GPCC's new land surface precipitation climatology based on quality-controlled in situ data and its role in quantifying the global water cycle

In 1989, the need for reliable gridded land surface precipitation data sets, in view of the large uncertainties in the assessment of the global energy and water cycle, has led to the establishment of the Global Precipitation Climatology Centre (GPCC) at Deutscher Wetterdienst on invitation of the WMO. The GPCC has calculated a precipitation climatology for the global land areas for the target period 1951–2000 by objective analysis of climatological normals of about 67,200 rain gauge stations from its data base. GPCC's new precipitation climatology is compared to several other station-based precipitation climatologies as well as to precipitation climatologies derived from the GPCP V2.2 data set and from ECMWF's model reanalyses ERA-40 and ERA-Interim. Finally, how GPCC's best estimate for terrestrial mean precipitation derived from the precipitation climatology of 786 mm per year (equivalent to a water transport of 117,000 km³) is fitting into the global water cycle context is discussed.     

Prograded foredunes of Western Australia's macro‐tidal coast – implications for Holocene sea‐level change and high‐energy wave impacts

The Holocene evolution of the Canning Coast of Western Australia has largely been overlooked so far mainly due to its remoteness and low population density. We report on new data from a sequence of foredunes inside the macro‐tidal Admiral Bay, 110 km southwest of Broome. Based on sediment cores, differential global positioning system (dGPS)‐based elevation transects, and stratigraphical analyses on outcrops of the relict foredunes, we aim at reconstructing Holocene coastal changes and relative sea levels (RSLs), as well as identifying and dating imprints of extreme‐wave events. Sedimentary analyses comprise the documentation of bedding structures, foraminiferal content and macrofaunal remains, grain size distribution, and organic matter. The chronological framework is based on 26 carbon‐14 accelerator mass spectrometry (¹⁴C‐AMS) datings. Marine flooding of the pre‐Holocene surface landward of the 2.5 km‐wide foredune barriers occurred 7400–7200 cal bp , when mangroves colonized the area. After only 200–400 years, a high‐energy inter‐tidal environment established and prevailed until c. 4000 cal bp , before turning into the present supralittoral mudflat. During that time, coastal regression led to beach progradation and the formation of aligned foredunes. Drivers of progradation were a stable RSL or gradual RSL fall after the mid‐Holocene and a positive sand budget. The foredunes overlie upper beach deposits located up to >2 m above the present upper beach level and provide evidence for a higher mid‐Holocene RSL. Discontinuous layers of coarse shells and sand are intercalated in the foredunes, indicating massive coastal flooding events. One such layer was traced over three dune ridges and dated to c. 1700–1550 cal bp . However, it seems that most tropical cyclones induce net erosion rather than deposition at aligned foredunes and thus, they are only suitable for reconstructing temporal variability if erosional features or sedimentation reliably tied to these events can be identified and dated accurately. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Flood effects on phosphorus immobilisation in a river water filled pit lake—Case study Lake Goitsche (Germany)

Between 1999 and 2002, a former open-cast mine was filled with river water forming the recent Lake Goitsche. During filling initially acid water was neutralised. Phosphorus (P) imported from Mulde River was nearly completely removed from the water column by co-precipitation with iron (Fe) and aluminium (Al) and deposited in the sediment.During extremely high waters of the Mulde River in 2002, a dike breach facilitated a second high import of P into Lake Goitsche with suspended and dissolved matter. The analysis of total phosphorus (TP), however, showed that P again had been eliminated from the water body a few months after the flood event. Sediment investigations before filling with river water, during filling, and after the flood event were used to analyse the process of P immobilisation in a lake with acid mine drainage history.The ratios of Fe to soluble reactive P (SRP) of sediment pore water were up to three orders of magnitudes higher than in natural lakes and can serve as an indicator for potential internal P loading from sediments. The SRP concentrations at the oxic/anoxic boundary were near or below the limit of quantification (< 0.2 μmol/L). Fe and manganese (Mn) redox cycling were responsible for hindering P dissolution from sediment to lake water.Finally it can be stated, that the risk of eutrophication for such a lake seems to be low.     

Archeoseismic study of damage in Roman and Medieval structures in the center of Cologne, Germany

The causes of damage observed in archeological records or preserved monuments are often difficult to be determined unequivocally, particularly when the possibility of secondary earthquake damage exists. Such secondary damage has been previously proposed for the Roman Praetorium, the governor’s palace in the center of Cologne. Ongoing excavations since 2007 revealed additional damage. The existing ground that has been uncovered and documented extends the affected area to 175?×?180 m. We present a comprehensive virtual model of the excavation area based on 200 3D laserscans together with a systematic analysis of the damage patterns and an improved model of the terrain during Roman/Medieval times including geotechnical parameters of the subsurface. Five locations with different damage patterns, including a Roman sewer, the octagonal central part of the Praetorium, a section with strongly inclined massive walls, a 13 m deep deformed well, a collapsed hypocaust, and damages in the Medieval mikveh are analyzed in detail. We use site-specific synthetic strong ground motion seismograms to test the possibility of earthquake-induced ground failures as a cause for the observed damage. This subsurface model is also used to test the possibility of hydraulically-induced damages by seepage and erosion of fine-grained material from stray sand. Heavy rainstorms can induce a direct stream of surface water through the fine sand layers to the ground water table. Simulated ground motion for assumed worst-case earthquake scenarios do not provoke slope instability at the level necessary to explain the structural damages.     

Age,origin and climatic controls on vegetated linear dunes in the northwestern Negev Desert (Israel)

The stabilized northwestern (NW) Negev vegetated linear dunes (VLD) of Israel extend over 1300 km² and form the eastern end of the Northern Sinai – NW Negev Erg. This study aimed at identifying primary and subsequent dune incursions and episodes of dune elongation by investigating dune geomorphology, stratigraphy and optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating. Thirty-five dune and interdune exposed and drilled section were studied and sampled for sedimentological analyses and OSL dating, enabling spatial and temporal elucidation of the NW Negev dunefield evolution.In a global perspective the NW Negev dunefield is relatively young. Though sporadic sand deposition has occurred during the past 100 ka, dunes began to accumulate over large portions of the dunefield area only at ～23 ka. Three main chronostratigraphic units, corresponding to three (OSL) age clusters, were found throughout most of the dunefield, indicating three main dune mobilizations: late to post last glacial maximum (LGM) at 18–11.5 ka, late Holocene (2–0.8 ka), and modern (150–8 years). The post-LGM phase is the most extensive and it defined the current dunefield boundaries. It involved several episodes of dune incursions and damming of drainage systems. Dune advancement often occurred in rapid pulses and the orientation of VLD long axes indicates similar long-term wind directions. The late Holocene episode included partial incursion of new sand, reworking of Late Pleistocene dunes as well as limited redeposition. The modern sand movement only reactivated older dunes and did not lengthen VLDs.This aeolian record fits well with other regional aeolian sections. We suggest that sand supply and storage in Sinai was initiated by the Late Pleistocene exposure of the Nile Delta sands. Late Pleistocene winds, substantially stronger than those usually prevailing since the onset of the Holocene, are suggested to have transported the dune sands across Sinai and into the northwestern Negev.Our results demonstrate the sensitivity of vegetated linear dunes located along the (northern) fringe of the sub-tropical desert belt to climate change (i.e. wind) and sediment supply.     

Major and trace element geochemistry of Lake Bogoria and Lake Nakuru,Kenya, during extreme draught

The physico-chemical properties of water samples from the two athalassic endorheic lakes Bogoria and Nakuru in Kenya were analysed. Surface water samples were taken between July 2008 and October 2009 in weekly intervals from each lake. The following parameters were determined: pH, salinity, electric conductivity, dissolved organic carbon (DOC), the major cations (FAAS and ICP-OES) and the major anions (IC), as well as certain trace elements (ICP-OES). Samples of superficial sediments were taken in October 2009 and examined using Instrumental Neutron Activation Analysis (INAA) for their major and trace element content including rare earth elements (REE). Both lakes are highly alkaline with a dominance of Na > K > Si > Ca in cations and HCO₃ > CO₃ > Cl > F > SO₄ in anions. Both lakes also exhibited high concentrations of Mo, As and fluoride. Due to an extreme draught from March to October 2009, the water level of Lake Nakuru dropped significantly. This created drastic evapoconcentration, with the total salinity rising from about 20‰ up to 63‰. Most parameters (DOC, Na, K, Ca, F, Mo and As) increased with falling water levels. A clear change in the quality of DOC was observed, followed by an almost complete depletion of dissolved Fe from the water phase. In Lake Bogoria the evapoconcentration effects were less pronounced (total salinity changed from about 40‰ to 48‰). The distributions of REE in the superficial sediments of Lake Nakuru and Lake Bogoria are presented here for the first time. The results show a high abundance of the REE and a very distinct Eu depletion of Eu/Eu* = 0.33–0.45.     

Fine particulate organic matter (FPOM) transport and processing in littoral interstices – use of fluorescent markers

A fluorescent labelling method is presented as a new tool for the investigation of organic particle transport and biogenic carbon cycling processes in sandy littoral interstices at Lake Tegel, Berlin, Germany. Passive particle transport through the pore system was studied by in situ exposition of 2.4 μm monodisperse polymeric resin microparticles stained with 7-amino-4-methylcoumarin (AMC). Uptake of fluorescein-5-isothiocyanate (FITC)-labelled Chlorella vulgaris and fine particulate organic matter (FPOM) by the interstitial fauna was investigated in laboratory and field experiments. The major portion (>85%) of the FITC-labelled particles added to sediment cores was recovered from the topmost centimetre of sediment during the study period of 14 days. Uptake of FITC-labelled FPOM was observed in several benthic groups, e.g. chironomids, microcrustaceans, oligochaetes and tardigrads, whereas C. vulgaris was ingested by oligochaetes only. There is evidence to suggest that both are suitable materials for investigating the fragmentation and ingestion of organic material by herbivorous and detritivorous fauna. Field experiments with inert microparticles and FITC-labelled FPOM (<1 mm) prepared from dried alder leaves were carried out in plexiglass tubes as in situ whole core technique. Within the investigation period of two weeks, the transport of FPOM was restricted to the topmost 2–3 cm of sediment in conjunction with a distinct fragmentation to finer size classes with respect to increasing sediment depth. Vertical FPOM transport was hindered by a high interstitial concentration of natural POM and an intensive settlement of the interstices by algae (mainly epispammic algae, 65–96% of algae cell number) and extra-cellular polymeric substances (EPS), which formed a dense three-dimensional structure.