Studies of clump structure of photodissociation regions at millimeter and sub-millimeter wavelengths

To interpret the millimeter and sub-millimeter line emissions of atomic and molecular species from galactic and extragalactic photodissociation regions, warm gas components and molecular clouds, generally, escape probability formalism of Tielens & Hollenbach (herein referred as TH) are employed which is based on the assumption of plane parallel geometry of infinite slab allowing photons to escape only from the front. Contrary to the assumption observationally it is found that these lines are optically thin except OI(63μ m) and low rotational transitions of CO and some other molecules. This observational evidence led us to assume that emitting regions are finite parallel plane slab in which photons are allowed to escape from both the surfaces (back and front). Therefore, in the present study escape of radiations from both sides of the homogeneous and also clumpy PDR/molecular clouds are taken into consideration for calculating the line intensities at millimeter and sub-millimeter wavelengths (hereinafter referred as QA). Results are compared with that of the TH model. It is found that thermal and chemical structures of the regions are almost similar in both the formalisms. But line intensities are modified by differing factors. Particularly at low density and low kinetic temperature and also for optically thin lines line intensities calculated from TH and QA model differ substantially. But at density higher than the critical density and also for optically thick lines TH and QA models converge to almost same values. An attempt has been made to study the physical conditions of the M17 region employing the present formalism.     

Segmentation of Airborne Point Cloud Data for Automatic Building Roof Extraction

Roof plane segmentation is a complex task since point cloud data carry no connection information and do not provide any semantic characteristics of the underlying scanned surfaces. Point cloud density, complex roof profiles, and occlusion add another layer of complexity which often encounter in practice. In this article, we present a new technique that provides a better interpolation of roof regions where multiple surfaces intersect creating non-manifold points. As a result, these geometric features are preserved to achieve automated identification and segmentation of the roof planes from unstructured laser data. The proposed technique has been tested using the International Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing benchmark and three Australian datasets, which differ in terrain, point density, building sizes, and vegetation. The qualitative and quantitative results show the robustness of the methodology and indicate that the proposed technique can eliminate vegetation and extract buildings as well as their non-occluding parts from the complex scenes at a high success rate for building detection (between 83.9% and 100% per-object completeness) and roof plane extraction (between 73.9% and 96% per-object completeness). The proposed method works more robustly than some existing methods in the presence of occlusion and low point sampling as indicated by the correctness of above 95% for all the datasets.     

An approach of understanding acid volcanics and tuffaceous volcaniclastics from field studies: A case from Tadpatri Formation,Proterozoic Cuddapah basin,Andhra Pradesh,India

The lower stratigraphic part of the Cuddapah basin is marked by mafic and felsic volcanism. Tadpatri Formation consists of a greater variety of rock types due to bimodal volcanism in the upper part. Presence of bimodal volcanism is an indication of continental rift setting. Various genetic processes involved in the formation of such volcanic sequence result in original textures which are classified into volcaniclastic and coherent categories. Detailed and systematic field works in Tadpatri–Tonduru transect of SW Cuddapah basin have provided information on the physical processes producing this diversity of rock types. Felsic volcanism is manifested here with features as finger print of past rhyolite-dacite eruptions. Acid volcanics, tuffs and associated shale of Tadpatri Formation are studied and mapped in the field. With supporting subordinate studies on geochemistry, mineralogy and petrogenesis of the volcanics to validate field features accurately, it is understood that volcanism was associated with rifting and shallow marine environmental condition. Four facies (i.e., surge, flow, fall and resedimented volcaniclastic) are demarcated to describe stratigraphic units and volcanic history of the mapped area. The present contribution focuses on the fundamental characterization and categorization of field-based features diagnostic of silica-rich volcanic activities in the Tadpatri Formation.     

Geomorphic investigation of the Late-Quaternary landforms in the southern Zanskar Valley,NW Himalaya

The Suru, Doda and Zanskar river valleys in the semi-arid region of Southern Zanskar Ranges (SZR) preserve a rich repository of the glacial and fluvial landforms, alluvial fans, and lacustrine deposits. Based on detailed field observations, geomorphic mapping and limited optical ages, we suggest four glaciations of decreasing magnitude in the SZR. The oldest Southern Zanskar Glaciation Stage (SZS-4) is inferred from glacially polished bedrock and tillite pinnacles. The SZS-4 is ascribed to the Marine Isotopic Stage (MIS)-4/3. The subsequent SZS-3 is represented by obliterated and dissected moraines, and is assigned to MIS-2/Last Glacial Maximum. The multiple recessional moraines of SZS-2 glaciation are assigned the early to mid Holocene age whereas, the youngest SZS-1 moraines were deposited during the Little Ice Age. We suggest that during the SZS-2 glaciation, the Drang-Drung glacier shifted its course from Suru Valley (west) to the Doda Valley (east). The study area has preserved three generations of outwash gravel terraces, which broadly correlate with the phases of deglaciation associated with SZS-3, 2, and 1. The alluvial fan aggradation, lacustrine sedimentation, and loess deposition occurred during the mid-to-late Holocene. We suggest that glaciation was driven by a combination of the mid-latitude westerlies and the Indian Summer Monsoon during periods of cooler temperature, while phases of deglaciation occurred during enhanced temperature.     

Behaviour,of stratospheric NO2 during stratospheric warming of January‐February 1979

Abstract

Ground‐based measurements of stratospheric NO₂, using absorption spectroscopy of twilight sky in the spectral region 437–451 nm, have been made at Calgary (51.08°N, 114.13°W), Alberta, Canada, during the period December 1978‐March 10, 1979. The NO₂ showed a rather steady behaviour in the month of December when there was no stratospheric warming in progress; the monthly average of the afternoon vertical column abundance for December was 1.7 × 10¹⁵ cm². In the rest of the observation period the NO₂ showed a complex behaviour, but this behaviour appears to be explicable in terms of the stratospheric circulation changes taking place in that period due to the occurrence of a stratospheric warming event.     

A simple model for the evolution of supermassive black holes and the quasar population

An empirically motivated model is presented for accretion-dominated growth of supermassive black holes (SMBH) in galaxies, and the implications are studied for the evolution of the quasar population in the Universe. We investigate the core aspects of the quasar population, including space density evolution, evolution of the characteristic luminosity, plausible minimum masses of quasars, the mass function of SMBH and their formation epoch distribution. Our model suggests that the characteristic luminosity in the quasar luminosity function arises primarily as a consequence of a characteristic mass scale above which there is a systematic separation between the black hole and the halo merging rates. At lower mass scales, black hole merging closely tracks the merging of dark haloes. When combined with a declining efficiency of black hole formation with redshift, the model can reproduce the quasar luminosity function over a wide range of redshifts. The observed space density evolution of quasars is well described by formation rates of SMBH above  ∼10⁸  M_⊙  . The inferred mass density of SMBH agrees with that found independently from estimates of the SMBH mass function derived empirically from the quasar luminosity function.     

Characterization of regional hydrological drought using improved precipitation records under multi-auxiliary information

Theoretical and Applied Climatology - Drought is a complex natural hazard that has been recurrently occurred in many regions across the globe. Therefore, precise drought characterization and its...