Conventional terrestrial system by VLBI a kinematic approach

The paper examines the potential ofVLBI time delay observables for the establishment and maintenance of a Conventional Terrestrial System (CTS). TheCTS is defined in2-D by the standard epoch positions and velocities of a network of control points located on a spherical reference surface. VLBI time delay observables are sensitive to the rotational motion of theCTS control points with respect to a Conventional Inertial System (CIS) which is represented by a network of radio sources. The motion of a control point with respect to theCIS is partitioned into global and regional components. The global components represent the rotational motion of the sphere with respect to theCIS, while the regional components represent the motion of theCTS points with respect to the sphere.     

Evaluation of sediment contamination in the Red Sea coastal area combining multiple pollution indices and multivariate statistical techniques

In the recent years,the Red Sea coast of Yemen has been severely affected by intensive anthropogenic activities.The current study constitutes a thorough inquiry to evaluate the extent of heavy metals pollution in Yemen's Red Sea coast sediment and identifies the possible sources of pollution.The concentrations of five metals(copper(Cu),zinc(Zn),cadmium(Cd),lead(Pb),and nickel(Ni))collected from nine sites along the Red Sea coast of Yemen were assessed using an atomic absorption spectrophotometer(ASS).Sediment quality indices,such as the sediment quality guidelines(SQGs),potential ecological risk(RI),contamination factor(CF),pollution load index(PLI),geoaccumulation index(Igeo),and modified degree of contamination(mCd)were computed.In addition,multivariate statistical techniques(principal component analysis(PCA),hierarchical cluster analysis,and Pearson's correlation analysis)were applied to identify the potential sources of metals.The mean concentrations of Cu,Zn,Cd,Pb,and Ni were 51.3,61.9,4.02,9.9,and 33.4 mg/kg dry wt,respectively.The spatial distribution revealed that the metals concentrations were high at the middle zone and low southward of Hodeida city.According to the SQGs,the adverse biological effects of metals were occasionally associated with Cu and Cd,frequently associated with Ni,and not expected to occur with Zn and Pb.The RI indicated that the sediment of the studied sites pose low(RI<50)to considerable(100≤RI<200)ecological risk.The mean effect range-median quotient(M-ERM-Q)indicated that the combination of the studied metals had the toxicity probability of 21%at all studied sites.Igeo and CF indicated that the metals concentrations were in the descending order of:Zn>Ni>Pb>Cd>Cu,whereas the PLI and mCd indicated that Ras Isa(Site 5)and Urj village(Site 6)were the most polluted sites.PCA,cluster analysis,and correlation analysis found that Cd,Pb,and Ni mostly originated from anthropogenic sources while Cu and Zn were mainly derived from natural sources.Thus,it is evident that the intensive anthropogenic activities had negative influence on metals accumulation in the sediment of the Red Sea coast of Yemen leading to detrimental effects to the whole ecosystem.These comprehensive findings provide valuable information and data for future monitoring studies regarding heavy metals pollution and sediment quality at the Red Sea coast of Yemen.     

The effect of carbonaceous fines on the cyclic resistance of poorly graded sands

The potential damage to man-made structures associated with earthquake-induced liquefaction has been demonstrated in catastrophic fashion over the past 40–50 years. The phenomenon of liquefaction of relatively clean, poorly graded, sands is well understood. However, the same cannot be said for cases when fine-grained materials are present within the sand matrix. A resolution of what appears in some reported studies as conflicting observations related to the effect of fines on cyclic resistance is of concern, particularly for land reclamation projects and sea fills where the material source is variable and may contain significant levels of fines. The nature of the fines themselves may have a measurable effect on the matrix behavior. The work presented herein explores the effect of silt and clay-size carbonaceous fines on the liquefaction susceptibility of sand. The choice of fines was guided by the conditions associated with the Lebanon coastal reclamation projects, where limestone/marlstone quarry source materials are dominant. The results obtained confirm the significant effect of fines on the cyclic resistance. They also confirm the existence of a limit fines content and a plasticity index threshold and establish their effect on observed behavior.     

Bacterial community and some physico-chemical characteristics in a subtropical mangrove environment in Bahrain

A study of bacterial communities and some physico-chemical parameters of a subtropical mangrove habitat in the Arabian Gulf (Bahrain) was carried out in 1993-1994. Six stations at different parts of the tidal channel were selected for sampling. The mangrove habitat was found to harbor diverse bacterial communities, included among them anoxygenic phototrophs (AP), oxygenic phototrophs (OP), organotrophs (OT), total coliforms (TC), faecal coliforms (FC) and haloalkaliphiles (HA). Spatial and temporal variations in bacterial communities and environmental parameters were found. Each of the OT, AP, TC, and FC were dominant in the innermost stations (S1&S2) and gradually decreased seaward. The HA community on the other hand, was dominant at the seaward stations (S5&S6) and was most likely to have originated from the sea through the tidal flows. Both AP and OT were considered as part of the mangrove native flora, whereas TC and FC were alien and believed to have been introduced through partially treated sewage released at the upstream of the tidal channel. Closely monitoring of the mangrove water revealed succession pattern in bacterial communities. The AP community was predominant from November 1993 to March 1994, succeeded by dominance of OP from June 1994 to October 1994. Both bacterial blooms gave water a pinkish, purple, or green color, respectively. Although OT prevailed during Transitional period between AP and OP eutrophication, it remained comparatively constant (not less than 2 x 10(5)cfu/ml) through other periods. Frequent eutrophication phenomena of OP, which took place in summer and autumn, coincided with increases in water temperature, chlorophyll a, and nutrients (NO(3)(-) and PO(4)(-)). On the other hand, OT and AP were negatively correlated with temperature, salinity and chlorophyll a, but no specific pattern was observed in relation to NO(3)(-) and PO(4)(-). In comparison with seawater, nutrients such as NO(3)(-) and PO(4)(-) were consistently higher in the mangrove habitat. Partially treated sewage and farm drainage canals are proposed to form additional sources of nutrients. Although, the mangrove habitat has been demonstrated to possess self-cleaning properties, data obtained suggest that anthropogenic pollution has a deleterious effect.     

Robust estimation based on energy minimization principles

 It is argued that the tendency of nature to minimize energy may be used as a unifying basis for all robust estimators. Robustness is defined and discussed based on mechanical rather than empirical and abstract tools. This mechanical view of robustness is then extended to design new and useful robust data editors that suppress the outlying content of the contaminated observations. These editors are applied to edit samples of sea-surface heights, gravity observations and reduced global positioning system baselines. Received: 12 July 1997 / Accepted: 8 June 1999     

Epi- and endobiont faunal communities on an Egyptian Mediterranean rocky shore: species composition and their competition for space

The exposed calcareous rocky area of the Abu Qir Headland,east of Alexandria,Egypt which range from coarse grains,through pebbles,cobbles,and boulders to rocky platforms,was significantly colonized by sclerobionts(epibionts and endobionts).The epibiont species diversity was comparatively higher than that of endobionts.Epibiont communities included bryozoans(the anascan-grade cheilostome Bifiustra savartii),serpulid(Hydroides elegans,Spirobranchus cf.tetraceros,Vermiliopsis striaticeps and Protula or Apomatus) and spirorbid(Spirorbis) wormtubes,and balanoid barnacles(Amphibalanus amphitrite,Balanus trigonus,and Perforatus perforatus).The cheilostome bryozoan colonies,which developed extensive sheets,proliferated on the study rocky shore either encrusting the bioeroded basement directly,or encrusting other epilithic taxa,particularly balanoid barnacles and serpulid worms.Encrusters displayed a remarkable marginal competitive interaction(overgrowth and stand-off) for space on the study rocky shore.On the other hand,endobionts were not well represented on the studied rocky shore exposure.It was possible to identify three ichnotaxa:Gastrochaenolites,Maeandropolydora,and Finichnus.The findings documented represent a significant contribution to our knowledge of sclerobionts composition,sequence of their colonization and/or bioero sion,and their mutual relationships on the intertidal rocky shore of the Abu Qir Headland.     

Strategic groundwater resources planning in arid regions

A strategic approach is presented for future groundwater reservoir planning in arid regions where the evaluation of groundwater resources is restricted by scarcity of rainfall, data paucity, restrictive and unrepresentative methodologies, weak economies, almost nonexisting management and optimization programs, frequent groundwater quality variables along short distances, etc. This paper explains the necessary steps in preparing an effective strategic planning program that is expected to provide all the necessary data for identifying alternative solution scenarios especially in arid regions. It is shown on the basis of available scarce data that the risk model of these factors appears as the logarithmic normal probability distribution. The basic decision variables in groundwater storage and recharge planning are furnished with application to Wadi Fatimah in the western central part of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia along the Red Sea coast. The approach given in this paper provides a basic example for future groundwater reservoir strategic use and management studies in the Kingdom in particular and in any part of the arid regions of the world, in general.