Variations in climatic and hydrological parameters in the Selenga River basin in the Russian Federation

The variations in average annual surface air temperature, precipitation, and runoff in the Selenga River basin (within Russia) are analyzed. It is demonstrated that the considerable increase in average annual temperature of surface air layers occurred in the 1980s-1990s. The decrease in peak water discharge in the rivers and the increase in the frequency of low-water periods were revealed in the forest-steppe and steppe zones of the Selenga River basin in 2001-2010. In the southwestern mountain regions (the Dzhida River basin) the river runoff increased during that period.     

Weak GPS signal tracking using FFT discriminator in open loop receiver

An open loop tracking architecture, which tracks GPS signals under weak and challenging conditions, is analyzed. The in-phase and quadrature-phase integration pair is regarded as a single tone complex signal. An FFT-based method is used as a frequency discriminator to estimate the Doppler frequency residual of the single tone signal. Another FFT-based method applies complex squaring to eliminate the effect of the navigation data bits polarities. The performance of the FFT-based discriminators is assessed in three criteria. Those criteria are the signal strength and dynamic range that can be tracked and the accuracy of the estimated Doppler frequency. In addition, the performance of the discriminators is analyzed to provide the theoretical and simulated peak detection probability. The results indicate that the FFT discriminator can track signals about 5 dB weaker than the signals that can be tracked by the complex squared FFT discriminator. In a quasi-static environment, the Doppler frequency residual can be assumed to be around zero, which can enable the FFT-based discriminators to track signals with approximately 2 dB less power. Moreover, the performance of the FFT-based discriminators is compared with the performance of two other frequency discriminators, namely the fast–slow and power-based. The comparison results indicate that these two frequency discriminators give higher frequency estimation accuracy, but they have a narrower dynamic range.     

Shoreline variability of an urban beach fronted by a beachrock reef from video imagery

This contribution presents the results of a study on the shoreline variability of a natural perched urban beach (Ammoudara, N. Crete, Greece). Shoreline variability was monitored in high spatio-temporal resolution using time series of coastal video images and a novel, fully automated 2-D shoreline detection algorithm. Ten-month video monitoring showed that cross-shore shoreline change was, in some areas, up to 8 m with adjacent sections of the shoreline showing contrasting patterns of beach loss or gain. Variability increased in spring/early summer and stabilized until the end of the summer when partial beach recovery commenced. Correlation of the patterns of beach change with wave forcing (as recorded at an offshore wave buoy) is not straightforward; the only discernible association was that particularly energetic waves from the northern sector can trigger changes in the patterns of shoreline variability and that increased variability might be sustained by increases in offshore wave steepness. It was also found that the fronting beachrock reef exerts significant geological control on beach hydrodynamics. Hydrodynamic modelling and observations during an energetic event showed that the reef can filter wave energy in a highly differential manner, depending on its local architecture. In some areas, the reef allows only low-energy waves to impinge on the shoreline, whereas elsewhere penetration of higher waves is facilitated by the low elevation and limited width of the reef or by the presence of an inlet. Wave/reef interaction can also generate complex circulation patterns, including rip currents that appeared to be also constrained by the reef architecture.     

Tracing the source of metals in Geogas from metal deposits in a loess-covered region北大核心CSCD

In order to test the distribution characteristics of metallogenic elements and the application effectiveness of the traee elements and REE for tracing the source of Geogas anomaly, the distribution characteristics of metallogenetic elements .trace elements and REE in different media of the Jiaolongzhang Pb-Zn deposit underneath the loess have been studied in this paper. Results indicate that the distribution characteristics of Geogas anomalous elements over the concealed orebodies are coincided with those of the enriched elements of ores, while the distribution characteristics of trace elements and REE in background Geogas samples are distinctly different from those of other media, indicating that the source of background Geogas materials is influenced by various factors( geological bodies, lab environment and blank reagent). The similar distribution characteristics of the trace elements in the Geogas samples of anomalous areas and in the ores suggested that Geogas anomaly is affected by concealed orebodies in depth. The difference between REE patterns of the Geogas samples of the anomalous area and those of other solid media might be caused by inadequate analytical precision and low collecting efficiency of the instrument. It is believed that the REE tracing method can provide the information on the source of Geogas anomaly if the analytical precision and collecting efficiency of REE could be constantly increased.     

The fluid phase evolution during the formation of carbonatite of the Guli massif: Evidence from the isotope (C,N, Ar) data

The first data on variations of the isotope composition and element ratios of carbon, nitrogen, and argon in carbonatites of different generations and ultrabasic rocks of the Guli massif obtained by the method of step crushing are reported. It is shown that early carbonatite differs significantly from the later ones by the concentration of highly volatile components, as well as by the isotope compositions of carbon (CO₂), argon, and hydrogen (H₂O). The data obtained allow us to conclude that the mantle component predominated in the fluid at the early stages of formation of rocks of the Guli massif, whereas the late stages of carbonatite formation were characterized by an additional fluid source, which introduced atmospheric argon, and most likely a high portion of carbon dioxide with isotopically heavy carbon.     

The possibility of passive acoustic monitoring of a Scuba Diver

The problem of controlling the state and location of scuba divers is of importance. This work consider the possibility to use for this purpose a low-frequency noise of a scuba diver. The noise of a scuba diver under a dry swimming suite near the trachea and in the water at a distance of 50 m was recorded.It wa shown that both sygnals are characterized by the presence of quasi-periodic components induced by the amplitude modulation of wide-band breathing noises by the brething rhythms of a scuba diver. The quasi-periodic componentss distinguished can be used to evaluate the physiological parameters of the state of a scuba diver and to establish his location.     

The effect of long-range atmospheric transport of organochlorine compounds by soil studies from Mongolia to the Arctic

The results of studies on the distribution regularities are presented for polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) of different degrees of chlorination and for organochlorine pesticides (OCPs): hexachlorobenzene (HCB), hexachlorocyclohexane (HCCH), and DDT with its metabolites in the soils along the Lena River valley and in background areas of Eastern Siberia and Mongolia. A statistically reliable correlation is found between the PCB–OCP and C_org concentrations. The highest levels of HCB are registered in the soils between 50 and 60° N. The concentrations of αand γ-HCCH increase reliably, while those of pp′-DDT and pp′-DDE decrease from south to north. A trend of the decrease in concentrations from Mongolia to the Laptev Sea is revealed for tri-, tetra-, and penta-chlorine-substituted PCB congeners. However, the soils sampled northwards from 60° N show a reliable increase in the concentrations of tetra-, penta-, and hexachlorine-substituted congeners.     

A new type of noble metal mineralization in the Northern Caucasus

The weathering crust of the Beden ultrabasite massif (the basin of Big Laba River) is identified and studied. Anomalously high contents of noble metals (Au, Pt, Pd) are revealed in the basal horizon of the Jurassic part of the weathering crust. For this reason we suspect an existence of a belt of noble metal miner-alization in the Paleozoic ultrabasites in the Peredovoi Range of the Northern Caucasus.     

Silurian U–Pb zircon age (LA-ICP-MS) of granitoids from the Zelenodol Cu–porphyry deposit,Southern Urals

The Zelenodol porphyry Cu-(Au, Mo) deposit located about 65 km SSW of the city of Chelyabinsk is confined to the western part of the West Uralian Volcanogenic Megazone. The concordant U-Pb age of zircons from ore-bearing island-arc diorite porphyryis 418.3 Â ± 2.9 Ma.