Spatial distribution of temperature trends and extremes over Maharashtra and Karnataka States of India

Earth surface temperatures are changing worldwide together with the changes in the extreme temperatures. The present study investigates trends and variations of monthly maximum and minimum temperatures and their effects on seasonal fluctuations at different climatological stations of Maharashtra and Karnataka states of India. Trend analysis was performed on annual and seasonal mean maximum temperature (TMAX) and mean minimum temperature (TMIN) for the period 1969 to 2006. During the last 38 years, an increase in annual TMAX and TMIN has occurred. At most of the locations, the increase in TMAX was faster than the TMIN, resulting in an increase in diurnal temperature range. At the same time, annual mean temperature (TM) showed a significant increase over the study area. Percentiles were used to identify extreme temperature indices. An increase in occurrence of warm extremes was observed at southern locations, and cold extremes increased over the central and northeastern part of the study area. Occurrences of cold wave conditions have decreased rapidly compared to heat wave conditions.     

The development of a physiologically-based pharmacokinetic model using the distribution of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin in the tissues of the eastern oyster (Crassostrea virginica)

A physiologically-based pharmacokinetic model (PBPK) was developed to describe the kinetics of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) in the eastern oyster (Crassostrea virginica). The estimated t(1/2) of elimination for a bolus dose of TCDD in C. virginica is approximately 14-24 days based on both the experimental data and the PBPK model. The highest dioxin concentration reached during 28-days was in the digestive gland followed by the mantle, gonad, hemolymph, gill, adductor muscle, and the kidney/heart. A binding protein for 2,3,7,8-TCDD had been reported in the literature for both the digestive gland and gonad. Incorporating a binding component in the model resulted in a better fit for the data. The PBPK model predicted the distribution and the elimination concentrations for 2,3,7,8-TCDD within each of the tissue compartments. This model will serve as a useful tool for predicting the kinetics of other persistent organic pollutants as well as, allow for a more refined ecological risk assessment by estimating dioxin concentrations in sensitive tissues such as the gonad.     

Groundwater arsenic contamination and its health effects in India

During a 28-year field survey in India (1988–2016), groundwater arsenic contamination and its health effects were registered in the states of West Bengal, Jharkhand, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh in the Ganga River flood plain, and the states of Assam and Manipur in the flood plain of Brahamaputra and Imphal rivers. Groundwater of Rajnandgaon village in Chhattisgarh state, which is not in a flood plain, is also arsenic contaminated. More than 170,000 tubewell water samples from the affected states were analyzed and half of the samples had arsenic >10 μg/L (maximum concentration 3,700 μg/L). Chronic exposure to arsenic through drinking water causes various health problems, like dermal, neurological, reproductive and pregnancy effects, cardiovascular effects, diabetes mellitus, diseases of the respiratory and gastrointestinal systems, and cancers, typically involving the skin, lungs, liver, bladder, etc. About 4.5% of the 8,000 children from arsenic-affected villages of affected states were registered with mild to moderate arsenical skin lesions. In the preliminary survey, more than 10,000 patients were registered with different types of arsenic-related signs and symptoms, out of more than 100,000 people screened from affected states. Elevated levels of arsenic were also found in biological samples (urine, hair, nails) of the people living in affected states. The study reveals that the population who had severe arsenical skin lesions may suffer from multiple Bowens/cancers in the long term. Some unusual symptoms, such as burning sensation, skin itching and watering of eyes in the presence of sun light, were also noticed in arsenicosis patients.     

Formation processes of cemented features in karstic cave sites revealed using stable oxygen and carbon isotopic analyses: A case study at middle paleolithic Amud Cave,Israel

Hearths are important archaeological features, serving to infer past practices related to hominin subsistence and social behaviors. The identification of hearths is not always straightforward due to post‐depositional processes. In karstic cave environments in particular it is not always easy to distinguish, in the field or in the laboratory, between geogenic and anthropogenic cemented features because both are composed of calcite. Here we present a novel study in which bulk oxygen and carbon isotopic analyses were used in order to unequivocally identify anthropogenic calcite derived from hearths in the Neanderthal site of Amud Cave (Israel). We demonstrate that the isotopic composition of wood ash is distinctively different from that of geogenic calcite. The linear relationship observed between carbon and oxygen isotopic compositions of the various sediment types in Amud Cave is interpreted as a mixing line between wood ash and geogenic calcite, thus enhancing our understanding of the origins of sedimentological variability at the site and showing that not all of the cemented sediments in Amud Cave should be regarded as hearths. Our study suggests that the relative abundance of validated hearths in the various areas of the cave may be associated with Neanderthal use of space in Amud Cave. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Google Earth Engine for concurrent flood monitoring in the lower basin of Indo-Gangetic-Brahmaputra plains

Natural Hazards - The present study focused on the recent flood inundation (July 2020) that occurred in the lower Indo-Gangetic-Brahmaputra plains (IGBP) using concurrent C-band Sentinel-1A...     

Shoreline change analysis and its application to prediction: A remote sensing and statistics based approach

Shoreline change analysis and prediction are important for integrated coastal zone management, and are conventionally performed by field and aerial surveys. This paper discusses an alternative cost-effective methodology involving satellite remote sensing images and statistics. Multi-date satellite images have been used to demarcate shoreline positions, from which shoreline change rates have been estimated using linear regression. Shoreline interpretation error, uncertainty in shoreline change rate, and cross-validation of the calculated past shorelines have been performed using the statistical methods, namely, Regression coefficient (R²) and Root Mean Square Error (RMSE). This study has been carried out along 113.5 km of coast adjoining Bay of Bengal in eastern India, over the time interval 1973 to 2003. The study area has been subdivided into seven littoral cells, and transects at uniform interval have been chosen within each cell. The past and future shoreline positions have been estimated over two time periods of short and long terms in three modes, viz., transect-wise, littoral cell-wise and regionally.The result shows that 39% of transects have uncertainties in shoreline change rate estimations, which are usually nearer to cell boundaries. On the other hand, 69% of transects exhibit lower RMSE values for the short-term period, indicating better agreement between the estimated and satellite based shoreline positions. It is also found that cells dominated by natural processes have lower RMSE, when considered for long term period, while cells affected by anthropogenic interventions show better agreement for the short-term period. However, on regional considerations, there is not much difference in the RMSE values for the two periods. Geomorphological evidence corroborates the results. The present study demonstrates that combined use of satellite imagery and statistical methods can be a reliable method for shoreline related studies.     

Secondary Silicates as a Barrier to Carbon Capture and Storage in Deccan Basalt

Investigating the immobilization of CO2, previous basalt-water-CO2 interaction studies revealed the formation of carbonates over a short period, but with the extensive formation of secondary silicates (SS). The mechanisms involved in these processes remain unresolved, so the present study was undertaken to understand secondary mineral formation mechanisms. XRPD and Rietveld refinement data for neo-formed minerals show a drastic decrease in the Ca-O bond length, with the calcite structure degenerating after 80 h (hours). However, SEM images and EDS data revealed that a longer interaction time resulted in the formation of chlorite and smectite, adjacent to basalt grains which prevent basalt-water-CO2 interaction to form carbonates, thus restricting carbonate formation. As a result of this, the CO2 mineralization rate is initially high (till 80 h), but it later reduces drastically. It is evident that, for such temperature-controlled transformations, low temperature is conducive to minimizing SS surface coating at the time of mineral carbonation.     

Geological and pedological aspects of an Early-Paleolithic site: Revadim,Central Coastal Plain,Israel

An Early Paleolithic site was recently discovered within a sequence of paleosols in the Revadim Quarry, central coastal plain of Israel. The section is composed of three superimposed soils in a continuous sequence, but separated by two unconformity surfaces. The uppermost paleosol is a modern Dark Brown Grumusol (Vertisol), the middle is a Quartzic Gray Brown Soil (Haploxeralf), and the lower is a Red Hamra (Rhodoxeralf). Normal magnetic polarity was detected in the two lower soils, indicating that they are younger than the Brunhes–Matuyama boundary (<780 ka). A human occupation bed, enriched in secondary carbonate nodules, forms the lower part of the Quartzic Gray Brown Soil and overlies the Red Hamra. The living floor is located on top of the unconformity surface, separating the Red Hamra from the overlying Quartzic Gray Brown Soil. Middle to Late Acheulian handaxes, choppers, cores, and flake tools, including tools made by the Levallois technique, and man-laid flint pebbles were excavated in the human occupation bed. In addition, two elephant tusks, an elephant pelvis, an elephant tooth (Palaeoloxodon antiquus), tusk splinters, and bones of equid, suid, cervid, bovid, felid, and rodents were also collected. Based on well-documented nearby boreholes and on regional correlation, it appears that the underlying dune sands, the parent materials from which the Red Hamra developed, were deposited probably during a phase of high-stand sea level of Isotope Stage 9. The Red Hamra developed simultaneously with the human occupation of the site, probably during a phase of low-stand sea-level of Isotope Stage 8, before some 300–245 ka. The overlying dune sands, the parent materials from which the Quartzic Gray Brown Soil developed, were deposited probably during a phase of high-stand sea level of Isotope Stage 7. The climate prevailing in the area during Stage 8, as well as during the human habitation, was moist, with a dense vegetation cover of grassland and probably scattered trees. A small lake of trapped fresh water at a junction of two small tributaries of the Soreq River drainage system near the area occupied was available to hominids and animals. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Overestimation of short-term coastal cliff retreat rates in the eastern Mediterranean resolved with a sediment budget approach

Our understanding of sea-cliff erosion processes and their response to recent and/or projected environmental changes such as sea-level rise, climate change and anthropogenic development hinges on our ability to quantify sea-cliff retreat rates and their variability through time. Here, we focus on Israel's Mediterranean ‘Sharon’ sea-cliff as a case study for examining the significance of recent short-term (i.e. annual to decadal) cliff-top retreat rates that appear to exceed longer-term rates of ‘background’ (i.e. centennial to millennial) retreat by 1–2 orders of magnitude. We demonstrate that an inherent sampling bias in rate estimates inferred from observation intervals shorter than process episodicity can also explain such a pattern. This potential ambiguity leads to a striking paradox where despite highly accurate and robust documentation of recent cliff-top retreat, such as that obtained from aerial photographs and/or instrumental surveys, the short-term retreat rates of episodically retreating sea cliffs remain poorly constrained. To address this key data gap along the Sharon sea cliff we employed a sediment budget approach that focuses on quantifying the continuous wave scouring of cliff-collapsed material from the shore platform as a rate-limiting process for episodic retreat of the cliff above. We used four high-resolution (0.5 m/pixel) airborne LiDAR data sets acquired between 2006 and 2015 to determine short-term maximum retreat rates of up to ~0.08 m/yr during this nine-year period. These modern retreat rates compare to the cliff's background retreat rate of 0.03 to 0.09 m/yr since the mid-Holocene, as determined herein from multiple geologic and archeological observations. Our results demonstrate that previously reported twentieth century cliff-top retreat rates for this sea cliff, which range up to values of several meters per year, are biased and that sea-cliff erosion rates have not yet been significantly impacted by recent environmental changes in the eastern Mediterranean basin, such as the restriction of sediment supply following emplacement of the Nile's Aswan dam system. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Advancing fracture fragility assessment of pre-Northridge welded column splices

A refined probabilistic assessment of seismic demands and fracture capacity of welded column splice (WCS) connections in welded steel moment resisting frames (WSMRFs) is presented. Seismic demand assessment is performed through cloud-based nonlinear time history analysis (NLTHA) for two case-study structures, i.e., a 4- and a 20- story WSMRFs. Results from NLTHA are used to derive fracture fragility of WCS connections. To this aim, the study investigates (1) optimal ground-motion intensity measures for conditioning probabilistic seismic demand models in terms of global (i.e., maximum inter-story drift ratio) and local (i.e., peak tensile stress in the flange of WCSs) engineering demand parameters of WSMRFs; (2) the effect of ground-motion vertical components on the longitudinal flange stress of WCS connections and their resulting fracture fragility; and (3) the effect of WCS capacity uncertainties on the fracture fragility estimates of those connections. For the latter case, an advanced finite element fracture mechanics-based approach proposed by the authors is employed to capture aleatory and epistemic uncertainties affecting fracture capacities. The focus is on pre-Northridge WCS connections featuring partial joint penetration and brittle materials, making them highly vulnerable to seismic fracture. Fracture fragility results for the case-study structures are compared and discussed, highlighting the importance of the considered issues on fragility estimates, particularly in the case of high-rise structures. Findings from the study contribute shedding some light on the influence of seismic demand and capacity uncertainties on the assessment of fracture fragility of WCS connections. These findings can guide similar performance-based assessment exercises for WSMRFs to inform, for instance, the planning and design of retrofitting strategies for those vulnerable connections.