Knowledge-based building reconstruction from terrestrial video sequences

The paper presents an automatic method for the reconstruction of building models from video image sequences. These videos may be recorded using a hand-held camera or a camera mounted on a moving car. Such terrestrial video sequences are economic and flexible. Presenting buildings as geometric models–rather than for instance a representation from a simple meshing of 3D points–enables one to perform a wide range of analyses. However, sparse 3D points and 3D edges do not contain topological relations. Therefore, integrating building structure knowledge into the reconstruction steps plays an important role in our method. First, some rules are applied to reasonably group the extracted features. Then, a suitable outline and normal direction are specified for each surface patch. Based on these surface patches, a hybrid model- and data-driven method is used to recover a building model from both the extracted surface patches and hypothesized parts. Using the building structure knowledge leads to a simple and fast reconstruction method, and also enables one to obtain the main structures of buildings. The results show that this method correctly sets up topological relationships between generated surface patches and also obtains reasonable structure models in occluded areas. Therefore, the reconstructed models satisfy requirements for both visualization and analysis.     

On Monin–Obukhov Similarity In The Stable Atmospheric Boundary Layer

Atmospheric measurements from several field experiments have been combined to develop a better understanding of the turbulence structure of the stable atmospheric boundary layer. Fast response wind velocity and temperature data have been recorded using 3-dimensional sonic anemometers, placed at severalheights (1 m to 4.3 m) above the ground. The measurements wereused to calculate the standard deviations of the three components of the windvelocity, temperature, turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) dissipation andtemperature variance dissipation. These data were normalized and plottedaccording to Monin–Obukhov similarity theory. The non-dimensional turbulencestatistics have been computed, in part, to investigate the generalapplicability of the concept of z-less stratification for stable conditions. From the analysis of a data set covering almost five orders ofmagnitude in the stability parameter = z/L (from near-neutral tovery stable atmospheric stability), it was found that this concept does nothold in general. It was only for the non-dimensional standard deviation oftemperature and the average dissipation rate of turbulent kinetic energythat z-less behaviour has been found. The other variables studied here(non-dimensional standard deviations of u, v, and w velocity components and dissipation of temperature variance) did not follow the concept of z-less stratification for the very stable atmospheric boundary layer. An imbalance between production and dissipation of TKE was found for the near-neutral limit approached from the stable regime, which matches with previous results for near-neutral stability approached from the unstable regime.     

Imaging of the protoelliptical NGC 1700 and its globular cluster system

An excellent candidate for a young elliptical, or 'protoelliptical' galaxy is NGC 1700. Here we present new B -, V - and I -band imaging using the Keck telescope, and reanalyse existing V - and I -band images from the Hubble Space Telescope . After subtracting a model of the galaxy from the Keck images, NGC 1700 reveals two symmetric tidal tail-like structures. If this interpretation is correct, it suggests a past merger event involving two spiral galaxies. These tails are largely responsible for the 'boxiness' of the galaxy isophotes observed at a radius of ∼13 kpc.
We also show that the B − I colour distribution of the globular cluster system is bimodal. The mean colour of the blue population is consistent with that of old Galactic globular clusters. Relative to this old, metal-poor population, we find that the red population is younger and more metal-rich. This young population has an age and metallicity similar to that inferred for the central stars, suggesting that both populations are associated with an episode of star formation triggered by the merger that may have formed the galaxy. We find that, although they have large errors, the majority of the age estimates of NGC 1700 are reasonably consistent and we adopt a 'best estimate' for the age of 3.0±1.0 Gyr. This relatively low age places NGC 1700 within the age range where there is a notable lack of obvious candidates for protoellipticals. The total globular cluster specific frequency is rather low for a typical elliptical, even after taking into account the fading of the galaxy over the next 10 Gyr. We speculate that NGC 1700 will eventually form a relatively 'globular cluster poor' elliptical galaxy.     

The effect of forcing and landscape distribution on performance and consistency of model structures

It is often challenging to determine the appropriate level of spatial model forcing and model distribution in conceptual rainfall‐runoff modelling. This paper compares the value of incorporating both spatially distributed forcing data and spatially distributed model conceptualisations based on landscape heterogeneity, applied to the Ourthe catchment in Belgium. Distributed forcing data were used to create a spatial distribution of model states. Eight different configurations were tested: a lumped and distributed model structure, each with four levels of model state distribution. The results show that in the study catchment the distributed model structure can in general better reproduce the dynamics of the hydrograph, and furthermore, that the differences in performance and consistency between calibration and validation are smallest for the distributed model structure with distributed model states. For the Ourthe catchment, it can be concluded that the positive effect of incorporating a distributed model structure is larger than that of incorporating distributed model states. Distribution of model structure increases both model performance and consistency. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The 10Be deglaciation chronology of the Göschenertal,central Swiss Alps,and new insights into the Göschenen Cold Phases

The Göschenertal (Göschenen valley) is the type locality of the so‐called Göschenen Cold Phases I (~3–2.3 ka) and II (~1.8–1.1 ka). According to earlier studies, these Late Holocene climatic cooling periods were characterized by changes in vegetation and pronounced glacier advances. As a peculiarity, the Göschenen Cold Phase I was thought to be connected to a local surge‐type advance of the Chelengletscher (Chelen glacier) – an exceptional event of unparalleled dimension in the European Alps. Based on cosmogenic ¹⁰Be exposure ages from moraine boulders, we investigated the local glacier chronology. In contrast to former research, moraines at different positions within the Göschenen valley (central Swiss Alps) have been dated to the Younger Dryas and the Early Holocene. This questions the applicability of palaeo‐Equilibrium Line Altitude (ELA) calculations for stadial attributions without additional numerical age constraints. Furthermore, we have found compelling evidence that the proposed non‐climatic glacier advance attributed to the Göschenen Cold Phase I did not occur. The present results, along with a reappraisal of the original study, question the scientific reliability and the glaciological definition of the Göschenen Cold Phases as glacier advances that clearly exceeded the Little Ice Age positions. While our data do not exclude potential changes in climate and vegetation, we nonetheless show that the Göschenen Cold Phases are not suitable as reference stadials in the system of Alpine Holocene glacier fluctuations.     

Towards an Open Source Analysis Toolbox for Street Network Comparison: Indicators,Tools and Results of a Comparison of OSM and the Official Austrian Reference Graph

This article presents a novel open source toolbox for street network comparison based on the Sextante geoprocessing framework for the open source Geographic Information System Quantum GIS (QGIS). In the spirit of open science, the toolbox enables researchers worldwide to assess the quality of street networks such as OpenStreetMap (OSM) by calculating key performance indicators commonly used in street network comparison studies. Additionally, we suggest two new performance indicators for turn restriction and one‐way street comparisons specifically aimed at testing street network quality for routing. We demonstrate the use of this toolbox by comparing OSM and the official Austrian reference graph “Graph Integration Platform” (GIP) in the greater Vienna region.