THE IMPACT OF NOAA SATELLITE SOUNDING DATA ON THE SYSTEMATIC FORECAST ERROR OF B-MODEL

This paper is to examine the impact of satellite data on the systematic error of operational B-model in China.Em-phasis is put on the study of the impact of satellite sounding data on forecasts of the sea level pressure field and 500 hPaheight.The major findings are as follows.(1)The B-model usually underforecasts the strength of features in the sea level pressure(SLP)field,i.e.pressuresare too low near high pressure systems and too high near low pressure systems.(2)The nature of the systematic errors found in the 500 hPa height forecasts is not as clear cut as that of the SLPforecasts,but most often the same type of pattern is seen,i.e.,the heights in troughs are not low enough and those inridges are not high enough.(3)The use of satellite data in the B-model analysis/forecast system is found to have an impact upon the model'sforecast of SLP and 500 hPa height.Systematic errors in the vicinity of surface lows/500 hPa troughs over the oceansare usually found to be significantly reduced.A less conclusive mix of positive and negative impacts was found for allother types of features.     

Assessment of a monumental masonry bell-tower after 2016 Central Italy seismic sequence by long-term SHM

The response of the San Pietro monumental bell-tower located in Perugia, Italy, to the 2016 Central Italy seismic sequence is investigated, taking advantage of the availability of field data recorded by a vibration-based SHM system installed in December 2014 to detect earthquake-induced damages. The tower is located about 85 km in the NW direction from the epicenter of the first major shock of the sequence, the Accumoli Mw6.0 earthquake of August 24th, resulting in a small local PGA of about 30 cm/s², whereby near-field PGA was measured as 915.97 cm/s² (E–W component) and 445.59 cm/s² (N–S component). Similar PGA values also characterized the two other major shocks of the sequence (Ussita Mw5.9 and Norcia Mw6.5 earthquakes of October 26th and 30th, respectively). Despite the relatively low intensity of such earthquakes in Perugia, the analysis of long-term monitoring data clearly highlights that small permanent changes in the structural behavior of the bell-tower have occurred after the earthquakes, with decreases in all identified natural frequencies. Such natural frequency decays are fully consistent with what predicted by non-linear finite element simulations and, in particular, with the development of microcracks at the base of the columns of the belfry. Microcracks in these regions, and in the rest of tower, are however hardly distinguishable from pre-existing ones and from the physiological cracking of a masonry structure, what validates the effectiveness of the SHM system in detecting earthquake-induced damage at a stage where this is not yet detectable by visual inspections.