Does Poisson’s downward continuation give physically meaningful results?

The downward continuation (DWC) of the gravity anomalies from the Earth’s surface to the geoid is still probably the most problematic step in the precise geoid determination. It is this step that motivates the quasi-geoid users to opt for Molodenskij’s rather than Stokes’s theory. The reason for this is that the DWC is perceived as suffering from two major flaws: first, a physically meaningful DWC technique requires the knowledge of the irregular topographical density; second, the Poisson DWC, which is the only physically meaningful technique we know, presents itself mathematically in the form of Fredholm integral equation of the 1st kind. As Fredholm integral equations are often numerically ill-conditioned, this makes some people believe that the DWC problem is physically ill-posed. According to a revered French mathematician Hadamard, the DWC problem is physically well-posed and as such gives always a finite and unique solution. The necessity of knowing the topographical density is, of course, a real problem but one that is being solved with an ever increasing accuracy; so sooner or later it will allow us to determine the geoid with the centimetre accuracy.     

非正式聚落快速增长下的城市蔓延

姆万扎是坦桑尼亚第二大城市,也是非洲发展最快的城市之一,近年来城市蔓延问题日益凸显。本文以遥感解译的姆万扎2000、2010、2015年3期土地利用数据为基础,运用GIS空间分析、用地增长弹性系数、景观指数等方法和指标,并结合实地调研和关键知情人访谈,分析了姆万扎2000年以来城市蔓延的空间特征及影响因素。分析结果表明：1）2000年~2015年间姆万扎城市以非正式聚落形式快速蔓延,建成区扩展速度和扩展强度迅速增加;蔓延主要占用裸地,其次是植被,侵占植被的速度迅速加快;2）城市蔓延主要沿3条主干道进行,属于“廊道式为主,填充式为辅”的扩展模式,形成指状的城市空间形态;建成区紧凑度逐渐下降,形状变得更加不规则;3）城市蔓延的主要区域和整体范围都在扩大,距离衰减特征明显,沿东南方向扩展强度最高;4）城市蔓延主要受到人口与经济增长、交通条件改善、土地制度问题及有效规划缺失等因素的影响。加强次干路和地方道路的规划和建设,制定及时、有效、符合地方背景的城市规划,是未来姆万扎控制城市蔓延的可能途径。     

Variations in turbulent kinetic energy at a point source submarine groundwater discharge in a reef lagoon

The influence of sea level variations due to tides and wave setup on turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) was observed at a point source submarine groundwater discharge in a fringing coral reef lagoon. Tidal and wave setup variations modulated speed, TKE, TKE dissipation, and water temperature and salinity at the buoyant jet. The primary driver of jet TKE and speed variations was tides, while wave setup was a minor contributor. An inverse relationship between surface elevation and TKE was explained with an exponential equation based on sea level variations. During low tides, peak jet speeds (up to 0.3 m s^?1) and TKE per unit mass (up to 0.4 m² s^?2) were observed. As high tide approached, the jet produced minimum TKE of ~0.003 m² s^?2 and TKE dissipation ranged from 2 to 8×10^?4 m² s^?3. This demonstrated the sensitivity of the jet discharge to tides despite the small tidal range (<20 cm). Jet temperatures and salinities displayed semidiurnal oscillations with minimum salinity and temperature values during maximum discharge. Jet salinities increased throughout low tides while temperatures decreased. This pattern suggested the jet conduit was connected to a stratified cavity within the aquifer containing cool fresh water over cool salty water. As low tides progressed, jet outflow increased in salinity because of the mixing within the conduit, while lower jet temperatures suggested water coming from further or deeper in the aquifer. The presence of such a cavity has been recently confirmed by divers.     

Microstructure and geochemistry studies on Messinian gypsum deposits from the Northern Coast of Egypt

Messinian gypsum deposits from Dir El-Baraqan area, Northern Coast of Egypt, were investigated by stable sulfur isotope method, X-ray diffraction, infrared spectroscopy, optical microscopy, and scanning electron microscopy to differentiate features formed under substantial microbial influences as indicator of paleoenvironments. Petrographically, gypsum deposits were classified into three types: biolaminated gypsum, disordered selenite, and swallow-tail selenitic crystals. Biolaminated gypsum is characterized by regular alternating dark and light laminae, which were formed due to the seasonal environmental changes in Dir El-Baraqan area. Stable sulfur isotope data show that the gypsum deposits are characterized by δ³⁴S values ranging from +18.1 to +28.1 ‰. In swallow-tail gypsum, the δ³⁴S values are characterized by a narrow range (from +20.0 to +20.2 ‰) which is considered as the primary phase. In biolaminated gypsum, the δ³⁴S values ranged from +22.8 to +28.1 ‰ which is considered as the secondary phase. However, the white laminae are characterized by δ³⁴S values ranging from +22.8 to +24.1 ‰, while dark laminae are characterized by δ³⁴S values ranging from +27.2 to +28.1 ‰. The high δ³⁴S values of dark laminae revealed the increasing activity of sulfate-reducing bacteria.     

Vertical physicochemical parameter distributions and health risk assessment for trace metals in water columns in eastern Lake Tanganyika,Tanzania

The vertical distributions of trace metals and physicochemical parameters in water columns in Kigoma Bay and Kungwe Bay in eastern Lake Tanganyika, Tanzania, were studied. The Al, Ba, Ca, Co,K, Mg, Mn, Mo, Na, Sn, Sr, and V concentrations were low and varied very little with depth. The toxic heavy metal(As, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn) concentrations were relatively high in the surface water, and the Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn concentrations decreased with depth. Principal component and cluster analyses indicated that the metals in the lake had three main sources. Al, Ba, Ca, Co, Cu, Cr, Mn, Sr, Sn, and V were found to be geogenic; As, Cr, Cu, Mo, Ni, Pb, Sn and Zn anthropogenic; and As, Ca, Co, Mg, and Na biogenic.Human health risk assessments were performed, and it was found that trace metals in the water at most of the sampling sites would cause no potential adverse ef fects or non-carcinogenic health risks through dermal contact or ingestion. However, trace metals in surface water in Kungwe Bay could have certain adverse ef fects on human health through the ingestion pathway(the total hazard quotient for ingestion(ΣHQi ng)was 1.75(a value 1 was de?ned as possibly indicating adverse ef fects). The Pb HQi ng for surface water in Kungwe Bay was 1.50 and contributed 80% of the ΣHQ_(ing_, implying that Pb pollution is a water quality and safety problem that needs to be carefully monitored and the potential sources identi?ed.     

Mesoscale eddy variability in the Caribbean Sea

Ocean Dynamics - The spatial distribution, and the monthly and seasonal variability of mesoscale eddy observations derived from the AVISO eddy atlas are assessed in the Caribbean Sea during...     

Structure of interacting elliptical radio galaxies

We have used a numerical method based on elliptical fitting of isophotes to analyse the structural parameters of three pairs of elliptical galaxies containing radio jets. The relationship between tidal interactions and radio activity is also investigated.