The role of climate variation in delta architecture: lessons from analogue modelling

Sequence‐stratigraphic models for fourth to sixth order, glacio‐eustatic sequences based only on relative sea‐level variations result in simplified and potentially false interpretations. Glacio‐eustatic sea‐level variations form only one aspect of cyclic climate variation; other aspects, such as variations in fluvial water discharge, vegetation cover, weathering and sediment supply can lead to variable sediment yield, thus adding complexity to sequence‐stratigraphic patterns normally attributed to sea‐level variations. Analogue flume models show a significant impact of water discharge on the timing and character of sequence boundaries, and on changes in the relative importance of systems tracts, as expressed in sediment volumes. Four deltas, generated under the influence of an identical sea‐level curve, and affected by different water‐discharge cycles were generated in the Eurotank facility: (1) constant discharge; (2) high‐frequency discharge variations (HFD); (3) discharge leading sea level by a quarter phase; (4) discharge lagging sea level by a quarter phase. HFD shift the parasequence stacking pattern consistently but do not alter large‐scale delta architecture. Water‐discharge changes that lead sea‐level changes result in high sediment yield during sea‐level rise and in the poor development of maximum flooding surfaces. Delta‐front erosion during sea‐level fall is expressed by multiple, small channels related to upstream avulsions, and does not result in an incised valley that efficiently routs sediment to the shelf edge. When water‐discharge changes lag sea‐level changes, sediment yield is high during falling sea level and results in rapid progradation during forced regression. Erosion from incised valleys is strong on the proximal delta top and dissipates towards the delta front. The combination of high discharge and sea‐level fall provides the most efficient mode of valley incision and sediment transport to the shelf edge. During sea‐level rise, low water discharge results in sediment starvation and well‐developed maximum flooding surfaces. Water‐discharge variations thus alter sequence‐stratigraphic patterns and provide an alternative explanation to the amplitude of sea‐level fall for generating either type 1 or 2 erosional unconformities.     

Mapping the physiography of Michigan with GIS

Abstract

We present a new physiographic map of Michigan, that is also available interactively, online. Only four, small-scale physiographic maps of Michigan had been previously published. Our mapping project made use of a wide variety of spatial data, in a GIS environment, to visualize and delineate the physical landscape in more detail than has been done previously. We also examined many of the unit boundaries in the field, using a GIS running on a GPS-enabled laptop. Unlike previous physiographic maps, the online version of the map enables users to query the criteria used to define each of the 224 boundaries of its 10 major and 91 minor physiographic units. The interactive nature of the online version of the map is a unique enhancement to physiographic maps and mapping. Our study also provides data on the number and types of criteria used to define each of the 224 unit boundaries within the map. Most of our unit boundaries are based on data derived from 10-m raster elevation data and NRCS soils data, e.g., relief, soil wetness, escarpments, landscape fabric, and parent material characteristics. Data gleaned from NRCS SSURGO county-scale soil maps were a strength of the project. [Key words: Michigan, physiography, landforms, soils, GIS, mapping]     

Namaqualand's climate: Recent historical changes and future scenarios

A brief outline of some issues concerning global climate change research is presented before discussing local-scale changes in Namaqaland's rainfall. Using a gridded data set derived through interpolation of station records, trends in observed rainfall for the period 1950–1999 are discussed. To assess what changes may occur during the 21st century, the downscaled results of six different General Circulation Model projections are presented. The historical trends show some clear spatial patterns, which depict regions of wetting in the central coastal belt and the north-eastern part of the domain, and extensive drying along the escarpment. Reasonably good agreement is shown by the different downscaled projections. These suggest increased late summer convective precipitation in the north-east, but extensive drying along the coast in early and mid winter consistent with the poleward retreat of rain-bearing mid-latitude cyclones.     

Past and future climate variations in the Norwegian Arctic: overview and novel analyses

Sparse stations and serious measuring problems hamper analyses of climatic conditions in the Arctic. This paper presents a discussion of measuring problems in the Arctic and gives an overview of observed past and projected future climate variations in Svalbard and Jan Mayen. Novel analyses of temperature conditions during precipitation and trends in fractions of solid/liquid precipitation at the Arctic weather stations are also outlined. Analyses based on combined and homogenized series from the regular weather stations in the region indicate that the measured annual precipitation has increased by more than 2.5% per decade since the measurements started in the beginning of the 20th century. The annual temperature has increased in Svalbard and Jan Mayen during the latest decades, but the present level is still lower than in the 1930s. Downscaled scenarios for Svalbard Airport indicate a further increase in temperature and precipitation. Analyses based on observations of precipitation types at the regular weather stations demonstrate that the annual fraction of solid precipitation has decreased at all stations during the latest decades. The reduced fraction of solid precipitation implies that the undercatch of the precipitation gauges is reduced. Consequently, part of the observed increase in the annual precipitation is fictitious and is due to a larger part of the "true" precipitation being caught by the gauges. With continued warming in the region, this virtual increase will be measured in addition to an eventual real increase.     

Climate extremes in the United States: recent research by physical geographers

This paper reports our review of research on domestic climate extremes conducted by US physical geographers over the past 15?years. Sections cover extremes in wind, precipitation, lightning, and temperature, as well as derivative climate extremes (droughts, floods, and storm surges). Themes considered include: the spatial and temporal distribution of the climate extreme; its implications for our understanding of the physical processes that produce it; the spatial and temporal distributions of the extreme’s economic and human costs; lessons for assessment, policy, and management; and scale. We conclude that most of the works reviewed inadequately address the human basis of vulnerability to climate extremes, and encourage physical geographers to work with colleagues from the other subfields of geography and the social sciences to develop the holistic understanding of vulnerability needed to effectively adapt to the more extreme climate projected under climate change.     

JAMSTEC-IARC international collaboration enhancing understanding of the Arctic climate system

Collaborations amongst researchers from the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC), Japan and the International Arctic research Center (IARC), University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF), U.S., have been on-going since 1998 and resulted in a great number and magnitude of accomplishments that could not have been achieved without this close partnership. The Arctic represents an important region for Japan, the U.S. and the world, and many opportunities and challenges press for immediate understanding to enable wise decisions and policy making. We have many common interests and our countries face many common problems and goals. Addressing the tremendous scientific challenges of the Arctic requires such massive investment of manpower and resources that sharing efforts, data and working together on expeditions are in our mutual best interests.This issue presents a compilation of selected results on recent analyses conducted in the five-year (2009–2014) research term related to observational studies, model development and remote sensing applications of the Arctic Ocean, adjacent marginal seas, and the surrounding terrestrial regions. All of these studies are intended to provide a better understanding of how individual components and processes interact to form a complex and dynamic arctic system. Through these collaborations, Japanese and UAF Arctic researchers can achieve our goals of developing a quantitative understanding of the Arctic System.     

气候变化研究中若干不确定性的认识问题

气候变化研究已取得重要进展,但很多研究结果存在不确定性。本文选择对气候变化研究有重要意义但已有的研究结果存在不确定性的几个方面进行综述,包括过去两千年气候变化的状况(中世纪暖期和小冰期是否存在、20世纪温暖程度是否为过去千年最大、20世纪增温趋势是否停止)、温室效应(对温室效应机理的不同认识、温室气体排放与气温变化的关系、水汽对温室效应及增温的贡献)、气候模式模拟(模拟与实测结果的比较、模式本身的缺陷)以及2℃阈值(来源及其物理意义、对2℃阈值的不同认识)等问题。气候系统变化的复杂性决定了人类对气候变化问题的认识产生分歧和争议在所难免,当前人类对气候变化的诸多研究结论并非是最终定论,很多问题有待进一步研究;进而对未来一段时期深入开展气候变化研究需要重点关注的5个领域及其主要科学问题进行了探讨。     

Think globally and act locally: Voices of Chinese human geographers in the international arena

With the help of the mapping software Citespace and based on analysis of international human geographers’ journal outputs in terms of countries of residence, institutions, journals and key topics, this article demonstrates Chinese scholars’ contributions to both top and regional journals in the field. The analysis shows that Anglophone geographers have been leading the development of human geography. It also demonstrates that human geographers have taken a more micro and dynamic perspective to explain environmental and social phenomena, rather than a macro and narrative approach. Scholars tend to focus more on daily life, with research topics such as home, food, body and other micro-material matters. The analysis further finds that emotional geography, geography of embodiment, food geography as well as non-representational theory have drawn increasing attention from researchers. People's perceptions of nature have been constructed through the development and negotiation of social relations. As China becomes more visible internationally in the context of a highly globalized and mobile world, increasing numbers of Chinese geographers have become involved in research on human geography. Some representative scholars and institutions, especially those based in Hong Kong, act as academic leaders by articulating their own voices to tell the unique Chinese story internationally through the publication of their research.     

地理科学的价值与地理学者的情怀

本文强调了前辈地理学家提出的关于地理学是介于自然科学和社会科学之间的交叉学科的观点。从中国国家需求及当代国际地理学的发展趋势,从理论与实践的结合上论述了地理科学的学科对象、学科性质及区域性、综合性、知识结构等方面的特点,特别突出地阐述了地理科学与纯自然科学或纯社会科学的诸多不同点。提倡地理学家要十分关注中国的环境变化及带来的严重的可持续发展问题,并发挥综合和交叉研究的优势。此外还指出中国地理学面临着重要的发展机遇,也出现了深刻的危机。     

Some things do change: indigenous rights,geographers and geography in Australia

Using a recent editorial comment in this journal as a focus, this paper reviews the extent to which geography has been implicated in the ‘colonial project’ in Australia. It argues that recent work amongst geographers involved with indigenous Australians reflects a commitment to transcend this colonial past. The paper calls for geographers to work toward a wide‐reaching decolonisation of the discipline, and to develop a better understanding of the contemporary legacies of geography's colonial past.     

On the role of climate in desertification of the Sahel Belt

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气候变化和人类活动在沙漠化过程中相对作用评价综述(英文)

Climate change and human activities are the two kinds of driving forces in desertification,and assessing their relative role in desertification is of great significance to deeply understanding the driving mechanisms and preventing desertification expansion.This paper has systematically reviewed the progress of the researches on assessing the relative role of climate change and human activities in desertification from qualitative,semi-quantitative and quantitative aspects respectively.The authors found that there were still some problems in the previous researches.For example,the subjectivity in assessment was obvious,the assessment cannot be easily repeated,and the assessment and its results were always based on administrative regions and less taken and expressed in a continuous space.According to the progress of previous researches and the works conducted by the authors recently,we put forward a quantitative approach by selecting NPP as a common indicator to measure the relative role of climate change and human activities in desertification and dividing the ecological process of "driving force effect-dynamic response of desertified land" into several scenarios.Meanwhile,validation and scale of assessment should be taken into account when quantitative assessment of the relative role of climate change and human activities in desertification are carried out.     

NPP vulnerability of the potential vegetation of China to climate change in the past and future

Using the Integrated Biosphere Simulator, a dynamic vegetation model, this study initially simulated the net primary productivity (NPP) dynamics of China’s potential vegetation in the past 55 years (1961–2015) and in the future 35 years (2016–2050). Then, taking the NPP of the potential vegetation in average climate conditions during 1986–2005 as the basis for evaluation, this study examined whether the potential vegetation adapts to climate change or not. Meanwhile, the degree of inadaptability was evaluated. Finally, the NPP vulnerability of the potential vegetation was evaluated by synthesizing the frequency and degrees of inadaptability to climate change. In the past 55 years, the NPP of desert ecosystems in the south of the Tianshan Mountains and grassland ecosystems in the north of China and in western Tibetan Plateau was prone to the effect of climate change. The NPP of most forest ecosystems was not prone to the influence of climate change. The low NPP vulnerability to climate change of the evergreen broad-leaved and coniferous forests was observed. Furthermore, the NPP of the desert ecosystems in the north of the Tianshan Mountains and grassland ecosystems in the central and eastern Tibetan Plateau also had low vulnerability to climate change. In the next 35 years, the NPP vulnerability to climate change would reduce the forest–steppe in the Songliao Plain, the deciduous broad-leaved forests in the warm temperate zone, and the alpine steppe in the central and western Tibetan Plateau. The NPP vulnerability would significantly increase of the temperate desert in the Junggar Basin and the alpine desert in the Kunlun Mountains. The NPP vulnerability of the subtropical evergreen broad-leaved forests would also increase. The area of the regions with increased vulnerability would account for 27.5% of China.     

西部干旱区未来气候变化高分辨率预估

利用高分辨率区域气候模式WRF,基于CMIP5计划中MIROC5输出结果,进行了我国高分辨率(30 km)的历史模拟及未来预估。针对我国西部干旱区,在模式验证的基础上分析了该区域未来气温和降水的变化。历史模拟结果显示WRF对我国西部干旱区有较好的模拟能力,模拟结果较MIROC5有明显改进。21世纪西部干旱区将持续增暖,末期的增温幅度明显高于中期。和全国平均相比,西部干旱区21世纪增温幅度高于全国平均水平。空间分布上,年平均气温变化的主要特征是新疆南部增温高于新疆北部,山区的增温高于盆地。气温季节变化主要表现为夏季增温集中在山区,而冬季增温则更多集中在盆地。西部干旱区降水在21世纪总体呈现减少趋势,夏季降水减少更为明显,这和全国平均的降水增加并不一致。空间分布上,降水变化的主要特征是山区降水减少,其中夏季山区降水减少十分明显,而盆地降水则略有增加。     

Emergence of the Canadian Rockies and adjacent plains: A comparison of physiography between end-of-Laramide time and the present day

The landscape of the Canadian Rockies in southern Alberta is not a direct result of constructional processes; that is, the ridges and peaks have not been pushed into the positions in which we see them today. Tectonic activity provided original elevation but not mountains: at the end of Laramide time, what are now the front ranges and foothills of the Rockies comprised a high-elevation upland of relatively low relief. The present mountain physiography is the result of 55–60 million years of post-orogenic differential erosion, in which more resistant rocks have been left at higher elevations than less-resistant rocks.The Canadian Rockies and the foothills are developed in a thin-skinned, thrust-and-fold belt created during the Laramide Orogeny; the adjacent Interior Plains cut across foreland basin sediments derived from the mountains. The mountains currently consist of large parts of ridges of well-indurated Paleozoic and, locally, Proterozoic rock alternating with valleys developed in soft Mesozoic clastic rock. In the foothills, where the soft Mesozoic rock is at the surface, relief is subdued, but ridges of more-resistant sandstone rise above shaley lowlands. The plains are relatively flat but also contain erosional outliers of higher paleo-plains-surfaces.Numerous lines of evidence suggest that the mountains and foothills have lost several kilometers of overburden since the end of the Laramide Orogeny, while the western plains have lost at least 2 km, requiring that the local relief of the mountains and foothills that we see is erosional in origin. Local physiography is adjusted to lithology: the mountains have high relief because the exposed sub-Mesozoic rocks can hold up high, steep slopes, whereas the foothills have low relief because the underlying Cretaceous rocks cannot hold up high, steep slopes. The east-facing escarpment at the mountain front is a fault-line scarp along a low-angle thrust.Mesozoic rocks involved in the deformation originally extended all the way across the thrust and fold belt, and physiography of the belt at the end of Laramide time (60–55 Ma) depended mainly on whether Mesozoic or Paleozoic/Proterozoic rocks were exposed at the surface at that time. A reconstruction using critical-taper theory generally agrees with reconstructions from earlier stratigraphic and paleothermometry studies: what are now the front ranges at the eastern edge of the Rocky Mountains were mostly or perhaps entirely covered with Mesozoic rocks and despite that high elevation had a hilly, not mountainous, character. The main ranges, in the central Rocky Mountains, were in part stripped of Mesozoic cover by then and more mountainous. Treeline was higher then, and the thrust belt may have been largely or entirely vegetated. Generation of modern relief in the front ranges, including the escarpment at the mountain front, had to await stripping of Mesozoic rocks and incision of rivers into harder substrates in post-Laramide time.The Interior Plains are an erosional surface that was cut 1 to 3 km below the aggradational top of the foreland basin sediments. Although some of the present low local relief of the plains results from weakness of underlying Cretaceous/Tertiary rocks, the low relief is probably largely related to the process of denudation.     

黄河下游河床纵剖面形态及其地文学意义

本文通过河床比降和凹度两个指标,研究黄河下游河床纵剖面形态的自动调整作用,结果发现比降和下凹度多年平均值分别为1.28和1.35,偏离均值为1～2%,变化很小,说明黄河下游河床纵剖面以近于平行抬升的形态调整,标志着河道已进入了老年期发育阶段。对于研究河道发育史和老年期河道的特点,以及在治河上均有重要的理论和现实意义     

Impacts of future climate change on agroclimatic resources in Northeast China

In this study, the spatial distribution and changing trends of agricultural heat and precipitation resources in Northeast China were analyzed to explore the impacts of future climate changes on agroclimatic resources in the region. This research is based on the output meteorological data from the regional climate model system for Northeast China from 2005 to 2099, under low and high radiative forcing scenarios RCP4.5 (low emission scenario) and RCP8.5 (high emission scenario) as proposed in IPCC AR5. Model outputs under the baseline scenario, and RCP4.5 and RCP8.5 scenarios were assimilated with observed data from 91 meteorological stations in Northeast China from 1961 to 2010 to perform the analyses. The results indicate that: (1) The spatial distribution of temperature decreases from south to north, and the temperature is projected to increase in all regions, especially under a high emission scenario. The average annual temperature under the baseline scenario is 7.70°C, and the average annual temperatures under RCP4.5 and RCP8.5 are 9.67°C and 10.66°C, respectively. Other agricultural heat resources change in accordance with temperature changes. Specifically, the first day with temperatures ≥10°C arrives 3 to 4 d earlier, the first frost date is delayed by 2 to 6 d, and the duration of the growing season is lengthened by 4 to 10 d, and the accumulated temperature increases by 400 to 700°C·d. Water resources exhibit slight but not significant increases. (2) While the historical temperature increase rate is 0.35°C/10a, the rate of future temperature increase is the highest under the RCP8.5 scenario at 0.48°C/10a, compared to 0.19°C/10a under the RCP4.5 scenario. In the later part of this century, the trend of temperature increase is significantly faster under the RCP8.5 scenario than under the RCP4.5 scenario, with faster increases in the northern region. Other agricultural heat resources exhibit similar trends as temperature, but with different specific spatial distributions. Precipitation in the growing season generally shows an increasing but insignificant trend in the future, with relatively large yearly fluctuations. Precipitation in the eastern region is projected to increase, while a decrease is expected in the western region. The future climate in Northeast China will change towards higher temperature and humidity. The heat resource will increase globally, however its disparity with the change in precipitation may negatively affect agricultural activities.     

Working a fraction and making a fraction work: a rough guide for geographers in the academy

Little is known about the issues facing geographers working on fractional appointments in higher education institutions in the UK. This paper draws on a survey of UK geography departments and personal experiences to explore some of that territory for the first time. The purpose is both to set the agenda for institutional policy issues and to provide some immediate points of reflection for staff intending to take up fractional work. We consider the place of fractional working in the dominant discourses around paid work, problems of workload division and the impact on professional standing (including the RAE). We suggest that while personal 'life' reasons for fractional working are often positive, fractional workers in the academy risk professional marginalization.     

青藏高原冷暖气候变化趋势的R/S分析及Hurst指数试验研究

利用青藏高原1953-2002年77个气象台站的常规地面观测资料,选择不同类型变化趋势的部分台站。选取年平均气温(■)、年平均最低气温(min)、年平均最高气温(■max)、年极端最低气温(tmin)、年极端最高气温(Tmax)5项气候要素,运用R/S分析法研究并预测了青藏高原未来冷暖气候变化趋势,研究表明:青藏高原未来冷暖气候变化趋势与过去50年以来的变化有着很好的自相似性。今后青藏高原总体将继续变暖,用分形理论的原理,设计了一种Hurst指数试验。对青藏高原北部和南部的年平均气温、年平均最低气温进行了试验研究。结果表明:依据青藏高原北部和南部的区域平均气候倾向率,未来10年,■将升高0.2~0.4℃;min将升高0.3~0.5℃;min将升高0.7~0.8℃;■max将升高0.3~0.4℃;■max将升高0.4~0.6℃。其中年平均气温、年平均最低气温升高趋势的持续性很强,期间没有转折,没有冷暖变化的突变点。