A Synoptic Climatology of Severe Storms in Virginia*

A synoptic climatology is developed for Virginia using 21 years of late spring and summer surface and upper air observations. The climatology is produced by applying a combination of principal components analysis and cluster analysis such that each day is classified into one of a distinct number of synoptic situations. Days on which at least one severe storm occurred in Virginia are merged with the synoptic climatology. A majority of severe storms are associated with one synoptic situation distinguished by moderate instability and a high moisture content.     

山区植被类型信息提取方法研究

根据遥感图像的光谱信息和空间信息特征及不同植被的分布规律,研究利用计算机处理技术提取山区植被类型的方法。分类过程采用四个步骤完成：①均一目标的象限四分树提取分类；②多光谱数据的最小距离分类；③综合利用波谱曲线的形态和地形数据进行分类；④高程数据修正分类。在分类处理过程中,分别利用了图像的空间信息、光谱信息以及地形数据。利用该分类方法在实验小区内进行植被类型提取试验,其精度为90%.与最大似然分类方法所得结果相比较,其分类精度提高了10%.     

中国地质灾害类型、分布及防治建议

本文提出了中国地质灾害的空间分类和成因分类系统,并根据13类常见的地质灾害组合类型进行了区划,基本上反映了我国高原、山地、内陆盆地、平原及滨海地区地质灾害的地带性和地区性分布规律,以小比例尺图显示了中国地质灾害的类型与分布。该图共划分为11个地质灾害区。在此基础上初步论述了1949—1990年间我国崩塌、滑坡、泥石流灾害的主要受灾地区和受灾损失。最后,根据当前形势,提出了减灾、防灾的对策意见和建议。     

A semiobjective method for condensing classifications

A simple, semiobjective method is described to reduce the number of groups in a classification to an arbitrary level without losing contact with the geologic information contained in the evolving groups. The method, operated in a stepwise or cyclic manner, employs some of the commonly used numerical techniques, but avoids strict adherence to them to obtain geologically more meaningful results. The method is illustrated in a facies study of the upper Paleozoic rocks of southeastern Utah.     

SAR image classification based on its texture features

SAR images not only have the characteristics of all-ay, all-eather, but also provide object infor-mation which is different from visible and infrared sensors. However, SAR images have some faults, such as more speckles and fewer bands. The au-thors conducted the experiments of texture statistics analysis on SAR im-age features in order to improve the accuracy of SAR image interpretation.It is found that the texture analysis is an effective method for improving the accuracy of the SAR image interpreta-tion.     

关于我国土地利用分类问题的讨论

在分析了我国于2002年1月起试行的最新土地利用分类系统所存在的问题之后,提出了生态用地的概念,并提出了将我国土地利用划分为农用地、建设用地和生态用地这三大类用地的设想,同时尝试提出了另一个土地利用分类方案。     

Using unmanned underwater vehicles as research platforms in coastal ocean studies

The advantages of using unmanned underwater vehicles in coastal ocean studies are emphasized. Two types of representative vehicles, remotely operated vehicle (ROV) and autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) from University of South Florida, are discussed. Two individual modular sensor packages designed and tested for these platforms and field measurement results are also presented. The bottom classification and albedo package, BCAP, provides fast and accurate estimates of bottom albedos, along with other parameters such as in-water remote sensing reflectance. The real-time ocean bottom optical topographer, ROBOT, reveals high-resolution 3-dimentional bottom topography for target identification. Field data and results from recent Coastal Benthic Optical Properties field campaign, 1999 and 2000, are presented. Advantages and limitations of these vehicles and applications of modular sensor packages are compared and discussed.     

The GW-Fauna-Index: A first approach to a quantitative ecological assessment of groundwater habitats

Between June 2001 and December 2002, 18 hyporheic and groundwater bores were sampled for fauna and environmental data using phreatic traps. The bores were situated in three different natural geographic regions in Palatinate, Southwestern Germany.Faunal data correlated with the relative amount of detritus, bacterial abundances and the standard deviation of temperature, while very few and weak correlations were found with physical–chemical variables. Dissolved oxygen was assumed to be a limiting factor for most metazoans with a critical concentration at around 0.5–1 mg l⁻¹.To quantify the strength of the hydrological exchange with surface water and its effects on fauna, a so-called GW-Fauna-Index was developed and calculated using the relative amount of detritus, standard deviation of temperature, and oxygen concentration. From all environmental data and on all spatial scales, this index best explained the total faunal abundance and taxonomic richness.To describe the availability of organic aliments in the groundwater, the terms of “alimonic” and “alimony” [from lat. alimonium=(food) supply] were proposed.Although stygofauna was different in the geographic regions investigated, the GW-Fauna-Index was independent from these regional particularities. Using the GW-Fauna-Index, three groups of groundwater habitats could be classified according to the alimonic conditions. From oligo-alimonic group I samples, fauna was mostly absent, while meso-alimonic group II samples were prevailingly populated by stygobites, and eu-alimonic group III samples by ubiquists and stygoxenes. Total abundances and taxonomic richness increased significantly from group I to group III. Group I samples were characterized by low index values, group II samples by intermediate and group III samples by high values.The GW-Fauna-Index provides promising perspectives for application, but needs some improvement. First of all, detritus should be analysed quantitatively and qualitatively, rather than semi-quantitatively. Also, a standard protocol for sampling has to be developed.