Estimation of evaporation rates over the Arabian Sea from satellite data

Utilizing both the SAMIR brightness temperatures of Bhaskara II and GOSSTCOMP charts of NOAA satellite series, the evaporation rates over the Arabian Sea for June 1982 are estimated through the bulk aerodynamic method. The spatial distribution of evaporation rates estimated from the satellite data sets coincides well with those obtained from ship observations as well as from climatological data. The accuracy in the estimation of evaporation rates has considerably been improved after the removal of bias in sea surface temperature and is about ±0·8 mm/day.     

Stratification and convection over Arabian Sea during monsoon 1979 from satellite data

From the temperature and moisture retrievals from satellites, two types of indices were derived: one indicating suppression of convection and the other indicating organized deep convection. Sea surface skin temperature and equivalent potential temperatures up to 500 mbar level of the atmosphere, derived from TIROS-N satellite products, are the basis of the two indices. The maps of these indices for various phases of 1979 monsoon are compared with percentage cloudiness, a product also available from TIROS-N satellite observations. Despite the various limitations of satellite soundings, it is shown that these satellite-derived indices can be used to indicate the strengths of atmospheric convection and inversion over the oceans.     

Monitoring of Dead Sea water surface variation using multi-temporal satellite data and GIS

Remote sensing (RS) and geographic information systems (GIS) are very useful for environmental-related studies, particularly in the field of surface water studies such as monitoring of lakes. The Dead Sea is exposed to very high evaporating process with considerable scarcity of water sources, thus leading to a remarkable shrinkage in its water surface area. The lake suffers from dry out due to the negative balance of water cycle during the previous four decades. This paper discusses the application of RS, GIS, and Global Positioning System to estimate the lowering and the shrinkage of Dead Sea water surface over the period 1810–2005. A set of multi-temporal remote sensing images were collected and processed to show the lakes aerial extend shrinkage from 1973 up to 2004. Remote sensing data were used to extract spatial information and to compute the surface areas for Dead Sea for various years. The current study aims at estimating the fluctuation of Dead Sea level over the study period with special emphasis on the environmental impact assessment that includes the degradation level of the Dead Sea. The results indicated that there is a decrease of 20 m in the level of the Dead Sea that has occurred during the study period. Further, the results showed that the water surface area of the Dead Sea has shrunk from 934.26 km² in 1973 to 640.62 km² in 2004.     

Study of land surface temperature and spectral emissivity using multi-sensor satellite data

In this study, an attempt has been made to estimate land surface temperatures (LST) and spectral emissivities over a hard rock terrain using multi-sensor satellite data. The study area, of about 6000 km², is a part of Singhbhum-Orissa craton situated in the eastern part of India. TIR data from ASTER, MODIS and Landsat ETM+ have been used in the present study. Telatemp Model AG-42D Portable Infrared Thermometer was used for ground measurements to validate the results derived from satellite (MODIS/ASTER) data. LSTs derived using Landsat ETM+ data of two different dates have been compared with the satellite data (ASTER and MODIS) of those two dates. Various techniques, viz., temperature and emissivity separation (TES) algorithm, gray body adjustment approach in TES algorithm, Split-Window algorithms and Single Channel algorithm along with NDVI based emissivity approach have been used. LSTs derived from bands 31 and 32 of MODIS data using Split-Window algorithms with higher viewing angle (50°) (LST1 and LST2) are found to have closer agreement with ground temperature measurements (ground LST) over waterbody, Dalma forest and Simlipal forest, than that derived from ASTER data (TES with AST 13). However, over agriculture land, there is some uncertainty and difference between the measured and the estimated LSTs for both validation dates for all the derived LSTs. LST obtained using Single Channel algorithm with NDVI based emissivity method in channel 13 of ASTER data has yielded closer agreement with ground measurements recorded over vegetation and mixed lands of low spectral contrast. LST results obtained with TIR band 6 of Landsat ETM+ using Single Channel algorithm show close agreement over Dalma forest, Simlipal forest and waterbody with LSTs obtained using MODIS and ASTER data for a different date. Comparison of LSTs shows good agreement with ground measurements in thermally homogeneous area. However, results in agriculture area with less homogeneity show difference of LST up to 2°C. The results of the present study indicate that continuous monitoring of LST and emissivity can be undertaken with the aid of multi-sensor satellite data over a thermally homogeneous region.     

夏季黑河流域蒸散发量卫星遥感估算研究

依据空气动力学方法和蒸散发量时间尺度扩展方案,利用MODIS资料和气象资料,计算中国西北内陆河黑河流域复杂地形下,2004年夏季7月蒸散发量空间分布及总量。利用Landsat-5TM资料对比分析发现,估算地表水热传输过程时,采用高分辨率遥感资料的估算结果受下垫面非均匀性影响程度,明显小于采用中分辨率资料。通过"金塔实验"湍流观测资料验证表明,利用高分辨率资料估算日蒸散发量的相对误差在10%以内。对月蒸散发量计算分析表明,黑河流域海拔2000m以上祁连山区,7月平均蒸散发量是海拔2000m以下山前地区的2.2倍,而山前平原区绿洲(NDVI>0.10区域)平均蒸散发量又是荒漠戈壁地区的12.3倍。因此,流域中下游绿洲地区特别是农业灌溉区是夏季主要水资源消耗区。     

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.     

Holocene sea-surface temperature variability in the Chilean fjord region

Here we provide three new Holocene (11–0 cal ka BP) alkenone-derived sea surface temperature (SST) records from the southernmost Chilean fjord region (50–53°S). SST estimates may be biased towards summer temperature in this region, as revealed by a large set of surface sediments. The Holocene records show consistently warmer than present-day SSTs except for the past ~ 0.6 cal ka BP. However, they do not exhibit an early Holocene temperature optimum as registered further north off Chile and in Antarctica. This may have resulted from a combination of factors including decreased inflow of warmer open marine waters due to lower sea-level stands, enhanced advection of colder and fresher inner fjord waters, and stronger westerly winds. During the mid-Holocene, pronounced short-term variations of up to 2.5°C and a cooling centered at ~ 5 cal ka BP, which coincides with the first Neoglacial glacier advance in the Southern Andes, are recorded. The latest Holocene is characterized by two pronounced cold events centered at ~ 0.6 and 0.25 cal ka BP, i.e., during the Little Ice Age. These cold events have lower amplitudes in the offshore records, suggesting an amplification of the SST signal in the inner fjords.     

用卫星资料反演中国西北地区东部蒸散量的遥感模型

根据定西干旱气象与生态环境试验基地的麦田微气象观测和研究区的124个气象站常规资料,结合NOAA-16/AVHRR的资料,采用地表能量平衡算法的卫星遥感模型估算了中国西北地区东部4～8月的日蒸散量及其区域分布,并按气候和土地利用类型分别统计灌溉农田、干旱草地、冬春小麦农田、针阔混合林、常绿林和沼泽草甸等不同地表的蒸散量平均值和标准差,揭示了作物不同生育期自南到北由湿润的常绿林区至半干旱雨养农田直到干旱的荒漠地带的蒸散递减的分布特征.模型探索了卫星遥感无法得到近地层气温的难点,从而提高计算精度.经试验区54站蒸发皿推算的日蒸散量检验,相对误差为16.6%,与定西用LI500型CO₂/H₂O通量仪实测的日蒸散量误差仅16.2%.结果表明计算的蒸散量与实测值在整个试验区内有良好的一致性.     

东地中海黎凡特盆地油气勘探潜力分析

地中海海域油气储量规模大,但分布不均,可采储量主要分布在地中海中部和东部地区。其中,位于东地中海沿岸的黎凡特盆地近年来陆续发现了多个大油气田,资源量巨大,吸引了国内外学者的广泛关注。但黎凡特盆地存在未来勘探方向不明确等问题,因此本文基于该区域油气资源概况、盆地构造、沉积、成藏组合等的研究,对未来勘探有利区进行了预测。本文认为以色列深水区中生界砂岩、碳酸盐岩及古近系碎屑岩体系等均具有一定的勘探潜力,可作为未来勘探开发的重点区域。     

Simulation of land use dynamics and impact on land surface temperature using satellite data

GeoJournal - Increasing of global average surface temperature naturally leading to major problems as global warming, which has typically attracted the interest of multinational organizations, civil...     

东地中海黎凡特盆地油气勘探潜力分析

地中海海域油气储量规模大,但分布不均,可采储量主要分布在地中海中部和东部地区。其中,位于东地中海沿岸的黎凡特盆地近年来陆续发现了多个大油气田,资源量巨大,吸引了国内外学者的广泛关注。但黎凡特盆地存在未来勘探方向不明确等问题,因此本文基于该区域油气资源概况、盆地构造、沉积、成藏组合等的研究,对未来勘探有利区进行了预测。本文认为以色列深水区中生界砂岩、碳酸盐岩及古近系碎屑岩体系等均具有一定的勘探潜力,可作为未来勘探开发的重点区域。     

Tsunami hazard in the Eastern Mediterranean: strong earthquakes and tsunamis in Cyprus and the Levantine Sea

A modern tsunami catalogue has been compiled for the region of Cyprus-Levantine Sea in which 24 certain or possible local tsunamis are listed from antiquity up to the present time, while six regional tsunamis, generated in the Hellenic arc, are documented which affected the region. Another set of 13 doubtful events not included in the catalogue are discussed. Tsunami intensities k and K were re-evaluated using the classic 6-grade and the new 12-grade intensity scales, respectively. The strongest tsunamis reported in the region of interest are those of 551 AD, 749, 1068, 1201, 1222, 1546 and 1759, all occurring along the Levantine coast from Gaza northward, with the exception of the 1222 wave which occurred in the Cyprean arc. The causative earthquakes, however, occur on land and are associated with the left-lateral strike-slip Levantine rift and, as such, remain unexplained. In this paper we speculate on the mechanism of these events. A second tsunami zone follows the Cyprean arc, where the situation of subaqueous seismogenic sources favours the generation of tsunamis by co-seismic fault displacements. Submarine or coastal earth slumping, however, may be an additional tsunamigenic component. Based on historical data, the average tsunami recurrence in the Cyprus-Levantine Sea region is roughly estimated to be around 30 years, 120 years and 375 years for moderate (k/K ≥ 2/3), strong (k/K ≥ 3/5) and very strong (k/K ≥ 5/8) events, respectively. The rate of tsunami occurrence equals 0.033, 8.3 × 10⁻³ and 2.7 × 10⁻³ events/year for intensity k/K ≥ 2/3, 3/5 and 5/8, respectively. For a Poissonian (random) process the probabilities of observing at least one moderate, strong or very strong tsunami are 0.28, 0.01 and 3 × 10⁻³ within 1 year, 0.81, 0.34 and 0.13 within 50 years and 0.96, 0.56 and 0.24 within 100 years, respectively. The tsunami potential in the Cyprus-Levantine Sea area is low relative to other Mediterranean tsunamigenic regions. However, the destructiveness of some historical events indicates the need to evaluate tsunami hazard by all available means. In addition, remote tsunamigenic sources, such as those of 1303 and 1481 in the eastern Hellenic arc, are able to threaten the coasts of the Cyprus-Levantine region and, therefore, such regional tsunamis should be taken into account in the evaluation of the tsunami risk of the region.     

中国南海卫星重力数据Butterworth滤波处理

通过对重力模型数据进行Butterworth滤波处理,发现该方法对高频噪声具有很好的滤波效果。对Geosat和ERS—1卫星提供的重力数据进行了网格化和Butterworth滤波处理,得到中国南海自由空气重力异常值为-42~89 m Gal。经与GRACE卫星提供的数据进行比较,发现该方法得到的结果具有更好的精度和分辨率。     

Medium-range forecast of cyclogenesis over North Indian Ocean with multilayer perceptron model using satellite data

An attempt is made in this study to develop a model to forecast the cyclonic depressions leading to cyclonic storms over North Indian Ocean (NIO) with 3 days lead time. A multilayer perceptron (MLP) model is developed for the purpose and the forecast quality of the model is compared with other neural network and multiple linear regression models to assess the forecast skill and performances of the MLP model. The input matrix of the model is prepared with the data of cloud coverage, cloud top temperature, cloud top pressure, cloud optical depth, cloud water path collected from remotely sensed moderate resolution imaging spectro-radiometer (MODIS), and sea surface temperature. The input data are collected 3 days before the cyclogenesis over NIO. The target output is the central pressure, pressure drop, wind speed, and sea surface temperature associated with cyclogenesis over NIO. The models are trained with the data and records from 1998 to 2008. The result of the study reveals that the forecast error with MLP model varies between 0 and 7.2 % for target outputs. The errors with MLP are less than radial basis function network, generalized regression neural network, linear neural network where the errors vary between 0 and 8.4 %, 0.3 and 24.8 %, and 0.3 and 32.4 %, respectively. The forecast with conventional statistical multiple linear regression model, on the other hand, generates error values between 15.9 and 32.4 %. The performances of the models are validated for the cyclonic storms of 2009, 2010, and 2011. The forecast errors with MLP model during validation are also observed to be minimum.     

Tsunamigenic zones in the Mediterranean Sea

A list of 300 tsunamis and similar phenomena known in the Mediterranean is given. Data reliability and wave intensity are estimated; mechanisms of tsunami generation are indicated and data from literature sources on the coordinates and magnitudes of tsunamigenic earthquakes are cited. Eighteen zones of excitation and manifestation of tsunamis are identified which can be integrated into four groups with respect to the recurrence period and maximum intensity of the tsunamis. The strongest tsunamis are excited in the Aegean Sea, and the Hellenic and Calabrian island arcs. The focal depth of the earthquake-generating tsunamis in the Mediterranean is, on average, less than that in the Pacific. Correspondingly, the magnitude of tsunamigenic earthquakes is lower. According to preliminary estimates, the Mediterranean tsunamis attenuate with distance more rapidly than do those in the Pacific Ocean.     

Geoid model in the Western Mediterranean Sea

In this work a geoid model is presented over the Western Mediterranean area. It has been computed using marine and terrestrial gravimetric data. Differences between results including several kinds of data are also studied. Altimetric data from a year of ERS-1 mission are used to test the precision of the results, overall close to the coastal line. A first approximation to the sea surface topography in the area is made with both results: altimetric mean sea surface and gravimetric geoid.     

A quantitative reconstruction of organic matter and nutrient diagenesis in Mediterranean Sea sediments over the Holocene

A multicomponent diagenetic model was developed and applied to reconstruct the conditions under which the most recent sapropel, S1, was deposited in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Simulations demonstrate that bottom waters must have been anoxic and sulphidic during the formation of S1 and that organic matter deposition was approximately three times higher than at present. Nevertheless, most present day sediment and pore water profiles — with the exception of pyrite, iron oxyhydroxides, iron-bound phosphorus and phosphate — can be reproduced under a wide range of redox conditions during formation of S1 by varying the depositional flux of organic carbon. As a result, paleoredox indicators (e.g., C_org:S ratio, C_org:P_org ratio, trace metals) are needed when assessing the contribution of oxygen-depletion and enhanced primary production to the formation of organic-rich layers in the geological record. Furthermore, simulations show that the organic carbon concentration in sediments is a direct proxy for export production under anoxic bottom waters.The model is also used to examine the post-depositional alteration of the organic-rich layer focussing on nitrogen, phosphorus, and organic carbon dynamics. After sapropel formation, remineralisation is dominated by aerobic respiration at a rate that is inversely proportional to the time since bottom waters became oxic once again. A sensitivity analysis was undertaken to identify the most pertinent parameters in regulating the oxidation of sapropels, demonstrating that variations in sedimentation rate, depositional flux of organic carbon during sapropel formation, bottom water oxygen concentration, and porosity have the largest impact. Simulations reveal that sedimentary nutrient cycling was markedly different during the formation of S1, as well as after reoxygenation of bottom waters. Accumulation of organic nitrogen in sediments doubled during sapropel deposition, representing a significant nitrogen sink. Following reventilation of deep waters, N₂ production by denitrification was almost 12 times greater than present day values. Phosphorus cycling also exhibits a strong redox sensitivity. The benthic efflux of phosphate was up to 3.5 times higher during the formation of S1 than at present due to elevated depositional fluxes of organic matter coupled with enhanced remineralisation of organic phosphorus. Reoxygenation of bottom waters leads to a large phosphate pulse to the water column that declines rapidly with time due to rapid oxidation of organic material. The oxidation of pyrite at the redox front forms iron oxyhydroxides that bind phosphorus and, thus, attenuate the benthic phosphate efflux. These results underscore the contrasting effects of oxygen-depletion on sedimentary nitrogen and phosphorus cycling. The simulations also confirm that the current conceptual paradigm of sapropel formation and oxidation is valid and quantitatively coherent.     

基于随机森林算法的青藏高原AMSR2被动微波雪深反演

青藏高原因其复杂的地形地势和和积雪分布使得多种雪深算法未达到理想的精度。基于新一代被动微波数据AMSR2（Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer 2）, 应用随机森林算法（Random Forest, RF）将亮温（Brightness Temperature, BT）和亮温差（Brightness Temperature Difference, BTD）作为参数输入, 并将高程和纬度参数引入雪深反演模型中, 经过模拟退火算法进行有效反演因子筛选, 构建了基于随机森林算法的青藏高原雪深反演模型。结果表明： 与AMSR2全球雪深产品相比, 随机森林算法的拟合优度（R²）由0.41提升至0.60, 均方根误差（Root Mean Square Error, RMSE）由7.36 cm降至4.88 cm, 偏差（BIAS）由3.24 cm减小至-0.16 cm, 随机森林雪深反演模型在青藏高原的精度更高; 青藏高原平均海拔超过4 000 m, 当海拔大于青藏高原平均海拔时, 随机森林算法的反演效果最差, 但RMSE仅为3.78 cm, BIAS仅为-0.09 cm; 高原南部（25° ~ 30° N）因其复杂的地势和相对较少的气象站点使得反演效果较差, RMSE为5.94 cm, BIAS为-0.39 cm; 青藏高原的主要土地覆盖类型为草地, 随机森林算法在草地的RMSE约为3 cm, BIAS接近0 cm。