Numerical prediction experiment on Typhoon Maggie (9903)

I~IOXTyphoon is a severe and diSaStrous weather phenomenon that affeCts the southeaSt COaStsregion of China. It causes Serious lOSS for the social eCOnondc development as well as the life andproperties Of PeOPle. Therefore, the enhancement to study on the artifice of monitoring, Prediction and public services of typhoon is an i~nent requirement for gove~t and Public.The concern is also a taSk of great Urgency to advanCe meteorolQgical sciences.Starting from the 1980' s, as the deve…     

A model of the gravitational field of Amalthea

Utilizing the topographic model of Jovian moon Amalthea (Stooke, 1994) and supposing that its mass density is constant we derived its basic geometrical and dynamical characteristics. For calculations the harmonic model of topography of the degree and order 18 was selected. The model appears to fit the entire surface to a mean accuracy of a few hundred meters, except in the regions localized around longitudes 0° and 180°. On the basis of the harmonic expansion of the topography we estimated the volume (V = 2.43 ± 0.02 km³) and the mean radius of topographyr ₀ = (79.7 ± 0.2) km. Generalized moments of inertia up to the order 2, principal moments of inertia and orientation of the principal axes with respect to the original reference frame were also calculated. The results show that although Amalthea has extremely irregular shape it may be treated dynamically as an almost symmetric body (B C). Finally, the set of the Stokes coefficients up to the degree and order 9 was evaluated. The results are verified by direct numerical integration.     

Seasonal and interannual variability of the planktic foraminiferal flux in the vicinity of the Azores Current

Planktic foraminiferal (PF) flux and faunal composition from three sediment trap time series of 2002–2004 in the northeastern Atlantic show pronounced year-to-year variations despite similar sea surface temperature (SST). The averaged fauna of the in 2002/2003 is dominated by the species Globigerinita glutinata, whereas in 2003/2004 the averaged fauna is dominated by Globigerinoides ruber. We show that PF species respond primarily to productivity, triggered by the seasonal dynamics of vertical stratification of the upper water column. Multivariate statistical analysis reveals three distinct species groups, linked to bulk particle flux, to chlorophyll concentrations and to summer/fall oligotrophy with high SST and stratification. We speculate that the distinct nutrition strategies of strictly asymbiontic, facultatively symbiontic, and symbiontic species may play a key role in explaining their abundances and temporal succession. Advection of water masses within the Azores Current and species expatriation result in a highly diverse PF assemblage. The Azores Frontal Zone may have influenced the trap site in 2002, indicated by subsurface water cooling, by highest PF flux and high flux of the deep-dwelling species Globorotalia scitula. Similarity analyses with core top samples from the global ocean including 746 sites from the Atlantic suggest that the trap faunas have only poor analogs in the surface sediments. These differences have to be taken into account when estimating past oceanic properties from sediment PF data in the eastern subtropical North Atlantic.     

Differential calibration of seismometers for measurement of rotation and strain

A method of correcting the seismometers’ responses discrepancy for differential measurements of strains and rotations in the seismic far field is proposed. The method concerns differential calibration of the whole seismometers’ array by electric current. A model of corrective filtering of the obtained differential signals in the Z domain is given. Two methods of the filter parameters’ estimation are introduced; they are based on the seismometers response to the calibration. A practical test of the methods — an analysis of a recorded seismic event — is added. Significant reduction of differences between simultaneous seismic recordings was obtained, which is interpreted as cleaning of differential signal from spurious elements.     

建立省级数字高程模型(DEM)的关键技术——以江苏省为例

文章以江苏省的DEM制作为例,介绍利用ARCINFO、ARCVIEW软件生成DEM的全过程中的关键技术。应用结果表明,可以快速查找出采编地形图信息过程中的错误,建立的DEM精度较高,更适合于水土流失的定量监测,显示了该技术方法的可行性。     

Modeling crack propagation path of anisotropic rocks using boundary element method

In a cracked material, the stress intensity factors (SIFs) at the crack tips, which govern the crack propagation and are associated with the strength of the material, are strongly affected by the crack inclination angle and the orientation with respect to the principal direction of anisotropy. In this paper, a formulation of the boundary element method (BEM), based on the relative displacements of the crack tip, is used to determine the mixed‐mode SIFs of isotropic and anisotropic rocks. Numerical examples of the application of the formulation for different crack inclination angles, crack lengths, and degree of material anisotropy are presented. Furthermore, the BEM formulation combined with the maximum circumferential stress criterion is adopted to predict the crack initiation angles and simulate the crack propagation paths. The propagation path in cracked straight through Brazilian disc specimen is numerically predicted and the results of numerical and experimental data compared with the actual laboratory observations. Good agreement is found between the two approaches. The proposed BEM formulation is therefore suitable to simulate the process of crack propagation. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

New model simulations of the global atmospheric electric circuit driven by thunderstorms and electrified shower clouds: The roles of lightning and sprites

Several processes acting below, in and above thunderstorms and in electrified shower clouds drive upward currents which close through the global atmospheric electric circuit. These are all simulated in a novel way using the software package PSpice. A moderate negative cloud-to-ground lightning discharge from the base of a thunderstorm increases the ionospheric potential above the thundercloud by 0.0013%. Assuming the ionosphere to be an equipotential surface, this discharge increases the current flowing in the global circuit and the fair-weather electric field also by 0.0013%. A moderate positive cloud-to-ground lightning discharge from the bottom of a thunderstorm decreases the ionospheric potential by 0.014%. Such a discharge may trigger a sprite, causing the ionospheric potential to decrease by . The time scales for the recovery of the ionospheric potential are shown to be , which is of the same order as the CR time constant for the global circuit. Knowing the global average rate of lightning discharges, it is found that negative cloud-to-ground discharges increase the ionospheric potential by only 4%, and that positive cloud-to-ground discharges reduce it by 3%. Thus, overall, lightning contributes only 1%—an almost insignificant proportion—to maintaining the high potential of the ionosphere. It is concluded that the net upward current to the ionosphere due to lightning is only . Further, it is concluded that conduction and convection currents associated with “batteries” within thunderclouds and electrified shower clouds contribute essentially equally ( each) to maintaining the ionospheric potential.