Simulating the moderating effect of a lake on downwind temperatures

A steady-state, two-dimensional numerical model is used to simulate air temperatures and humidity downwind of a lake at night. Thermal effects of the lake were modelled for the case of moderate and low surface winds under the cold-air advective conditions that occur following the passage of a cold front. Surface temperatures were found to be in good agreement with observations. A comparison of model results with thermal imagery indicated the model successfully predicts the downwind distance for which thermal effects due to the lake are significant.     

Assimilating data into open ocean tidal models

The problem of deriving tidal fields from observations by reason of incompleteness and imperfectness of every data set practically available has an infinitely large number of allowable solutions fitting the data within measurement errors and hence can be treated as ill-posed. Therefore, interpolating the data always relies on some a priori assumptions concerning the tides, which provide a rule of sampling or, in other words, a regularization of the ill-posed problem. Data assimilation procedures used in large scale tide modeling are viewed in a common mathematical framework as such regularizations. It is shown that they all (basis functions expansion, parameter estimation, nudging, objective analysis, general inversion, and extended general inversion), including those (objective analysis and general inversion) originally formulated in stochastic terms, may be considered as utilizations of one of the three general methods suggested by the theory of ill-posed problems. The problem of grid refinement critical for inverse methods and nudging is discussed.     

Uranium and thorium in the Kupferschiefer formation,Lower Zechstein,Poland

The Kupferschiefer in Poland has an increased U content. The facies high in organic matter are significantly enriched in U. The maximum values of U are mostly in the lower part of the Kupferschiefer sequence. The mean (x) U content in the Kupferschiefer from the Lubin-Sieroszowice district is 61.5 ppm and from the rest of the Polish Zechstein basin is about 26 ppm. Thorium occurs only in small quantities (x) = 1.5 and 5 ppm respectively). The high variance of U and Th in the Kupferschiefer is due to multistage diagenetic processes. The main U carrier is thucholite. The investigated thucholite showed a Th-content below 0.36 ppm. Thucholite with uraninite exolutions showed small (up to 1.0 wt.%) admixtures of U and thucholite without microscopically visible exsolutions (up to 37.85 wt.% U). The phosphates showed significant amounts of U (up to 0.24 wt.). The U content in the Kupferschiefer is significantly lower than in black shales from other part of the world. Uranium in the Lubin district is not economic.     

Geoeffective Disturbances in the Solar Wind near the Solar Activity Minimum according to the Data of a Two-year Series of Observations of Interplanetary Scintillations with the BSA LPI Radio Telescope

Astronomy Reports - A joint analysis of the monitoring data of interplanetary scintillations with solar and geophysical data showed that at the descending phase of the 24 solar activity cycle, the...     

Peculiarities of surface air temperature variations over the Far East regions in 1976–2005

Peculiarities are investigated of the air temperature variation tendencies at some stations of the Far East in 1976–2005. The estimate of linear trend equation coefficients is computed according to the air temperature observation data using the least squares method. It is demonstrated that the air temperature trend in northern regions possesses a small probability at small values of residual variability. In the southern regions, the trend significance increases for almost all seasons at small values of residual variability. At midlatitude stations, the trend significance in January and February decreases considerably due to the large values of residual variability.     

Geochronology of anthropogenic pollutants in riparian wetland sediments of the Lippe River (Germany)

Anthropogenic pollutants were determined in a dated sediment core, collected from a riparian wetland of the Lippe River (Ruhr district, Germany). The historical trend in heavy metals, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, organochlorines, polychlorinated biphenyls and linear alkylbenzenes as well as more recent contaminants such as industrial additives, organotins, synthetic musks, methyltriclosan and some other compounds were determined for the time period between 1930 and 1986. Emission sources, information on technical production and usage, as well as on the individual pollution pathways, with appropriate environmental stability, were considered in the interpretation of the sediment contamination over the past 50 years.Contaminants were analysed and interpreted according to two different criteria: (a) the origin of the main contaminants as related to mining and industrial activities as well as municipal sewage and agricultural effluents and (b) the pollution history. Due to a significant appearance of formerly missing contaminants in sediments deposited since 1970, we suggest classifying contaminants as either common (predating 1970) or modern (postdating 1970).In summary, the study provided a comprehensive reconstruction of the pollution history of the Lippe River system.     

Modeling preferential flow in reactive barriers: implications for performance and design

Reactive barriers are passive and in situ ground water treatment systems. Heterogeneities in hydraulic conductivity (K) within the aquifer-reactive barrier system will result in higher flux rates, and reduced residence times, through portions of the barrier. These spatial variations in residence time will affect the treatment capacity of the barrier. A numerical flow model was used to evaluate the effects of spatial variations in K on preferential flow through barriers. The simulations indicate that the impact of heterogeneities in K will be a function of their location and distribution; the more localized the high K zone, the greater the preferential flow. The geometry of the reactive barrier will also strongly influence flow distribution. Aquifer heterogeneities will produce greater preferential flow in thinner barriers compared to thicker barriers. If the barrier K is heterogeneous, greater preferential flow will occur in thicker barriers. The K of the barrier will affect the flow distribution; decreasing the K of the barrier can result in more even distribution of flow. Results indicate that less variable flow will be attained utilizing thicker, homogeneous barriers. The addition of homogeneous zones to thinner barriers will be effective at redistributing flow only if installed immediately adjacent to both the up- and downgradient faces of the barrier.     

Applying personal carbon trading: a proposed ‘Carbon,Health and Savings System’ for British Columbia,Canada

Addressing climate change requires the synergy of technological, behavioural and market mechanisms. This article proposes a policy framework that integrates the three, deploying personal carbon trading as a key element within a policy portfolio to reduce personal carbon footprints. It draws on policy and human motivation literatures that address the behavioural changes that may be needed in the context of a long-term threat such as climate change. This proposal builds on an analysis of the British Columbia carbon tax, international examples of carbon pricing instruments and strategies for behavioural change such as social networks, loyalty management, mobile apps and gamification. Interviews were conducted with experts in financial services, energy conservation and clean technology, as well as with specialists in climate, health and taxation policy. Their input, together with a review of the theoretical literature and practical case studies, informed the proposed design of a Carbon, Health and Saving System for promoting individual engagement and collective action by linking long-term climate mitigation measures with short-term personal and social goals, including health, recreation and social reinforcement.

Policy Relevance

This article identifies areas for climate policy innovation and recommends policies that can support, promote and enable personal carbon budgeting and collective action. Although this study is focused on British Columbia, both the input provided by key opinion leaders and the proposed framework are applicable to other jurisdictions.

This policy proposal shows how personal carbon trading could work in the context of a Canadian province with an existing climate mitigation policy. It also specifies a minimum viable product approach to establishing the economic, social and technological foundations for personal carbon trading.

The Carbon, Health and Saving System identifies the technologies and stakeholders needed to implement personal carbon trading, and offers the possibility of motivating a widespread conscious human response in the event that carbon taxation proves insufficient to generate economic adaptation in a changing climate.     

Late Cretaceous-Cenozoic history of the Lake Baikal depression and formation of its unique biodiversity

Independent methods of geological and molecular-biological chronologies have made it possible to define generally corresponding stages in the geological and biological evolution of the environments and communities of Lake Baikal since the Late Cretaceous, i.e., during the last 70 myr. All the abiotic elements drastically changed during geological evolution, with destruction of existing and formation of new natural complexes. Nevertheless, some specific zones retained relicts of former settings. The resulting present-day natural complex includes elements of different ages and geneses. Similar to different natural zones of the present-day Earth, which are populated by different biocoenoses, stages in the development of abiotic elements are also characterized by different faunal and floral assemblages. Some taxa were replaced by others, and the resulting aqueous biota of Lake Baikal includes different-age and ecologically different elements. The oldest groups of Baikal organisms appeared approximately 70 Ma ago, although the largest proportion of the lake biota started forming 4–3 Ma ago in response to the most drastic changes in the abiotic elements of the environment. The youngest taxa appeared 1.8 to 0.15 Ma ago, i.e., during the period when superdeep lake environments and mountainous glaciations were developing. The chronological coincidence of main stages in development of abiotic and biotic elements of the nature indicates their relationships. Particular transformations of abiotic elements and the probable mechanism of their influence on the evolution of living communities are also considered.     

Size and shape of near-spherical Allegan chondrules

Chondrules were extracted from a disaggregated sample of the Allegan meteorite. Individual chondrules were examined with apparatus incorporating two orthogonal binocular microscopes, and their three major axes measured. Maximum chondrule diameters ranged from 0.15 to 2.75 mm with a peak in distribution between 0.35 and 0.75 mm. The chondrule size distribution was found not to conform to Rosin's law. The chondrules were found to depart from sphericity by only small amounts. The authors still believe that the melting of nebula dust-ball agglomerates by some high-energy event was the most probable mechanism for the formation of chondrules.