Characteristics of atmospheric turbulence in the surface layer over Antarctica

This paper presents meteorological measurements made during the antarctic summer period, on two 9 m and 3 m towers, on the rocky and ice shelf terrains of the Indian antarctic stations Maitri and Dakshin Gangotri, respectively. The measurements of fluctuations in temperature and wind speed made with relatively lesser precision instrumentation pertain to smaller wave numbers ~10^-2 m^-1 appropriate to outer scale L ₀ of the atmospheric turbulence spectrum. Autocorrelation analysis of the fluctuations in temperature and wind speed has been performed. A new autoregressive scheme has been developed to represent the computed autocorrelation functions by a Yule statistical model, and to estimate the correlation period T ₀ of the turbulent medium. Height profiles of outer scale L ₀ of turbulence may be given in terms of T ₀ and mean wind speed u. Further, the similarity theory of Monin-Obukhov has been used to compute height profiles of temperature structure parameter C _T ². At Maitri, values of L ₀ and C _T ² are higher between 03–22 h local time than between 22–03 h. Values of L ₀ and C _T ² are smaller over the ice shelf terrain of the Dakshin Gangotri station, compared to those over the rocky terrain of the Maitri station.     

Petrography and provenance of Upper Cretaceous – Palaeogene sandstones in the foreland basin system of Central Nepal

Sedimentary deposits of the Cretaceous to Miocene Tansen Group of Lesser Himalayan association in central Nepal record passive-margin sedimentation of the Indian Continent with direct deposition onto eroded Precambrian rocks (Sisne Formation onto Kaligandaki Supergroup rocks), succeeded by the appearance of orogenic detritus as the Indian continent collided with Asia on a N-dipping subduction zone. Rock samples from two field traverses were examined petrographically and through detrital zircon U–Pb dating, one traverse being across the Tansen Group and another across the Higher and Tethyan Himalaya (TH). The Tansen Group depositional ages are well known through fossil assemblages. We examined samples from three units of the Tansen Group (Amile, Bhainskati, and Dumri Formations). The Sedimentary petrographic data and Qt F L and Qm F Lt plots indicate their ‘Quartzose recycled’ nature and classify Tansen sedimentary rocks as ‘recycled orogenic’, suggesting Indian cratonic and Lower Lesser Himalayan (LLH) sediments as the likely source of sediments for the Amile Formation (Am), the TH and the Upper Lesser Himalaya (ULH) as the source for the Bhainskati Formation (Bk), and both the Tethyan and Higher Himalaya (HH) as the major sources for the Dumri Formation (Dm). The Cretaceous–Palaeocene pre-collisional Am is dominated by a broad detrital zircon U–Pb ~1830 Ma age peak with neither Palaeozoic nor Neoproterozoic zircons grains, but hosts a significant proportion (23%) of syndepositional Cretaceous zircons (121–105 Ma) would be contributions from the LLH volcanosedimentary arc, Gangdese batholith (including the Xigaze forearc). The other formations of the Tansen Group are more similar to Tethyan units than to Higher Himalaya Crystalline (HHC). From the analysed samples, there is a lack of distinctive evidence or HH detritus in the Tansen basin. Furthermore, the presence of ~23±1 Ma zircons from the HH unit suggests that they could not have been exposed until the earliest Miocene time.     

Geohydrological conditions of the Deccan Trap flow around Saugor (M.P.), India

The geological formations that occur around Sagar consist of Upper Rewa quartzitic sandstones of Vindhvan age and nine Deccan Trap flows with three main inter-trappean bands. Most of the villages around Sagar depend upon the flow No. 5 for their water supplies. This flow forms valleys which may occur either in between the Vindhyan hills or Vindhyan hills and Trap hills, or Trap hills. To evaluate the geo-hydrological conditions of this flow under different topographic and stratigraphic controls, detailed geologic, water-shed and water table maps were prepared and analysed, after taking into consideration rain fall data for a period of sixty years. The villages selected for studies include the farm-lands of Richonda which occur in between the Vindhyan hills and Kudari, which occurs in between the Trap and Vindhyan hills. Villages like Patkui and Bhainsa, occurring on either side of the surface water divide of the same flow, are also taken into consideration. Water table maps for these villages were prepared once before the onset of rains and the second time immediately after the rains, on a scale of 16″ to a mile at 1 foot contour intervals. From such studies made on this flow, the following conclusions have been arrived at:

1. Where a flow occurs in adjacent Deccan Trap valleys separated by a long continuous Vindhyan ridge, the Vindhyan ridge may act as an underground barrier, separating the ground water body of the flow into two distinct units, and the upper unit may give rise to springs on that valley side of the Vindhyan having the lower elevation.
2. Where the Vindhyan ridge loses its height and disappears below the flow, the adjacent separate water bodies of this flow merge into a single water body. The portion of the Vindhyan ridge that occurs below the ground still continues to act as barrier for the water bodies of the lower flows.
3. Where the flow occurs over a large area, but at places is overlaid by younger flows, giving rise to hills with distinct water-shed characteristics, the water body of the flow is generally continuous on either side of the hills, immediately after the rains. This, however, gets disrupted into separate water bodies during summer months and it is found to recede in the slope direction; nevertheless, the trend of recession is controlled locally by the levels at which the porous zone of a flow occurs.
4. Where the continuity of the flow is disrupted due to denudation, producing valleys, the continuity of the water table of that flow is also interrupted.
5. On either side of a distinct surface water divide of a flow, the ground water bodies occur as separate units in the flow.

     

Quantification of atmospheric oxygen levels during the Paleoproterozoic using paleosol compositions and iron oxidation kinetics

The increase in atmospheric oxygen during the Precambrian is a key to understand the co-evolution of life and environment and has remained as a debatable topic. Among various proxies for the estimation of atmospheric oxygen levels, paleosols, ancient weathering profiles, can provide a quantitative pattern of atmospheric oxygen increase during the Precambrian period of Earth history. We have re-evaluated the chemical compositions of paleosols, and presented a new method of applying Fe²⁺ oxidation kinetics to the Fe²⁺ and Fe³⁺ concentrations in paleosols to decipher the quantitative partial pressure of atmospheric oxygen (P_O2) between 2.5 and 2.0 Ga. We first estimated the compaction factor (CF, the fraction of original thickness) using the immobile elements such as Ti, Al and Zr on equal volume basis, which was then used to calculate retention fractions (M_R), a mass ratio of paleosol to parent rock, of redox-sensitive elements. The CF and Fe_R values were evaluated for factors such as homogeneity of immobile elements, erosion, and formation time of weathering. Fe_R increased gradually within the time window of ∼2.5-2.1 Ga and remained close to 1.0 since ∼2.1 Ga onwards. Mn_R also increased gradually similar to Fe_R but at a slower rate and near complete retention was observed ∼1.85 Ga, suggesting an almost continuous increase in the oxidation of Fe²⁺ and Mn²⁺ in paleosols ranging in age between ∼2.5 and 1.9 Ga.We have modeled P_O2 variations during the Paleoproterozoic by applying Fe²⁺ oxidation kinetics to the Fe²⁺ and Fe³⁺ concentrations in paleosols, which enabled us to derive an Fe²⁺ oxidation term referred to as ψ. Possible changes in temperature and P_CO2 during this time window and their effects on resulting models of P_O2 evolution have been also considered. We assumed four cases for the calculations of P_O2 variations between 2.5 and 2.0 Ga: no change in either temperature or P_CO2, long-term change in only P_CO2, long-term changes in both temperature and P_CO2, and short-term fluctuations of both temperature and P_CO2 during the possible, multiple global-scale glaciations. The calculations indicate that P_O2 increased gradually, linearly on the logarithmic scale, from <∼10⁻⁶ to >∼10⁻³ atm between 2.5 and 2.0 Ga. Our calculations show that the P_O2 levels would have fluctuated significantly, if intense, global glaciation(s) followed by period(s) of high temperature occurred during the Paleoproterozoic. This gradual rise model proposes a distinct, quantitative pattern for the first atmospheric oxygen rise with important implications for the evolution of life.     

Proceedings of the Brain Storming Session on “Water Resources of Eastern (West Bengal,Bihar and Jharkhand) and North-Eastern States of India”

Landslides are amongst the major disasters that have occurred in Karabük, Turkey. Due to the rapid increase in population movement to new habitats in urban areas, the need for engineering structures will increase. This condition has led to the construction of arts, cultural facilities and housing in insecure regions these days. The excavations to prepare the construction site, the external loads due to heavy structures and the changes in coverage of the earth surface are among the reasons for landslides in such areas. In this study, the landslides that occurred due to unsupported excavation for the construction of Karabük university stadium were analyzed using the three softwares like Plaxis, Geoslope and Slide. The study area is critical in terms of slope problems. Mass movement in the stadium occurred in high plasticity clay units containing sand and silt. For this reason, it is necessary to carry out detailed studies before the construction of engineering structures. The landslide considered in the study were analyzed using finite element (FE) analysis and slice method. These approaches are used for evaluating the stability of natural slope by considering a failure mechanism, which is known as the plastic limit condition. Regarding safety factors calculated using the different numerical solutions confirm that the results obtained are similar. In addition, the landslide area is close to the predicted simulation results.     

Reconnaissance report on geotechnical effects and structural damage caused by the 3 January 2017 Tripura earthquake,India

Natural Hazards - An earthquake of moment magnitude Mw 5.7 shook the northeastern region of India on 3 January 2017 at 14&nbsp;h:39&nbsp;min:0.5&nbsp;s local time. The duration of the...     

Solid waste management through multi-criteria decision making: using analytic hierarchy process as an assessment framework for the Hooghly district,West Bengal

Solid waste management (SWM) is a crucial service governed by urban local bodies (ULB). Hence, it is essential to identify challenges and opportunities in the SWM procedures and practices towards improved delivery of services. In this study, analytic hierarchy process (AHP) has been applied in the three sub-divisional towns of the Hooghly district, West Bengal (India), namely Chandannagar, Hooghly-Chinsurah and Serampore to analyze the existing SWM scenario. As AHP is a Multi-Criteria Decision Making tool, hence, it has been deployed by experts to come up with SWM performance index, clearly demonstrating the strengths and weaknesses of management strategies in selected study sites. This article further advances the significance of the AHP method by carving out multi-layered realities through the quantification of qualitative insights across various segments of waste management in the three towns. While interviews with waste management officials led to the formulation of key performance indicators and sub-indicators matrix, the obtained normalized weights brought to the fore the real engagement and actions executed by each of these towns in managing solid wastes. The application of this innovative AHP method ensured accuracy in the ranking system across performance of the specified ULBs. This AHP-induced situational analysis of SWM is not only significant in terms of policy formulation in the ULBs of the Hooghly district but has potentials to work at scales.

Graphical abstract