SOME ASPECTS OF THE INTERACTION OF BLOWING SNOW WITH THE ATMOSPHERIC BOUNDARY LAYER

Several possible effects of blowing snow on the atmospheric boundary layer are investigated, mostly within the general framework of the Prairie Blowing Snow Model (PBSM). The processes of snow saltation and suspension are first described. Variations to the drift density profile are tested and the effects of stratification and density variation calculations are evaluated. Despite high density gradients of blowing snow, stratification effects on turbulence and the velocity profiles can generally be neglected. However, with saltating or suspended snow in a constant shear stress layer, part of the shear stress is carried by the particles. A highly simplified, single-phase approach, based on the density variation of the air–snow mixture coupled to a simple turbulent stress–strain relationship, is used to illustrate this. Sublimation rates in a column of blowing snow are calculated using the PBSM and results are compared with those obtained with a modified formulation which incorporates a spectrum of sublimating particles of varying sizes at each height in a steady-state surface boundary layer and different specifications of the ventilation velocity.     

深反射地震揭示喜马拉雅地区地壳上地幔的复杂结构

报告了中、美两国在喜马拉雅山区进行的第一次深反射地震试验的结果．试验剖面南起喜马拉雅山山脊南亚东县的帕里镇,向北穿过喜马拉雅山脊的荡拉,到达康马南的萨马达．剖面长约１００ｋｍ．共中心点（ＣＭＰ）叠加剖面上显示出：１．在地壳中部有一强反射带,向北缓倾斜下去,延长达１００ｋｍ以上．它可能代表了一个活动的逆冲断裂或是一条巨大的拆离带,印度地壳整体或下地壳沿此拆离层俯冲到藏南之下．２．上部地壳的反射很丰富,显示了上地壳存在着大规模的叠瓦状结构．３．下地壳的反射同相轴呈现短而有规律的分布,显示了塑性流变特征．４．在测线南部莫霍反射明显,深度达７２－７５ｋｍ．发现南部有双莫霍层的存在．５．试验中还取得莫霍层下面３２,３８,４８ｓ等双程走时的多条反射,向北倾斜,反射同相轴延续较长,信息丰富,反映了上地幔的成层结构和变形特征．这些结果对印度大陆地壳整体或其下地壳俯冲到藏南特提斯喜马拉雅地壳之下,并导致西藏南端地壳增厚的观点,给予了实质性的支持．     

Response of a circular foundation on a uniform half-space to elastic waves

An alternative technique to obtain the dynamic response of a massless rigid circular foundation resting on a uniform elastic half-space when subjected to harmonic plane waves is presented. The technique relies on the use of an integral representation involving the free-field ground motion and the contact tractions obtained in the course of calculating the dynamic force–displacement relationship of the foundation for external forces. Tables listing the translational and rotational components of the response of the foundation for non-vertically incident SH, P, SV and Rayleigh waves are presented.     

Mass motions in a heated flare filament

Energy transport in a hot flare plasma is examined with particular reference to the influence of fluid motion. On the basis of dimensional considerations the dynamical timescale of the flare plasma is shown to be comparable to the timescale for energy loss by conduction and radiation. It is argued that mass motion is likely to have a profound influence on the evolution of the flare.The detailed response of a flare filament to a localized injection of energy is then analyzed. Radiative, conductive and all dynamical terms are included in the energy equation. Apart from greatly enhancing the rate of propagation of the thermal disturbance through space, mass motion is found to be significant in transferring energy through the moving fluid.Finally the predicted thermal structure is discussed and it is concluded that the presence of mass motions in the flare may be inferred from the form of the soft X-ray differential emission measure.     

Solar wind induction in Mercury: Constraints on the formation of a magnetosphere

The discovery of Mercury's magnetosphere by Mariner 10 was surprising since the conventional view of regenerative planetary dynamos had been that the spin requirement would likely have been in excess of the observed spin rate of Mercury. Also internal fluid motions were not expected to be sufficiently large. This paper explores the alternative model of the formation of Mercury's magnetosphere via electromagnetic induction forced by the solar wind. It is shown, however, that the constraints are so severe as to limit severely the applicability of such a model. Although induction is easily observed on the Moon, the modification of the magnetic boundary condition associated with a plasma magnetosphere on Mercury rules out its formation via induction except for interplanetary driving fields which are decreasing in amplitude. That model is explored but retains the difficulty that induced magnetospheres tend to be of small radial and temporal extent compared to that inferred by Ness et al. for Mercury.     

Surface heat fluxes and subsurface heat content at a site over the southeastern Bering Sea shelf, May–July 1996

Observations from a surface mooring, in a weak-flow regime over the southeastern Bering Sea shelf, were used to derive surface heat fluxes for the period May–July 1996. Changes in heat content of the water column also were determined from subsurface temperature measurements. Agreement of net surface heat flux and change in heat content was within 2%. This result provides additional evidence that heat advection and diffusion are small in this region.     

Predicting shoreline evolution on a centennial scale using the example of the vistula (Baltic) spit

The proposed algorithm comprises three main steps. The first step is the evaluation of the sediment transport and budget. It was shown that the root segment of the Vistula Spit is dominated by eastward longshore sediment transport (up to 50 thousand m³/year). Over the rest of the spit, the shoreline??s orientation causes westward sediment transport (more than 100 thousand m³/year). The gradients of the longshore and cross shore sediment transport become the major contributors to the overall sediment balance. The only exception is the northeastern tip of the spit due to the appreciable imbalance of the sediment budget (13 m³m^?1 yr^?1). The second step in the prediction modeling is the estimation of the potential sea-level changes during the 21st century. The third step involves modeling of the shoreline??s behavior using the SPELT model [6, 7, 8]. In the most likely scenario, the rate of the recession is predicted to be about 0.3 m/year in 2010?C2050 and will increase to 0.4 m/year in 2050?C2100. The sand deficit, other than the sea-level rise, will be a key factor in the control of the shoreline??s evolution at the northeastern tip of the spit, and the amount of recession will range from 160 to 200 m in 2010?C2100.