First retrieval of data regarding spatial distribution of Asian dust aerosol from the Geostationary Ocean Color Imager

Aerosol optical thickness (AOT) was retrieved from the Geostationary Ocean Color Imager (GOCI) on board the Communication, Ocean, and Meteorological Satellite (COMS) for the first time. AOT values were retrieved over the ocean at a spatial scale of 0.5 × 0.5 km² by using the look-up table (LUT)-based separation technique. The radiative transfer model (RTM) was used for different models of atmosphere-ocean environmental conditions, taking into account the realistic variability of scattering and absorption. Ocean surface properties affected by whitecaps and pigment content were also taken into account. The results show that the radiance observed by the GOCI amounts to only 5% of the radiation that penetrated the ocean and, consequently, 95% of the radiation is scattered in the atmosphere or reflected at the ocean surface in the visible wavelengths longer than 0.6 ìm. Within these wavelengths, radiance variations at the top of atmosphere (TOA) due to pigment variations are within 10%, while the radiance variation due to wind speed is considerably higher. For verification of GOCI-retrieved AOTs, comparison between GOCI and ground-based sunphotometer measurement at Gosan, Korea (126.10°E, 33.23°N)) showed good correlation (r = 0.99). The GOCI observations obtained by using the proposed technique showed promising results for the daily monitoring of atmospheric aerosol loading as well as being useful for environmental supervisory authorities.     

Vegetative succession and controlled fire in a glades ecosystem A geographical information system approach

Abstract

A geographical information system (GIS) approach was used successfully on a federal wilderness area in southwestern Missouri to examine vegetative succession relative to fire management in a glades ecosystem. Maps of vegetation were obtained by interpreting aerial photographs taken in 1938, 1958, 1966, 1975 and 1986. Maps of topography, streams, soils and the location of fires which burned during the period 1938 to 1986 were also procured from a variety of public agencies. All maps were digitized and incorporated into a raster-based GIS with 25 m pixels. It was concluded that (1) both glades and oak-hickory forest have an affinity for distinct physiographic areas and (2) fire can help decrease the rate of processes of natural succession which cause glades to convert to forest. The probable effects of controlled fire on three areas proposed by the Forest Service were evaluated and summarized.     

Flow of a stratified fluid bounded by walls of finite thermal conductance

Abstract

A study is made of the behavior of a thermally stratified fluid in a container when the non-horizontal boundaries have finite thermal conductance. The theory of Rahm and Walin is briefly recounted. Numerical solutions to the Navier-Stokes equations for a Boussinesq fluid in a cylinder, adopting a Newtonian heat flux condition at the vertical sidewall, are presented. Results on the details of flow and temperature fields are given over ranges of the Rayleigh number Ra, the container aspect ratio H, and the sidewall conductance S. As S increases, the isotherms in the meridional plane are horizontal at small radii but they diverge at large radii. This creates temperature nonuniformilies in the horizontal direction, and convective motions result. The salient features of the interior temperature profiles are captured by the theoretical model. The velocity field is characterized by two oppositely-directed circulations. As Ra or S varies, the qualitative circulation patterns remain substantially unchanged, but the magnitudes of the convective flows differ by large amounts. The effects of the externally-imposed parameters on the flow and temperature structures are examined.     

Decadal Changes in Climatological Intraseasonal Fluctuation of Subseasonal Evolution of Summer Precipitation over the Korean Peninsula in the mid-1990s

Decadal changes in the subseasonal evolution and the phase-locked climatological intraseasonal fluctuation of summertime rainfall over the Korean Peninsula before and after the mid-1990s are investigated.The activity and the migration speed of the monsoon rain band over the East Asian region are altered in the recent decade,resulting in the drier conditions in late spring and the earlier onset of Changma.In early August when a climatological monsoon break was clear in the earlier decade,the precipitation has increased dramatically with a meridional coherency.The response to the enhanced convection over the South China Sea and southeastern China provides a favorable condition for more precipitation in early August through the changes in moisture transport and tropical cyclone passage.     

Characteristics of adjoint sensitivity to potential vorticity

Structures of adjoint sensitivities to potential vorticity for specific initial and final norm are investigated for a short-range cyclone forecast in a three-dimensional quasigeostrophic (QG) model. Moreover, adjoint sensitivities to potential vorticity are compared with nonlinear sensitivities calculated for the same cyclogenesis case in the QG model. The adjoint sensitivities using different initial and final norms (e.g., total QG disturbance energy and potential enstrophy) show approximately similar characteristics for the horizontal and vertical structures and evolutions. Consistent with previous studies, the horizontal structure of the adjoint sensitivity is smaller for the energy norm than for the potential enstrophy norm. The dynamical mechanism of cyclone development by adjoint sensitivity coincides with that of nonlinear sensitivity, with slight differences in the region of sensitivity maxima over the upstream (nascent) low for the adjoint (nonlinear) sensitivity. The adjoint sensitivities show different vertical distributions from the nonlinear sensitivities. Consistent with the sensitive regions denoted by singular vectors and error evolution in the QG model, maxima of the adjoint sensitivities are located at both the upper and lower boundaries, with prominent secondary peaks in the lower to mid-troposphere of the domain. The level of the secondary maxima changes depending on the initial and final norm used. The secondary peak is located in the lower to mid- (mid-) troposphere for the total QG disturbance energy (potential enstrophy) as the initial and final norm. Based on the correspondence in the level of the sensitivity maxima in the interior of the domain between the adjoint and nonlinear sensitivities, adjoint sensitivities may serve as an alternative to nonlinear sensitivities given the enormous computing expenses in nonlinear sensitivity calculation.     

Holocene transgression of the Rhine river mouth area,The Netherlands/Southern North Sea: palaeogeography and sequence stratigraphy

This study presents a detailed reconstruction of the palaeogeography of the Rhine valley (western Netherlands) during the Holocene transgression with systems tracts placed in a precise sea‐level context. This approach permits comparison of actual versus conceptual boundaries of the lowstand, transgressive and highstand systems tracts. The inland position of the highstand Rhine river mouth on a wide, low‐gradient continental shelf meant that base‐level changes were the dominant control on sedimentation for a relatively short period of the last glacial cycle. Systems in such inland positions predominantly record changes in the balance between river discharge and sediment load, and preserve excellent records of climatic changes or other catchment‐induced forcing. It is shown here that the transgressive systems tract‐part of the coastal prism formed in three stages: (i) the millennium before 8·45 ka bp , when the area was dominated by fluvial environments with extensive wetlands; (ii) the millennium after 8·45 ka, characterized by strong erosion, increasing tidal amplitudes and bay‐head delta development; and (iii) the period between 7·5 and 6·3 ka bp when the Rhine avulsed multiple times and the maximum flooding surface formed. The diachroneity of the transgressive surface is strongly suppressed because of a pulse of accelerated sea‐level rise at 8·45 ka bp . That event not only had a strong effect on preservation, but has circum‐oceanic stratigraphical relevance as it divides the early and middle Holocene parts of coastal successions worldwide. The palaeogeographical reconstruction offers a unique full spatial–temporal view on the coastal and fluvial dynamics of a major river mouth under brief rapid forced transgression. This reconstruction is of relevance for Holocene and ancient transgressive systems worldwide, and for next‐century natural coasts that are predicted to experience a 1 m sea‐level rise.     

Environmentally associated spatial changes of a macrozoobenthic community in the Saemangeum tidal flat,Korea

Estuarine tidal flats are both ecologically and economically important, hence developing methods to reliably measure ecosystem health is essential. Because benthic fauna play a central role in the food web of tidal flats, in this study we set out to quantitatively describe the intertidal zonation of macro-invertebrates and their associations with specific environmental parameters along three transects in the Saemangeum tidal flat, Korea. The abundance and biomass of intertidal fauna with respect to five environmental parameters (i.e., shore level, mud content, coarse sand content, water content, and organic content) were measured, to identify environmental factors that influence macrofaunal distribution in intertidal soft bottom habitats. A total of 75 species were identified, with dominant species showing distinct zones of distribution along all transects. The number of species recorded in each transect was found to be dependent on sediment characteristics and salinity. Cluster analysis classified the entire study area into three faunal assemblages (i.e., location groups), which were delineated by characteristic species, including (A) ‘Periserrula–Macrophthalmus’, (B) ‘Umbonium–Meretrix’, and (C) ‘Prionospio–Potamocorbula’. Four environmental variables (i.e., shore level, water content, mud content, and organic content) appeared to determine factors that distinguished the three faunal assemblages, based on the discriminant analysis. The faunal assemblage types of the sampled locations were accurately predicted from environmental variables in two discriminant functions, with a prediction accuracy of 98%. It should be noted that the zonation of benthos in the lower section (C) of Sandong had been affected by the construction of a nearby dike, while this parameter had remained essentially unchanged at the other two location groups (A–B). Overall, the zonation of benthos from the Saemangeum tidal flat was explained adequately by the measured environmental variables, implying that faunal assemblages are closely associated with certain combinations of abiotic factors. The identification of such reliable associations may facilitate the development of statistical models to predict faunal distributions based on environmental variables at both local and regional scales. The entire study area was embanked in 2006 (one year after this study), and an integrated plan was set into force to develop claimed land into industrial, residential and agricultural districts, which also included a partial restoration program of the tidal flats located near to the study area.     

Immobilization of As and Pb in contaminated sediments using waste resources

As and Pb-contaminated sediment obtained from the Nakdong Lake and Yeongsan River in the Republic of Korea was stabilized using a combination of calcined oyster shell (COS), waste cow bone (WCB) and coal mine drainage sludge (CMDS). The effectiveness of the stabilization treatment was evaluated using the Korean Standard Test (KST). The KST tests were performed using 1 N HCl extraction fluid for As and 0.1 N HCl extraction fluid for Pb. Scanning electron microscopy–energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM–EDX) analyses were performed to investigate the mechanism responsible for As and Pb immobilization upon treatment. The treatment results showed that effective stabilization of As and Pb-contaminated sediment was obtained. Specifically, 10 wt% COS–5 wt% CMDS was the best treatment for As immobilization and 5 wt% COS–5 wt% WCB was the best treatment for Pb immobilization. The COS–WCB treatment outperformed the COS–CMDS treatment in immobilizing Pb in the contaminated sediment. SEM–EDX results indicated that Pb immobilization was strongly associated with Ca, Si, Al and P while As immobilization was strongly associated with Fe and O. Therefore, utilization of COS, WCB and CMDS is beneficial for the stabilization of contaminated sediment.     

Simultaneous stabilization of arsenic, lead, and copper in contaminated soil using mixed waste resources

In the present study, stabilization treatment using waste resource stabilizers was performed for soil contaminated with As and heavy metals (Pb and Cu). Calcined oyster shell (COS) and coal mine drainage sludge (CMDS) were used as a mixed stabilizing agent for a wet-curing duration of 28 days. After the stabilization treatment, the treatment process efficiency was evaluated by the results of various batch- and column-leaching tests. Neutral and weak acid extraction methods, such as water-soluble extraction and SPLP, did not exhibit satisfactory results for heavy metal stabilization, even if they showed very low leachability. On the other hand, TCLP and 0.1 M HCl extraction showed that the stabilizers significantly reduced the amount of heavy metals leached from the soil, which strongly supports the thesis that the stabilization treatment is efficient in the acidic leaching conditions that were explored. Specifically, in the 0.1 M HCl extraction, the reduction efficiencies of As, Pb, and Cu leachings were more than 90 %, compared with control experiments. This study demonstrates that the application of waste resources for the stabilization of As and heavy metals is feasible. However, some limitations observed in the experiments should be considered in future studies, such as the mobilization of alkali-soluble elements, and in particular, exchangeable fractions of Cu. In addition, the treatment efficiency can be evaluated by different leaching methods, which suggests that multidirectional approaches are required for the proper evaluation of stabilization treatment.     

How good is good? Human values and Europe's proposed Marine Strategy Directive

The adoption of the proposed European Marine Strategy Directive is an opportunity for a comprehensive policy for protecting, improving and sustainably using Europe's environmentally degraded seas. It calls for an ecosystem-based approach to management where humans are regarded as a key system component. Although the proposed wording has been the subject of fierce debate, the central policy goal remains achieving "Good Environmental Status". The interpretation of "good" is key to implementation and relates to human values and worldviews. We demonstrate how these vary widely across Europe. Solution of fundamental considerations such as the assignation of reference states, the balance between precautionary and evidence-based action, the degree of subsidiarity, and conservation strategies including marine protected areas, will ultimately depend upon public understanding, involvement in and support for the Directive. The social element, critical to effective adaptive management, requires greater attention within the context of a regional seas geographical framework.