Influence of Azores High pressure on Middle Eastern rainfall

Several studies demonstrate that North Atlantic Oscillation influences variability of climate over Middle East. We use the centers of action approach for the study of winter rainfall variability over Middle East, taking into account variations in the components of the North Atlantic Oscillation, the Azores High and the Icelandic Low pressure systems. The results show there is a negative relation between the interannual variations of winter rainfall over Middle East and Azores High pressure. The east–west shifts of Indian Ocean high pressure has also impact on precipitation over Middle East, there being more precipitation when the Indian Ocean High shifts eastward versus when it is westward. We present a regression model for Middle East precipitation in which the Azores High pressure and the Indian Ocean High longitude are independent variables and it explains 40 % of the variance of precipitation during 1952–2002. Furthermore, the ongoing decrease in winter precipitation over the Middle East is attributed to the increasing pressure of the Azores High over the same period.     

Adaptive state estimation of groundwater contaminant boundary input flux in a 2-dimensional aquifer

In many circumstances involving heat and mass transfer issues,it is considered impractical to measure the input flux and the resulting state distribution in the domain.Therefore,the need to develop techniques to provide solutions for such problems and estimate the inverse mass flux becomes imperative.Adaptive state estimator(ASE)is increasingly becoming a popular inverse estimation technique which resolves inverse problems by incorporating the semi-Markovian concept into a Bayesian estimation technique,thereby developing an inverse input and state estimator consisting of a bank of parallel adaptively weighted Kalman filters.The ASE is particularly designed for a system that encompasses independent unknowns and/or random switching of input and measurement biases.The present study describes the scheme to estimate the groundwater input contaminant flux and its transient distribution in a conjectural two-dimensional aquifer by means of ASE,which in particular is because of its unique ability to efficiently handle the process noise giving an estimation of keeping the relative error range within 10%in 2-dimensional problems.Numerical simulation results show that the proposed estimator presents decent estimation performance for both smoothly and abruptly varying input flux scenarios.Results also show that ASE enjoys a better estimation performance than its competitor,Recursive Least Square Estimator(RLSE)due to its larger error tolerance in greater process noise regimes.ASE's inherent deficiency of being slower than the RLSE,resulting from the complexity of algorithm,was also noticed.The chosen input scenarios are tested to calculate the effect of input area and both estimators show improved results with an increase in input flux area especially as sensors are moved closer to the assumed input location.     

P-wave minimum 1D velocity model for central and northern Pakistan

Journal of Seismology - We present a P-wave minimum 1D velocity model for central and northern Pakistan along with station delays. The velocity model and appropriate station delays are obtained...     

Soil studies for highway construction in arid zones

An appreciation of the special features of the desert environment is necessary for proper construction and subsequent maintenance of highways in arid zones. Geotechnical tests and chemical analyses were carried out on a large number of samples of dune sand collected from four different sites in the Sahara desert. It is concluded that greater use can be made of local materials and that cement-stabilized sand should prove an adequate base for highways. Some useful suggestions are given for engineers operating in the hot deserts.     

Influence of Icelandic Low pressure on winter precipitation variability over northern part of Indo-Pak Region

Several studies demonstrate that North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) has dominant influence on the variability of climate over Southwest Asia. We deconstruct the NAO into its two components, the Azores High and the Icelandic Low. Regional circulations are influenced by changes not only in the pressure but also the positions of the Azores High and the Icelandic Low. The results presented in this paper exhibit that significantly great portions of interannual variance of winter precipitation over Indo-Pak Region (consists of Northeast Pakistan and Northwest India) can be explained by including the contributions of the Icelandic Low pressure in addition to ENSO and AO. This contribution also explains the physical mechanisms to establish the relationships between the COA and regional climate by examining composite maps of large-scale circulation fields using NCEP/NCAR reanalysis data.     

Indian record for Kepler's supernova: Evidence from Kashmir Valley

We revisit a strange representation of the Sagittarius constellation painted on a door arch of a tomb in Kashmir. We show that it is a very strong case of a representation of Kepler's supernova (© 2011 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)