Obituary – Emerita Professor Valerie Anne Hall BSc PhD FSA FHEA (1946–2016)

Professor Emerita Valerie Hall died on 28th July, 2016, in Belfast City Hospital after a long battle with cancer. Valerie was a renowned and highly esteemed inter-disciplinarian, who began her career in botany and palynology but made a truly international mark in the field of cryptotephrochronology. Between us, we knew her as a student, a supervisor, an examiner, a mentor, a colleague, a role model, and, above all, a wonderful, kind-hearted and generous friend. She touched the hearts and earned the respect of Quaternary scientists around the world. Here, to honour her memory, we reflect briefly on the great woman and scientist that she was.     

Holocene grassland vegetation, climate and human impact in central eastern Inner Mongolia

~~Holocene grassland vegetation, climate and human impact in central eastern Inner Mongolia1.Ye,D.Z.,Chou,J.E,Liu,J.Y.et al.,Causes of sand-stormy weather in northern China and control measures,Acta Geographica Sinica(in Chinese),2000,55(5):513-520. 2.Qiu,X.E,Zeng,Y.,Miao,Q.L.,Temporal spatial distribution as well as tracks and source areas of sand dust storms in China,Acta Geographica Sinica(in Chinese),2001,56(3):316-322. 3.Cui,H.T,Kong,Z.C,Preliminary analysis on the cli…     

西宁地区第四纪晚期孢粉组合及古环境

西宁地区位于黄土高原与青藏高原的接壤处,是环境和气候变迁的敏感地带。本文对西宁市北川河河谷地区黄土沉积的钻孔剖面进行了孢粉分析,获得了比较丰富的孢粉数据,结果呈现出以松、桦、蒿及藜等木本及草本植物花粉为主的孢粉组合。据各类植物花粉量在该剖面垂向上的明显变化,由下而上可划分为5个孢粉带。研究表明,该剖面的孢粉分析数据及资料不仅记录了75kaB.P以来大量的古地理及古环境的变迁,也揭示了西宁地区晚更新世以来古植被及古气候的演替及变化,其演变分别经历了5个阶段:第一阶段为森林型针叶林,反应了温爽轻湿的气候;第二阶段为针叶林,为温凉轻润的气候;第三阶段为针叶林夹稀树草原,属温和湿润夹温凉轻湿的气候;第四阶段为森林草原,反应了温凉轻爽的气候;第五阶段为针叶林,反应了温和湿润的气候。     

Boundary shock waves in a conducting gas

Summary In this paper, we have postulated, in a conducting gas, the occurrence of a boundary shock wave, considered as a quick transition region in which the viscous effects are compressive and are confined to a thin layer adjacent to a surface. The analogues of the well known Rankine-Hugoniot jump relations, Prandtl relation, and other properties of a shock wave are derived and a discussion about the existence of a boundary shock wave is made.     

骆马湖营养盐收支

根据对骆马湖1998年度营养盐（氮,磷）收入和支出的研究,结果表明,入湖氮,磷量分别为15764．78t和1035．53t,其中通过河道入湖的氮磷量最大,其年入湖氮磷量分别为13598．05t和942．35t,分别占总来源量的86．3％和91．0％,氮,磷在骆马湖湖体中的滞留量和沉降量较,滞留量分别为1532．65t和221．63t,分别占总来源量的9．7％和21．4％,沉积量分别为205．47t和199．95吨,分别占总业源量的1．3％和19．3％,湖水氮,磷蓄积变化大,湖水浓度升高较快,氮磷负荷较大,年平均负荷量分别为总氮42．04％g/m^2和总磷2．76g/m,^2。     

不同深度鱼塘水温状况分析

滆湖位于江苏省常州市西南13km处,水面面积164km~2,平均水深1.26m,是太湖湖群的重要组成部分。其氮、磷平衡研究结果表明:①入湖氮、磷总量分别为4120.29t/a和270.03t/a;其中以河道入湖量最大,分别占入湖总量的71.9％和57.1％,其次是养殖投饵,分别占入湖总量的12.4％和29.9％;氮、磷的滞留系数分别为0.36和0.35,年滞留量分别为1481.6t和94.82t。②湖水的氮、磷负荷较大,但由于水草的吸收净化作用,湖水水质仍能保持较低水平。③网围养殖区底泥氮、磷释放强度大。非网围区水草根系的吸收对底泥氮、磷释放起到一定的抑制作用。     

An Idealized Ground-Water Flow and Chemical Transport Model (S-PATHS)

The number of studies on the actual and potential environmental consequences of contaminated ground water is growing. One means of studying these consequences is through an idealized flow and transport model, S-PATHS, which allows the hydrologist to determine the salient features of contaminant migration with a minimum of data. The transport of contaminants by ground water from many waste disposal sites can be geometrically idealized as flow between a line and a circle. The flow system adjacent to the disposal site can be represented as a contaminant line source, and a downgradient pumping well as a circular sink. To study waste disposal sites on a larger scale the model geometry is reversed and the disposal site is represented as a circular source, and a river or other convenient line of evaluation is represented as a line sink. This idealization allows S-PATHS to describe the flow and transport process directly by a single partial differential expression. S-PATHS considers transmissivity, effective porosity, sorption, source strength, source concentration, decay, potentiometric gradient, circle size, and distance to the line. Coding for the model is not lengthy and can be run on a large-capacity, hand-held calculator.     

四川盆地南部地区新生代隆升剥露研究——低温热年代学证据

本文通过背斜褶皱变形与低温热年代学年龄(磷灰石和锆石(U-Th)/He、磷灰石裂变径迹)端元模型研究,约束低起伏度、低斜率地貌特征的四川盆地南部地区新生代隆升剥露过程.四川盆地南部沐川和桑木场背斜地区新生代渐新世-中新世发生了相似的快速隆升剥露过程(速率为~0.1 mm/a、现今地表剥蚀厚度1.0~2.0 km),反映出盆地克拉通基底对区域均一性快速抬升冷却过程的控制作用.川南沐川地区磷灰石(U-Th)/He年龄值为~10-28.6 Ma, 样品年龄与古深度具有明显的线性关系,揭示新生代~10-30 Ma以速率为0.12±0.02 mm/a的稳态隆升剥露过程.桑木场背斜地区磷灰石裂变径迹年龄为~36-52 Ma,古深度空间上样品AFT年龄变化不明显(~50 Ma)、且具有相似的径迹长度(~12.0 μm).磷灰石裂变径迹热演化史模拟表明桑木场地区经历三个阶段热演化过程:埋深增温阶段(~80 Ma以前)、缓慢抬升冷却阶段(80-20 Ma)和快速隆升剥露阶段(~20 Ma-现今),新生代隆升剥露速率大致分别为~0.025 mm/a和~0.1 mm/a.新生代青藏高原大规模地壳物质东向运动与四川盆地克拉通基底挤压,受板缘边界主断裂带差异性构造特征控制造就了青藏高原东缘不同的边界地貌特征.     

Study on Paleoearthquakes of the Eastern Liupanshan Piedmont Fault Zone

Based on trench excavation and detailed field investigation, the authors have ascertained that 6 paleoearthquake events have occurred in the Haizixia area of the Eastern Liupanshan Piedmont fault zone since 46Ka B.P. The recurrence time of 6 events were about 15000a, 20250a, 14750a, 12150a, 8550a and 4000a B.P., respectively, the recurrence intervals were about 15000a, 5500a, 2600a, 3600a and 4550a, respectively. According to M-D empirical relations, the vertical dislocation of events 1 and 2 corresponded to the dislocation of the earthquake with M8.0; the vertical dislocation of events 3-6, was corresponded to the dislocation of earthquakes with M6.5~7.5.     

Three-Dimensional Gravity Modeling In All Space

We review available analytical algorithms for the gravity effect and gravity gradients especially the vertical gravity gradient due to a right rectangular prism, a right polygonal prism, and a polyhedron. The emphasis is placed on an investigation of validity, consistency, and especially singularities of different algorithms, which have been traditionally proposed for calculation of the gravity effect on ground (or outside anomalous bodies), when they are applied to all points in space. The rounding error due to the computer floating point precision is estimated. The gravity effect and vertical gradient of gravity in three dimensions caused by a cubic model are calculated by different types of algorithms. The reliability of algorithms for the calculation of gravity of a right polygonal prism and a polyhedron is further verified by using a regular polygonal prism approximating a vertical cylinder and a regular polyhedron approximating a sphere, respectively. By highlighting Haáz-Jung-Plouff and Okabe-Steiner-Zilahi-Sebess' formulae for a right rectangular prism, Plouff's algorithm for a right polygonal prism, and Gouml;tze and Lahmeyer's algorithm for a polyhedron and removing their singularities, we demonstrate that these formulae and algorithms can be used to model the gravity anomaly and its vertical gradient at all possible computation positions.     

MAGNETOTELLURIGS: PRINCIPLE AND OUTLINE OF THE RECORDING TECHNIQUE A CASE HISTORY *

First, we review briefly the principle of the method, the computation of theoretical curves for a layered earth, and the recording technique in use in our surveys. The case history deals with an area covered with overthrust nappes (marls of Miocene age), which had slid on a Triassic sole, obscuring the geological picture. The magnetotelluric survey followed those of gravity and aeromagnetics and preceded the seismic one from North to South, it displayed a shallow and gently dipping basin, a major fault system, and a deep basin with a thick resistive layer, often underlying a conducting one. The seismics, and later the drilling of a well East of the profile, confirmed these features; in particular, the thick resistive layer was revealed to be Jurassic; only its thickness had been slightly overestimated. This fact lead the people in charge of the operations to ask for a reinterpretation synthesis of magnetotellurics, seismics and gravity, the results of which are also presented.     

Dipping-interface Mapping Using Mode-separated Rayleigh Waves

Multichannel analysis of surface waves (MASW) method is a non-invasive geophysical technique that uses the dispersive characteristic of Rayleigh waves to estimate a vertical shear (S)-wave velocity profile. A pseudo-2D S-wave velocity section is constructed by aligning 1D S-wave velocity profiles at the midpoint of each receiver spread that are contoured using a spatial interpolation scheme. The horizontal resolution of the section is therefore most influenced by the receiver spread length and the source interval. Based on the assumption that a dipping-layer model can be regarded as stepped flat layers, high-resolution linear Radon transform (LRT) has been proposed to image Rayleigh-wave dispersive energy and separate modes of Rayleigh waves from a multichannel record. With the mode-separation technique, therefore, a dispersion curve that possesses satisfactory accuracy can be calculated using a pair of consecutive traces within a mode-separated shot gather. In this study, using synthetic models containing a dipping layer with a slope of 5, 10, 15, 20, or 30 degrees and a real-world example, we assess the ability of using high-resolution LRT to image and separate fundamental-mode Rayleigh waves from raw surface-wave data and accuracy of dispersion curves generated by a pair of consecutive traces within a mode-separated shot gather. Results of synthetic and real-world examples demonstrate that a dipping interface with a slope smaller than 15 degrees can be successfully mapped by separated fundamental waves using high-resolution LRT.     

Babbling brook to thunderous torrent: Using sound to monitor river stage

The passive, ambient sound above the water from a river has previously untapped potential for determining flow characteristics such as stage. Measuring sub-aerial sound could provide a new, efficient way to continuously monitor river stage, without the need for in-stream infrastructure. Previous published work has suggested that there might be a relationship between sound and river stage, but the analysis has been restricted to a narrow range of flow conditions and river morphologies. We present a method to determine site suitability and the process of how to record and analyse sound. Data collected along a 500 m length of the River Washburn during July 2019 is used to determine what makes a site suitable for sound monitoring. We found that sound is controlled by roughness elements in the channel, such as a boulder or weir, which influences the sound produced. On the basis of these findings, we collect audio recordings from six sites around the northeast of England, covering a range of flow conditions and different roughness elements, since 2019. We use data from those sites collected during storms Ciara and Dennis to produce a relationship between this sound and river stage. Our analysis has shown a positive relationship between an R² of 0.73 and 0.99 in all rivers, but requires careful site selection and data processing to achieve the best results. We introduce a filter that is capable of isolating a river's sound from other environmental sound. Future work in examining the role of these roughness elements is required to understand the full extent of this technique. By demonstrating that sound can operate as a hydrometric tool, we suggest that sound monitoring could be used to provide cost-effective monitoring devices, either to detect relative change in a river or, after more research, a reliable stage measurement.     

Model Calibration Techniques for Use with the Analytic Element Method

The combination of the analytic element method and a nonlinear parameter estimation technique forges a computationally efficient, information-rich, and cost-effective solution to the inverse ground-water flow problem. The recommended model calibration method uses a nonlinear least-squares objective, as quantified by misfitting the measured and modeled heads, and a modified Levenberg-Marquardt algorithm. As detailed and demonstrated by a steady-state regional aquifer model of Bemidji, Minnesota, automated calibration techniques make ground-water modeling feasible for a wider variety of projects where tight budgets and a lack of tools may have previously made such modeling inappropriate.     

Radiating Vortices in Geophysical Fluid Dynamics

The dynamics of a single vortex on a beta-plane is discussed in this paper. A barotropic, an equivalent barotropic, one-and-a half and two-layer models are considered. The momentum and energy balances are used to describe the evolution of a vortex. A quasi-stationary balance of the Rossby, Zhukovsky-Kutta forces and the force induced by Rossby-wave radiation, describes the dynamics of the barotropic vortex. A net Coriolis force occurs if the fluid is stratified. The difference between the dynamics of cyclones and anticyclones results directly from the Coriolis force acting on a single vortex in a stratified fluid.All vortices radiate Rossby waves in the quasigeostrophic approximation but intense anticyclones propagate steadily in a one-and-a half layer model. A critical amplitude that bounds radiating and steadily propagating anticyclones is found. Steady propagation of anticyclones in general is impossible in a two-layer fluid due to the radiation of a barotropic Rossby-wave. Some solutions of solitary wave type which are known for a two-layer model, survive owing to wave interference.A single vortex can extract energy from a Rossby wave if synchronism conditions are satisfied. The wave interference again plays a crucial role in this case. The wave interference also determines the energy exchange of vortices located at larger distances. If the distance between the vortices is shorter than the length of the radiated waves, modon may be formed due to a small energy loss.The unbounded monotonic variation of the planetary vorticity is a characteristic feature of a beta-plane approximation. As a result, a single vortex propagates up to a 'rest latitude' where it disappears. The evolution of a single barotropic vortex over bottom topography provides another example of a background vorticity distribution with a local extremum above hills (valleys) or ridges (troughs). Physics of its movement differs from a beta-plane case, but if a vortex lies over broad topography, equations are similar and the evolution of a vortex manifests the same typical features. Particularly, a cyclonic vortex tends to drift to the top of a hill or a ridge. An anticyclonic vortex, on the contrary, slides to the bottom of a valley or a trough.An interaction of a barotropic vortex with a broad mean flow is tractable qualitatively on the basis of previous results. Numerical examples illustrating absorption of a small vortex by a larger one and a vortex movement across the flow, are direct analogies of the vortex evolution over a hill and a ridge, respectively. At the same time, strong influence of strain drastically changes the vortex structure.     

Archaeological investigation by geotomography: structure of the foundation of Yingxian timber pagoda

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Nonparametric method for transmissivity distributions along boreholes

The transmissivities of individual fractures along a borehole are difficult to obtain unless each fracture is tested. To estimate a fracture-transmissivity distribution from section transmissivities, a method was developed based on fixed-interval-length transmissivities and the corresponding number of fractures for each interval. The method is nonparametric and iterative, and the fractures are viewed as two-dimensional features, in which the total transmissivity of a borehole is equal to the sum of individual fracture transmissivities. Initially, a linear a priori assumption of the transmissivity distribution is made, and from this a so-called mean transmissivity function is derived. Subsequently, the mean transmissivity of the Nj fractures within a section, j, of the borehole is estimated, and the same value of the mean transmissivity function represents Nj possible fracture transmissivities from the initial distribution. This is repeated for each borehole section, and, eventually, all fracture transmissivities are sorted to give the next iteration's transmissivity distribution and the corresponding mean transmissivity function. Finally, the distributions converge, yielding a possible fracture-transmissivity distribution. The method was verified for a synthetic data sample and then tested on a sample from a borehole at the Asp? Hard Rock Laboratory, Sweden. For the synthetic data, the method gave a distribution that was fairly close to the original one; for the Asp? data, 15% of the fractures had a transmissivity larger than the measurement limit (1 x 10(-9) m2/sec), and these transmissivities follow a log-normal distribution.     

Geophysical flows under location uncertainty,Part I Random transport and general models

A stochastic flow representation is considered with the Eulerian velocity decomposed between a smooth large scale component and a rough small-scale turbulent component. The latter is specified as a random field uncorrelated in time. Subsequently, the material derivative is modified and leads to a stochastic version of the material derivative to include a drift correction, an inhomogeneous and anisotropic diffusion, and a multiplicative noise. As derived, this stochastic transport exhibits a remarkable energy conservation property for any realizations. As demonstrated, this pivotal operator further provides elegant means to derive stochastic formulations of classical representations of geophysical flow dynamics.