Introduction à la climatologie dynamique de l'Amerique du Nord,de l'Atlantique Nord et de l'Europe

Résumé Nous appliquons dans ce mémoire la théorie des perturbations, développée antérieuremet par l'un de nous, à la déduction des principales caractéristiques normales des perturbations compatibles avec un champ moyen donné de pression et de température. Cette deduction comprend la détermination: 1) de la configuration moyenne des perturbations dans les différentes régions étudiées; 2) des zones de creusement et de comblement et en particulier des foyers de formation et de disparition des perturbations; 3) des trajectoires, vitesses, fréquences et amplitudes moyennes des perturbations. C'est à l'ensemble de ces propriétés moyennes que nous donnons le nom de «climatologie dynamique» d'une période donnée.Après une première partie théorique, nous donnons des exemples d'application des résultats généraux à la climatologie dynamique des mois de Janvier et de Juillet pour l'Amérique du Nord, l'Atlantique Nord et l'Europe.

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Summary In this paper we apply the theory of perturbations, previously developed by one of us, to the deduction of the main normal characteristics of the perturbations that are compatible with a given mean field of pressure and temperature. This deduction comprises the determination: 1) of the mean configuration of the perturbations for the different regions under examination; 2) of the normal deepening and filling regions of the perturbations, and particularly their formation and vanishing focuses; 3) of the mean paths, speeds, frequencies and amplitudes of the perturbations. The «dynamical climatology» we are contemplating here is concerned with all these mean properties of the perturbations for a given period.After a first theoretical part, we give some examples of the application of the general results to the dynamical climatology of January and July for North America, North Atlantic and Europe.

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à ce mémoire a été assigné le Prix 1956 de la « Società Italiana di Geofisica e Meteorologia ».     

The continental record of Ediacaran volcano‐sedimentary successions in southern Brazil and their global implications

The Ediacaran is one of the most important periods on Earth evolution, including the first appearance of soft‐bodied macrofossils, major climatic changes and a supposed rise in free oxygen. In southernmost Brazil, this period is represented by Camaquã Supergroup, including the Bom Jardim Group and the Acampamento Velho Formation, both of which record continental palaeoenvironmental changes in a more than 5000 m thick stratigraphic succession. Age constraints are given by seven Ar‐Ar and U‐Pb determinations on volcanic rocks, which bracket these units between c. 605 and 574 Ma, revealing the best dated and most continuous documented Ediacaran continental succession to date. Depositional systems evolution supports a Phanerozoic‐type glacial context during the last Neoproterozoic glacial event and presents the Picada das Graças Formation (580 ± 3.6 Ma) as the first dated non‐glacial unit coeval to the Gaskiers Formation.     

Chemostratigraphy of the Tamengo Formation (Corumbá Group,Brazil): A contribution to the calibration of the Ediacaran carbon-isotope curve

The Corumbá Group, cropping out in the southern Paraguay Belt in Brazil, is one of the most complete Ediacaran sedimentary archives of palaeogeographic, climatic, biogeochemical and biotic evolution in southwestern Gondwana. The unit hosts a rich fossil record, including acritarchs, vendotaenids (Vendotaenia, Eoholynia), soft-bodied metazoans (Corumbella) and skeletal fossils (Cloudina, Titanotheca). The Tamengo Formation, made up mainly of limestones and marls, provides a rich bio- and chemostratigraphic record. Several outcrops, formerly assigned to the Cuiabá Group, are here included in the Tamengo Formation on the basis of lithological and chemostratigraphical criteria. High-resolution carbon isotopic analyses are reported for the Tamengo Formation, showing (from base to top): (1) a positive δ¹³C excursion to +4‰ PDB above post-glacial negative values, (2) a negative excursion to −3.5‰ associated with a marked regression and subsequent transgression, (3) a positive excursion to +5.5‰, and (4) a plateau characterized by δ¹³C around +3‰. A U-Pb SHRIMP zircon age of an ash bed interbedded in the upper part of the δ¹³C positive plateau yielded 543 ± 3 Ma, which is considered as the depositional age ( Babinski et al., 2008a). The positive plateau in the upper Tamengo Formation and the preceding positive excursion are ubiquitous features in several successions worldwide, including the Nama Group (Namibia), the Dengying Formation (South China) and the Nafun and Ara groups (Oman). This plateau is constrained between 542 and 551 Ma, thus consistent with the age of the upper Tamengo Formation. The negative excursion of the lower Tamengo Formation may be correlated to the Shuram–Wonoka negative anomaly, although δ¹³C values do not fall beyond −3.5‰ in the Brazilian sections. Sedimentary breccias occur just beneath this negative excursion in the lower Tamengo Formation. One possible interpretation of the origin of these breccias is a glacioeustatic sea-level fall, but a tectonic interpretation cannot be completely ruled out.     

On the Use of Random Material in Dam Cores: Case of the Manso Dam,Brazil

Geotechnical and Geological Engineering - The Manso Dam, in the Brazilian State of Mato Grosso, intended for flood control and electricity generation, was built by a state-owned energy company in...     

Time-Dependent Modulation of Cosmic Rays in the Heliosphere

The time-dependent modulation of galactic cosmic rays in the heliosphere is studied by computing intensities using a time-dependent modulation model. By introducing recent theoretical advances in the transport coefficients in the model, computed intensities are compared with Voyager 1, International Monitoring Platform (IMP) 8, and Ulysses proton observations in search of compatibility. The effect of different modulation parameters on computed intensities is also illustrated. It is shown that this approach produces, on a global scale, realistic cosmic-ray proton intensities along the Voyager 1 spacecraft trajectory and at Earth up to ≈?2004, whereafter the computed intensities recover much more slowly towards solar minimum than observed in the inner heliosphere. A modified time dependence in the diffusion coefficients is proposed to improve compatibility with the observations at Earth after ≈?2004. This modified time dependence led to an improved compatibility between computed intensities and the observations along the Voyager 1 trajectory and at Earth even after ≈?2004. An interesting result is that the cosmic-ray modulation during the current polarity cycle is not determined only by changes in the drift coefficient and tilt angle of the wavy current sheet, but is also largely dependent on changes in the diffusion coefficients.     

Metals in eggs and hatchlings of Dermochelys coriacea (testudines) in Espírito Santo,Brazil and their relation to hatching and emergence success

Certain concentration of metal may influence survival in embryonic stages, reducing the birthrate and hatching emergence. This study aimed to evaluate concentration of metal in eggs and hatchlings of Dermochelys coriacea and correlate metal concentrations in eggs with hatching and emergence success. The samples were collected at Biological Reserve Station, ES, Brazil. At the nests' opening, unhatched eggs and stillborn hatchlings were collected to survey the successful hatching and emergence of D. coriacea. The eggs shell, egg content, and dead hatchlings metal concentrations were compared to hatching and emergence success. A positive correlation was found between the concentration of copper (Cu) in the hatchlings and the success of the emergence (r² = .28, p < .05), and a moderate positive correlation between the concentrations of iron (Fe) and barium (Ba; r² = .44, p < .05) and success hatching. The concentrations of metals in eggs and hatchlings of D. coriacea in the Espírito Santo are below the levels that could be considered harmful to the species. In summary, there is a positive correlation between metals levels and hatching and emergence success.     

Modelling the long-term distribution of significant wave height with the Beta and Gamma models

The paper suggests modelling the long-term distribution of significant wave height with the Gamma, Beta of the first and second kind models. The three models are interrelated, flexible and cover the three different tail types of Extreme Value Theory. They can be used simultaneously as a means of assessing the uncertainty effects that result from choosing equally plausible models with different tail types. This procedure is intended for those applications that require the long-term distribution of significant wave height as input rather than the prediction of extreme values. The models are fitted to some significant wave data as an illustration. Details about maximum likelihood estimation are given in A.     

Cultural land use and vegetation dynamics in the uplands of northern Portugal from the Middle Ages to the Modern period

In Europe, mountain landscapes have evolved in a long-term relationship with human communities and present-day landscapes reflect that ancient interaction. The present study aims to reconstruct human activity in two mountain areas in northern Portugal using palynological analysis integrated with the available regional historical, archaeological and palaeoenvironmental archives. Pollen records from two sedimentary sequences span the Medieval and Modern periods and show that mixed agriculture and livestock grazing were consistently present in both regions throughout these times. Variations in cultural indicators show that the extent of farming fluctuated throughout time, with a general increase in cultivation during the Medieval period but with contractions likely coinciding with times of social disturbance. Historical sources suggest that sociopolitical factors and population pressure were fundamental in the utilisation of upland spaces. This study did not find any convincing evidence to suggest that fire was a fundamental factor in heathland spread. We conclude that long-term occupation of the uplands was sustained by low-intensity land use throughout the Medieval to post-Medieval periods, and that the present landscape has assumed a very different character following depopulation of the mountain areas and a shift towards commercial forestry.