Space observations of Transient Luminous Events and associated emissions in the upper atmosphere above thunderstorm areas     

Elisabeth Blanc 《Comptes Rendus Geoscience》2010,342(4-5):312-322

Sprites, jets and elves called Transient Luminous Events (TLE), observed in the middle and upper atmosphere above thunderstorms, are the manifestation of intense energy exchanges between the troposphere, stratosphere and mesosphere. Different types of luminous emissions have been identified by ground-based observations, showing the complexity of these phenomena. Space missions showed that transient emissions in the Earth atmosphere are very broad including Radio Frequency (RF), IR to FUV radiations and X-gamma ray emissions called Terrestrial Gamma Flashes (TGF) with energies reaching 30 Mev. However, there are no global observations of these events together. This paper reviews space observations performed up to now and emphasizes the challenges of the future space missions in global measurements of all possible emissions together for the understanding of the physical mechanisms at the origin of these phenomena and their effects on the Earth environment.  相似文献   

Performance of the ensemble Kalman filter outside of existing wells for a channelized reservoir     

Elisabeth Peters 《Computational Geosciences》2011,15(2):345-358

The ensemble Kalman filter (EnKF) appears to give good results for matching production data at existing wells. However, the predictive power of these models outside of the existing wells is much more uncertain. In this paper, for a channelized reservoir for five different cases with different levels of information the production history is matched using the EnKF. The predictive power of the resulting model is tested for the existing wells and for new wells. The results show a consistent improvement for the predictions at the existing wells after assimilation of the production data, but not for prediction of production at new well locations. The latter depended on the settings of the problem and prior information used. The results also showed that the fit during the history match was not always a good predictor for predictive capabilities of the history match model. This suggests that some form of validation outside of observed wells is essential.  相似文献   

Ten guiding principles for the delineation of priority habitat for endangered small cetaceans     

Peter S. Ross  Jay Barlow  Thomas A. Jefferson  Brendan E. Hickie  Tatiana Lee  Christina MacFarquhar  E. Christien Parsons  Kimberly N. Riehl  Naomi A. Rose  Elisabeth Slooten  Chia-Yang Tsai  John Y. Wang  Andrew J. Wright  Shih Chu Yang 《Marine Policy》2011

The adoption of endangered species laws in various nations has intensified efforts to better understand, and protect, at-risk species or populations, and their habitats. In many countries, delineating a portion of a species' habitat as particularly worthy of protection has become a mantra of these laws. Unfortunately, the laws themselves often provide scientists and managers with few, if any, guidelines for how to define such habitat. Conservationists and scientists may view protecting part of the habitat of an endangered species as an ineffectual compromise, while managers may be under pressure to allow a range of human activities within the species' habitat. In the case of small cetaceans, establishing boundaries for such areas can also be complicated by their mobility, the fluid nature of their environment, and the often ephemeral nature of their habitat features. The convergence of multiple human impacts in coastal waters around the world is impacting many small cetaceans (and other species) that rely on these areas for feeding, reproducing, and resting. The ten guiding principles presented here provide a means to characterize the habitat needs of small, at-risk cetaceans, and serve as a basis for the delineation of ‘priority habitat’ boundaries. This conceptual approach should facilitate a constructive discourse between scientists and managers engaged in efforts to recover endangered species. The degree to which the recovery of an at-risk species can be reconciled with sustainable economic activity will depend in part on how well these principles are incorporated into the delineation of priority habitat.  相似文献   

Possible evidence for on-going volcanism on Mars as suggested by thin, elliptical sheets of low-albedo particulate material around pits and fissures close to Cerberus Fossae     

Gerald Patrick Roberts  Ian A. Crawford  David Peacock  Joyce Vetterlein  Elisabeth Parfitt  Louise Bishop 《Earth, Moon, and Planets》2007,100(1-2):1-16

High quality CCD images obtained at two different observatories in North Italy allowed the identification of four morphological structures near the nuclear region of the comet Ikeya-Zhang (I-Z): haloes, jets, shells and spirals. The interpretation of the nature of these structures has been attempted by means of a comparison of different up-to-date image processing techniques, which led to a single common estimate of the rotation period (p=1.48±0.20 days).  相似文献   

Interpretation of Na–Cl–Br Systematics in Sedimentary Basin Brines: Comparison of Concentration, Element Ratio, and Isometric Log-ratio Approaches     

Mark A. Engle  Elisabeth L. Rowan 《Mathematical Geosciences》2013,45(1):87-101

Mathematicians and geochemists have long realized that compositional data intrinsically exhibit a structure prone to spurious and induced correlations. This paper demonstrates, using the Na–Cl–Br system, that these mathematical problems are exacerbated in the study of sedimentary basin brines by such processes as the evaporation or dissolution of salts owing to their high salinities. Using two published datasets of Na–Cl–Br data for fluids from the Appalachian Basin, it is shown that log concentration and Na/Br versus Cl/Br methods for displaying solute chemistry may lead to misinterpretation of mixing trends between meteoric waters (for example shallow drinking water aquifers) and basinal brines, partially due to spurious mathematical relationships. An alternative approach, based on the isometric log-ratio transformation of molar concentration data, is developed and presented as an alternative method, free from potential numerical problems of the traditional methods. The utility, intuitiveness, and potential for mathematical problems of the three methods are compared and contrasted. Because the Na–Cl–Br system is a useful tool for sourcing solutes and investigating the evolution of basinal brines, results from this research may impact such critical topics as evaluating sources of brine contamination in the environment (possibly related to oil and gas production), evaluating the behavior of fluids in the reservoir during hydraulic fracturing, and tracking movement of fluids as a result of geologic CO₂ sequestration.  相似文献   

Cold-season soil respiration in response to grazing and warming in High-Arctic Svalbard     

Ditte Strebel  Bo Elberling  Elke Morgner  Heike E. Knicker  & Elisabeth J. Cooper 《Polar research》2010,29(1):46-57

The influence of goose grazing intensity and open-topped chambers (OTCs) on near-surface quantities and qualities of soil organic carbon (SOC) was evaluated in wet and mesic ecosystems in Svalbard. This study followed up a field experiment carried out in 2003–05 (part of the project Fragility of Arctic Goose Habitat: Impacts of Land Use, Conservation and Elevated Temperatures). New measurements of soil CO₂ effluxes, temperatures and water contents were regularly made from July to November 2007. SOC stocks were quantified, and the reactivity and composition measured by basal soil respiration (BSR) and solid-state ¹³C nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. Results reveal variations in soil carbon cycling, with significant seasonal trends controlled by temperature, water content and snow. Experimental warming (OTCs) increased near-surface temperatures in the growing season, resulting in significantly higher CO₂ effluxes. Different grazing intensities had no significant effects on observed soil respiration, but BSR rates at the mesic site (13–23 µg CO₂ g soil-C⁻¹ h⁻¹) were highest with moderate grazing and lowest in the absence of grazing. A limited effect of grazing on microbial respiration is consistent with a lack of significant differences in SOC quantity and quality. NMR data show that the composition of A-horizon SOC is dominated by O-N-alkyl C and alkyl C groups, and less by carboxyl C and aromatic C groups: but again no marked variation in response to grazing was evident. It can be concluded that two years after a goose grazing experiment, SOC cycling was less than the natural variation within contrasting vegetation types.  相似文献   

Monte Carlo method applied to modeling copper transport in river sediments   总被引：2，自引：2，他引：0  

Marcela Z. Corazza  Taufik Abr?o  Fábio Grandis Lepri  Sonia M. N. Gimenez  Elisabeth Oliveira  Maria Josefa Santos 《Stochastic Environmental Research and Risk Assessment (SERRA)》2012,26(8):1063-1079

Monte Carlo simulation (MCS) methodology has been applied to explain the variability of parameters for pollutant transport and fate modeling. In this study, the MCS method was used to evaluate the transport and fate of copper in the sediment of the Tibagi River sub-basin tributaries, Southern Brazil. The statistical distribution of the variables was described by a dataset obtained for copper concentration using sequential extraction, organic matter (OM) amount, and pH. The proposed stochastic spatial model for the copper transport in the river sediment was discussed and implemented by the MCS technique using the MatLab 7.3? mathematical software tool. In order to test some hypotheses, the sediment and the water column in the river ecosystem were considered as compartments. The proposed stochastic spatial model makes it possible to predict copper mobility and associated risks as a function of the organic matter input into aquatic systems. The metal mobility can increase with the OM posing a rising environmental risk.  相似文献   

40Ar/39Ar constraints on the temporal evolution of Graciosa Island, Azores (Portugal)     

Patricia Larrea  Jan R. Wijbrans  Carlos Galé  Teresa Ubide  Marceliano Lago  Zilda França  Elisabeth Widom 《Bulletin of Volcanology》2014,76(2):1-15

Lava flows spanning the eruptive record of Graciosa Island (Azores archipelago) and a gabbro xenolith were dated by ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar in order to constrain the Pleistocene and Holocene volcanic evolution of the island. The results range from 1.05 Ma to 3.9 ka, whereas prior published K–Ar and ¹⁴C ages range from 620 to 2 ka. The formation of the Serra das Fontes shield volcano started at minimum 1.05 Ma, and the magmatic system was active for ca. 600 ky, as suggested by the formation of the gabbro xenolith by magmatic differentiation. Evolved magmas making up the Serra das Fontes–Serra Branca composite volcano were generated at ca. 450 ka. After a period of ca. 110 ky of volcanic inactivity and erosion of volcanic edifices, volcanism was reactivated with the formation of the Vitória Unit NW platform. Later, the development of the Vulcão Central Unit started with the formation of monogenetic cones located to the south of the Serra das Fontes–Serra Branca–Vitória Unit. This volcanism became progressively more evolved and was concentrated in a main eruptive center, forming the Vulcão Central stratovolcano with an age older than 50 ka. The caldera related to this stratovolcano is older than 47 ka and was followed by effusion of basaltic magmas into the caldera, resulting in the formation of a lava lake, which ultimately spilled over the caldera rim at ca. 11 ka. The most recent eruptions on Graciosa formed two small pyroclastic cones within the caldera and the Pico do Timão cone within the Vitória Unit at ca 3.9 ka.  相似文献   

Network concepts to describe channel importance and change in multichannel systems: test results for the Jamuna River,Bangladesh   总被引：1，自引：0，他引：1       下载免费PDF全文

Wouter A. Marra  Maarten G. Kleinhans  Elisabeth A. Addink 《地球表面变化过程与地形》2014,39(6):766-778

Most of the largest rivers on Earth have multiple active channels connected at bifurcations and confluences. At present a method to describe a channel network pattern and changes in the network beyond the simplistic braiding index is unavailable. Our objectives are to test a network approach to understand the character, stability and evolution of a multi‐channel river pattern under natural discharge conditions. We developed a semi‐automatic method to derive a chain‐like directional network from images that represent the multi‐channel river and to connect individual network elements through time. The Jamuna River was taken as an example with a series of Landsat TM and ETM+ images taken at irregular intervals between 1999 and 2004. We quantified the overall importance of individual channels in the entire network using a centrality property. Centrality showed that three reaches can be distinguished along the Jamuna with a different network character: the middle reach has dominantly one important channel, while upstream and downstream there are about two important channels. Temporally, relatively few channels changed dramatically in both low‐flow and high‐flow periods despite the increase of braiding index during a flood. Based on the centrality we calculated a weighted braiding index that represents the number of important channels in the network, which is about two in the Jamuna River and which is larger immediately after floods. We conclude that the network measure centrality provides a novel characterization of river channel networks, highlighting properties and tendencies that have morphological significance. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.  相似文献   

The role of forcing and internal dynamics in explaining the “Medieval Climate Anomaly”     

Hugues Goosse  Elisabeth Crespin  Svetlana Dubinkina  Marie-France Loutre  Michael E. Mann  Hans Renssen  Yoann Sallaz-Damaz  Drew Shindell 《Climate Dynamics》2012,39(12):2847-2866

Proxy reconstructions suggest that peak global temperature during the past warm interval known as the Medieval Climate Anomaly (MCA, roughly 950–1250 AD) has been exceeded only during the most recent decades. To better understand the origin of this warm period, we use model simulations constrained by data assimilation establishing the spatial pattern of temperature changes that is most consistent with forcing estimates, model physics and the empirical information contained in paleoclimate proxy records. These numerical experiments demonstrate that the reconstructed spatial temperature pattern of the MCA can be explained by a simple thermodynamical response of the climate system to relatively weak changes in radiative forcing combined with a modification of the atmospheric circulation, displaying some similarities with the positive phase of the so-called Arctic Oscillation, and with northward shifts in the position of the Gulf Stream and Kuroshio currents. The mechanisms underlying the MCA are thus quite different from anthropogenic mechanisms responsible for modern global warming.  相似文献