Regional earth system modeling: review and future directions

耦合区域地球系统模式(RESM)现在仍处于早期的发展阶段,在本文中,我们对其近期相关进展进行了回顾。到目前为止,已经开发出了耦合的区域大气–海洋–海冰、大气–气溶胶和大气–生物圈模式,但总体它们仅在有限的区域得到应用,需要更多的工作来评估其在更多区域的可移植性。我们认为RESM发展中的未来挑战,是在大气、海洋、冰冻圈、生物圈、化学圈以外,同时将人类及其活动成分以完全相互作用的方式引入进来。     

Performance of RegCM4 over Major River Basins in China

A long-term simulation for the period 1990–2010 is conducted with the latest version of the International Centre for Theoretical Physics' Regional Climate Model(RegCM4), driven by ERA-Interim boundary conditions at a grid spacing of 25 km. The Community Land Model(CLM) is used to describe land surface processes, with updates in the surface parameters,including the land cover and surface emissivity. The simulation is compared against observations to evaluate the model performance in reproducing the present day climatology and interannual variability over the 10 main river basins in China,with focus on surface air temperature and precipitation. Temperature and precipitation from the ERA-Interim reanalysis are also considered in the model assessment. Results show that the model reproduces the present day climatology over China and its main river basins, with better performances in June–July–August compared to December–January–February(DJF).In DJF, we find a warm bias at high latitudes, underestimated precipitation in the south, and overestimated precipitation in the north. The model in general captures the observed interannual variability, with greater skill for temperature. We also find an underestimation of heavy precipitation events in eastern China, and an underestimation of consecutive dry days in northern China and the Tibetan Plateau. Similar biases for both mean climatology and extremes are found in the ERA-Interim reanalysis, indicating the difficulties for climate models in simulating extreme monsoon climate events over East Asia.     

Landslide detection in the Himalayas using machine learning algorithms and U-Net

Landslides - Event-based landslide inventories are essential sources to broaden our understanding of the causal relationship between triggering events and the occurring landslides. Moreover,...     

Exploring a landslide inventory created by automated web data mining: the case of Italy

Landslides - Nowadays, several systems to set up landslide inventories exist although they rarely rely on automated or real-time updates. Mass media can provide reliable info about natural hazard...     

High-fidelity broadband prediction of regional seismic response: a hybrid coupling of physics-based synthetic simulation and empirical Green functions

Natural Hazards - The prediction of the seismic response of critical structures is highly sensitive to many aspects, among which the earthquake source and the geological setting are prominent. The...     

An earthquake precursor mobile network

It is widely known that very low frequency/low frequency (VLF/LF) radiation has been recorded prior to large earthquakes in several seismically active countries of the world. The networks employed to detect this radiation consist of stationary transmitters and receivers. However, there are reported cases of existing networks being unable to detect any electromagnetic radiation prior to large earthquakes. In this study, we determined the optimal arrangement of a mobile VLF/LF electromagnetic radiation network to ensure the detection of an upcoming earthquake precursor. We consi-dered the possible arrangements of the VLF/LF mobile network based on certain physical considerations, and deve-loped a relatively simple arrangement that is completely different from the existing stationary networks. The suggested design will significantly increase the number of detected/predicted earthquakes by using the relevant electromagnetic radiation receivers strategically placed in regions of increased tectonic and seismic activity.     

Extension and Intensification of the Meso-American mid-summer drought in the twenty-first century

Recent global-scale analyses of the CMIP3 model projections for the twenty-first century indicate a strong, coherent decreased precipitation response over Central America and the Intra-America Seas region. We explore this regional response and examine the models’ skill in representing present-day climate over this region. For much of Central America, the annual cycle of precipitation is characterized by a rainy season that extends from May to October with a period of reduced precipitation in July and August called the mid-summer drought. A comparison of the climate of the twentieth century simulations (20c3m) with observations over the period 1961–1990 shows that nearly all models underestimate precipitation over Central America, due in part to an underestimation of sea surface temperatures over the tropical North Atlantic and an excessively smooth representation of regional topographical features. However, many of the models capture the mid-summer drought. Differences between the A1B scenario (2061–2090) and 20c3m (1961–1990) simulations show decreased precipitation in the future climate scenario, mostly in June and July, just before and during the onset of the mid-summer drought. We thus hypothesize that the simulated twenty-first century drying over Central America represents an early onset and intensification of the mid-summer drought. An analysis of circulation changes indicates that the westward expansion and intensification of the North Atlantic subtropical high associated with the mid-summer drought occurs earlier in the A1B simulations, along with stronger low-level easterlies. The eastern Pacific inter-tropical convergence zone is also located further southward in the scenario simulations. There are some indications that these changes could be forced by ENSO-like warming of the tropical eastern Pacific and increased land–ocean heating contrasts over the North American continent.     

Monitoring, prediction, and early warning using ground-based radar interferometry

In order to define adequate prevention measures and to manage landslide emergencies, real-time monitoring is required. This paper presents two different applications of the remote sensing technique: the ground-based synthetic aperture radar interferometry, here proposed as a monitoring and early warning support for slope instability. Data acquisitions carried out through a ground-based synthetic aperture radar interferometer, operating in K_u band, installed in front of the observed slopes, are discussed. Two case studies, based on the use of the same apparatus (formerly developed by the Joint Research Center of the European Commission and by Ellegi-LiSALab srl), are reported: the first one concerns the monitoring of a large landslide, named Ruinon (Valfurva, Italy). The second one deals with the monitoring of the NW unstable slope in the Stromboli island aimed to implementing an early warning system. Acquired interferometric data are processed to provide displacements and velocity maps of the monitored area. The monitoring services ongoing on the Ruinon landslide and on Stromboli demonstrate the capability of this technique to operate in different operative settings (i.e., different phenomena and geological framework) and for different aims (monitoring for prevention, early warning, and emergency assessment). This methodology has also been proved by national and regional authorities of civil protection in order to provide a real-time monitoring for emergency management.     

华北地区未来气候变化的高分辨率数值模拟

使用20km高水平分辨率的区域气候模式RegCM3,单向嵌套FvGCM/CCM3全球模式,进行了中国区域气候变化的数值模拟试验,分析华北地区夏半年4-9月的气温、降水和高温、干旱事件的变化。模式积分时间分为两个时段,分别为当代的1961-1990年和在IPCC SRES A2温室气体排放情景下的21世纪末2071-2100年。模式检验结果表明:在大部分月份,区域模式对当代气候的模拟都较全球模式更好。两个模式模拟的未来气温和降水变化,在空间分布型和量级上都有一定不同,如区域模式的升温更高,降水出现大范围减少等。此外,使用日最高气温不低于35℃的日数(D_(T35))和考虑了湿度因素的炎热指数(I_(H))不低于35℃的日数(D_(H135)),分析了区域模式模拟的未来高温事件变化,结果表明:未来华北地区D_(T35)和平原地区D_(H135)均有较大增加。未来华北地区的连续干旱日数(CDD)将增加,依照UNEP(United Nations Environment Programme)干旱指数(A_(U))给出的气候湿润区将有较大幅度减少,而半湿润半干旱区和半干旱区面积将增加。