EXPANSION OF GOLF COURSES IN THE UNITED STATES*

ABSTRACT. Twenty‐five million Americans play golf on the nation's 16,000 courses each year. These golf courses constitute a significant national landscape feature. Since 1878, when the game arrived in the United States, golf has filtered down the urban, economic, and social hierarchies to become accepted by and accessible to most Americans. During the ensuing thirteen decades the number, location, and layout of the nation's golf courses have responded to many of the same driving forces that impacted the nation, including decentralization, growth of the middle class, war, economic depression, suburbanization, and the increasing role of the federal government. Four epochs of golf‐course growth and diffusion show the growing acceptance of the sport and depict where courses were most likely to be constructed as a result of the prevailing forces of each epoch.     

Short-wave aerosol radiative efficiency over the global oceans derived from satellite data

Using 5 yr (December 2000–November 2005) of satellite data from the clouds and the earths radiant energy system (CERES) and moderate resolution imaging spectroradiometer (MODIS), we examine the instantaneous short-wave radiative efficiency ( E_τ ) of aerosols during the morning Terra satellite overpass time over the global oceans (60°N–60°S). We calculate E_τ using two commonly used methods. The first method uses the MODIS aerosol optical thickness (AOT) at 0.55 μm with radiative transfer calculations, whereas the second method utilizes the same AOT values along with a new generation of aerosol angular distribution models to convert the CERES-measured broad-band radiances to fluxes. Over the 5 yr, the global mean instantaneous E_τ between the methods is remarkably consistent and within 5 W m⁻²τ⁻¹ with a mean value of –70 W m⁻²τ⁻¹. The largest differences between the methods occur in high-latitude regions, primarily in the Southern Hemisphere, where AOT is low. In dust dominated regions, there is an excellent agreement between the methods with differences of <3 W m⁻²τ⁻¹. These differences are largely due to assumptions in aerosol models and definition of clear sky backgrounds. Independent assessments of aerosol radiative effects from different satellite sensors and methods are extremely valuable and should be used to verify numerical modelling simulations.     

华北基性岩墙群的古地磁极及其哥伦比亚超大陆重建意义

从华北克拉通的中西部和东部发育的基性岩墙群获得三个精确定年的实际古地磁极位置(VGPs)。华北克拉通中西部恒山GU岩墙的斜锆石U-Pb年龄为1769±3Ma,该岩墙的古地磁给出古地磁极位置在北纬36°,东经247° (dp=2, dm=4); 华北克拉通东部DY岩墙的斜锆石U-Pb年龄为1620.8±6.9Ma, 获得的古地磁极位置为北纬6.9°东经81.9°(dp=4.31, dm=6.09); 东部另一条岩墙LW4的SHRIMP U-Pb 年龄为1157±18Ma, 获得的古地磁极位置为北纬27.1°东经162°(dp=15.8, dm=18.7)。通过将这三个从基性岩墙获得的华北克拉通古地磁极位置与加拿大地盾的中元古代视极移曲线对比,在中元古代早期（1800~1600Ma）,华北克拉通与加拿大地盾一起同属哥伦比亚超大陆,而在中元古代晚期（1600~1200Ma）,华北克拉通与加拿大地盾分离,响应哥伦比亚超大陆的最终裂解事件。     

A theoretical assessment of casing storage effects when pump sampling a partially penetrating borehole

ABSTRACT

A borehole partially penetrating a confined aquifer and pumped at a constant rate is modelled, taking account of water stored within the casing of the borehole. A solution for drawdown in the Laplace transform domain is obtained. The proportion of aquifer water in well discharge is numerically evaluated, tabulated as a function of time and compared with results for a fully penetrating well. Modification of the fully penetrating well theory, for application to partially penetrating wells, was found to give comparable results to the more complete analysis for a partially penetrating well both at early and late times. A previous estimate of the time of pumping before sampling (t_s) to minimize casing storage effects, based on the fully penetrating well theory, was confirmed by the partially penetrating well analysis and in fact was shown to be a conservative estimate (or overestimate) of the pumping time required when sampling from a partially penetrating well.     

Pollen stratigraphy of the Late Pleistocene sediments at Mommark, Als, South Denmark

Past environmental changes in the Baltic area are discussed on the basis of pollen and spores recovered from marine sediments in a series of cliff sections at Mommark, in southern Denmark. The sediment succession represents Jessen & Milthers' (1928) Eemian pollen zones c-h, or Andersen's (1961 1975) zones E1/2-E7, as well as the earliest Weichselian pollen zone i, or EW-1, the Herning Stadial. A correlation with annually laminated German sequences (e.g. Bispingen) indicates that the sequence spans approximately 11 000 years. Marine deposition began c. 300 years after the beginning of the Eemian Interglacial Stage and continued to shortly before the end of pollen zone E7, at c. 10 600 years after the beginning of the Eemian. Sedimentation rates varied through the time period represented by the sequence, with initial deposition relatively rapid at c. 0.35 cm yr^-1 for the first c. 300 years. Rates then decreased to 0.029 cm yr^-1 for the next 2700 years and remained low, though varying, throughout the rest of the sequence. Overall, the rates indicate that sediment supply was highly restricted throughout the interglacial, possibly reflecting the dense forest vegetation that colonized the hinterland.     

Holocene tree‐limit and distribution of Abies alba in the inner French Alps: anthropogenic or climatic changes?

The expansion of silver fir (Abies alba) during the 20th century in the European inner Alps calls into question the causes of the observed dynamics. We investigate the past distribution of Abies alba via analysis of wood charcoal buried in natural soils (identification, weighing, dating) and of pollen and macro-remains from peat to help us understand its present-day expansion. Material was sampled in the driest areas of the inner French Alps - some samples from calcareous sites, and most from southern exposures that should exclude Abies alba, which is a drought and carbonate intolerant species. The regional tree limit of the silver fir has not changed significantly since the middle Holocene. Abies alba grew on southern exposures, even on calcareous soils, but its importance was higher on northern slopes. From 4000 to 2000 cal. yr BP, depending on sites, the species has experienced local extinction associated with fire history. Human impact, more than climate, appears to be the main factor for local extinction, indicating that the marked present-day expansion of silver fir may result from land-use abandonment.     

Sedimentary facies of a glacially influenced continental succession in the Pennsylvanian Jericho Formation, Galilee Basin, Australia

Recent work on the Late Palaeozoic Ice Age in eastern Australia has shown the Joe Joe Group in the eastern Galilee Basin, Queensland, to be of critical importance as it is one of few records of Pennsylvanian glacial activity outside South America. This paper presents detailed sedimentological data, from which the Late Palaeozoic environment of the region is reconstructed and which, consequently, allows for robust comment on the broader Gondwanan glaciation. The Jericho Formation, in the lower Joe Joe Group, was deposited in an active extensional basin in lacustrine to fluvial environments, during the mid‐Namurian to early Stephanian. The region experienced a cool climate during this time, and polythermal mountain or valley‐type glaciers periodically advanced into the area from highlands to the north‐east. The Jericho Formation preserves a suite of proglacial to terminal glacial facies that is characterized by massive and stratified diamictites deposited from debris flows, massive and horizontally laminated conglomerates and sandstones deposited from hyperconcentrated density flows, laminated siltstones with outsized clasts and interlaminated siltstone/conglomerate deposited through ice‐rafting into lakes, and sedimentary dykes and breccias deposited through overpressurization of groundwater beneath permafrost. Non‐glacial facies are dominated by fluvial sandstones and lacustrine/overbank siltstones. The glacigenic rocks of the Jericho Formation are confined to discrete packages, recording three separate glacial advances during the latest Namurian to late Westphalian. This arrangement is consistent with the temporal distribution of glacigenic rocks from around the remainder of Australia and Gondwana, which supports the theory that glacial deposits occurred in discrete intervals. The Joe Joe Group is a key succession in the world in this context as, at this time, eastern Australia provides the only unequivocal evidence of a Namurian/Westphalian glaciation outside South America. The continuous record of sedimentation through the Pennsylvanian and Early Permian is indicative of significant warming between glacial intervals, which is difficult to reconcile with the development of long‐lived, cold‐based ice sheets across the supercontinent.     

QUANTIFYING UNCERTAINTY IN USING MULTIPLE DATASETS TO DETERMINE SPATIOTEMPORAL ICE MASS LOSS OVER 101 YEARS AT KÅRSAGLACIÄREN,SUB‐ARCTIC SWEDEN

Glacier mass balance and mass balance gradient are fundamentally affected by changes in glacier 3D geometry. Few studies have quantified changing mountain glacier 3D geometry, not least because of a dearth of suitable spatiotemporally distributed topographical information. Additionally, there can be significant uncertainty in georeferencing of historical data and subsequent calculations of the difference between successive surveys. This study presents multiple 3D glacier reconstructions and the associated mass balance response of Kårsaglaciären, which is a 0.89 ± 0.01 km² mountain glacier in sub‐arctic Sweden. Reconstructions spanning 101 years were enabled by historical map digitisation and contemporary elevation and thickness surveys. By considering displacements between digitised maps via the identification of common tie‐points, uncertainty in both vertical and horizontal planes were estimated. Results demonstrate a long‐term trend of negative mass balance with an increase in mean elevation, total glacier retreat (1909–2008) of 1311 ± 12 m, and for the period 1926–2010 a volume decrease of 1.0 ± 0.3 × 10^–3 km³ yr^–1. Synthesising measurements of the glaciers’ past 3D geometry and ice thickness with theoretically calculated basal stress profiles explains the present thermal regime. The glacier is identified as being disproportionately fast in its rate of mass loss and relative to area, is the fastest retreating glacier in Sweden. Our long‐term dataset of glacier 3D geometry changes will be useful for testing models of the evolution of glacier characteristics and behaviour, and ultimately for improving predictions of meltwater production with climate change.