Atmospheric effects from post-nuclear fires

During a large nuclear war, the atmosphere would be loaded with huge quantities of pollutants, which are produced by fires in urban and industrial centers, cultivated lands, forests and grasslands. Especially detrimental are the effects of light absorbing airborne particles. An analysis of the amounts of the various types of fuels which could burn in a nuclear war indicates that more than 10¹⁴ g of black smoke could be produced by fires started by the nuclear explosions. Due to this, the penetration of sunlight to the earth's surface would be reduced greatly over extended areas of the northern hemisphere, maybe even globally. This could temporarily cause extreme darkness in large areas in midlatitudes and reduce crop growth and biospheric productivity.This situation would last for several weeks and cause very anomalous meteorological conditions. Much solar radiation would be absorbed in the atmosphere instead of at the earth's surface. The land areas and lower atmosphere would, therefore, cool and the overlying atmosphere warm, creating strong vertical thermal stability in a highly polluted atmosphere. For extended periods and in large parts of the world, weather conditions would be abnormal. The resulting cold, probably freezing, temperatures at the ground would interfere severely with crop production during the growing season and cause extreme conditions for large sections of the biosphere. The combination of lack of sunlight, frost and other adverse meteorological conditions would add enormously to the already huge problems of the survivors.     

An Efficient Non-iterative Bulk Parametrization of Surface Fluxes for Stable Atmospheric Conditions Over Polar Sea-Ice

In climate and weather prediction models the near-surface turbulent fluxes of heat and momentum and related transfer coefficients are usually parametrized on the basis of Monin–Obukhov similarity theory (MOST). To avoid iteration, required for the numerical solution of the MOST equations, many models apply parametrizations of the transfer coefficients based on an approach relating these coefficients to the bulk Richardson number \(Ri_{b}\). However, the parametrizations that are presently used in most climate models are valid only for weaker stability and larger surface roughnesses than those documented during the Surface Heat Budget of the Arctic Ocean campaign (SHEBA). The latter delivered a well-accepted set of turbulence data in the stable surface layer over polar sea-ice. Using stability functions based on the SHEBA data, we solve the MOST equations applying a new semi-analytic approach that results in transfer coefficients as a function of \(Ri_{b}\) and roughness lengths for momentum and heat. It is shown that the new coefficients reproduce the coefficients obtained by the numerical iterative method with a good accuracy in the most relevant range of stability and roughness lengths. For small \(Ri_{b}\), the new bulk transfer coefficients are similar to the traditional coefficients, but for large \(Ri_{b}\) they are much smaller than currently used coefficients. Finally, a possible adjustment of the latter and the implementation of the new proposed parametrizations in models are discussed.     

From brightening to dimming in sunshine duration over the eastern and central Tibetan Plateau (1961–2005)

The Tibetan Plateau (TP) with an average elevation of over 4,000 m asl is the highest and most extensive highland in the world. We used monthly mean sunshine duration from the Chinese Meteorological Administration to examine the spatial and temporal variability of sunshine duration at 71 stations with elevations above 2,000 m asl in the eastern and central TP during the 1961–2005 period. The temporal evolution of the mean annual sunshine duration series shows a significant increase from 1961 to 1982 at a rate of 49.8 h/decade, followed by a decrease from 1983 to 2005 at a rate of ?65.1 h/decade, with an overall significant decrease at a rate of ?20.6 h/decade during the whole 1961–2005 period, which is mainly due to the summer and spring seasons. This confirms the evidence that sunshine duration in the TP ranges from brightening to dimming in accordance with sunshine duration trends in the rest of China. The surface solar radiation downwards from ERA-40 reanalysis data in the same region confirms the brightening/dimming phenomenon shown by the sunshine duration before/after the 1980s. Otherwise, additional climatic variables such as low cloud amount, total cloud amount, precipitation, relative humidity and water vapor pressure, in most cases, exhibit significant negative correlation with sunshine duration in the TP on an annual and seasonal basis before and after 1982, respectively. The trends of these variables suggest that changes in some of them might be related to the brightening and dimming detected with the use of sunshine duration measurements over the TP. We also hypothesize that the impact of anthropogenic aerosols upon the climatic variables analyzed cannot be rejected, especially in the significant increase in low cloud cover since approximately 1980.     

1958～2018年永定河流域蒸发皿蒸发量的变化特征及其影响因子分析

基于永定河流域1958～2018年14个气象站的逐日观测数据,采用气候倾向率、Mann–Kendall趋势检验法分析蒸发皿蒸发量时空变化特征,并通过完全相关系数和多元回归分析识别气候因子与蒸发量的相关程度并定量计算其贡献率.结果表明:在全球气候变暖的背景下,60年来永定河流域气温以0.29°C/10 a的速率上升,而蒸...     

基于CERES观测数据的全球行星反照率时空变化特征分析

为了理解行星反照率时空变化规律及成因,基于CERES数据对全球行星反照率的大气(主要为云与气溶胶等)和地表贡献进行了分解,通过Theil-Sen+Mann-Kendall方法得到了2001～2018年全球行星反照率及其大气和地表贡献的时空变化趋势,并基于回归分析方法对典型区域的变化趋势进行了初步解释.研究结果表明:1)...     

The use of the exponent K(q) function to delimit homogeneous regions in regional frequency analysis of extreme annual daily rainfall

The regional frequency analysis of extreme annual rainfall data is a useful methodology in hydrology to obtain certain quantile values when no long data series are available. The most crucial step in the analysis is the grouping of sites into homogeneous regions. This work presents a new grouping criterion based on some multifractal properties of rainfall data. For this purpose, a regional frequency analysis of extreme annual rainfall data from the Maule Region (Chile) has been performed. Daily rainfall data series of 53 available stations have been studied, and their empirical moments scaling exponent functions K(q) have been obtained. Two characteristics parameters of the K(q) functions (γ_max and K(0)) have been used to group the stations into three homogeneous regions. Only five sites have not been possible to include into any homogenous regions, being the local frequency analysis of extreme daily rainfall the most appropriate method to be used at these locations. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Contrasting hydrological response of coastal and desert biocrusts

Biocrusts abound in southern Israel, covering the Hallamish dune field near Nizzana (NIZ) in the Negev (mean annual precipitation of 95 mm) and the coast of Nizzanim (NIM) near Ashdod (mean annual precipitation of 500 mm). While the hydrological response of the NIZ crust to natural rain events was thoroughly investigated, no data is available on the hydrological response of the NIM crust. Runoff was monitored in runoff plots during the years 2005–2008, and in addition, sprinkling experiments were carried out on NIM and NIZ crusts. For the evaluation of the possible factors that may control runoff initiation, fine content of the parent material, crust thickness, compressional strength, hydrophobicity, surface microrelief, organic matter, biomass (chlorophyll a and total carbohydrates) and the crust's species composition of NIM were studied and compared to that of NIZ. The data showed that in comparison to the NIZ crust that readily generated runoff, no runoff was produced by the NIM crust. This was so despite the fact that (1) Microculeus vaginatus predominated in both crusts, (2) the substantially higher rain intensities in NIM, (3) the greater thickness and higher chlorophyll content and (4) the lower microrelief at NIM in comparison to NIZ. The lack of runoff in NIM was explained by its low amounts of exopolysaccharides that did not suffice to affectively clog the surface and in turn to facilitate runoff initiation. The absence of runoff and its consequences on the NIM ecosystem are discussed. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Groundwater – the disregarded component in lake water and nutrient budgets. Part 2: effects of groundwater on nutrients

Lacustrine groundwater discharge (LGD) transports nutrients from a catchment to a lake, which may fuel eutrophication, one of the major threats to our fresh waters. Unfortunately, LGD has often been disregarded in lake nutrient studies. Most measurement techniques are based on separate determinations of volume and nutrient concentration of LGD: Loads are calculated by multiplying seepage volumes by concentrations of exfiltrating water. Typically low phosphorus (P) concentrations of pristine groundwater often are increased due to anthropogenic sources such as fertilizer, manure or sewage. Mineralization of naturally present organic matter might also increase groundwater P. Reducing redox conditions favour P transport through the aquifer to the reactive aquifer‐lake interface. In some cases, large decreases of P concentrations may occur at the interface, for example, due to increased oxygen availability, while in other cases, there is nearly no decrease in P. The high reactivity of the interface complicates quantification of groundwater‐borne P loads to the lake, making difficult clear differentiation of internal and external P loads to surface water. Anthropogenic sources of nitrogen (N) in groundwater are similar to those of phosphate. However, the environmental fate of N differs fundamentally from P because N occurs in several different redox states, each with different mobility. While nitrate behaves essentially conservatively in most oxic aquifers, ammonium's mobility is similar to that of phosphate. Nitrate may be transformed to gaseous N₂ in reducing conditions and permanently removed from the system. Biogeochemical turnover of N is common at the reactive aquifer‐lake interface. Nutrient loads from LGD were compiled from the literature. Groundwater‐borne P loads vary from 0.74 to 2900 mg PO₄‐P m^?2 year^?1; for N, these loads vary from 0.001 to 640 g m^?2 year^?1. Even small amounts of seepage can carry large nutrient loads due to often high nutrient concentrations in groundwater. Large spatial heterogeneity, uncertain areal extent of the interface and difficult accessibility make every determination of LGD a challenge. However, determinations of LGD are essential to effective lake management. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Late Miocene to Early Pliocene blueschist from Taiwan and its exhumation via forearc extraction

Blueschist facies rocks in the Yuli Belt of Taiwan's Central Range record ongoing subduction of the Eurasian plate. We present a prograde Lu–Hf garnet–whole‐rock age of 5.1 ± 1.7 Ma from a retrogressed blueschist in the Yuli Belt. This age is considerably younger than the previously assumed age of 14–8 Ma for high‐pressure metamorphism in the Yuli Belt and represents the youngest Lu–Hf garnet age ever recorded for blueschist facies metamorphism. The age sheds new light on the palaeogeographic origin and exhumation scenario of the Yuli Belt. We propose that the Yuli Belt originated from the ocean–continent boundary of the Chinese passive margin. It was subducted eastward during collision with the Luzon island arc and rapidly exhumed when the forearc lithosphere was removed from above the continental slab by discrete subduction (extraction). This process reduces the pressure above the continental slab and may prompt the ascent of subducted crust into the opening gap. Thus, it can control the exhumation of high‐pressure rocks.