Micro‐geomorphology determines community structure of biological soil crusts at small scales

Biological soil crusts (BSCs) are ubiquitous communities of diminutive organisms such as cyanobacteria, green algae, lichens, mosses and others associated closely with particles of surface soil, forming a cohesive thin horizontal layer. The ecological roles of BSCs affecting soil nutrient cycling, stability and hydrological processes, influencing the germination and establishment of vascular plants, and serving as habitats for numerous arthropods and microorganism have been well documented. We tested the hypothesis that micro‐geomorphological features determine the spatial distribution of BSCs by reallocating related abiotic resources at small‐ and medium‐scales in the Tengger Desert. Our results showed that higher soil pH and higher total potassium content in topsoil positively correlated with the colonization of cyanobacteria and algae in the earliest successional stages of BSCs, while increasing dust deposition onto the topsoil enhanced the development of lichen and mosses in the later stages of BSCs. Increasing soil moisture raised the proportion of mosses and lichen in BSCs, this will possibly change the ecological functions of BSCs, such as nitrogen‐fixation by cyanobacteria, due to the conversion from a complex to relative simple type of BSC. Micro‐geomorphology has created various habitats at a small‐scale affecting colonization and development of cryptogams. This paper considers the contribution of micro‐geomorphology to biodiversity in the extreme arid desert systems. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

ESR dating of Pleistocene archaeological localities of the Nihewan Basin,North China – Preliminary results

The well-developed, late Cenozoic Nihewan Beds in northern China are amongst the most famous and well-preserved Quaternary strata in East Asia. The Nihewan Basin is also well-known for its mammalian fossils and stone artifacts, which document early human settlements in high northern latitudes (around 40°N). It is a key geological place to study palaeoenvironments and ancient human activities due to the excellent age-control of the formation by palaeomagnetism. In the present paper, the sediments of two Paleolithic sites were dated using the ESR signals of the titanium center in quartz. In order to check the reliability of our analytical procedures, a reference sample collected near the Brunhes/Matuyama (B/M) boundary at the Donggutuo site was firstly analyzed, yielding an age of 750 ± 88 ka. Then, three samples collected from the Dongpo site were analyzed by the same procedures. Our ESR results indicate that the age of the Dongpo cultural layer ranges between 304 ± 12 ka and 333 ± 23 ka, with an average of approximately 321 ± 15 ka.     

岩石受力状态对弹性波传播速度影响的初步研究

岩石所受的三向应力状态对其弹性波传播性质有一定的影响，此认识为所做的以泥质砂岩、泥岩和硅质胶结的坚硬砂岩为试样的实验所证实。为保证岩石中存在微隙，对部分试样还作了高温预热处理。实验结果表明，泥质砂岩和泥岩的Ｖ＿ｐ／Ｖ＿ｓ值几乎保持不变，但坚硬砂岩的Ｖ＿ｐ／Ｖ＿ｓ值曲线却在应力达破坏荷载的９０％左右时出现下凹现象，经热处理的硬砂岩的这一下凹现象则更突出。     

土壤干湿交替促进硒酸盐的还原作用

采集不同类型的新鲜土壤，经处理获得其风干、烘干的样品，重新潮湿后，加入一定量的Na2SeO4溶液，进行了培育实验（incubationexperiments）。实验结果表明，随着土壤干燥程度的增加，硒酸盐还原作用的速度也随之加快。这进一步证实，作为一种地球化学营力的土壤干湿交替，通过对土壤水势（soilwaterpotential）、微生物群落等的影响，间接地促进了硒酸盐还原作用，因而成为硒生物地球化学循环的驱动力之一。     

旋转谱理论探讨

本文应用向量随机过程分解模型对旋转谱作出物理解释;此外,还修改了线性振荡度的定义,导出了极化度、线性振荡度和旋转系数之间的关系式,并讨论了它们与总相干、同相相干、异相相干之间的关系。     

Comparison of daily and sub-daily SWAT models for daily streamflow simulation in the Upper Huai River Basin of China

Despite the significant role of precipitation in the hydrological cycle, few studies have been conducted to evaluate the impacts of the temporal resolution of rainfall inputs on the performance of SWAT (soil and water assessment tool) models in large-sized river basins. In this study, both daily and hourly rainfall observations at 28 rainfall stations were used as inputs to SWAT for daily streamflow simulation in the Upper Huai River Basin. Study results have demonstrated that the SWAT model with hourly rainfall inputs performed better than the model with daily rainfall inputs in daily streamflow simulation, primarily due to its better capability of simulating peak flows during the flood season. The sub-daily SWAT model estimated that 58 % of streamflow was contributed by baseflow compared to 34 % estimated by the daily model. Using the future daily and 3-h precipitation projections under the RCP (Representative Concentration Pathways) 4.5 scenario as inputs, the sub-daily SWAT model predicted a larger amount of monthly maximum daily flow during the wet years than the daily model. The differences between the daily and sub-daily SWAT model simulation results indicated that temporal rainfall resolution could have much impact on the simulation of hydrological process, streamflow, and consequently pollutant transport by SWAT models. There is an imperative need for more studies to examine the effects of temporal rainfall resolution on the simulation of hydrological and water pollutant transport processes by SWAT in river basins of different environmental conditions.     

Populations of Bright X-ray Sources in the Starburst Galaxies NGC 4038/4039

Assuming a naive star formation history, we construct synthetic X-ray source pop- ulations, using a population synthesis code, for comparison with the observed X-ray lumi- nosity function (XLF) of the interacting galaxies NGC 4038/4039. We have included high- and intermediate-mass X-ray binaries, young rotation-powered pulsars and fallback disk-fed black holes in modeling the bright X-ray sources detected. We find that the majority of the X-ray sources are likely to be intermediate-mass X-ray binaries, but for typical binary evolu- tion parameters, the predicted XLF seems to be steeper than observed. We note that the shape of the XLFs depends critically on the existence of XLF break for young populations, and suggest super-Eddington accretion luminosities or the existence of intermediate-mass black holes to account for the high luminosity end and the slope of the XLF in NGC 4038/4039.     

Discovery of possible mega-thrust earthquake along the Seram Trough from records of 1629 tsunami in eastern Indonesian region

Arthur Wichmann’s “Earthquakes of the Indian Archipelago” documents several large earthquakes and tsunami throughout the Banda Arc region that can be interpreted as mega-thrust events. However, the source regions of these events are not known. One of the largest and well-documented events in the catalog is the great earthquake and tsunami affecting the Banda Islands on August 1, 1629. It caused severe damage from a 15-m tsunami that arrived at the Banda Islands about a half hour after violent shaking stopped. The earthquake was also recorded 230 km away in Ambon, but no tsunami is mentioned. This event was followed by at least 9 years of uncommonly frequent seismic activity in the region that tapered off with time, which can be interpreted as aftershocks. The combination of these observations indicates that the earthquake was most likely a mega-thrust event. We use an inverse modeling approach to numerically reconstruct the tsunami, which constrains the likely location and magnitude of the 1629 earthquake. Only, linear numerical models are applied due to the low resolution of bathymetry in the Banda Islands and Ambon. Therefore, we apply various wave amplification factors (1.5–4) derived from simulations of recent, well-constrained tsunami to bracket the upper and lower limits of earthquake moment magnitudes for the event. The closest major earthquake sources to the Banda Islands are the Tanimbar and Seram Troughs of the Banda subduction/collision zone. Other source regions are too far away for such a short arrival time of the tsunami after shaking. Moment magnitudes predicted by the models in order to produce a 15-m tsunami are M_w of 9.8–9.2 on the Tanimbar Trough and M_w 8.8–8.2 on the Seram Trough. The arrival times of these waves are 58 min for Tanimbar Trough and 30 min for Seram Trough. The model also predicts 5-m run-up for Ambon from a Tanimbar Trough source, which is inconsistent with the historical records. Ambon is mostly shielded from a wave generated by a Seram Trough source. We conclude that the most likely source of the 1629 mega-thrust earthquake is the Seram Trough. Only one earthquake >M_w 8.0 is recorded instrumentally from the eastern Indonesia region although high rates of strain (50–80 mm/a) are measured across the Seram section of the Banda subduction zone. Enough strain has already accumulated since the last major historical event to produce an earthquake of similar size to the 1629 event. Due to the rapid population growth in coastal areas in this region, it is imperative that the most vulnerable coastal areas prepare accordingly.     

学习“三个代表”加快事业发展—学习考察体会

２００１年５月中旬，省气象局举办了处级干部培训班。学习班结合气象事业发展实际采取理论学习和河南考察的方式，使参训人员受到了一次政治理论、深化改革的教育。参加学习感想颇多，受益非浅。１实践“三个代表”继续深化改革是气象事业发展的动力较系统地学习江总书记“三个代表”的论述，联系气象部门工作实际，领悟其深刻思想内涵，真切地感到“三个代表”的提出并不是对党的性质、任务、宗旨形式上的集中表述，而是在新的世纪我党实现社会主义现代化建设，实现中华民族伟大复兴的纲领和指导思想。回顾我省气象部门“九五”期间的发展…     

北山泥盆纪碰撞造山火山－磨拉石地质构造及地球化学特征

本区早泥盆世旱山微大陆与塔里木板块的北山地体间发生对接，原洋区变为残留滨浅海区。中泥盆世该区形成中央断块山，相应南带的断陷山间洼地内形成陆相磨拉石堆积，北带与南蒙古洋毗邻，形成陆缘滨浅海火山－磨拉石沉积。经计算，中带造山隆起侵蚀速率为０．１５４ｍｍ／ａ。晚泥盆世火山岩显示弱碱性和深熔岩浆喷溢特点，表明陆壳演化尚未达到完全稳定的阶段。