Constructing the Optimal Model of the Geoelectric Section Using Vertical Electrical Sounding Data: Case Study of the Central Part of the Garm Research Area

Izvestiya, Atmospheric and Oceanic Physics - In geophysical studies, particularly when searching for precursors of earthquakes, there are problems of investigating the geoelectric structure of the...     

Determination of the Total Ozone Content in Cloudy Conditions based on Data from the IKFS-2 Spectrometer onboard the Meteor-M no. 2 Satellite

Izvestiya, Atmospheric and Oceanic Physics - A new technique has been developed to obtain the total ozone content (TOC) under cloudy conditions from the spectra of outgoing thermal IR radiation...     

InSAR滑坡探测技术研究——以金沙江乌东德水电站段为例

采用3类InSAR产品和DEM数据开展金沙江流域乌东德水电站段的潜在滑坡探测,成功识别出多处已知和未知的滑坡点,并探测出滑坡体的形态及稳定性,提供了一种高效的大范围滑坡探测技术。同时采用小基线集InSAR技术对金坪子滑坡进行监测,不仅获得该滑坡的空间分区特征,也获取重点滑坡区的时间序列结果,并且与地面监测结果比较,精度达1.8 cm。展示了不同InSAR技术在不同尺度滑坡调查与监测中的应用特点。     

Estimates of abundance of the short-baseline (1-3 meters) slopes for different Venusian terrains using terrestrial analogues

The interplanetary mission, Venera-D, which is currently being planned, includes a lander. For a successful landing, it is necessary to estimate the frequency distributions of slopes of the Venusian surface at baselines that are comparable with the horizontal dimensions of lander (1–3 m). The available data on the topographic variations on Venus preclude estimates of the frequency of the short-wavelength slopes. In our study, we applied high-resolution digital terrain models (DTM) for specific areas in Iceland to estimate the slopes on Venus. The Iceland DTMs have 0.5 m spatial and 0.1 m vertical resolution. From the set of these DTMs, we have selected those that morphologically resemble typical landscapes on Venus such as tessera, shield, regional, lobate, and smooth plains. The mode of the frequency distribution of slopes on the model tessera terrain is within a 30°–40° range and a fraction of the surface has slopes <7°, which is considered as the upper safety limit. This is the primary interest. The frequency distribution of slopes on the model tessera is not changed significantly as the baseline is changed from 1 m to 3 m. The terrestrial surfaces that model shield and regional plains on Venus have a prominent slope distribution mode between 8°–20° and the fraction of the surfaces with slopes <7° is less than 30% on both 1 m and 3 m baselines. A narrow, left-shifted histogram characterizes the model smooth plains surfaces. The fraction of surfaces with slopes <7° is about 65–75% for the shorter baseline (1 m). At the longer baseline, the fraction of the shallow-sloped surfaces is increased and fraction of the steep slopes is decreased significantly. The fraction of surfaces with slopes <7° for the 3-m baseline is about 75–88% for the terrains that model both lobate and smooth plains.     

The nature of terrains of different types on the surface of Venus and selection of potential landing sites for a descent probe of the <Emphasis Type="Italic">Venera-D</Emphasis> Mission

We discuss a change in the resurfacing regimes of Venus and probable ways of forming the terrain types that make up the surface of the planet. The interpretation of the nature of the terrain types and their morphologic features allows us to characterize their scientific priority and the risk of landing on their surface to be estimated. From the scientific point of view, two terrain types are of special interest and represent easily achievable targets: the lower unit of regional plains and the smooth plains associated with impact craters. Regional plains are probably a melting from the upper fertile mantle. The material of smooth plains of impact origin is a well-mixed and representative sample of the Venusian crust. The lower unit of regional plains is the most widespread one on the surface of Venus, and it occurs within the boundaries of all of the precalculated approach trajectories of the lander. Smooth plains of impact origin are crossed by the approach trajectories precalculated for 2018 and 2026.     

New orbits of wide visual double stars

Based on photographic and CCD observations with the Pulkovo 26-inch refractor, radial velocity measurements with the 1.5-m RTT-150 telescope (TUBITAK National Observatory, Turkey), and highly accurate observations published in the WDS catalog, we have obtained the orbits of ten wide visual double stars by the apparent motion parameter method. The orientation of the orbits in the Galactic coordinate system has been determined. For the outer pair of the multiple star HIP 12780 we have calculated a family of orbits with a minimum period P = 4634 yr. Two equivalent solutions with the same period have been obtained for the stars HIP 50 (P = 949 yr) and HIP 66195 (P = 3237 yr). We have unambiguously determined the orbits of six stars: HIP 12777 (P = 3327 yr), HIP 15058 (P = 420 yr), HIP 33287 (P = 1090 yr), HIP 48429 (P = 1066 yr), HIP 69751 (P = 957 yr), and HIP 73846 (P = 1348 yr). The orbit of HIP 55068 is orientated perpendicularly to the plane of the sky, P >1000 yr. The star HIP 48429 is suspected to have an invisible companion.     

Simulation of the impact of thunderstorm activity on atmospheric gas composition

A chemistry-climate model of the lower and middle atmosphere has been used to estimate the sensitivity of the atmospheric gas composition to the rate of thunderstorm production of nitrogen oxides at upper tropospheric and lower stratospheric altitudes. The impact that nitrogen oxides produced by lightning have on the atmospheric gas composition is treated as a subgrid-scale process and included in the model parametrically. The natural uncertainty in the global production rate of nitrogen oxides in lightning flashes was specified within limits from 2 to 20 Tg N/year. Results of the model experiments have shown that, due to the variability of thunderstorm-produced nitrogen oxides, their concentration in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere can vary by a factor of 2 or 3, which, given the influence of nitrogen oxides on ozone and other gases, creates the potential for a strong perturbation of the atmospheric gas composition and thermal regime. Model calculations have shown the strong sensitivity of ozone and the OH hydroxyl to the amount of lightning nitrogen oxides at different atmospheric altitudes. These calculations demonstrate the importance of nitrogen oxides of thunderstorm origin for the balance of atmospheric odd ozone and gases linked to it, such as ozone and hydroxyl radicals. Our results demonstrate that one important task is to raise the accuracy of estimates of the rate of nitrogen oxide production by lightning discharges and to use physical parametrizations that take into account the local lightning effects and feedbacks arising in this case rather than climatological data in models of the gas composition and general circulation of the atmosphere.     

Does lunisolar gravitational tide affect the activity of animals?

Multiyear time series obtained by the continuous instrumental monitoring of the electrical activity (EA) of weakly electric fish Gnathonemus leopoldianus and the motor activity (MA) of the freshwater catfish Hoplosternum thoracatum and the cockroach Blaberus craniifer are compared to the parameters of the lunisolar gravitational tide. These curves are observed to be very similar for a large number of time intervals. However, a more detailed analysis shows this to be only a superficial resemblance caused by the closeness of the periods of diurnal and semidiurnal rhythms of bioindicator activity (the dominant rhythms in EA and MA patterns) and the periods of main gravitational tidal waves. It is concluded that the lunisolar gravitational tide has no significant effect on animal behavior in our experiment.     

三组火山强迫资料差异及其对模式模拟结果的影响

Gao2008、Crowley2013和Sigl2015火山强迫资料,均基于极地冰芯重建.由于每组重建使用的冰芯数据和分析方法等不同,因此结果存在差异,从而影响气候模式应用.文中详细梳理三组火山强迫资料在原始冰芯数据、信号识别提取和沉积通量计算等方面的差异;介绍重建中涉及的对未知火山事件发生季节、纬度及从极地硫酸盐沉积...     

Modelling of cloud formation due to air-sea interactions in an energy-active zone

A mesoscale 3D numerical model is described, with which detailed calculations have been made of turbulence and wind characteristics in the atmospheric boundary layer (ABL), as well as cloud particle size distribution, longwave and solar radiation fluxes and flux divergences, and atmosphere-ocean heat exchange. Based on numerical experiments simulating winter conditions of the Newfoundland energy-active zone of the ocean (EAZO), atmosphere-ocean energy exchange is investigated. It is shown that the basic mechanisms for the EAZO formation involve the following processes: (i) at the hydrological front between cold and warm ocean currents, the fluxes of sensible and latent heat grow significantly; (ii) at this front, in a particular synoptic situation, overcast low-level cloudiness forms, screening solar radiation so that in winter, the radiation budget at the front is reduced, and the radiative flux into the ocean is less than the energy release to the atmosphere; (iii) frequent occurrence of such synoptic situations with cloudiness decreases the oceanic enthalpy and creates negative SST anomalies. The transport of these anomalies by currents to the western coasts of the continents causes anomalies of weather and climate.