INFORMATION YIELD FROM FOREST IMAGES IN DIFFERENT SPECTRAL BANDS

Remote sensing imagery in the visible, infrared, and microwave regions of the spectrum is compared with features on the ground at a test site in western Sverdlovsk Oblast. Particular attention is paid to information obtainable on the forest cover—e.g., physiognomy and floristic composition, stand density, age of timber cuttings—and how such information about the test site varies according to wavelength. Translated by Larry Richardson, Glen-dale, CA 91202 from: Geografiya i prirodnyye resursy, 1992, No. 4, pp. 166-167.     

Settling velocities of particulate systems, 3. Power series expansion for the drag coefficient of a sphere and prediction of the settling velocity

The following equation has been previously developed for the drag coefficient of a sphere.

$\text{C}{}_{\mathrm{D}}\text{= C}{}_0\text{[1 + (σ}{}_0\text{/Re}{}^{\mathrm{<mtext>1</mtext><mtext>2</mtext>}}\text{)]}{}^2$

In this work the authors propose a power series expansion for C₀ in terms of the Reynolds number:

$\text{C}{}_0\text{= 0 284153}\text{Σ}\text{α=0}\text{n}\text{B}{}_{\mathrm{\alpha }}\text{Re}{}^{\mathrm{\alpha }}$

A fifth-order polynomial permits obtaining the drag coefficient and the settling velocity of a sphere, up to a Reynolds number of 3 × 10⁵, with an average relative error of about 2%.     

Catastrophic debris flows near Machu Picchu village (Aguas Calientes), Peru

Slope movements together with intensive river erosion and the following accumulation are the leading processes in the landscape evolution in the area of Machu Picchu village (former Aguas Calientes), which is located close to the Machu Picchu Sanctuary. Debris flows affect not only the bottoms of valleys or canyons, but also debris fans at the termini of the drainage basins, which are heavily inhabited at some places. The most recent event in the Machu Picchu village occurred in April 2004, but several others were documented in a broader area in the last 50 years. The field inspections at Machu Picchu (May and September 2004; June and September 2005) together with oral testimony revealed the nature and behavior of the debris flow. Machu Picchu village can be assessed as a zone with high landslide risk in relation to its urban development. Despite that, the village recorded a rapid growth (threefold population increase) without urban control within the past two decades. Precipitation, which is the main triggering factor of the debris flows, and natural hazard management of the Machu Picchu village are discussed in this paper.     

Oceanic ridge off-axis deep structure in the Mansah region (Sumail massif,Oman ophiolite)

Large scale structural mapping of the Oman ophiolite indicates that the Mansah area (Sumail massif) was a ridge off-axis region at the time the ophiolite was detached. This paper presents a detailed structural mapping of the region. We show that, as opposed to other off-axis areas, it contains plunging lineations, correlated with a thick Moho transition zone and chromite pods, indicative of a mantle diapir. However this diapir has a discontinuous structure, it is bounded by shear zones and types of diabases that are not found elsewhere in Oman; it also has a broken crust, strongly affected by hydrothermal alteration. This suggests that Mansah fossilized an off-axis diapir intruding a cooling lithosphere. It may be a good candidate to be the root of an off-axis seamount such as those found in the East Pacific, and may bring new insights into this particular volcanism which we are only beginning to explore.     

Effects of large organic material on channel form and fluvial processes

Stream channel development in forested areas is profoundly influenced by large organic debris (logs, limbs and rootwads greater than 10 cm in diameter) in the channels. In low gradient meandering streams large organic debris enters the channel through bank erosion, mass wasting, blowdown, and collapse of trees due to ice loading. In small streams large organic debris may locally influence channel morphology and sediment transport processes because the stream may not have the competency to redistribute the debris. In larger streams flowing water may move large organic debris, concentrating it into distinct accumulations (debris jams). Organic debris may greatly affect channel form and process by: increasing or decreasing stability of stream banks; influencing development of midchannel bars and short braided reaches; and facilitating, with other favourable circumstances, development of meander cutoffs. In steep gradient mountain streams organic debris may enter the channel by all the processes mentioned for low gradient streams. In addition, considerable debris may also enter the channel by way of debris avalanches or debris torrents. In small to intermediate size mountain streams with steep valley walls and little or no floodplain or flat valley floor, the effects of large organic debris on the fluvial processes and channel form may be very significant. Debris jams may locally accelerate or retard channel bed and bank erosion and/or deposition; create sites for significant sediment storage; and produce a stepped channel profile, herein referred to as ‘organic stepping’, which provides for variable channel morphology and flow conditions. The effect of live or dead trees anchored by rootwads into the stream bank may not only greatly retard bank erosion but also influence channel width and the development of small scour holes along the channel beneath tree roots. Once trees fall into the stream, their influence on the channel form and process may be quite different than when they were defending the banks, and, depending on the size of the debris, size of the stream, and many other factors, their effects range from insignificant to very important.     

Quantification of stability improvement of a dump through biological reclamation

An integrated study on biological stabilisation of a dump slope has indicated that biological reclamation with grass and tree species should be considered for long term stability of this coal mine dump in India. The grasses have greater soil binding capacity and help to control soil erosion and improve dump stability. Native grasses such as Bamboo (Dendrocalmus strictus) and Kashi (Saccharum spontaneum) are the important constituents of grass species which can stabilise the dump slopes. Field observation of growth performance of grasses have indicated that mean grass height, root depth and below-ground root biomass are 185 cm (±68), 45 cm (±5) and 467 g m^–2 (±170), respectively after three years of grass growth on Mudidih overburden dump slope in India. The growth performance of tree species, namely Sisum (Dalbergia sisoo) and Subabool (Leucena lecocephala), in terms of height, diameter increment, below-ground biomass and root depth have shown mean values of 219 cm (±94), 48 mm (±6), 4.0 kg m^–2 (±1.5) and 1 m (±0.1), respectively. This acts as biological fertility which helps in root proliferation and enhancement of dump stability. From the numerical modelling it is suggested that roots of these grass and tree species have significantly enhanced the factor of safety of dump from 1.4 to 1.8 and therefore have a positive role in maintaining long term stability.     

Recent volcanism at Schonchin and Cinder Buttes,northern California

Recent volcanism on the northern flank of the Medicine Lake Highland consists of a series of basalt to andesite spatter and cinder cones and their associated flows. Two particular structures, Cinder Butte and Schonchin Butte, have erupted materials that are very similar in terms of age, volume, modal mineralogy, and many major and trace elements. Significant differences with respect to TiO₂, K₂O, P₂O₅, Sr, Ba, Zr, and LREE can be related to possible changes in the mineralogy within the source region of these volcanic rocks. Apatite and priderite are the two minor constituents that best satisfy the constraints set by the mineral and chemical data. An inhomogeneous upper mantle or lower crust beneath the Medicine Lake Highland is indicated.     

A simplified method for simulation of strong ground motion using finite rupture model of the earthquake source

We present a simplified method to simulate strong ground motion for a realistic representation of a finite earthquake source burried in a layered earth. This method is based on the stochastic simulation method of Boore (Boore, D. M., 1983, Bull. Seism. Soc. Am. 73, 1865–1894) and the Empirical Greens Function (EFG) method of Irikura (Irikura, K., 1986, Proceedings of the 7th Japan Earthquake symposium, pp. 151–156). The rupture responsible for an earthquake is represented by several subfaults. The geometry of subfaults and their number is decided by the similarity relationships. For simulation of ground motion using the stochastic simulation technique we used the shapping window based on the kinetic source model of the rupture plane. The shaping window deepens on the geometry of the earthquake source and the propagation characteristics of the energy released by various subfaults. The division of large fault into small subfaults and the method for accounting their contribution at the surface is identical to the EGF. The shapping window has been modified to take into account the effect of the transmission of energy released form the finite fault at various boundaries of the layered earth model above the source. In the present method we have applied the correction factor to adjust slip time function of small and large earthquakes. The correction factor is used to simulate strong motion records having basic spectral shape of ² source model in broad frequency range. To test this method we have used the strong motion data of the Geiyo earthquake of 24th March 2001, Japan recorded by KiK network. The source of this earthquake is modelled by a simple rectangular rupture of size 24 × 15 km, burried at a depth of 31 km in a multilayered earth model. This rupture plane is divided into 16 rectangular subfaults of size 6.0 × 3.75 km each. Strong motion records at eight selected near-field stations were simulated and compared with the observed records in terms of the acceleration and velocity records and their response spectrum. The comparison confirms the suitability of proposed rupture model responsible for this earthquake and the efficacy of the approach in predicting the strong motion scenario of earthquakes in the subduction zone. Using the same rupture model of the Geiyo earthquake, we compared the simulated records from our and the EGF techniques at one near-field station. The comparison shows that this technique gives records which matches in a wide frequency range and that too from simple and easily accessible parameters of burried rupture.     

The search for giant radio galaxies in the PS 102 survey

The possibility of selecting extended radio sources that are potential candidates for giant radio galaxies among objects in the Pushchino catalog at 102 MHz is considered. The method used is based on the analysis of objects in a α ₁–α ₂ diagram, where α ₁ and α ₂ are two-frequency spectral indices (S _ν ～ ν ^?α ), formally calculated using 102–365 and 365–1400 MHz data, based on the identifications of Pushchino radio sources with objects of the Texas (365 MHz) and Green Bank (1400 MHz) catalogs. The calculated spectra are abnormally steep at 102–365 MHz and flat or even inverted at 365–1400 MHz, due to the fact that the 365-MHz flux densities of extended radio sources measured with the Texas radio interferometer are appreciably underestimated. Ten objects among the fifteen Pushchino radio sources selected using this criterion proved to be already known large radio galaxies. The possibility of improving the efficiency of the method by using larger samples and applying some additional criteria selecting candidate giant radio galaxies is considered.     

Comprehensive studies in the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov in the Summer of 2012

The shelf zones of the Black Sea, Taman Bay, and the Sea of Azov are currently subjected to gross load related to the impact of invasive species, large-scale construction activities near the coast, intensive recreation activity, water pollution in large cities and ports, active navigation, unreasonable coastal arrangement, and dam construction. Another factor substantially affecting the composition of bottom sediments and, thus, the benthos environment is the terrigenous material carried by rivers in the course of catastrophic overflows. An example is the Kubansk flood in 2012, which significantly affected the sea coast near Novorossiysk, Gelendzhik, and Divnomorsk. The intensive onshore dumping results in the delivery of abundant allochthonous material, bottom silting causing changes in the dominants in the benthos associations, a decrease in the photic layer and the death of the phytobenthos, and also debris formation at the bottom. Debris can play the role of artificial reefs contributory for the formation of periphytic biocoenoses.