Vineyard site suitability analysis by use of multicriteria approach applied on geo-spatial data

Abstract

In this research, multicriteria decision analysis with pairwise comparison weighting method was utilized to determine the suitable locations for vineyard plantation in Sarkoy region of Turkey. Soil maps, meteorological measurements, slope, aspect and elevation maps were used as input to conduct spatial analysis. Different methods were compared and pairwise comparison method was identified as the most appropriate method of weighting for this spatial analysis. Current vineyard areas were determined using Worldview-2 imagery and their spatial distribution compared with the resulting suitability map to determine the current suitability. Comparisons showed current vineyards were mostly established in locations where suitability map expresses low capability. Further inspection unveiled that, these low capability lands are closer to the transportation networks and city/county centres that tend to be in sea level elevations as opposed to vine grapes thriving in higher altitudes. Results also enabled providing suggestions on alternative sites for new vineyard plantation.     

Intra-seasonal variability and wavelet characteristics of lake evaporation in comparison with hydro-meteorological data at Lake Keban (Turkey)

ABSTRACT

This study focuses on the variability of lake evaporation and also the periodic relationships among hydro-meteorological variables. The monthly hydro-meteorological data of Lake Keban were investigated by wavelet transforms. The results show that the main periodicity is on an annual scale. This periodicity is weaker for precipitation and wind speed but higher for evaporation, temperature, runoff and relative humidity. In addition to this, the continuous wavelet figures show some weak periodicities on the almost 10-year scale level but they are not continuous over time. Also, strong events on a short-term monthly scale are seen for evaporation, precipitation and runoff in 1988. This event in 1988 may be explained by the 1988 La Niña event, which was one of the strongest on record. Also, the periodicities on the 2–8-month scales in the precipitation data can be interpreted as being connected with the strong El Niño events of 1982 and 1992.

Editor D. Koutsoyiannis; Associate editor A. Carsteanu     

Trend analysis in Turkish precipitation data

This study aims to determine trends in the long‐term annual mean and monthly total precipitation series using non‐parametric methods (i.e. the Mann–Kendall and Sen's T tests). The change per unit time in a time series having a linear trend was estimated by applying a simple non‐parametric procedure, namely Sen's estimator of slope. Serial correlation structure in the data was accounted for determining the significance level of the results of the Mann–Kendall test. The data network used in this study, which is assumed to reflect regional hydroclimatic conditions, consists of 96 precipitation stations across Turkey. Monthly totals and annual means of the monthly totals are formed for each individual station, spanning from 1929 to 1993. In this case, a total of 13 precipitation variables at each station are subjected to trend detection analysis. In addition, regional average precipitation series are established for the same analysis purpose. The application of a trend detection framework resulted in the identification of some significant trends, especially in January, February, and September precipitations and in the annual means. A noticeable decrease in the annual mean precipitation was observed mostly in western and southern Turkey, as well as along the coasts of the Black Sea. Regional average series also displayed trends similar to those for individual stations. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Palaeomagnetic evidence for the Gondwanian origin of the Taurides and rotation of the Isparta Angle,southern Turkey

The Taurides, the southernmost of the three major tectonic domains that constitute present‐day Turkey, were emplaced following consumption of the Tethyan Ocean in Late Mesozoic to mid‐Tertiary times. They are generally assigned an origin at the northern perimeter of Gondwana. To refine palaeogeographic control we have investigated the palaeomagnetism of a range of Jurassic rocks. Forty‐nine samples of Upper Jurassic limestones preserve a dual polarity remanence (D/I=303/−9°, α₉₅=6°) interpreted as a primary magnetization acquired close to the equator and rotated during emplacement of the Taurides. Result from mid‐Jurassic dolerites confirm a low palaeolatitude for the Tauride Platform during Jurassic times at the Afro–Arabian sector of Gondwana. Approximately 4000 km of Tethyan closure subsequently occurred between Late Jurassic and Eocene times. Although related Upper Jurassic limestones and Liassic redbeds preserve a sporadic record of similar remanence, the dominant signature in these latter rocks is an overprint of probable mid‐Miocene age, probably acquired during a single polarity chron and imparted by migration of a fluid front during nappe loading. This is now rotated consistently anticlockwise by c. 30° and conforms to results of previous studies recording bulk Neogene rotation of the Isparta region following Lycian nappe emplacement. The regional distribution of this overprint implies that the Isparta Angle (IA) has been subject to only small additional closure (<10°) since Late Miocene time. A smaller amount (c. 6°) of clockwise rotation within the IA since Early Pliocene times is associated with an ongoing extensional regime and reflects an expanding curvature of the Tauride arc produced by southwestward extrusion of the Anatolian collage as a result of continuing northward motion of Afro–Arabia. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.