On the impossibility of the co-existence of monsoons and severe storm surges in the Bay of Bengal

The problem of storm surges is introduced briefly. The utility of passive microwave observations to study this phenomenon is pointed out. The reasons for the nonoccurrence of severe surges in the Bay of Bengal, during monsoon regimes, is discussed in this paper. It was demonstrated that the predominant reason for lack of severe surges over the Bay of Bengal coast is due to the absence of weak wind shear during monsoon seasons.Atmospheric Environment Service, Ice Center, Environment Canada, 373 Sussex Drive, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K1A OH3.     

Performance of image classification on hyperspectral imagery for lithological mapping

SVM and SAM classifiers for the lithological mapping using Hyperion data in parts of Gadag schist belt of western Dharwar craton, Karnataka, India were used. The main objective of the present study is to assess and compare the potential use of Hyperion data set for lithological mapping. Accuracy assessment of the derived thematic maps was based on the analysis of the confusion matrix statistics computed for each classification map. For consistency, the same set of validation points were used in evaluating the accuracy of the lithological thematic maps produced. On the basis of the accuracy assessment results, it appears that SVM generally outperformed the SAM classifier in both OA accuracy and individual classes’ accuracies. OA accuracy and Kc for SVM is 96.93% and 0.9655, whereas for SAM it is 74.02% and 0.7085 respectively. SVM classification is the best in describing the spatial distribution and the cover density of each lithology, as was also indicated from the statistics of the individual class results. The individual class accuracy were also analyzed for the SVM and the result show that PA ranges from 87% to 100% and UA ranges from 91% to 100%, whereas for SAM ranges from 15% to 95%, and from 31% to 100% respectively. The SVM method could effectively classify and improve on the existing geological map for the Gadag schist belt (GSB) using hyperspectral data. The results could be validated through field visits. Therefore, it is concluded that hyperspectral remote sensing data can be efficiently used to improve existing maps, especially in areas where same rock types show variable degree of alteration over smaller spatial scales.     

Numerical simulation of ship stability for dynamic environment

The prediction of ship stability during the early stages of design is very important from the point of vessel’s safety. Out of the six motions of a ship, the critical motion leading to capsize of a vessel is the rolling motion. In the present study, particular attention is paid to the performance of a ship in beam sea. The linear ship response in waves is evaluated using strip theory. Critical condition in the rolling motion of a ship is when it is subjected to synchronous beam waves. In this paper, a nonlinear approach has been tried to predict the roll response of a vessel. Various representations of damping and restoring terms found in the literature are investigated. A parametric investigation is undertaken to identify the effect of a number of key parameters like wave amplitude, wave frequency, metacentric height, etc.     

Towards estimating root‐zone soil moisture using surface multispectral and thermal sensing: A spectral and hydrometeorological dataset from the Dookie experiment site,Victoria, Australia

This paper describes surface hydrometeorological and spectral datasets collected from two tower sites located in the University of Melbourne's Dookie experimental farm, Victoria, Australia. The datasets were collected from different vegetation types including wheat, canola, and grazed pasture during the 2012, 2013, and 2014 cropping seasons. The dataset includes 30‐min frequency latent and sensible heat flux measurements and layer‐average soil moisture data at profile depths of 0–5, 0–30, 30–60, 60–90, and 90–120 cm. Air temperature, wind speed, wind direction, relative humidity, precipitation, and incoming and outgoing longwave and shortwave radiation data were also collected from two locations in the study area. The dataset described in this paper is available online.     

Evolution of the passive continental margins of India—a geophysical appraisal

The passive continental margins of India have evolved as India broke and drifted away from East Antarctica, Madagascar and Seychelles at various geological times. In this study, we have attempted to collate and re-examine gravity and topographic/bathymetry data over India and the adjoining oceans to understand the structure and tectonic evolution of these margins, including processes such as crustal/lithosphere extension, subsidence due to sedimentation, magmatic underplating and so on. The Eastern Continental Margin of India (ECMI) seems to have evolved in a complex rift and shear tectonic settings in its northern and southern segments, respectively, and bears similarities with its conjugate in East Antarctica. Crustal extension rates are uniform along the stretch of the ECMI in spite of the presence or absence of crustal underplated material, variability in lithospheric strength and tectonic style of evolution ranging from rifting to shearing. The Krishna-Godavari basin is underlain by a strong ( 30 km) elastic lithosphere, while the Cauvery basin is underlain by a thin elastic lithosphere ( 3 km). The coupling between the ocean and continent lithosphere along the rifted segment of the ECMI is across a stretched continental crust, while it is direct beneath the Cauvery basin. The Western Continental Margin of India (WCMI) seems to have developed in an oblique rift setting with a strike-slip component. Unlike the ECMI, the WCMI is in striking contrast with its conjugate in the eastern margin of Madagascar in respect of sedimentation processes and alignment of magnetic lineations and fracture zones. The break up between eastern India and East Antarctica seems to have been accommodated along a Proterozoic mobile belt, while that between western India and Madagascar is along a combination of both mobile belt and cratonic blocks.     

The significance of morphometric analysis for obtaining groundwater potential zones in a structurally controlled terrain

Watershed development and management plans are more important for harnessing surface water and groundwater resources in arid and semi-arid regions. To prepare a comprehensive watershed development plan, it becomes necessary to understand the topography, erosion status and drainage patterns of the region. This study was undertaken to determine the drainage characteristics of Pageru River basin using topographical maps on a scale of 1:50,000. The total area of the Pageru River basin is 480 km². It was divided into X sub-basins for analysis. The drainage patterns of the basin are dendritic and include a sixth order stream. The quantitative analysis of various aspects of a river basin drainage network characteristics reveals complex morphometric attributes. The streams of lower orders mostly dominate the basin. The development of stream segments in the basin area is more or less affected by rainfall. The elongated shape of the basin is mainly due to the guiding effect of thrusting and faulting. The erosional processes of fluvial origin have been predominately influenced by the subsurface lithology of the basin.     

Inversion of gravity and magnetic anomalies over some bodies of simple geometric shape

The general expression for gravity and magnetic anomalies over thin sheets and sloping contacts may be expressed as a polynomial of the formFx ²+C₁Fx+C₂F+C₃x³+C₄x²+C₅x+C₆. The initial parameters of the source are obtained from the coefficientsC ₁, C₂,..., C₆ which may be solved by inverting a 6×6 matrix. The initial parameters are modified by successive iteration process using the difference formula until the root mean square error between the observed and calculated anomalies is a minimum. The regional background which may be in the form of a polynomial is estimated by the computer itself. This method is applied on a number of field anomalies and is found to yield reliable estimates of depth and other parameters of the source.     

2000—2015年夏秋季孟加拉湾湾口区涡流相互作用能量学特征

文章主要使用全球简单海洋资料同化分析系统(Simple Ocean Data Assimilation, SODA)产出的海洋再分析数据产品和美国国家环境预报中心(National Centers for Environmental Prediction, NCEP)发布的风场资料, 通过能量学方法分析了2000—2015年夏季至秋季(6—11月)孟加拉湾涡-流相互作用特征在不同印度洋偶极子(Indian Ocean Dipole, IOD)事件发生年的表现。结果表明, 在IOD负位相年更强的西南季风背景下, 涡动能和涡势能的量值均较大, 海洋不稳定过程更多地将平均流场的能量输向涡旋场, IOD正位相年反之。另外, 研究发现孟加拉湾湾口区的涡动能在个别年份会发展出一种与气候态存在显著异常的空间分布, 即在个别年份湾口中央海域异常出现涡动能极大值。通过对出现该异常现象最显著的2010年进行个例分析, 发现当年的孟加拉湾海表风场发展出一个气旋式环流异常, 显著地改变了海洋上层环流形态, 极大地影响了平均流场与涡旋场之间的相互作用。进一步对维持涡动能平衡的各做功项进行诊断后发现, 湾口异常海域涡动能年际变化的主要影响因素为海洋内部的压强做功, 其次是正压不稳定过程和平流的做功, 海表风应力做功项贡献较小。     

Sea Surface Height Variability in the Indian Ocean from TOPEX/POSEIDON Altimetry and Model Simulations

Sea Surface Height (SSH) variability in the Indian Ocean during 1993-1995 is studied using TOPEX/POSEIDON (T/P) altimetry data. Strong interannual variability is seen in the surface circulation of the western Arabian Sea, especially in the Somali eddy structure. During the Southwest (SW) monsoon, a weak monsoon year is characterized by a single eddy system off Somalia, a strong or normal monsoon year by several energetic eddies. The Laccadive High (LH) and Laccadive Low (LL) systems off southwest India are observed in the altimetric SSH record. The variability of the East India Coastal Current (EICC), the western boundary current in the Bay of Bengal, is also detected. Evidence is found for the propagation of Kelvin and Rossby waves across the northern Indian Ocean; these are examined in the context of energy transfer to the western boundary currents, and associated eddies. A simple wind-driven isopycnal model having three active layers is implemented to simulate the seasonal changes of surface and subsurface circulation in the North Indian Ocean and to examine the response to different wind forcing. The wind forcing is derived from the ERS-1 scatterometer wind stress for the same period as the T/P altimeter data, enabling the model response in different (active/weak) monsoon conditions to be tested. The model output is derived in 10-day snapshots to match the time period of the T/P altimeter cycles. Complex Principal Component Analysis (CPCA) is applied to both altimetric and model SSH data. This confirms that long Rossby waves are excited by the remotely forced Kelvin waves off the southwest coast of India and contribute substantially to the variability of the seasonal circulation in the Arabian Sea.     

Automated Approach for Extraction of Oil Spill from SAR Imagery

Oil spill pollution is a major environmental concern since it has most dangerous and hazardous effects on marine environment. Periodic monitoring by detecting oil spills along with its movement, helps in efficient clean-up and recovery operations. Over the past few years, Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) based remote sensing has received considerable attention for monitoring and detecting oil spill due to its unique capabilities to provide wide-area observation in all weather conditions. However, the interpretation of marine SAR imagery is often ambiguous, since it is difficult to separate oil spill from look-alike features. The objective behind our study was to extract probable oil spill candidates automatically from SAR imageries containing oil spill incidences, where new methods based on over-segmentation and amalgamate approach is used for this purpose. The methodology is all about over segmenting the entire image based on its statistics and amalgamating relevant segments at later point of time to represent actual dark features as probable oil spill candidates. Under the dependency on SAR imageries alone, the approach does not take care of the separation of look-alike features which can be addressed subsequently by the consideration of associated synchronous external data resources such as optical data, wind and ocean parameters (Zhao et al. in Opt Express 22(11):13755–13772, 2014; Espedal and Wahl in Int J Remote Sens 20(1):49–65, 1999). The approach is carried out on a set of RISAT-1 imagery containing oil spill incidences and the extracted oil spill areas are in well agreement with the visually interpreted output with kappa coefficient greater than 0.70 and overall classification accuracy greater than 80%.