Comparative Planetary Space Physics

It has been 60 years since the space physics as new branch of geophysics started to grow in 1957 when the space age was opened by a small satellite called sputnik. The knowledge of Earth and planetary space has been significantly extended and deepened, but the questions we are facing today are more challenging. A consensus reached is that we have to regard the Earth (planet) as an integrated system including all spheres from the inner core to the magnetosphere, and we should try to investigate some questions standing on the ground of interdisciplinary study, especially those questions related to Earth’s (planetary) evolution. Space environment as the outer part of a planetary system, commonly exists in all planets but also exhibits strong diversity. Here, we introduce the short history of basic ideas and methods of comparative study, the advantages on understanding of some issues of global scale, and the prospect from comparative perspective.     

Electrochemical technique for exploration of base metal sulphides

A method based on the principles of electrochemistry has been applied for the first time with indigenous equipment in the search for base-metal sulphides, following a field exploration technique known as ‘CHIM — 10’, which is in use in the U.S.S.R. for the last few years. The technique utilizes the electro-positive property of the metallic ions. When a large section of the ground is artificially electrolyzed by the introduction of a direct current, the metallic ions within the moist soil profile close to the mineralized zone tend to move towards the energizing cathodes of a powerful widely spaced electrode array. A laboratory model experiment was conducted first which showed encouraging results. Subsequently, a prototype field unit was fabricated and employed to examine its effectiveness in the field on a soil profile over the base-metal sulphide zones of Aladahalli area, Hassan District, Karnataka, where the geology of the deposit is well known.The results obtained during the field trials were quite good and in full conformity with the known geology. However, detailed evaluation of those data after applying necessary corrections for the different variable parameters of the system is yet to be done. Work is in progress to refine the technique with a view to standardizing and developing its use for qualitative and quantitative assessment of a concealed base-metal deposit in a given area, specially where conventional geochemical exploration methods are not suitable.The paper deals with the details of the technique and discusses the results obtained during the trial run in the field.     

Principal Components Analysis of Rainfall and Associated Synoptic Models of the Southwest Monsoon over India

Summary  The summer monsoon circulation shows various spatial and temporal oscillations and often a combination of systems produces an integrated effect. In this study phases of the southwest (SW) monsoon have been identified in an objective manner with the help of T-mode principal component analysis (PCA) of weekly rainfall anomalies. Mean composite charts have been prepared utilising all available upper air data (1977–1986) for each category of the SW monsoon epochs identified by the PCA. These sets of charts have been constructed for both the strong and weak phases associated with the first four significant principal components (PCs). A well defined east-west oriented trough system, extending from about 28° N Latitude/65° E Longitude to 20° N Latitude/90° E Longitude, in the lower levels, has been the main feature associated with the strong phase of the monsoon corresponding to PC I. The trough in the lower levels is more marked in the eastern half compared to the western half in both the sets of charts associated with strong phases of the monsoon related to the PC II and PC III. With PC II, the position of the troughs in the lower levels is further north of its location in PC III. The east-west trough system associated with the strong phase of PC IV has a large southward tilt with height. The charts corresponding to the weak phases of these PCs have synoptic features, such as the position of the trough close to the foothills of the Himalayas, and the shifting of middle and upper tropospheric anticyclones to the south. The study suggests an objective method of interpretation of principal components by utilising synoptic data. In addition, synoptic models and data sets corresponding to different phases of the monsoon can also be prepared in an objective manner by such PCA. Received July 18, 1997 Revised April 30, 1999     

Vertical behaviour and meteorological properties of air masses in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula (1997–2007)

Air masses are characterized by physical (temperature, humidity) and chemical (transported gases and aerosols) properties, being associated their arrival to different meteorological scenarios. The knowledge of the air masses over a region is fundamental as complementary information in several atmospheric studies, being the calculation of back-trajectory the most widely used tool whenever air masses are analyzed. A study of air masses has been carried out in southwestern Iberian Peninsula using 5-day kinematic back trajectories computed by the HYSPLIT model at three heights (500, 1,500 and 3,000 m) from 1997 to 2007. The main aims have been to characterize their vertical behaviour and their thermal and humidity properties. Thirteen trajectory clusters have been defined, showing the northerly and westerly clusters a high coupling degree. Seasonal daily variation of potential temperature and specific humidity has been analyzed, obtaining higher differences among clusters in the cold season.     

基于循环孔洞扩张模型的X型圆管节点超低周疲劳寿命预测

海洋工程钢结构在服役过程中,受风、浪、流或地震等极端循环载荷的影响,易发生超低周疲劳断裂破坏,造成人员伤亡及财产损失,因此超低周疲劳断裂分析及寿命预测对于海工结构安全性评估至关重要。然而,现阶段基于累积损伤理论提出的多种超低周疲劳寿命预测模型无法对多尺度节点实现统一预测,造成了实际工程应用的不便。因此文中基于循环孔洞扩张模型开展X型圆管节点超低周疲劳寿命预测。首先,开发了基于循环孔洞扩张模型的VUSDFLD程序,实现ABAQUS与FORTRAN子程序联合应用,利用有限元分析验证循环孔洞扩张模型在X型圆管节点超低周疲劳断裂分析中的有效性;其次,根据多组X型圆管节点超低周疲劳断裂有限元分析结果,在宏观层面提出了一种基于Manson-Coffin公式的超低周疲劳寿命预测公式;最后,依据Miner理论,将适用于等幅加载的超低周疲劳寿命公式扩展至变幅加载情况,验证了多种节点尺寸下超低周疲劳公式的适用性,为工程应用提供了理论依据。     

An algorithm to retrieve precipitation with synthetic aperture radar

This paper presents a new type of rainfall retrieval algorithm, called the model-oriented statistical and Volterra integration. It is a combination of the model-oriented statistical (MOS) and Volterra integral equation (VIE) approaches. The steps involved in this new algorithm can be briefly illustrated as follows. Firstly, information such as the start point and width of the rain is obtained through pre-analysis of the data received by synthetic aperture radar (SAR). Secondly, the VIE retrieval algorithm is employed over a short distance to obtain information on the shape of the rain. Finally, the rain rate can be calculated by using the MOS retrieval algorithm. Simulation results show that the proposed algorithm is effective and simple, and can lead to time savings of nearly 50% compared with MOS. An example of application of SAR data is also discussed, involving the retrieval of precipitation information over the South China Sea.