Identification of geomorphic process units in Kärkevagge, northern Sweden, by remote sensing and digital terrain analysis

Sediment transport processes in the Kärkevagge are investigated concerning their spatial and temporal characteristics due to long–term monitoring. Within this study remote sensing techniques and GIS modelling in connection with geomorphic mapping are applied for identification and characterization of geomorphic process units. Relationships between geomorphometric parameters and slope processes like solifluction, talus creep and rockfall have been analysed. Multitemporal Landsat–TM5 scenes are used as source for landcover characteristics (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index) after preprocessing involving orthorectification and topographic normalization in order to remove possible terrain–induced effects. Additionally, a digital elevation model with a resolution of 20 m for the Kärkevagge catchment is developed and parameters like slope gradient, slope aspect and profile curvature are extracted as input for the analysis of the sediment transport system. The combination of landcover information, geomorphometrical and topological features allows the definition of areas for single process activities. They show specific sediment displacement characteristics depending on material conditions, topological and geometrical features. Geomorphic process units, which show a homogenous composition, are extracted from these available layers.     

Towards an integration of process measurements, archive analysis and modelling in geomorphology — the Kärkevagge experimental site, Abisko area, northern Sweden

The analysis of Holocene geomorphic process activity demands long–term data sets, which are available for the Kärkevagge catchment due to 50 years of intensive geomorphologic field studies. This data set is used in combination with additional field measurements, remote sensing and digital elevation model (DEM) analysis to provide input data for modelling Holocene valley development. On the basis of this information, geomorphic process units (GPUs) are defined by means of GIS modelling. These units represent areas of homogeneous process composition that transfer sediments. Since the data base enables the quantification of single processes, the interaction of processes within the units can also be quantified. Applying this concept permits calculation of recent sediment transfer rates and hence leads to a better understanding of actual geomorphic landscape development activity. To extrapolate these data in time and space the process–related sediments in the valley are analysed for depth and total volume, primarily using geophysical methods. In this fashion the validity of measured process rates is evaluated for the Holocene time scale. Results from this analysis are exemplified in a cross–profile showing some of the principal sediment units in the valley. For example, the measured modern rates on a slush torrent debris fan seem to represent the Holocene mean rate. This approach should also be suitable for revealing Holocene geomorphic landscape development in terms of climate change.     

Helgoland Roads,North Sea: 45 Years of Change

The Helgoland Roads time series is one of the richest temporal marine data sets available. Running since 1962, it documents changes for phytoplankton, salinity, Secchi disc depths and macronutrients. Uniquely, the data have been carefully quality controlled and linked to relevant meta-data, and the pelagic time series is further augmented by zooplankton, intertidal macroalgae, macro-zoobenthos and bacterioplankton data. Data analyses have shown changes in hydrography and biota around Helgoland. In the late 1970s, water inflows from the south-west to the German Bight increased with a corresponding increase in flushing rates. Salinity and annual mean temperature have also increased since 1962 and the latter by an average of 1.67°C. This has influenced seasonal phytoplankton growth causing significant shifts in diatom densities and the numbers of large diatoms (e. g. Coscinodiscus wailesii). Changes in zooplankton diversity have included the appearance of the ctenophore Mnemiopsis leidyi. The macroalgal community also showed an increase in green algal and a decrease in brown algal species after 1959. Over 30 benthic macrofaunal species have been newly recorded at Helgoland over the last 20 years, with a distinct shift towards southern species. These detailed data provide the basis for long-term analyses of changes on many trophic levels at Helgoland Roads.     

Carbon sequestration and environmental effects of afforestation with Pinus radiata D. Don in the Western Cape, South Africa

A three-step methodology to assess the carbon sequestration and the environmental impact of afforestation projects in the framework of the Flexible Mechanisms of the Kyoto Protocol (Joint Implementation and Clean Development Mechanism) was developed and tested using a dataset collected from the Jonkershoek forest plantation, Western Cape, South Africa, which was established with Pinus radiata in former native fynbos vegetation and indigenous forest. The impact of a change in land use was evaluated for a multifunctional, a production and a non-conversion scenario. First, the carbon balance was modelled with GORCAM and was expressed as (1) C sequestration in tC ha⁻¹ year⁻¹ in soil, litter, and living biomass according to the rules of the first commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol, and (2) CO₂ emission reductions in tC ha⁻¹ year⁻¹, which includes carbon sequestered in the above-mentioned pools and additionally in wood products, as well as emission reductions due to fossil fuel substitution. To estimate forest growth, three data sources were used: (1) inventory data, (2) growth simulation with a process-based model, and (3) yield tables. Second, the effects of land use change were assessed for different project scenarios using a method related to Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). The method uses 17 quantitative indicators to describe the impact of project activities on water, soil, vegetation cover and biodiversity. Indicator scores were calculated by comparing indicator values with reference values, estimated for the climax vegetation. The climax vegetation is the site-specific ecosystem phase with the highest exergy content and the highest exergy flow dissipation capacity. Third, the land use impact per functional unit of 1 tC sequestered was calculated by combining the results of step 1 and step 2. The average baselines to obtain carbon additionality are 476 tC ha⁻¹ for indigenous forest and 32 tC ha⁻¹ for fynbos. Results show that the influence of the growth assessment method on the magnitude of C sequestration and hence on the environmental impact per functional unit is large. When growth rate is assessed with the mechanistic model and with the yield table, it is overestimated in the early years and underestimated in the long term. The main conclusion of the scenario analysis is that the production forest scenario causes higher impacts per functional unit than the multifunctional scenario, but with the latter being less efficient in avoiding CO₂ emissions. The proposed method to assess impacts on diverse components of the ecosystem is able to estimate the general tendency of the adverse and positive effects of each scenario. However, some indicators, more specifically about biodiversity and water balance, could be improved or reinterpreted in light of specific local data about threat to biodiversity and water status.     

Nd, Pb, and Sr isotope composition of juvenile magmatism in the Mesozoic large magmatic province of northern Chile (18–27°S): indications for a uniform subarc mantle

The Jurassic to Early Cretaceous magmatic arc of the Andes in northern Chile was a site of major additions of juvenile magmas from the subarc mantle to the continental crust. The combined effect of extension and a near stationary position of the Jurassic to lower Cretaceous arc favoured the emplacement and preservation of juvenile magmatic rocks on a large vertical and horizontal scale. Chemical and Sr, Nd, and Pb isotopic compositions of mainly mafic to intermediate volcanic and intrusive rock units coherently indicate the generation of the magmas in a subduction regime and the dominance of a depleted subarc mantle source over contributions of the ambient Palaeozoic crust. The isotopic composition of the Jurassic (²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁴Pb: ∼ 18.2; ²⁰⁷Pb/²⁰⁴Pb: ∼ 15.55; ¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd: ∼ 0.51277; ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr: ∼ 0.703–0.704) and Present (²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁴Pb: ∼ 18.5; ²⁰⁷Pb/²⁰⁴Pb: ∼ 15.57; 143Nd/144Nd: ∼ 0.51288; ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr: ∼ 0.703–0.704) depleted subarc mantle beneath the Central and Southern Andes (18°–40°S) was likely uniform over the entire region. Small differences of isotope ratios between Jurassic and Cenozoic to Recent of subarc mantle-derived could be explained by radiogenic growth in a still uniform mantle source.Electronic Supplementary Material Supplementary material is available to authorised users in the online version of this article at .     

Application of a circulation and transport model system to the dispersal of herring larvae in the North Sea

A model system consisting of a three-dimensional circulation and transport model is used to simulate the dispersal of herring larvae in the North Sea. The driving forces of the circulation model are theM₂-tide, time dependent wind stress and air pressure fields, as well as monthly climatological density fields interpolated on a daily basis. The transport model includes advection as well as diffusion and uses a tracer technique to pursue the larvae in the time and space domain. Furthermore, the transport model incorporates a simulation of active vertical movement of the larvae as vertical migration has a marked effect on the drift route of the larvae.Simulated North Sea currents are compared to observed currents gained during the Autumn Circulation Experiment (ACE) which took place from August 1987 to March 1988. The variability in observed currents at the location of the moorings is found to be larger than in the simulated currents. On a larger scale, the simulated circulation in the northern North Sea shows a close correspondence to the inferred circulation from a quasi-synoptic hydrographic survey. The quality of the predictions of larval transport and distribution patterns by the model system is tested using sequential larvae distributions observed during ACE. Common features and discrepancies of observed and simulated distributions are discussed and conclusions for further field investigations and modelling studies are drawn.     

The east-west asymmetry in the number of spot-groups in relation to their classification

It is shown that the east-west asymmetry is quite different for spot-groups of different classes of evolution and that there exists a conspicuous difference between the ascending and descending branches with regard to the east-west asymmetry and the asymmetry between corresponding lunes. Some results point to the existence of systematic errors in the classification of the spot-groups.