Progress in Danube Loess and Paleoenvironment Study

Danube loess, located at the westernmost part of the widespread Eurasian loess belt, is one of the most well-preserved aeolian dust deposits in Europe with the basal age dating back over 1 Ma. Owing to its unique location and formation processes, Danube loess plays an important role in understanding the linkage of climate changes in different climate regimes over Eurasian continent and paleoclimatic changes in middle-high northern latitudes. Major research advances of the Danube loess, including compositions, provenance, chronology, stratigraphy and paleoenvironment changes were systematically reviewed and the focuses of future research were suggested. To better understand loess provenance, the compositions of sediments in all the potential source areas should be investigated, and methodological study of provenance indicators and application of multi-proxies approaches need to be carried out. Chronologically and stratigraphically, feldspar luminescence dating and tephrochronology methods should be widely used, and the establishment of a uniform stratigraphic framework and correlation scheme should be constrained by precise chronology. In terms of the paleoenvironment, it is necessary to conduct high-resolution multi-proxies reconstruction of paleoenviroment for the entire loess-paleosol sequence, extending from the last interglacial period (130 ka to present) to interval of last 1 Ma. The future progress in Danube loess is crucial to improving the study of continental paleoclimate comparison and paleoclimate dynamics over the Eurasian loess region.     

A note on the performance of the multiply-upstream semi-Lagrangian advection schemes for one-dimensional nonlinear momentum conservation equation

Summary Two-time-level multiply-upstream semi-Lagrangian schemes were examined in the case of the self-advecting, one-dimensional nonlinear momentum conservation equation. The shock formation process was analyzed. It is pointed out that the shocks cannot be created in the truncated systems satisfying the Pudykiewicz, Benoit and Staniforth criterion.The numerical integrations were restricted to 12 h. It was shown that, at least in the sub-CFL range, increased complexity of the scheme can compensate reduced horizontal resolution. A considerable sensitivity of the schemes with respect to the time step was detected. In the super-CFL mode, several windows on various time scales were found within which the Pudykiewicz, Benoit and Staniforth criterion was satisfied. The time step of 1.44 times the maximum time step allowed by the CFL criterion was used in the semi-Lagrangian runs.The super-CFL, semi-Lagrangian solutions were diverging progressively from the sub-CFL ones as the forecasts advanced. This was also reflected in the energy spectra.Unacceptably large energy losses were encountered in the super-CFL, semi-Lagrangian runs. Most of these losses could be explained by the reduced mean wind speed, i.e., the amplitude of the zero wavenumber wave. At the same time, the energy content in the shorter waves increased. In a more complex model, such a situation would resemble a loss of zonal, and an increase of transient eddy kinetic energy.A trajectory error measure was defined as the maximum absolute value of the distance between the actual arriving point of the particle originating at the estimated departure point, and the grid point assumed to be the arrival point in the semi-Lagrangian procedure. In contrast to the sub-CFL regime, this measure could reach a considerable fraction of the grid distance in the computations with the super-CFL time steps.In the physical system considered, the trajectories are determined only by the velocities at the departure points. With the semi-Lagrangian schemes the distances traveled by the particles are estimated on the basis of the velocities at the points downstream with respect to the departure points. Thus, unless the solution is smooth (in space and time) on the scales of the extrapolation distances/times, the upstream extrapolation does not promise the convergence of the solution.With 16 Figures     

Gridded Croatian climatology for 1961–1990

In climatology, one of the most important pieces of information about the climate of a place or a region is information about the Climatological Normals (CLINO)—the average values of meteorological elements for a 30-year period. This kind of information usually comes in tables and is available for different observation sites from national meteorological services or from World Meteorological Organisation publications. The key issue, then, becomes how to interpolate these values over the entire area of interest to get reliable and accurate estimates (maps) of climatic elements. Here, the regression kriging framework has been applied for mapping of 20 climatological parameters for the 1961–1990 period for the 56,594 km² of Croatian territory, with a resolution of 1 km. In total, 152 main and climatological and 567 precipitation-measuring stations have been used in the analysis. Extensive pre-processing of metadata on station co-ordinates has been done, as well as completion of missing monthly averages. The final results are 20 climatological maps available in high resolution together with error maps and accuracy assessment measures.     

Automatic grid azimuth by hour angle of the sun,a star or a planet using an electronic theodolite Kern E2

The paper deals with the automatic grid azimuth determination of an object on the earth using the electronic theodolite Kern E2 by observing the sun, a star, or a planet. The observation time and the readings of horizontal and vertical circles of the electronic theodolite enter automatically the electronic calculator Hewlett-Packard HP41CX. The calculator computes the grid azimuth of the terrestrial object and directs the observer what to do. Therefore, even a personnel without specific high education can make observations. For the solar observations it is not necessary to have an astronomical almanac, because the program computes the solar coordinates. The general input data, together with the measured ones, can be stored on a magnetic cassette and later on, if necessary, one can correct the general data and recalculate the azimuth. The method proved to be very practical in the field work.     

An analysis of close binaries (CB) based on photometric measurements (VIII)

The author considers current problems in the determination of the orbital and physical parameters for active close binaries (CB) of W Ser type based on the interpretation of photometric observations (Djuraevi, 1991). In this particular case, one analyses the light curves of CB SX Cas in the framework of the accretion-disc model explained in the second paper of this series (Djuraevi, 1992a). The light curve is analysed by applying the inverse-problem method described in the third paper of the series (Djuraevi, 1992b). On the basis of the observational material in theB andV filters (Shao, 1967), the light curves, the fundamental orbital and physical parameters of the system are estimated. In the paper a graphical illustration of the obtained solutions is also given. The obtained results confirm the general picture about the active processes in CB of W Ser type.     

Bioremediation perspective of historically contaminated sediment with polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons

The purpose of the current study is to compare the influence of different aerobic conditions(biostimulation(BS),bioaugmentation(BA),and a combination of biostimulation and bioaugmentation(BB))on polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons(PAH)degradation and compare the degraded amount with single step XAD-4 extraction as a new tool for bioavailability assessment for chronically contaminated sediment samples obtained from territory of Autonomous Province Vojvodina of Serbia(S1,S2,and S3).A great number of papers dealing with biodegradation of PAHs in spiked sediment or soil have been published,but to the authors’knowledge,a limited number of papers studied aged,historically polluted sediment and a sum of chosen U.S.Environmental Protection Agency(USEPA)PAHs.A significant reduction(up to67%)in PAH concentration was observed,while the percentage of reduction varied depending on the sediment sample and treatment used.BS treatment successfully stimulated growth of indigenous bacteria.Further,PAH-degrading strain Sphingomonas paucimobilis F8 inoculated in BA and BB treatment survived for up to 7 weeks after it was suppressed by unfavorable conditions or native microbes.Degraded amounts generally showed good correlation with results obtained from XAD-4 extraction.Results obtained in the current study represent a good start for standardizing a XAD-4 extraction technique as a simplified,easier,and lower cost method for bioavailability assessment.