A visibility-based assessment of tsunami evacuation signs in Seaside,Oregon

Tsunami risk mitigation programs often include iconic evacuation signage to direct locals and visitors to safety during a tsunami event. This paper examines sign placement in Seaside, Oregon, from a visibility perspective. It leverages existing visibility analysis methodologies characterize the visibility of the community’s evacuation signage and reveals patterns in the viewable landscape. Additionally, we develop a topologically 3D approach to visibility analysis using raw LiDAR datasets. This applied work situates a discussion on existing patterns of visibility, how to improve existing signage placement, 2D and 3D representation of landscape, and the importance of visibility analysis. This work aims to stimulate discussion and development of hazard research that incorporates a visibility perspective.     

Continental growth and reworking on the edge of the Columbia and Rodinia supercontinents; 1.86–0.9 Ga accretionary orogeny in southwest Fennoscandia

Geological history from the late Palaeoproterozoic to early Neoproterozoic is dominated by the formation of the supercontinent Columbia, and its break-up and re-amalgamation into the next supercontinent, Rodinia. On a global scale, major orogenic events have been tied to the formation of either of these supercontinents, and records of extension are commonly linked to break-up events. Presented here is a synopsis of the geological evolution of southwest Fennoscandia during the ca. 1.9–0.9 Ga period. This region records a protracted history of continental growth and reworking in a long-lived accretionary orogen. Three major periods of continental growth are defined by the Transscandinavian Igneous Belt (1.86–1.66 Ga), Gothian (1.66–1.52 Ga), and Telemarkian (1.52–1.48 Ga) domains. The 1.47–1.38 Ga Hallandian–Danopolonian period featured reorganization of the subduction zone and over-riding plates, with limited evidence for continental collision. During the subsequent 1.38–1.15 Ga interval, the region is interpreted as being located inboard of a convergent margin that is not preserved today and hosted magmatism and sedimentation related to inboard extensional events. The 1.15–0.9 Ga period is host to Sveconorwegian orogenesis that marks the end of this long-lived accretionary orogen and features significant crustal deformation, metamorphism, and magmatism. Collision of an indenter, typically Amazonia, is commonly inferred for the cause of widespread Sveconorwegian orogenesis, but this remains inconclusive. An alternative is that orogenesis merely represents subduction, terrane accretion, crustal thickening, and burial and exhumation of continental crust, along an accretionary margin. During the Mesoproterozoic, southwest Fennoscandia was part of a much larger accretionary orogen that grew on the edge of the Columbia supercontinent and included Laurentia and Amazonia amongst other cratons. The chain of convergent margins along the western Pacific is the best analogue for this setting of Proterozoic crustal growth and tectonism.     

Predicting June Mean Rainfall in the Middle/Lower Yangtze River Basin

We demonstrate that there is significant skill in the GloSea5 operational seasonal forecasting system for predicting June mean rainfall in the middle/lower Yangtze River basin up to four months in advance.Much of the rainfall in this region during June is contributed by the mei-yu rain band.We find that similar skill exists for predicting the East Asian summer monsoon index(EASMI)on monthly time scales,and that the latter could be used as a proxy to predict the regional rainfall.However,there appears to be little to be gained from using the predicted EASMI as a proxy for regional rainfall on monthly time scales compared with predicting the rainfall directly.Although interannual variability of the June mean rainfall is affected by synoptic and intraseasonal variations,which may be inherently unpredictable on the seasonal forecasting time scale,the major influence of equatorial Pacific sea surface temperatures from the preceding winter on the June mean rainfall is captured by the model through their influence on the western North Pacific subtropical high.The ability to predict the June mean rainfall in the middle and lower Yangtze River basin at a lead time of up to 4 months suggests the potential for providing early information to contingency planners on the availability of water during the summer season.     

The Oxford Principles

Scientific momentum is increasing behind efforts to develop geoengineering options, but it is widely acknowledged that the challenges of geoengineering are as much political and social as they are technical. Legislators are looking for guidance on the governance of geoengineering research and possible deployment. The Oxford Principles are five high-level principles for geoengineering governance. This article explains their intended function and the core societal values which they attempt to capture. Finally, it proposes a framework for their implementation in a flexible governance architecture through the formulation of technology-specific research protocols.     

The High-Resolution Coronal Imager (Hi-C)

The High-Resolution Coronal Imager (Hi-C) was flown on a NASA sounding rocket on 11 July 2012. The goal of the Hi-C mission was to obtain high-resolution (≈?0.3?–?0.4′′), high-cadence (≈?5 seconds) images of a solar active region to investigate the dynamics of solar coronal structures at small spatial scales. The instrument consists of a normal-incidence telescope with the optics coated with multilayers to reflect a narrow wavelength range around 19.3 nm (including the Fe xii 19.5-nm spectral line) and a 4096×4096 camera with a plate scale of 0.1′′?pixel^?1. The target of the Hi-C rocket flight was Active Region 11520. Hi-C obtained 37 full-frame images and 86 partial-frame images during the rocket flight. Analysis of the Hi-C data indicates the corona is structured on scales smaller than currently resolved by existing satellite missions.     

Results from the Wide Angle Search for Planets Prototype (WASP0) – II. Stellar variability in the Pegasus field

Recent wide field photometric surveys, which target a specific field for long durations, are ideal for studying both long- and short-period stellar variability. Here, we report on 75 variable stars detected during the observations of a field in Pegasus using the Wide Angle Search for Planets Prototype (WASP0) instrument, 73 of which are new discoveries. The variables detected include 16 δ Scuti stars, 34 eclipsing binaries, 3 BY Draconis stars and 4 RR Lyraes. We estimate that the fraction of stars in the field brighter than   V ∼ 13.5  exhibiting variable behaviour with an amplitude greater than 0.6 per cent rms is ∼0.4 per cent. These results are compared with other wide field stellar variability surveys, and implications for detecting transits due to extra-solar planets are discussed.     

Suspended sediment and phosphorus in proglacial rivers: bioavailability and potential impacts upon the P status of ice‐marginal receiving waters

This paper adopts standard tests developed in temperate catchment research to determine the total phosphorus (TP) and the algal available (base‐extractable) phosphorus (NaOH–P) content of a wide range of glaciofluvial sediments from the Northern Hemisphere. We find that the TP content of these sediments is broadly similar to the P content of major rock types in Earth's crust (230–670 µgP/g) and so the TP yields of glacier basins may be high owing to the efficacy of suspended sediment evacuation by glacial meltwaters. We show that this is best achieved where subglacial drainage systems are present. The NaOH–P pool of the sediments is found to be low (1–23 µgP/g) relative to the TP pool and also to the NaOH–P pool of suspended sediments in temperate, non‐glacierized catchments. This most probably reflects the restricted duration of intimate contact between dilute meltwaters and glacial suspended sediments during the ablation season. Thus, despite the high surface‐area:volume ratio of glacial suspended sediments, the potential for P adsorption to mineral surfaces following release by dissolution is also low. Further, sorption experiments and sequential extraction tests conducted using glacial suspended sediments from two Svalbard catchments indicate that the generation of reactive secondary minerals (e.g. Fe‐ and other hydroxides) with a strong capacity to scavenge P from solution (and thereby promote the continued dissolution of P) may also be limited by the short residence times. Most P is therefore associated with poorly weathered, calcite/apatite‐rich mineral phases. However, we use examples from the Svalbard glacier basins (Austre Brøggerbreen and Midre Lovénbreen) to show that the high sediment yields of glaciers may result in appreciable NaOH–P loading of ice‐marginal receiving waters. Again, the importance of subglacial drainage is highlighted, as it produces a major, episodic release of NaOH–P at Midre Lovénbreen that results in a yield (8·2 kg NaOH–P/km²/year) more than one order of magnitude greater than that at Austre Brøggerbreen (where subglacial drainage is absent and the yield is 0·48 kg NaOH‐P/km²/year). Therefore, as since both detrimental and beneficial effects of sediment‐bound P loading in ice marginal receiving waters are possible (i.e. either reduced primary productivity owing to increased turbidity or P fertilization following desorption) there is a pressing need to assess the ambient P status of such environments and also the capacity for ice‐marginal ecosystems to adapt to such inputs. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Plate tectonics at an awkward junction: rules for the evolution of Sovanco Ridge area, NE Pacific

Summary. The elegant geometrical rules of plate tectonics do not allow for a gradual shift in plate motion directions, or the gradual, as opposed to sudden, cessation of subduction. At the scale of the small plates in the NE Pacific, imperfections in boundary processes have a large effect on the net torque on the plates, and heavily influence the evolution of the geometry. In this area, the rotation of the spreading directions and the diminution of true subduction along the southern Canadian coast has not occurred by the sudden switching of plate motions from one stable condition to another. Instead, it appears as if the dominant factor for the evolution is the resistance of the ocean floor to formation of new, smoothly slipping transform faults. Compressive deformation of even young lithosphere is not only mechanically unlikely, but is not helpful to the particular configurations found in this area. Instead, a migrating shear zone and an episode of highly en echelon spreading along a new axis nearly perpendicular to the present Juan de Fuca ridge have resulted: the present Sovanco ridge was never a transform fault. Neither is the Nootka fault a shear zone, but the locus of stretching between plates whose motions are congruent at the Juan de Fuca ridge, but diverge toward the continental margin.