Abstract This study analyzed the influence of strong and moderate El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) events on the seasonal and interannual variabilities of the sea surface temperature (SST) in the Western Equatorial Atlantic (WEA) Ocean and how the precipitation over the state of Maranhão, in Brazil, responds to the zonal teleconnection. To evaluate the ENSO magnitude and phase in the four Niño regions (1+2, 3, 3.4, and 4), the SODA 3.3.1 oceanic reanalysis database for the period from 1980 to 2015 was used. Our results showed that the La Niña phase with moderate magnitude was the most predominant among the 70 events analyzed, with Niño 3.4 presenting the highest number (20) of ENSO events (both positive and negative phases). At lag = 0, we found that significant negative correlations prevailed between the WEA SST anomalies and ENSO index, with the region of Niño 3.4 showing the most significant correlations (r = −0.25). The whole events of El Niño and La Niña were, respectively, accompanied by a cooling and a heating of up to −0.6°C or +0.8°C in the WEA Ocean. The WEA SST anomalies during El Niño and La Niña events have, respectively, reduced and increased the precipitation in Maranhão around ± 100 mm in a quarter. Strong El Niño events influence a greater precipitation deficit in Maranhão than moderate El Niño events. Moderate La Niña events have more pronounced influence on the precipitation over Maranhão than strong La Niña events do, especially on the negative anomalies. Our results showed that the central, northern, and eastern tip sectors of the state are the most affected by this zonal teleconnection. We concluded that ENSO’s significant influences on the WEA SST seasonal variability, added to the performance of the Atlantic Meridional Mode (Soares, 2019), determine the quality of the rainy season (March–April–May) in the state of Maranhão.

Resumo O objetivo desta pesquisa foi caracterizar a distribuição dos nutrientes dissolvidos em seis estações de amostragem no estuário do rio Anil (ERA) e caracterizar o sedimento de fundo. A área de estudo é influenciada por um clima tropical e regime macromarés semidiurnas. A amostragem das águas superficiais e sedimentos foi realizada no canal principal em seis estações de amostragem distribuídas ao longo do estuário no período chuvoso (09 de maio) e seco (05 de outubro) durante a primavera. Variáveis físicas foram coletadas com o auxílio de uma sonda multiparâmetro HANNA HI-8424 (temperatura da água, salinidade, pH, oxigênio dissolvido e turbidez) e sonda YSI CTD (condutividade, temperatura e profundidade). Uma draga van Veen foi usada para a coleta de sedimentos de fundo do canal principal. Os resultados sedimentológicos foram heterogêneos. O tamanho do grão variou de areia muito fina a média. Os nutrientes dissolvidos no ERA tinham fontes diferentes dependendo do período sazonal. Insumos continentais e fluviais, evidenciados pelos valores de salinidade, governaram a distribuição dos nutrientes no período chuvoso (janeiro a junho), enquanto as concentrações dos nutrientes foram relacionadas à reciclagem da matéria orgânica no estuário na estação seca (julho a dezembro). A presença de areia no canal principal indica que os sedimentos disponíveis no ERA estão expostos a uma hidrodinâmica intensa. A distribuição dos nutrientes e o tamanho do grão revelaram a ocorrência de diferentes fontes no estuário de acordo com o regime de chuvas e a intensa hidrodinâmica das correntes de maré (macromarés semidiurnas).

Abstract The objective of this research was to characterize the distribution of dissolved nutrients at six sampling stations in the estuary of the Anil River (ARE) and characterize the bottom sediment. The study area is influenced by a tropical climate and semidiurnal macrotidal regime. Sampling of the surface water and sediment was performed in the main channel at six sampling stations distributed along the estuary in the rainy period (May 9th) and dry period (October 5th) during the spring. Physical variables were collected with the aid of a HANNA HI-8424 multi-parameter probe (water temperature, salinity, pH, dissolved oxygen, and turbidity) and YSI CTD (conductivity, temperature, and depth) probe. A van Veen dredge was used for the collection of bottom sediment from the main channel. The sedimentological results were heterogeneous. Grain size ranged from very fine to medium sand. Dissolved nutrients in the ARE had different sources depending on the season. Continental and fluvial inputs, evidenced by salinity values, governed the distribution of nutrients in the rainy period (January to June), whereas nutrient concentrations were related to the recycling of organic material in the estuary in the dry season (July to December). The considerable presence of sand in the main channel indicates that the sediments available in ARE are exposed to intense hydrodynamics. The distribution of nutrients and the grain size revealed the occurrence of different sources in the estuary according to the rainfall regime and the intense hydrodynamics of tidal currents (semidiurnal macrotidal).

Marés meteorológicas que geram sobre-elevações do nível do mar são freqüentes na costa do Rio Grande do Sul e respondem às variações ocorridas na atmosfera. Torna-se importante, dessa maneira, definir padrões meteorológicos sinóticos responsáveis por gerar eventos de marés meteorológicas intensas na Praia do Cassino como objetivo desse trabalho. O uso de dados de reanálise associados a uma técnica eficiente de localização do ciclone, aplicando o conceito de vorticidade, permitiu definir uma nova classificação com base na trajetória de ciclones extratropicais responsáveis pela subida do nível do mar. Três padrões de trajetórias foram identificados: 1) Ciclogênese ao sul da Argentina com deslocamento para leste e trajetória entre 47.5ºS e 57.5ºS; 2) Ciclogênese ao sul do Uruguai com deslocamento para leste e trajetória entre 35ºS e 42.5ºS; 3) Ciclogênese ao sul do Uruguai com deslocamento para sudeste e trajetória entre 35ºS e 57.5ºS. O estudo de 23 ciclones extratropicais permitiu verificar máximas elevações do nível e erosão respectivamente associados a tempestades ocorridas no inverno e verão. A Praia do Cassino apresentou um comportamento sazonal, com erosão episódica associada a eventos de alta energia mais freqüentes no inverno, e longos períodos de acresção relacionados ao regime hidrodinâmico normal.

The region under study is regularly subject to the occurrence of storms associated with frontal systems and extratropical cyclones, since it is located near one of the cyclogenetic regions in South America. These storms can generate storm surges that cause anomalous high sea level rises on Cassino Beach. The use of reanalysis data along with an efficient technique for the location of the cyclone, using a vorticity threshold, has provided a new classification based upon the trajectories of events that produce positive sea level variation. Three patterns have been identified: 1) Cyclogenesis to the south of Argentina with displacement to the east and a trajectory between 47.5ºS and 57.5ºS; 2) Cyclogenesis to the south of Uruguay with displacement to the east and a trajectory between 35ºS and 42.5ºS; and 3) Cyclogenesis to the south of Uruguay with displacement to the southeast and a trajectory between 35ºS and 57.5ºS. Maximum water level elevation above the mean sea level and beach erosion were associated, respectively, with winter and summer storms. Cassino beach displayed a seasonal morphological behavior, with short periods of episodic erosion associated with winter storm events followed by long periods of accretion characterized by the dominance of fair weather conditions.