Dispersion of Heavy Particles Emitted from Area Sources in the Unstable Atmospheric Boundary Layer

Reliable predictions of the daytime dispersal of heavy particles in the unstable atmospheric boundary layer are important in a variety of disciplines. For many applications, particles disperse from area sources near the ground, and corresponding theoretical solutions are desired to reveal insight into the physical processes. Here, theoretical solutions recently developed for neutral conditions are modified to include the effects of atmospheric instability. The Obukhov length L _O and convection velocity w _? are introduced to characterize the patterns of particle dispersion, in additional to friction velocity u _? and settling velocity w _s used in the neutral case. The major effects of atmospheric instability are accounted for by modifying the vertical velocity variance profile and considering the ratio of velocity scales w _?/u _?. Theoretical predictions including the mean concentration profile, plume height, and horizontal transport above the source, and ground deposition flux downwind from the source agree well with large-eddy simulation results while the particle plume is within the atmospheric surface layer. The deposition curve is characterized by a power-law decay whose exponent depends on u _?, w _s, and w _?. A second steeper power-law develops once the plume extends into the mixed layer. This effect is enhanced with increasing atmospheric instability, implying that particles disperse farther from the source.     

An analog period method for gap-filling of latent heat flux measurements

Practically all records of eddy-covariance flux measurements are affected by gaps, caused by several reasons. In this work, we propose analog period (AP) methods for gap-filling, and test them for filling gaps of latent heat flux at five AmeriFlux sites. The essence of the methods is to look for periods in the record that bear a strong resemblance, in the variable to be filled, to the periods immediately before and after the gap. Similarity between periods is gauged by the coefficient of determination, and the search for similar periods and their ranking is straightforward. The methods are developed in a univariate version (that uses only the latent heat flux data series itself) and several multivariate ones, that incorporate sensible heat flux, ground heat flux and net radiation data. For each set of independent variables used for gap-filling, the methods are tested against an existing gap-filling procedure with similar data requirements. Thus, the univariate version is tested against the mean diurnal variation method, and the multivariate versions are tested against corresponding simple and multiple linear regression techniques that use energy-budget data, and in one case the evaporative fraction as well. In our tests, the proposed univariate version performs better than the mean diurnal variation method, and the multivariate versions perform better than simple/multiple linear regression methods. An often used available computer package, REddyProc, was also tested as a basis of comparison. In general, the proposed methods (in univariate and multivariate versions) and simple/multiple linear regressions performed better than REddyProc. For the datasets analysed, gap filling via the evaporative fraction method performed poorly.     

Isotopic composition of precipitation during strong El Niño–Southern Oscillation events in the Southeast Region of Brazil

Equatorial Pacific sea surface temperature variations interact with processes of atmospheric circulation, creating conditions for the occurrence of El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO). ENSO events represent the most important interannual phenomena affecting climate patterns worldwide and causing significant socio‐economic impacts. In the Brazilian territory, ENSO leads to an increase in drought episodes in the north‐eastern region and an increase in precipitation in the southern region, whereas the effects over the south‐east region are yet not well understood. The main goal of this study is to compare variations of isotopic composition in precipitation across the south‐east portion of the Brazilian territory during two very strong ENSO events: 1997–1998 (ENSO 1) and 2014–2016 (ENSO 2). Daily isotopic records, available from the Global Network of Isotopes in Precipitation database for ENSO 1, and samples collected during ENSO 2 were used to compare the influence of both events on the isotopic composition of precipitation. Seasonal variations indicated more depleted precipitation during the wet seasons (δ¹⁸O = ?5.4 ± 4.0‰) and enriched precipitation during the dry seasons (δ¹⁸O = ?2.8 ± 2.3‰). Observed rainfall variations were associated with atmospheric large‐scale processes and moisture transport from the Amazon region, whereas extreme values (enriched or depleted) appear to be associated with particular convective and stratiform precipitation events. Overall, more depleted isotopic composition of precipitation (δ¹⁸O = ?4.60‰) and higher d‐excess (up to +15‰) were observed during the dry season of ENSO 1 when compared with ENSO 2 dry season (δ¹⁸O‰ = ?2.80‰, d‐excess lower than +14‰). The latter is explained by greater atmospheric moisture content, particularly associated with recycling of transpiration fluxes from the Amazon region, during dry season of ENSO 1. No significant differences for δ¹⁸O and δ²H were observed during the wet season; however, d‐excess from ENSO 2 was greater than ENSO 1, due to the slightly greater atmospheric moisture content and very strong upward motion observed. Our findings highlight the opportunity that environmental isotopes offer towards understanding hydrometeorological processes, particularly, the evolution of extreme climatic events of global resonance such as ENSO.     

Season‐based rainfall–runoff modelling using the probability‐distributed model (PDM) for large basins in southeastern Brazil

Southeastern Brazil is characterized by seasonal rainfall variability. This can have a great social, economic, and environmental impact due to both excessive and deficient water availability. During 2014 and 2015, the region experienced one of the most severe droughts since 1960. The resulting water crisis has seriously affected water supply to the metropolitan region of São Paulo and hydroelectric power generation throughout the entire country. This research considered the upstream basins of the southeastern Brazilian reservoirs Cantareira (2,279 km²; water supply) and Emborcação (29,076 km²), Três Marias (51,576 km²), Furnas (52,197 km²), and Mascarenhas (71,649 km²; hydropower) for hydrological modelling. It made the first attempt at configuring a season‐based probability‐distributed model (PDM‐CEMADEN) for simulating different hydrological processes during wet and dry seasons. The model successfully reproduced the intra‐annual and interannual variability of the upstream inflows during 1985–2015. The performance of the model was very satisfactory not only during the wet, dry, and transitional seasons separately but also during the whole period. The best performance was obtained for the upstream basin of Furnas, as it had the highest quality daily precipitation and potential evapotranspiration data. The Nash–Sutcliffe efficiency and logarithmic Nash–Sutcliffe efficiency were 0.92 and 0.93 for the calibration period 1984–2001, 0.87 and 0.88 for the validation period 2001–2010, and 0.93 and 0.90 for the validation period 2010–2015, respectively. Results indicated that during the wet season, the upstream basins have a larger capacity and variation of soil water storage, a larger soil water conductivity, and quicker surface water flow than during the dry season. The added complexity of configuring a season‐based PDM‐CEMADEN relative to the traditional model is well justified by its capacity to better reproduce initial conditions for hydrological forecasting and prediction. The PDM‐CEMADEN is a simple, efficient, and easy‐to‐use model, and it will facilitate early decision making and implement adaptation measures relating to disaster prevention for reservoirs with large‐sized upstream basins.     

Population biology of Excirolana armata (Dana, 1853) (Isopoda,Cirolanidae) on an exposed sandy beach in Southeastern Brazil

The reproductive biology and population dynamics of the cirolanid isopod Excirolana armata (Dana, 1853) were analysed through monthly samples from December 2003 to November 2005 on Una beach, São Paulo state (24° S), in Southeastern Brazil. Sampling was performed along three transects established from the base of foredunes to the waterline. On Una beach, E. armata showed continuous reproduction with higher abundances of ovigerous females in winter and spring (July–November) with a higher peak of juveniles in spring (November 2004). The fecundity ranged from 2 to 18 eggs/embryos per female, depending on the female length. The incubation period was estimated as 2 months. The life span of males and females was nearly 1 year. The short life span and the high energetic expenditure inherent to reproduction with maternal care, probably kept females from producing more than one brood in their lifetime. When comparing the population of E. armata on Una beach (24° S) with populations in Southern Brazil (32° S), Uruguay (34° S) and Argentina (36° S), it was verified that several biological population traits (length of the smallest juvenile, length of the largest individual, length of the smallest and largest ovigerous females, range of fecundity and life span) tended to increase at higher latitudes, whereas other traits (instantaneous rate of mortality and the curvature parameter of von Bertalanffy growth function) tended to decrease. However, comparing E. armata on Una beach (24° S) with a population situated at a close latitude (25° S), unexpected differences in relation to population structure and to growth demonstrated and reinforced the importance of density‐dependent factors over life history traits of E. armata on dissipative beaches.     

Shock-capturing Boussinesq-type model for nearshore wave processes

This paper describes the formulation and validation of a nearshore wave model for tropical coastal environment. The governing Boussinesq-type equations include the conservative form of the nonlinear shallow-water equations for shock capturing. A Riemann solver supplies the inter-cell flux and bathymetry source term, while a Godunov-type scheme integrates the evolution variables in time. The model handles wave breaking through momentum conservation with energy dissipation based on an eddy viscosity concept. The computed results show very good agreement with laboratory data for wave propagation over a submerged bar, wave breaking and runup on plane beaches as well as wave transformation over fringing reefs. The model accurately describes transition between supercritical and subcritical flows as well as development of dispersive waves in the processes.     

Late Holocene mangrove dynamics dominated by autogenic processes

Generally, palaeoenvironmental interpretations consider only allogenic processes, when autogenic factors may have a strong influence on proxies of stratigraphic sequences. For instance, the Holocene history of the vegetation along the southern littoral of the State of Bahia in north‐eastern Brazil is characterized by mangrove dynamics controlled by allogenic processes. However, over smaller timescales (~700 years), autogenic processes may have controlled vegetation dynamics and hence observed pollen distribution. This work proposes tidal channel dynamics as one of the main cause for changes in pollen assemblage along the studied stratigraphic profiles during the last centuries, based on sedimentology, pollen and elemental analysis (δ¹³C, δ¹⁵N and C/N) and radiocarbon dating of sedimentary organic matter from two cores sampled from an abandoned meander and a tidal flat at the mouth of the Jucuruçu River. One core was sampled from a mangrove formed during the past ~550 cal yr bp . Another core recorded sediments in a várzea forest (swamp seasonally and permanently inundated by freshwater) located ~2.7 km from the current shoreline, which displayed a maximum age of ~680 cal yr bp . Two facies associations were identified: tidal channel (A) and tidal flat/oxbow lake (B). This work proposes allogenic processes as the main driving forces controlling the wetlands dynamics at the studied site during the Holocene. However, our data also reveal that part of the changes in vegetation over the last ~700 years reflect tidal channels and tidal flats development, which represent autogenic processes. The change in timescale analysis from the Holocene to recent centuries may have weakened the influence of allogenic factors. However, this needs interpretation with reference to the spatial scale of the depositional environment as the larger the depositional system analyzed, the stronger the influence of autogenic processes on stratigraphic sequences over longer timescales. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The role of remote wind forcing in the subinertial current variability in the central and northern parts of the South Brazil Bight

Data analysis of continental shelf currents and coastal sea level, together with the application of a semi-analytical model, are used to estimate the importance of remote wind forcing on the subinertial variability of the current in the central and northern areas of the South Brazil Bight. Results from both the data analysis and from the semi-analytical model are robust in showing subinertial variability that propagates along-shelf leaving the coast to the left in accordance with theoretical studies of Continental Shelf Waves (CSW). Both the subinertial variability observed in along-shelf currents and sea level oscillations present different propagation speeds for the narrow northern part of the SBB (~?6–7 m/s) and the wide central SBB region (~?11 m/s), those estimates being in agreement with the modeled CSW propagation speed. On the inner and middle shelf, observed along-shelf subinertial currents show higher correlation coefficients with the winds located southward and earlier in time than with the local wind at the current meter mooring position and at the time of measurement. The inclusion of the remote (located southwestward) wind forcing improves the prediction of the subinertial currents when compared to the currents forced only by the local wind, since the along-shelf-modeled currents present correlation coefficients with observed along-shelf currents up to 20% higher on the inner and middle shelf when the remote wind is included. For most of the outer shelf, on the other hand, this is not observed since usually, the correlation between the currents and the synoptic winds is not statistically significant.     

Impacts of Holocene and modern sea-level changes on estuarine mangroves from northeastern Brazil

Projections of the impacts of modern Relative Sea Level (RSL) rise on estuarine mangroves should be supported by coastal topographic data and records of mangrove dynamics under past RSL change. This work identified inland and seaward mangrove migrations along the Jucuruçu River (Bahia, Northeastern Brazil), during the Holocene based on sedimentary features, palynological and geochemical (δ¹³C, δ¹⁵N, C/N) data integrated with digital elevation models. During the Middle Holocene, in response to RSL rise, the estuary saw mangrove forest establish up to ~37 km inland. RSL stood between -1.4 (+0.36/-2.2 m) and +1 (2.19/0.2 m) around 7400 cal yr BP, and rose to a highest position of +3.25 (4.22/2.45 m) reached around 5350 cal yr BP. That marine incursion caused the inland replacement of freshwater vegetation by mangroves on tidal flats. Since then, the estuary experienced RSL fall, reducing inland tidal water salinity towards the Late Holocene, making that the mangroves were replaced by freshwater floodplain vegetation. Today, in the seaward part of the estuary near its mouth, mangroves occupy an area of ~10 km² along tidal channels. Considering a RSL rise of 98 cm up to the end of the 21^st century, at a rate significantly higher than that of Middle Holocene RSL rise (1.5 mm/yr) and fall (0.6 mm/yr), the current mangrove substrates are expected to drown and/or eroded near the coast, while new mangroves may establish inland, at topographically higher tidal flats in nowadays freshwater-tidal zones. Mangrove area could expand over 13 km² of coastal and flood plain. Following the same interaction between RSL/climate changes and Holocene mangrove dynamics, such upstream mangrove migration may be attenuated or intensified by changes in fluvial discharge. © 2019 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Characterization of bedform morphology generated under combined flows and currents using wavelet analysis

The wavelet transform (WT) has been successfully implemented in many fields such as signal and image processing, communication theory, optics, numerical analysis, and fluid mechanics. However, the application of WT to describe bedform morphology in coastal areas, oceans, and rivers is rare. The present study demonstrates the capability of WT analysis to fully represent the space–frequency characteristics of signals describing bed topography generated in marine and river environments. In this study WT is used to examine the morphological characteristics of bedforms generated in two separate laboratory facilities: a wave tank and a meandering channel. In the wave tank a set of ripples superimposed upon large wave ripples were generated; while in the meandering channel, 2D and 3D migrating ripples and dunes were observed. The WT proved to be a useful tool in detecting the complex variability of the generated bedform structures. The size distribution of the bottom features such as ripples, large wave ripples and sandbars were first examined along a 2D bed profile. Later analysis studied the variability of features in the transverse direction by using the power Hovmöller. Experiments in the wave tank were conducted for a mobility number of ψ=(10, 28), and a Reynolds wave number of R_ew=(17,500, 83,500) which correspond to waves alone (WA) and to combined flow (CF) scenarios, respectively. Experiments in the meandering channel were conducted under a morphological regime that produced mainly migrating sandbars.