Localisation and temporal variability of groundwater discharge into the Dead Sea using thermal satellite data

The semi-arid region of the Dead Sea heavily relies on groundwater resources. This dependence is exacerbated by both population growth and agricultural activities and demands a sustainable groundwater management. Yet, information on groundwater discharge as one main component for a sustainable management varies significantly in this area. Moreover, discharge locations, volume and temporal variability are still only partly known. A multi-temporal thermal satellite approach is applied to localise and semi-quantitatively assess groundwater discharge along the entire coastline. The authors use 100 Landsat ETM + band 6.2 data, spanning the years between 2000 and 2011. In the first instance, raw data are transformed to sea surface temperature (SST). To account for groundwater intermittency and to provide a seasonally independent data set ?T (maximum SST range) per-pixel within biennial periods is calculated subsequently. Groundwater affected areas (GAA) are characterised by ?T < 8.5 °C. Unaffected areas exhibit values >10 °C. This allows the exact identification of 37 discharge locations (clusters) along the entire Dead Sea coast, which spatially correspond to available in situ discharge observations. Tracking the GAA extents as a direct indicator of groundwater discharge volume over time reveals (1) a temporal variability correspondence between GAA extents and recharge amounts, (2) the reported rigid ratios of discharge volumes between different spring areas not to be valid for all years considering the total discharge, (3) a certain variability in discharge locations as a consequence of the Dead Sea level drop, and finally (4) the assumed flushing effect of old Dead Sea brines from the sedimentary body to have occurred at least during the two series of 2000–2001 and 2010–2011.     

New data on the Holocene evolution of the Dvina Bay (White Sea)

Doklady Earth Sciences - The Holocene sediments from the inner part of the Dvina Bay of the White Sea (core no. 6042) were analyzed with multidisciplinary methods for the first time. The age of the...     

New data on the composition of stable isotopes in glendonites of the White Sea and their genesis

Several samples including host sediments, recent molluscan shells, glendonites, and associated carbonate concretions were subjected to the thorough investigation. The obtained analytical data characterize the unique locality of Holocene and Recent carbonate structures in the White Sea basin. The microscopic examination of glendonites revealed several microtextural types of calcite and the succession of their formation. It is established that they are composed of carbonate material, which was discretely formed due to biochemical destruction of terrigenous sedimentary material. The revealed differences in the carbon isotope composition in different glendonites are likely explained by local geochemical properties, which existed within host sediments, or the asynchronous formation of carbonate structures due to changes in the chemical composition of waters that saturated sediments.     

New data on the concentration of plutonium isotopes in the sediments of the Barents Sea

Doklady Earth Sciences -     

New data on the structure of the central part of the White Sea paleorift system

Complex geological and geophysical data obtained during recent research by the Marine Arctic Geological Survey Expedition OJSC (MAGSE) indicate that the Riphean Chapoma graben located on the southeastern shore of the Kola Peninsula has its extension under the Gorlo Strait of the White Sea water area and joins the Leshukonsk riftogenous graben as an extended narrow trench in the crystal foundation of the platform. From this it follows that the Chapoma graben is the central segment of the White Sea paleorift system. Only the northwestern edge and probably the upper part of the graben section outcrop on the Kola Peninsula, which represents a highly elevated block of the platform foundation. To emphasize the unity of this paleorift zone, it makes sense to call it the Chapomo-Leshukonsk Paleorift in contrast to the traditional name Kerets-Leshukonsk. The echelon position of the riftogenous troughs of the Chapomo-Leshukonsk paleorift, the form itself of the Leshukonsk and Azopolsk troughs being close to pull-apart assumes their occurrence and development under transtension conditions with elements of the right-side shear along the steep northeastern edges of the grabens.     

Factors controlling the spatial and temporal variability of dust emissions

New field measurement techniques are allowing researchers to better understand how surficial properties affect the temporal and spatial variability of dust emissions. In this paper we review the current understanding of the dust emission process and present new field measurements that examine how three surface properties： roughness, crust strength, and temporal changes of surface properties affect dust emissions. These data were collected using three unique measurement systems developed by our team. Roughness exerts considerable control on the entrainment threshold and emissions of dust from a surface. We have carried out a series of experiments designed to quantify roughness effects on aeolian sediment entrainment and transport in a shear stress partitioning framework. Our results show that the model of Raupach et al. （1993） provides very good agreement with available data to predict the amount of shearing stress on the intervening surface among roughness elements, relatively independent of their size and distribution. However, element size affects the aeolian sediment transport process beyond that attributable only to the reduction of surface shear stress caused by the roughness. Additional interactions of the elements with the saltation cloud appear to reduce the transport efficiency and potentially dust emissions as well. The effect of crust strength on dust emissions was assessed using a newly-developed pin penetrometer, which can measure crust strength in-situ. Previous researchers suggested that variation in crust strength even within a small area could lead to considerable spatial variability in dust emissions. Our measurements showed that crust strength is highly variable over a scale of centimeters. This variability may help to explain some of the observed scatter in field measurements of dust emissions for what appear to be homogeneous surfaces. Variability of dust emissions in time and space was also evaluated using a new instrument, the Portable In-Situ Wind Erosion Lab （PI-SWERL） developed to measure dust emissions from soil surfaces.     

Assessment of temporal and spatial variability of soil salinity in a coastal saline field

Many coastal tideland areas in southern Hangzhou Gulf in Zhejiang Province of China have been successively enclosed and reclaimed for agricultural land uses under a series of reclamation projects over the past 30 years. The variability of soil salinity was considerably great and an understanding of the temporal and spatial components of soil salinity variability is essential before decisions can be made about the feasibility of site-specific management. In this paper, a 5.35-ha field reclaimed in 1996 was selected as the study site and 112 bulk electrical conductivity (EC_b) measurements were performed in situ by a hand held device in the topsoil (0–20 cm) at regular 20-m intervals across the field over a two-year period. Conventional statistics and geostatistical techinques were used to assess the spatial variability and temporal stability of soil-salinity distribution. The results indicated high coefficients of variation in topsoil salinity over the three samplings. Simple mean EC_b comparison revealed that soil salinity increased from winter to spring. Kriged contour maps showed the spatial trend of salinity distribution and revealed the consistently high and low salinity areas of the field. In percentage terms, the proportions of the moderately saline class, strongly saline class, and extremely saline class were 37, 39, and 24%, respectively. Temporal stability map indicated that more than 60% of the study field was determined as the stable class. Based on the spatial and temporal characteristics, a similarity assessment map was created, which presented 5 homogenous sub-zones, each with different characteristics that can have an impact on the way the field is managed. It was concluded that saline soil land might be managed in a site-specific way based on the clearly defined management sub-regions within the field.     

The spatial and temporal variability of sand erosion across a stabilizing coastal dune field

This study aimed at quantifying the temporal and spatial variability in sand erosion and deposition over a coastal dune field in Israel. These were measured monthly over 2 years using 315 erosion pins over four transects that were placed perpendicular to the coastline. Vegetation cover was estimated based on aerial photographs and Landsat satellite images, whereas the relative height was based on a digital elevation model. These variables were calculated for the area upwind (south west) of the erosion pins, at various lengths, ranging from 15 to 400 m. Nine geomorphologic units were defined, five related to active units, and four to stabilized units. In active units at least 65% of the temporal variance in the annual absolute changes in sand level was explained by the index of Resultant Drift Potential, with most of the sand movement occurring during winter storms. Local rainfall had no apparent impact on sand mobility, due to the low coincidence of sand carrying winds and rainfall in Israel during the passage of frontal cyclones. As for the spatial variables, only a weak correlation was found between sand mobility with the distance from the coastline (R² = 18%). Rather, sand erosion and deposition were influenced by vegetation cover and the relative height of an area of 100–200 m upwind. The values of Soil Adjusted Vegetation Index were significantly negatively correlated with annual absolute changes (R² = 40%), whereas the relative height was significantly positively correlated (R² = 36%). Applying a multiple regression model, 68% of the spatial variability in sand mobility was explained. The resulting map of sand activity clearly shows that at this stage of the stabilization process, most of the dunes are now disconnected, and movement of sand grains from the beach or between the dunes, is very limited. These methods can be applied into spatial and temporal models of sand mobility, thus assessing the impact of different management practices on coastal dunes.     

Transient discharges from marine hydrocarbon seeps: spatial and temporal variability

Marine hydrocarbon gas emissions at an intense, 20-m-deep seep in the Santa Barbara Channel, California were studied with a network of three turbine seep-tents and repeated seabed mapping. The tents observed two gas ejection events that are interpreted as due to blockage of constrictions in fractures and subsequent blow-through. Seabed mapping suggests that very large transient emission events occur, are related to tar, and are temporally and spatially variable. Transient emissions have the potential to more efficiently transport methane to the atmosphere than steady-state emissions. We present an electrical model analog of subsurface seepage useful for seepage flux interpretation. The model predicts that variations in resistance at one vent shifts some of its flux to other connected vents, and that the shift is not zero-sum, i.e., a resistance change at one vent causes a flow change for the overall fracture system.     

Relating spatial and temporal variability in sediment chlorophylla and carbohydrate distribution with erodibility of a tidal flat

Trends in the spatial distribution of chlorophylla (chla) and colloidal and total carbohydrates on the Molenplaat tidal flat in the Westerschelde estuary, Netherlands, reflected spatial differences in physical properties of the sediment. Results from a Spearman Rank Order Correlation indicated that many of the physical and biological measures covaried. Multiple regression analyses describing the relationship between colloidal carbohydrates and sediment properties resulted in several highly significant equations, although in all cases chla was able to predict colloidal carbohydrate content. Relationships between sediment surface chla and colloidal carbohydrate, and sediment erodibility (i.e., critical erosion threshold, U_crit, and mass of sediment eroded at a velocity of 30 cm s^?1) determined in annular flume experiments were examined. Overall sediment erodibility was lowest (i.e., high thresholds, low mass eroded) for the siltiest sediments in June 1996 when chla and colloidal carbohydrates were high (56.9 μg gDW^?1 and 320.6 μg gluc.equ. gDW^?1, respectively), and greatest (i.e., low thresholds, high mass eroded) at the sandier sediments in September 1996, when chla and colloidal carbohydrates were low (1.0 μg gDW^?1 and 5.7 μg gluc.equ. gDW^?1, respectively). When sediments were grouped according to relative silt content, the most significant relationships were found in muddy sand with a finegrained fraction (<63 μm) of 25–50%. Thresholds of erosion increased, while mass of sediment eroded decreased, with increasing chla and colloidal carbohydrate. A similar trend was observed for the sand-muddy sand (63 μm 10–25%). In the sand (63 μm 0–10%), there were no relationships for U_crit, whereas mass eroded appeared to increase with increasing chla and colloidal carbohydrate. The increased carbohydrate may stick sand grains together, altering the nature of erosion from rolling grains to clumps of resuspension.     

Intertidal and shoal benthic community metabolism in a temperate estuary: Studies of spatial and temporal scales of variability

Variability in benthic community metabolism, sediment chlorophyll and sediment organic carbon attributable to substrate type and season were examined. Substrate types included intertidalSpartina alterniflora marsh, mudflat, and sandflat and subtidal eelgrass (Zostera marina) and bare sand bottoms. Significant differences in parameter estimates were found among the different substrate types for each specific sampling data. When estimates were pooled over the entire study period, significant differences were found only for respiration rate and sediment pigment concentrations. The data indicate no obvious ranking in magnitude for any parameter that can be attributed to substrate type or season. Small-scale spatial variability and rapid temporal changes (turnover) are postulated as the principal reasons governing the overall results.     

Scalar and directional field and analytical data for spatial variability studies

Maps are used primarily as inventories or to evaluate spatial variability as a means of testing hypotheses. Sequential steps involved in evaluating relevant variables and in testing hypotheses about specified target populations are outlined. Identification of component subproblems and attempts to use the formalism necessary iteratively to test deterministic differential equations (or the corresponding probabilistic equations) could enhance the understanding of many earth-science problems.