater than 10 m in depth. Our results indicate that the maximal surface influence of the Guadiana outflow is close to the mouth of the Guadiana River, at the 10-m isobath, where the highest concentrations of suspended particulate matter (SPM) and nutrients were recorded, as well as the lowest salinity. SPM and nutrient concentrations decrease with increased water depth, while salinity increased. Beyond the 10-m isobath, toward the ocean, nutrient concentrations decreased gradually with increasing salinity. Nutrient concentrations showed a conservative behaviour only during the last of the three sampling periods. The impact of Guadiana outflow was especially low when river discharge was low, however, after periods of peak rainfall the river outflow increased enormously and the impact of SPM and nutrients (more than an order of magnitude higher than normal) was observed, particularly around the mouth of the estuary. This impact involved the development of a fingerprint plume that represents a net export of SPM and nutrients to the coastal area. This plume had a width of about 10e15 km, and despite being centred slightly east of the mouth of the Guadiana River, tended to migrate westward. The increase in N compounds was more significant than increases in P and Si, is reflected in high N:P and N:Si nutrient ratios. In water depths in excess of 10 m, the effect of the Guadiana outflow was most evident until 5 m depth. It is expected that with the completion of the biggest dam in Europe along the Guadiana River, the outflow of the river will be markedly reduced, especially during summer if climatic change continues to produce significant periods of dry weather. Under such conditions, nutrient concentrations will be reduced even further and impart a negative impact on nutrient biogeochemical cycles and productivity of the coastal zone.
- Variation of magnetic properties in sedimentary rocks hosting the Foum Zguid dyke (southern Morocco): combined effects of re-crystallization and Fe-metasomatismPublication . Silva, P. F.; Henry, B.; Marques, F. O.; Mateus, A.; Madureira, P.; Lourenco, N.; Miranda, J. M.The effects of dyke intrusion on the magnetic properties of host sedimentary rocks are still poorly understood. Therefore, we have evaluated bulk magnetic parameters of standard palaeomagnetic samples collected along several sections across the sediments hosting the Foum Zguid dyke in southern Morocco. The study has been completed with the evaluation of the magnetic fabric after laboratory application of sequential heating experiments. The present study shows that: (1) close to Fourn Zguid dykes, the variations of the bulk magnetic parameters and of the magnetic fabric is strongly related with re-crystallization and Fe-metasomatism intensity. (2) The thermal experiments on AMS of samples collected farther from the dyke and, thus, less affected by heating during dyke emplacement, indicate that 300-400 degrees C is the minimum experimental temperature necessary to trigger appreciable transformations of the pre-existing magnetic fabrics. For temperatures higher than ca. 580 degrees C, the magnetic fabric transformations are fully realized, with complete transposition of the initial fabric to a fabric similar to that of samples collected close to the dyke. Therefore, measured variations of the magnetic fabric can be used to evaluate re-crystallization temperatures experienced by the host sedimentary rock during dyke emplacement. The distinct magnetic behaviour observed along the cross-sections strongly suggests that samples collected farther from the dyke margins did not experience thermal episodes with temperatures higher than 300 degrees C after dyke emplacement. (3) AMS data shows a gradual variation of the magnetic fabric with distance from the dyke margin, from sub-horizontal K-3 away from the dyke to vertical K3 close to the dyke. Experimental heating shows that heat alone can be responsible for this strong variation. Therefore, such orientation changes should not be unequivocally interpreted as the result of a stress field (resulting from the emplacement of the dyke, for instance). (4) Magnetic studies prove to be a very sensitive tool to assess rock magnetic transformations, thermally and chemically induced by dyke intrusion in hosting sediments. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
- Temporal variability of the mass exchanges between the main inlet of Ria Formosa lagoon (southwestern Iberia) and the Atlantic OceanPublication . Rosa, Alexandra; Cardeira, Sara; Pereira, Catarina; Rosa, Monica; Madureira, Pedro Miguel; Rita, Filomena; Jacob, J.; Cravo, AlexandraUnderstanding the mass exchange patterns between coastal lagoons and ocean plays a key role to explain their impact upon the water quality and biological productivity of these systems. Ria Formosa is a temperate lagoon on the southwestern coast of Iberia, one of the most important coastal system in this region in terms of biological productivity, ecological and economic values. Given its relevance and strong interconnectivity with the adjoining ocean, the quantification of these exchanges is a key issue that had not yet been thoroughly addressed. In this context, this study is focused on understanding the role of Ria Formosa's main inlet in terms of mass budgets dynamics of water, nutrients, suspended solids and chlorophyll a with the Atlantic Ocean and to identify its seasonal variability. In order to attain this purpose, the influence of the forcing mechanisms at different time scales, including tides, oceanographic/meteorological synoptic conditions and seasons, was assessed. To accomplish this, six semidiurnal tidal cycles surveys were conducted at Faro-Olhao inlet, comprising hourly water samples collection and in situ measurements at a selected cross-section of the inlet channel. Results revealed that mass exchanges variability through Faro-Olhao inlet was mainly due to oceanographic processes (upwelling and coastal countercurrent events) and, secondly, to phytoplankton activity within the lagoon. Seasonally, regardless the direction of the residual current through the inlet, Ria Formosa acted as a source of material during Spring and Summer seasons, which contributed to increase the biological productivity of the coastal ocean. Upwelling events that occurred more evidently during the Autumn survey drove an import amount of nutrients into the lagoon, enhancing its biological productivity. Furthermore, the rainfall period that prevailed before the Winter survey contributed to export material and nutrients to the adjacent ocean, confirming that Ria Formosa fertilizes the coastal ocean, even during a period of low productivity.