Zoobenthos of Lake Uluabat,a Ramsar Site in Turkey,and Their Relationship with Environmental Variables

The numerical and proportional distributions of zoobenthos in lake Uluabat, which is located in the Northwestern part of Turkey and having international importance according to the Ramsar Convention, were determined from August 2004 to July 2005 at monthly intervals (except for December 2004, January and February 2005) at 12 different stations. Thirty‐three taxonomic groups were recorded. It was found that the zoobenthos consisted of 35.6 % Oligochaeta, 27.7 % Nematoda, 12.3 % Chironomidae larvae, 10.7 % Gastropoda, 3.6 % Ostracoda, and 10.1 % Varia by numbers (Bivalvia, Ceratopogonidae, Hirudinea, Odonata, Ephemeroptera, Asilidae, Hydraacarina, Hemiptera, Argulidae, and Gammaridae). The average number of invertebrates was 160 individuals for 33 taxa at the 12 different stations. Also some environmental parameters of the lakewater were analyzed (temperature, pH, dissolved oxygen, biochemical oxygen demand, chemical oxygen demand, NO₂–N, NO₃–N, NH₃–N, PO₄^–3, fecal coliform, and total coliform). The relationships between the dynamics of the Oligochaeta and the physicochemical variables were supported by the Pearson correlation index and the canonical correspondence analysis (CANOCO). It was found that the relation between the average number of P. hammoniensis and P. albicola (p < 0.05, r = 0.590 and 0.593, respectively) and L. hoffmeisteri (p < 0.01, r = 0.777) was directly proportional while the relation between the average number of some taxa Trichodrillus sp., Rhyacodrilus coccineus, Nais communis, N. variabilis, and N. barbata and NO₃–N (p < 0.05, r = –0.685) was inversely proportional.     

The effect of interpolation methods in surface definition: an experimental study

Mappings of the earth surface and their representation in 3D (three‐dimensional) models are commonly used in most recent research. Modeling research, which starts with classical surveying methods, acquires new dimensions matching the modern technologies. 3D models of any object or earth surface can be used in much visual and scientific research. A digital model of the landscape is an important part within creation of geo‐information systems used in the public administration and in the commercial sphere. It is an important tool in applications such as geomorphology, hydrology, geology, cartography, ecology, mining etc. Values of volume in terrains that do not have regular geometric structure can be obtained more accurately by using 3D models of surfaces with respect to developing technology. Basic data of 3D models must indicate 3D coordinates of the surveyed object in the reference frame. Distribution and intensity of points are important factors in modeling earth surfaces. A minimum number of points is desired in defining an object in 3D. Interpolation methods employing different mathematical models are used to obtain 3D models of terrain surfaces. In this study, the effect of interpolation methods in defining a terrain surface is investigated. For this purpose, a uniform surface, hill‐shaped artificial object with a known volume is employed. The 3D surface and volume are calculated by using 12 different interpolation methods. Point distribution, point intensity and accuracy of point measurements are not considered. The same data set was used for all the interpolation methods. The interpolation methods are compared and evaluated based on the results. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Quantification of the urban heat island under a changing climate over Anatolian Peninsula

The Anatolian Peninsula is located at the confluence of Europe, Asia, and Africa and houses 81 cities of which 79 of them have population over 100,000. We employed some criteria to select the cities from the 81 cities. After accomplishing all the criteria, eight cities were remaining for the study. Nonparametric Mann–Kendall test procedure was employed for the urban and rural stations of these cities to detect the long-term change in temperature trends. Statistical analysis of daily minimum temperatures for the period between 1965 and 2006 suggest that there is no statistically significant increase in rural areas. In contrast to the findings of the previous studies, however, all the urban sites and difference between urban and rural pairs show significant increase in temperatures, a strong indication for the existence of urban heat island (UHI) affect over the region. Regional Climate Model was also utilized to assess the changes in temperature by the end of century for the region. The findings suggest that an increase of up to 5°C is possible. Climate change effects enforced with UHI have the potential to cause serious problems for the entire region and hence needs to be studied thoroughly.     

Changes of oceanographic characteristics and the state of pollution in the Izmit bay following the earthquake of 1999

The Izmit Bay is an elongated semi-enclosed bay in the Marmara Sea. It is being increasingly polluted by both domestic and industrial waste discharge since 1970’s. A monitoring program was conducted between 1999-2000 to document the state of pollution in the bay. This includes the effect of Marmara (Izmit) earthquake (magnitude 7.4) that occurred in August 1999. A stable two-layer ecosystem exists in the bay throughout the year due to continuous inflows of the saltier Mediterranean and brackish Black Sea waters to the Marmara basin. Therefore, the principal biochemical characteristics of the bay are governed by the two-layer flow system over the basin. Dissolved oxygen (DO) is generally at a saturated levels in the surface layer which is 10 to 15 m thick, but it is depleted to 60–70 μM in the lower layer, exhibiting a steep gradient in the sharp halocline. When the earthquake occurred, great loads of industrial wastes were released into the bay surface waters, which enhanced primary production in the upper layer and thus large export of particulate organic matter to lower layer and eventually to the bottom. Accordingly, DO was consumed and anoxic condition was established even in the upper layer/halocline interface, the halocline and bottom waters of the eastern and central bay. In this period, concurrent increases were observed in phosphate and ammonia contents at the halocline and in deep waters whilst the nitrate was almost consumed via denitrification processes in the anoxic water. Recently, the industrial C, N and P loads increased by as much as 8 fold within five years (1995–2000) whilst domestic inputs increased by 50%. Total organic matter discharged to the bay increased more than double within the last 15 years. Besides, most factories in the region release toxic wastes into the bay after only partial treatment.     

GIS-based landslide susceptibility mapping using bivariate statistical analysis in Devrek (Zonguldak-Turkey)

Devrek town with increasing population is located in a hillslope area where some landslides exist. Therefore, landslide susceptibility map of the area is required. The purpose of this study was to generate a landslide susceptibility map using a bivariate statistical index and evaluate and compare the results of the statistical analysis conducted with three different approaches in seed cell concept resulting in different data sets in Geographical Information Systems (GIS) based landslide susceptibility mapping applied to the Devrek region. The data sets are created from the seed cells of (a) crowns and flanks, (b) only crowns, and (c) only flanks of the landslides by using ten different causative parameters of the study area. To increase the data dependency of the analysis, all parameter maps are classified into equal frequency classes based directly on the percentile divisions of each corresponding seed cell data set. The resultant maps of the landslide susceptibility analysis indicate that all data sets produce fairly acceptable results. In each data set analysis, elevation, lithology, slope, aspect, and drainage density parameters are found to be the most contributing factors in landslide occurrences. The results of the three data sets are compared using Seed Cell Area Indexes (SCAI). This comparison shows that the crown data set produces the most accurate and successful landslide susceptibility map of the study area.     

Constraints on unconsolidated pyroclastic flow sediments related REE enrichments originated from potassic-alkaline Gölcük stratovolcano: Darıdere-Direkli-Yakaören (DDY) table 4deposits,southwestern Anatolia of Turkey

Acta Geochimica - In the last five decades, Rare Earth Elements (REE) are mostly produced from carbonatite complexes and alkaline magmatic environments. In this respect, pyroclastic flows produced...     

Discovering a pull-apart basin using InSAR in Bursa,Turkey

The city of Bursa in Turkey is surrounded by major and secondary fault branches which splay from the North Anatolian Fault. Nonetheless, as their traces were not exactly known in the alluvial land of the Bursa basin, until this study, they were not plotted in the official active fault map of Turkey. In this study, the Bursa basin was observed by InSAR technology, and the subsidence which is consistent with the pull-apart basin geometry was detected in the basin. This finding was discussed in the local platforms in Turkey. Then, the city of Bursa was included into the priority provinces for the urban reconstruction under the risk of an earthquake, and the official active fault map of the region was revised by General Directorate of Mineral Research and Exploration of Turkey.     

整数模糊度参数的快速检索算法

ＧＰＳ快速定位中,由于模糊度参数之间的强相关性,模糊度参数置信区间定义的检索区域比相应的置信椭球大得多。本文通过模糊度参数向量的正交变换,定义出包含模糊度参数置信椭球的最小正交多面体,借助在其中构造的均匀正交网格点,找出置信椭球中的所有整数模糊度参数向量。该方法显著地减少了整数模糊度参数的检索范围,提高了计算效率。     

Determining the optimum image fusion method for better interpretation of the surface of the Earth

Image fusion is the production of high-resolution images by combining the spatial details of a high-resolution image with the spectral features of a low-resolution one. Reports of various quality metrics to evaluate the spectral and spatial qualities of fused images have been published. However, metrics may lead to misinterpretation due to inherent limitations in their mathematical algorithms. Hence, the use of additional assessment techniques in quality evaluation is reasonable. The purpose of the study was to compare the performances of several advanced fusion algorithms in order to help users in their choice of an appropriate fusion algorithm. Four different datasets were fused using advanced fusion algorithms, namely UNB PanSharp, Hyperspherical Color Space, High-Pass Filtering, Ehlers, Subtractive, Wavelet Single Band, Gram-Schmidt, Flexible Pixel-Based, and Criteria-Based. The spectral and spatial qualities of the fused images were evaluated using various quantitative procedures to ensure comprehensive and reliable comparison. The results showed that the Flexible Pixel-Based and High-Pass Filtering algorithms were very successful with regard to spatial quality, whereas the Flexible Pixel-Based and Criteria-Based algorithms were very successful with regard to spectral quality. The authors conclude that the Flexible Pixel-Based algorithm can be used for applications that require high spectral and spatial quality.