古风暴学是始于20世纪90年代的一门新兴学科，通过研究风暴活动的地质记录和历史文献资料，恢复器测之前几百年至数千年前的热带气旋活动规律。经过十几年的发展，逐渐形成一套包括研究领域、方法、技术与手段等比较完整的理论体系，成为第四纪古气候研究和过去全球变化的重要组成部分。古风暴学研究的替代指标包括：文字记载、特征的风暴事件沉积、海相化石组合、同位素地球化学组成等。这些指标单独使用时都有一定局限性。寻找新的替代指标，并运用多种指标综合分析方法提高古风暴事件的分辨率和可信度，是今后该学科发展的重要方向。已有的研究多侧重于古风暴频数的研究，今后应充分利用现代风暴潮理论的新进展，通过数值模拟与替代指标研究相结合，更准确地恢复古风暴强度。同时，应加强古风暴活动的全球对比研究，以揭示风暴活动与全球气候变化的关系，为在全球不断变暖背景下台风活动的情景预测提供依据。

“万里长江源何时”已考问地质学家和地貌学家一个世纪，仍未有明确的答案。从云南石鼓至宜昌河段存在大量河流袭夺、掉向、下切等证据，成为考究长江上游水系东流出川、入海的热点，但因河流沉积地貌复杂、受后期改造明显，其古地理解释不同学者各有表述，在金沙江何时改道东流、三峡何时被贯穿问题上各烁其词，由此得出长江东西贯通时司上溯几千万年甚至上亿年，下至十几万年。利用新近发展起来的单颗粒碎屑矿物微区分析方法，由河口或海域沉积物直接追踪源区的变化，在国外已经成为研究流域演化和源区构造运动的重要手段。长江口地层中EMP独居石Th（u）一Pb年龄较好地限定了长江东西贯通时司在2 58 MaBP前后，近年来河流沉积地貌的研究成果也认为长江贯通应发生在晚上新世早更新世。激光剥蚀一电感耦合等离子体质谱（LA—IcPMs）不仅经济、快速，且测年精度高，将其应用于长江这样复杂的大河流域进行物源示踪、源区构造运动和流域演化研究，可望取得新的突破。今后关于长江贯通问题的研究，应该将流域演化视作一个系统，在大地构造、盆地分析和河流沉积地貌学研究基础上，充分利用近年来年代学和单矿物微区分析的新技术，不同研究方法相互补充、所得结果相互验证和约束，对争议的问题组织各方面专家进行系统研究，统一认识，不断逼近长江贯通时限的真实值。

运用多学科的、系统的分析力法，研究泥质沉积物和泥岩中有机质赋存形式与富集机制的差异性。黏土粒级的有机碳和氯仿沥青A含量明显高于其他粒级，说明黏土矿物对富集有机质具重要作用；其中氯仿沥青A含量增加尤为显著，表明黏土矿物富集的主要是可溶有机质。热重（TG）和差热分析（DTA）结果显示，有机质富集和赋存形式具明显的多样性，除在黏土粒级中主要富集可溶有机质外，在其他粒级中见大量的生物碎屑和无定形有机质的存在，在DTA曲线上表现为多个放热峰的出现。泥岩样经不同方法预处理后，进行x射线衍射（XRD）和DTA分析。在XRD曲线上黏土矿物层间距随温度变化，DTA曲线上的有机质放热峰也随温度变化。在350℃附近黏土矿物层间距与有机质放热峰的变化具有一致性，且极其稳定，这是有机质进入黏土矿物层问形成有机黏土复合体的显著特征。由此可见，有机质与黏土矿物结合并不完全是简单的表面吸附，部分有机质进入到黏土矿物的层问，形成非常稳定的有机质黏土复合体。有机质在沉积物和泥岩中的保存形式和富集机制的研究对于深入理解全球碳循环过程和通量，以及评价有机质的生烃过程具有重要意义

Four sediment-rich incised-valley systems in China, which underlie the Luanhe fan delta, the Changjiang delta, the Qiantangjiangestuary, and the Zhujiang delta, are examined based on over 800 drill cores. These four systems are of different shapes and sizes, and arelocated in different tectonic zones with different tide regimes ranging from microtidal to macrotidal. Because of the abundant fluvialsediment supply and relative dominance of river forcing, sediments in the modern Qiantangjiang and paleo-Changjiang estuaries displaya fining-seaward trend. This is different from the classical estuarine facies model of coarse bay-head delta, fine central basin, and coarsebay-mouth deposits. The abundant sediment supply also results in the presence of relatively thick transgressive successions in the overallincised-valley fill. The transgressive succession constitutes more than 50% of the total strata thickness and approximately 60–70% of thetotal sediment volume within the valley. The river-channel facies in the transgressive succession was formed by retrogressive aggradationduring postglacial sea-level rise. Retrogressive aggradation extends far inland beyond the reach of flood-tidal currents, and, therefore, nomarine signatures were found at the lower portion of the incised-valley fill. The regressive succession in the incised-valley systems consistsof fluvial facies or tidal facies and deltaic facies, and was developed as the estuary filled and evolved into a progradational delta. The tidedominatedfacies tends to be developed in the apical areas of funnel-shaped estuaries, such as the modern Qiantangjiang and paleo-Changjiang estuaries.Four generalized facies successions (FS-I, FS-II, FS-III, and FS-IV) are recognized within the valley fill. An idealized schematic incisedvalleyfill contains FS-I at the coastline region, FS-II and FS-III in the middle, and FS-IV at the apex area of the delta/estuary, reflecting adecreasing marine influence and increasing terrestrial contributions. The preservation of multiple incised-valley-fill sequences iscontrolled by the different regional tectonic characteristics. Vertically superimposed valleys are preserved beneath the Changjiang delta,whereas the Luanhe fan delta is characterized by lateral juxtaposition of valley as a result of channel switching.

On the open coast of the Changjiang Delta, waves temporally play their dominant roles in shaping the tidal-flat profile,especially during typhoons. Detailed analyses are presented of the variations in grain sizes of surface sediments and bedlevel, measured in the summer of 1999 at Nanhui mudflats, south flank of the Changjiang Delta, China. Cross-shorevariations in bed level are distinctly site-specific in response to waves. The site-specific erosion rates are related to localwater depth, sediment properties, vegetation, and exposure time per semidiurnal tidal cycle. A great difference existsbetween the higher and lower intertidal mudflats bordered at the mean sea level (MSL): the higher section is dominated bycontinuous accretion, while the lower section is characteristic of dynamic changes in erosion and accretion phases. Swellsplay their more important roles in shaping the profile than local wind-driven waves at the study mudflat, where swellspropagate onshore without great barriers’ damping and local winds are not highly strengthened by distant typhoons.Storm processes are greatly modulated by tides. The magnitude of erosion is greater by a weak storm during spring tidesthan a strong storm during neap tides. Significant changes in entrainment capacity of tidal currents from neap to springtides account for the different erosion and accretion models of the intertidal mudflat.

Tropical-cyclone data and the statistics of tropical-storm casualties and damagesince the 1950s were collected and analyzed. The results show that annual and decadelongvariations are obvious in the annual number of tropical cyclones generated over thewestern North Pacific (including the South China Sea), those making landfall inmainland China, and those that induced disastrous storm surges. It is worthy notingthat these variations are not always in phase. For example, an active year for more cyclonesin the western North Pacific may have fewer landing in China, or vice versa.Also, the tropical cyclones that make landfall do not always cause storm-surge disasters.It sometimes happens that a year with more but weaker tropical cyclones making landfallhas fewer storm-surge events than a year with fewer but more intense storms. In thelong term, the tropical cyclone landfall probability has been gradually increasing sincethe mid 1960s. Over the past twenty years, major storm-surge disasters have occurredmore frequently but there have been fewer overall tropical cyclones. This has beenlinked to El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) phases, in that fewer but more intensetropical cyclones influence China in the El Niño year.The intensity of disastrous storm-surges is obviously site-specific, strongly related tothe intensity and tracks of tropical cyclones reaching land, local tidal ranges and tidalphase, the standard of coastal region infrastructure and public education regarding offlood dangers. Since global warming can be expected to increase tropical cyclone intensityand storm surges, some countermeasures should be strictly carried out, includingperfecting the tropical cyclone and storm-surge warning services, elevating the standardsof coastal infrastructures, and improving public awareness of disaster defense.

Global warming and rising sea level have been observed to exert great impacts on China’s coast in the past century, includingincreased coastal erosion, degraded coastal ecosystems, exacerbated saltwater intrusion, and enhanced storm surges. The impacts ofclimate change and the adjustments of coastal systems are significantly site specific, resulting from local differences in climate change,coastal physiographic and ecological conditions, and resilience of coastal systems. Anthropogenic activities also exert increasing influenceson coastal systems. Societal vulnerabilities to climate change are greatly influenced by their adaptive capacities and selective adjustment,which are greatly determined by local socioeconomic conditions, so they are also highly localized. Coastal systems do not behavelinearly to climate change. The projected increasing global warming and accelerating sea level rise will undoubtedly impose morethreats to coastal systems. However, it is still difficult to determine the coastal socio-ecological thresholds to climate change without fullunderstandings of coastal physical and biological processes, and adaptation responses of coastal ecosystems and human societies.

新生代长江水系调整、东西贯通时限是国内外学者共同关注的问题。长江发展演化的复杂性在近一个世纪的河流沉积地貌学研究中得到充分的认识，但在贯通时限问题上难以形成共识。河口地层中碎屑独居石的电子探针Th（U）-Pb年龄较好地限定长江东西贯通的时间在2。58 MaBP前后。随着碎屑矿物微区分析技术的发展，锆石、独居石年代学和微区特征将成为研究流域演化、构造运动的主要手段。

崇明岛东滩潮沟系在盐沼带内特别发育，其形成与潮滩围垦工程和盐沼带的宽度密切相关。泥滩上潮沟的发育和演化与盐沼带潮盆大小、潮时（大小潮）和降雨量等相关，潮沟体系规模小，涨潮流不受其控制，退潮时潮沟成为主要泄水通道，未沉降的细悬浮颗粒和浮泥层在重力作用下向潮沟汇集，使潮沟内沉积物比滩面细。崇明岛东滩潮沟体系形成、演化及沉积物分布，完全不同于目前研究非常详细的欧美河口湾/港湾型潮道一潮沟体系，后者潮道以涨潮流占优势，沉积物明显比滩面粗。崇明岛东滩潮沟体系是发育在快速淤长的三角洲类型海岸上，通过与其他类型的对比研究，可以更全面地认识潮道一潮沟体系对泥滩和盐沼发育、演化所起的作用。

海洋沉积物吸附有机质的量和有机质循环周期与粘土矿物类型和吸附方式密切相关，并在全球碳循环中扮演着不同的角色。粘土吸附有机质有物理吸附和化学吸附之分，前者主要存在于粘土的微孔隙中，参与年、十年或百年尺度的循环；后者主要存在于粘土矿物层间和外表面，稳定性较好，有机质易于保存，可参与百万年或更长时间的循环，这种不同时间尺度内的碳循环，将会改写海洋沉积物有机碳“源”、“汇”的关系。不同类型粘土矿物的性质存在差异，决定了吸附有机质量的多寡，蒙脱石的吸附量远大于伊利石的吸附量，这可能是造成全球不同海域中有机碳“源”、“汇”变化的原因。海洋沉积物处于水圈、生物圈和岩石圈的交汇地带，有机碳的差异和变化，都会对全球碳循环及气候变化产生重要的影响。