Climate change,economic growth and energy policy: A recommended U.S. strategy for the coming decades an editorial

Alan D. Hecht Director of the National Climate Program Office, an Office created by Congress in 1978 to coordinate a U.S. program of climate research and services. The office is located in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration within the Department of Commerce; Bo R. Döös Member of the Swedish Academy of Sciences, is a visiting UCAR scientist (University Corporation for Atmospheric Research) in the NCPO. Views expressed in this editorial are of the authors and do not reflect any official views of UCAR or NOAA, DOC, or other federal agencies within the NCP.     

Improvement of ERS-1 orbits using along-track accelerations from DORIS data on SPOT2

In long-arc precise orbit determinations of altimetric satellites such as ERS-1, large errors may occur from mismodelling of aerodynamic drag and solar radiation pressure. Such surface forces for non-spherical satellites require accurate modelling of the effective area and particle-surface interactions, but the dominant source of error is neutral air density as derived from thermospheric models for aerodynamic drag. Several techniques can be employed to alleviate air-drag mismodelling but all require the solution of additional parameters from the tracking data. However, for ERS-1 the sparsity of laser range data limits the application of such empirical techniques. To overcome this, use can be made of the dense DORIS Doppler tracking for SPOT2 which is in a similar orbit to ERS-1. A recent investigation by CNES examined the use of drag scale factors from SPOT2 to constrain the ERS-1 orbit. An improvement to that methodology is to consider along-track mismodelling as observed by timing errors in the Doppler data for each pass of SPOT2. The along-track correction to the acceleration as derived from SPOT2 can then be applied to ERS-1 orbits, solving for a scale factor to absorb systematic errors - particularly that arising from the 50 km altitude difference. Results are presented of the associated improvement in ERS-1 orbits as derived from concurrent SPOT2 arcs. It will be seen that the procedure not only improves the laser range fit, but more importantly, leads to more precise radial positioning as evident in the altimeter and crossover residuals.     

Layer-stripping reverse-time migration1

We present a layer-stripping method of migration for irregularly layered media in which first-order velocity discontinuities separate regions of constant or smoothly varying velocity. We use the reverse-time method to migrate seismic data layer by layer, from the surface downwards. As part of the migration of a given layer, the bottom boundary of the layer is defined based on power in the migrated signal, and a seismic section is collected along it. This new section serves as the boundary condition for migration in the next layer. This procedure is repeated for each layer, with the final image formed from the individual layer images. Layer-stripping migration consists of three steps: (1) layer definition, (2) wavefield extrapolation and imaging, and (3) boundary determination. The migration scheme when used with reverse-time extrapolation is similar to datuming with an imaging condition. The reverse-time method uses an explicit fourth-order time, tenth-order space, finite-difference approximation to the scalar wave equation. The advantages of layer-stripping reverse-time migration are: (1) it preserves the benefits of the reverse-time method by handling strong velocity contrasts between layers and steeply dipping structures; (2) it reduces computer memory and saves computation time in high-velocity layers, and (3) it allows interpretational control of the image. Post-stack layer-stripping reverse-time migration is illustrated with a synthetic CMP data example. Prestack migration is illustrated with a synthetic data set and with a marine seismic reflection profile across the Santa Maria Basin and the Hosgri Fault in central California.     

The reserves of extracted resources: Historical data

The available data on known reserves of extracted resources have not previously been tabulated and graphed. In this article we compile the reserves data in one place for the first time. This serves to (1) show the trends in the reserves series, (2) make the series available to others, and (3) place the reserves data in the context of price data for which longer series have been available, and with which they can now be seen to be consistent in both showing increasing availability rather than increasing scarcity.     

Simple analytical Green's functions for ray perturbations in layered media

The total Green's function for two-point boundary-value problems can be related to the propagator for initial-value problems. A very simple expression for the Green's function is obtained when the unperturbed medium may be described by material with a constant gradient in quadratic slowness. The derivation requires a correct understanding of assumptions made in the propagator solution. Expressions are also obtained for Green's function in multilayered media.     

Physical,chemical, and biological conditions associated with the early stages of the Lake Michigan vernal thermal front

An investigation of the thermal front in southeastern Lake Michigan during April 1988 revealed a dynamic physical, chemical, and biological environment. The front was observed approximately 4 km from the coast as a distinct gradient separating cold open-lake waters from warmer nearshore waters. Surface isotherms near the front were generally parallel to one another but skewed with respect to shore. Comparison between April 22 and 29 showed that the surface isothern pattern was modulated by wind stress. The pattern from April 29 showed signs of flow instabilities with horizontal scales of 1 km to 5 km. Surface drifter trajectories provided estimates of horizontal convergence at the fron which varied from 7×10^?6 s^?1 to 20×10^?6 s^?1. Inferred rates of downwelling, which ranged from 9.5 m d^?1 to 20.7 m d^?1, were sufficient to move a water parcel from the surface to the bottom in 2 to 6 d at the front. Convergent circulation was observed on both sampling dates despite contrasts in wind stress. Concentrations of chloride, soluble silica, and chlorophyll, which were always higher inshore, were 5% to 82% larger than offshore mean values. The aquatic environment just inshore of the thermal front was characterized by chlorphyll concentrations which exceeded 5.0 μg 1^?1 while concentrations offshore were between 1.0 μg 1^?1 and 2.0 μg 1^?1. A relatively uniform vertical structure in chlorophyll concentrations in the frontal zone was consistent with the observed convergence and inferred downwelling near the front.