Non-uniform propagation of weak waves through thermally-conducting and dissociating gases

Non-uniform propagation of weak discontinuities headed by wavefronts of arbitrary shape along bi-characteristics of a hyperbolic system through thermally-conducting and dissociating gases are studied. An explicit criterion for the growth and decay of weak waves along bi-characteristic curves in the characteristic manifold of the governing differential equations is given. The two fundamental theorems on the global behaviour of the time-dependent wave amplitude of a weak wave has been concluded.     

A class of new Bianchi I perfect fluid space-times

A procedure to generate new exact solutions to Einstein equations for perfect fluids is applied to LRS Bianchi type I line-element. Starting from some known solutions a class of new perfect fluid solutions of Bianchi type I are presented. The physical and kinematical properties of spatially homogeneous and anisotropic cosmological models are studied.     

Incoherent Cerenkov process as a source of low-latitude VLF emissions

Employing a realistic ionospheric model and a suitable energetic electron spectra, detailed power calculations are carried out to confirm the generation mechanism of low-latitude VLF emissions observed both in the satellites and on the ground. Raypaths of the radiated waves are also calculated to account for the attenuation and spreading losses. It is shown that 100 eV?1 keV electrons radiating incoherently in the Cerenkov mode are the main sources of these emissions.     

Conflicts between wetland conservation and groundwater exploitation: Two case histories in Spain

The problems in two Spanish national parks located on wetlands are analyzed. The hydrogeological and ecological characteristics of the two parks are somewhat different as are their respective degrees of deterioration. The Tablas de Daimiel National Park is located on the Central Plateau of Spain. It used to consist of a marshy area of about 20 km² around the confluence of two relatively small rivers. The area was marshy mainly because it was the natural discharge zone for a Tertiary aquifer system about 100 m thick extending over an area of some 5,000 km², composed of calcareous and detrital material of continental origin. The average annual recharge has been estimated at approximately 350 hm³/yr. Current groundwater withdrawal is around 450 hm³/yr, mainly used to irrigate a surface area of some 1,000 km². This overdevelopment has led to a continuous depletion of the regional water table and eventually to the drying out of the marshy area. Spontaneous combustion or fires caused by man have occurred in about 10 km² of the desiccated areas since the spring of 1986. The Doñana National Park is located on the estuary of the River Guadalquivir. The aquifer system of the Lower Guadalquivir estuary consists essentially of a permeable formation of unconsolidated Plioquaternary materials with an area of some 3,000 km². Under the marshy area (about 1,800 km²) the aquifer system is confined below low-permeability estuary deposits which can be over 100 m thick. Around most of the marshland the aquifer crops out and is recharged by rain. The Doñana National Park is over 700 km² in size, part of which is in the marshland and part in the recharge area where the aquifer is phreatic. In the 1970s Spain's largest irrigation project using groundwater, covering a surface area of 240 km², was planned in an area bordering on the national park. The initial project has been scaled down considerably as a result of protests by conservation groups. However, it seems likely that the water table depletion as a result of pumpage for irrigation could cause a large part of the ecotone situated at the contact-line between the marshland and the phreatic aquifer to disappear. This ecotone exists because it is a natural groundwater dischange area.     

Circulation and fertility of waters in Concepcion Bay

The spatial and temporal distributions of oxygen, nutrients and pigments in the waters of Concepcion Bay, Chile (36°40′S, 73°01′W) are described for 1978–1979. Analysis of the seasonal fluctuations shows the upwelling of water poor in oxygen and rich in nutrients inside the bay during summer. The upwelled water fertilizes the bay and produces progressive eutrophication, causing mass mortalities, discoloured water and mineralization of organic matter.     

SEDIMENT MOBILIZATION BY SURFACE EROSION IN MIDDLE MOUNTAIN CATCHMENTS OF NEPAL

1 INTRODUCTION Soil erosion in the foothills of the Hindu Kush-Himalayas (HKH) is considered to be a hot topic in land degradation research in the region (Scherr and Yadav, 1996). The land degradation research has mainly addressed the issue of topsoil los…     

Cosmology and cosmogony in a cyclic universe

In this paper we discuss the properties of the quasi-steady state cosmological model (QSSC) developed in 1993 in its role as a cyclic model of the universe driven by a negative energy scalar field. We discuss the origin of such a scalar field in the primary creation process first described by F. Hoyle & J. V. Narlikar forty years ago. It is shown that the creation processes which take place in the nuclei of galaxies are closely linked to the high energy and explosive phenomena, which are commonly observed in galaxies at all redshifts. The cyclic nature of the universe provides a natural link between the places of origin of the microwave background radiation (arising in hydrogen burning in stars), and the origin of the lightest nuclei (H, D, He³ and He⁴). It also allows us to relate the large scale cyclic properties of the universe to events taking place in the nuclei of galaxies. Observational evidence shows that ejection of matter and energy from these centers in the form of compact objects, gas and relativistic particles is responsible for the population of quasi-stellar objects (QSOs) and gamma-ray burst sources in the universe. In the later parts of the paper we briefly discuss the major unsolved problems of this integrated cosmological and cosmogonical scheme — the understanding of the origin of the intrinsic redshifts, and the periodicities in the redshift distribution of the QSOs.     

A numerical Round Robin on tunnels under seismic actions

Although the seismic behaviour of shallow circular tunnels in soft ground is generally safer than aboveground structures, some tunnels were recently damaged during earthquakes. In some cases, damage was associated with strong ground shaking and site amplification, which increased the stress level in the tunnel lining. Pseudo-static and simplified dynamic analyses enable to assess transient changes in internal forces during shaking. Nevertheless, experimental evidences of permanent changes in internal loads in the tunnel lining would suggest that a full dynamic analysis including plastic soil behaviour should be performed when modelling the dynamic interaction between the tunnel and the ground. While sophisticated numerical methods can be used to predict seismic internal forces on tunnel structures during earthquakes, the accuracy of their predictions should be validated against field measurements, but the latter are seldom available. A series of centrifuge tests were therefore carried out at the University of Cambridge (UK) on tunnel models in sand, in the framework of a research project funded by the Italian Civil Protection Department. A numerical Round Robin on Tunnel Tests was later promoted among some research groups to predict the observed behaviour by means of numerical modelling. In this paper, the main results of five selected numerical predictions are summarized and compared with the experimental results.