REMOTE SENSING FOREST BIOMASS: AN EVALUATION USING HIGH RESOLUTION REMOTE SENSOR DATA AND LOBLOLLY PINE PLOTS

Eight-year-old Loblolly pine (Pinus taeda) plots located in South Carolina were evaluated using high resolution aircraft multispectral scanner data to determine if biomass could be accurately measured. Sixteen pine plots located on both sandy and clay soils were treated with 0, 180, or 360 kg. (approximately 0, 400, or 800 lb.) of nitrogen per plot. Indices of biomass from remote sensing data were significantly correlated with in situ biomass measurements made in each plot. A ratio of infrared (.9–1.1 μm) and red (.65–.70 μm) channels yielded the best correlation. The indices were not sensitive to differences in soil type (sandy or clay).     

Factors affecting the distribution and abundance of Macrobrachium petersi (Hilgendorf) in the Keiskamma River and estuary,South Africa

A dry (1979–1980) and a wet (1980–1981) season had a marked effect on the freshwater inflow into the Keiskamma estuary. Under low inflow conditions, which results in elevated salinities in the upper reaches, an upstream migration of adult Macrobrachium petersi (Hilgendorf) to freshwater takes place. During periods of increased river inflow adult M. petersi move downstream to the more saline reaches of the estuary. These two migratory responses have been interpreted as (a) a breeding migration under high inflow conditions which ensures that larvae are in close proximity to salinities that favour growth and development, and (b) an adult upstream migration back to freshwater to escape elevated estuarine salinities as a result of the low freshwater inflow.     

On the structure of the Ivrea-Verbano Zone (northern Italy) and its implications for present-day lower continental crust geometry

The Ivrea-Verbano Zone in northern Italy represents a section through the lower continental crust which has been tilted and emplaced into its present position during the Alpine orogeny. Recent and on-going structurally-oriented geological mapping in this region is providing new information about the geometry of the complex. The central part of the zone is dominated by a large basic complex (the 'mafic formation') which is intrusive into the surrounding gneisses. The foliation within the envelope of gneisses is deflected around the intrusive complex as if by ballooning, but in the region south-west of Monte Capio both units are folded together into a tight to isoclinal steeply plunging fold with an amplitude of c. 10 km. This fold locally inverts the stratigraphy of the layered basic group of the complex, and is thought to be the result of gravitational collapse following intrusion and inflation of a large magma body into the lower crust.
Several high-temperature shear zones have now been traced within the country rock for distances up to 20 km. The geometry of these, and their relationship to the basic complex suggests that at least some of the extensional collapse of the mafic body is related to uplift caused by intrusion of this body.
Close parallels can be drawn between the observed structure in the Ivrea-Verbano Zone (after removing the effects of late, low-temperature faulting and folding related to emplacement of the rocks into their present position), and those inferred from deep seismic reflection profiling in areas of current extension such as parts of the US Basin and Range province.     

Analytical and numerical analysis of the generalized Shkarofsky function

The main analytical properties of the generalized Shkarofsky function and a numerical code for its computation are discussed. The results of a numerical analysis are compared with the results of an asymptotic analysis for parameter values relevant to the problem of whistler-mode propagation in the Earth's magnetosphere. This comparison allows us to specify the range of applicability of different approximations to the generalized Shkarofsky function, which have been used for the analysis of relativistic effects on whistler-mode propagation and instability.     

Simulating methane emission from a Chinese rice field as influenced by fertilizer and water level

Natural and agricultural wetlands are considered to be the major sources of global atmospheric methane (CH₄). A one‐dimensional model was developed to simulate methane emission and used to examine the influence of various physical processes on the rate of methane emission. Three processes involved in the methane emission are implemented in the model: production, reoxidation and transport. Three transport pathways were considered: diffusion across water–air or soil–air interfaces, ebullition and diffusion through plants. These pathways are influenced by soil properties, plant growth, water‐table conditions, temperature and external inputs (e.g. fertilizer). The model was used to examine the seasonal variation of the methane emission at a rice field in Hunan, China, which was observed during a field experiment for consecutive (early and late) rice seasons in 1992. The observed seasonal variations of methane emission, and role of plants in transporting methane to the atmosphere, are captured by the model simulation. Further model applications were conducted to simulate effects of fertilizer and water‐level condition on the methane emission. The results indicate that unfermented organic fertilizer produces a higher methane emission rate than mineral fertilizer. The simulations with treatments of a deep‐water covering and constant moisture reduced the methane emission. The rice field study provides a framework for further development of the model towards simulations based on spatially distributed variables (e.g. water table, soil temperature and vegetation) at a regional scale. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Current convection in solar active regions

Current carrying magnetic fields which penetrate sunspots can be unstable to current convective modes caused by the large gradient of electrical conductivity. The linear growth rates and wavelengths of the unstable modes are found. The unstable modes produce fine-scale vortices perpendicular to the magnetic field, which overshoot well into the solar corona. The modes provide a turbulent vorticity source at the photospheric footpoints of the field. This can cause braiding and reconnection of the coronal magnetic field. The modes twist the coronal magnetic field into loops with a typical radius of 200 km, consistent with recent X-ray observations.