Late middle pleistocene interglacial deposits at upper strensham,worcestershire, england

Pleistocene deposits containing the disarticulated skeleton of a mammoth, and associated faunal and floral remains, were discovered in July 1990 at Upper Strensham, Worcestershire. The environmental evidence from the fauna and flora together with limited geological evidence, indicates that the deposits accumulated within a low energy fluvial environment with a surrounding marsh and restricted tree cover on, or close to, the floodplain. The patchy occurrence of trees in a species-rich grassland is discussed, and the climatic significance of the fauna and flora is considered. The Strensham site lies within the valley of the River Avon, which is known to contain at least five altitudinally distinct river terraces. The deposits at Strensham lie beneath a terraced surface that cannot be accommodated within the existing framework of terrace development in the valley, and evidence is presented which may suggest that these deposits form a previously unrecognised fluvial unit, the Strensham Member of the Avon Valley Formation. Amino-acid age estimates from shells taken from the fossiliferous sediments of the Strensham Member suggest a correlation with Oxygen Isotope Stage 7. This correlation suggests that the temperate deposits at this site should be correlated with the temperate phase recorded at Marsworth, Buckinghamshire and Stoke Goldington in the valley of the Great Ouse.     

Testing and comparison of four ionic tracers to measure stream flow loss by multiple tracer injection

The ionic tracers lithium, sodium, chloride and bromide were used to measure flow loss in a small stream (≈? 10 ls^?1). An injectate containing all four tracers was added continuously at five sites along a 507 m study reach of St Kevin Gulch, Lake County, Colorado to determine which sections of the stream were losing water to the stream bed and to ascertain how well the four tracers performed. The acidity of the stream (pH 3.6) made it possible for lithium and sodium, which are normally adsorbed by ion exchange with stream bed sediment, to be used as conservative tracers. Net flow losses as low as 0.8 ls^?1, or 8% of flow, were calculated between measuring sites. By comparing the results of simultaneous injection it was determined whether subsections of the study reach were influent or effluent. Evaluation of tracer concentrations along 116 m of stream indicated that all four tracers behaved conservatively. Discharges measured by Parshall flumes were 4–18% greater than discharges measured by tracer dilution.     

A two‐step‐ahead recurrent neural network for stream‐flow forecasting

In many engineering problems, such as flood warning systems, accurate multistep‐ahead prediction is critically important. The main purpose of this study was to derive an algorithm for two‐step‐ahead forecasting based on a real‐time recurrent learning (RTRL) neural network that has been demonstrated as best suited for real‐time application in various problems. To evaluate the properties of the developed two‐step‐ahead RTRL algorithm, we first compared its predictive ability with least‐square estimated autoregressive moving average with exogenous inputs (ARMAX) models on several synthetic time‐series. Our results demonstrate that the developed two‐step‐ahead RTRL network has efficient ability to learn and has comparable accuracy for time‐series prediction as the refitted ARMAX models. We then investigated the two‐step‐ahead RTRL network by using the rainfall–runoff data of the Da‐Chia River in Taiwan. The results show that the developed algorithm can be successfully applied with high accuracy for two‐step‐ahead real‐time stream‐flow forecasting. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Vegetation disturbances and flood energy during an extreme flood on a sub-tropical river

The advent of 2D hydraulic modelling has improved our understanding of flood hydraulics, thresholds, and dynamic effects on floodplain geomorphology and riparian vegetation at the morphological-unit scale. Hydraulic concepts of bed shear stress, stream power maxima, and energy (cumulative stream power) have been used to characterize floods and define their geomorphic effectiveness. These hydraulic concepts were developed in the context of reach-averaged, 1D hydraulic analyses, but their application to 2D model results is problematic due to differences in the treatment of energy losses in 1D and 2D analyses. Here we present methods for estimating total and boundary resistance from 2D modelling of an extreme flood on a subtropical river. Hydraulic model results are correlated with observations of the flood impacts on floodplain geomorphology and the riparian vegetation to identify thresholds and compute variants of flood energy. Comparison of LiDAR data in 2011 and 2014 shows that the 2011 flood produced 2–4 m of erosion on floodplain bars that were previously forested or grass-covered. Deposition on flood levees, dunes, and chute bars was up to 3.4 m thick. Various hydraulic metrics were trialled as candidates for thresholds of vegetation disturbance. The accuracy of thresholds using metrics extracted at the flood peak (i.e. boundary resistance and stream power maxima) was similar to that using energy as a threshold. Disturbance to forest and grass on vegetated bars was associated with stream powers of >834 W/m² and unit flows of >26 m²/s, respectively. Correlation of the hydraulic metrics with erosion and deposition depths showed no substantial improvement in using flood energy compared to metrics extracted at the flood peak for describing erosion and deposition. The extent of vegetation disturbances and morphological adjustments was limited for this extreme flood, and further 2D studies are needed to compare disturbance thresholds across different environments.     

Response of transient rock uplift and base level knickpoints to erosional efficiency contrasts in bedrock streams

Knickpoints in bedrock streams are often interpreted as transient features generated by a change in boundary conditions. It is typically assumed that knickpoints propagate upstream with constant vertical velocities, though this relies on a stream being in erosional steady state (erosion rate equals rock uplift rate) prior to the knickpoint's formation. Recent modeling and field studies suggest that along-stream contrasts in rock erodibility perturb streams from erosional steady state. To evaluate how contrasts in rock erodibility might impact knickpoint interpretations, we test parameter space (rock erodibility, rock contact dip angle, change in rock uplift rate) in a one-dimensional (1D) bedrock stream model that has variable rock erodibility and produces a knickpoint with a sudden change in rock uplift rate. Upstream of a rock contact, the vertical velocity of a knickpoint generated by a change in rock uplift rate is strongly correlated with how the rock contact has previously perturbed erosion rates. These knickpoints increase vertical velocity upon propagating upstream of a hard over soft contact and decrease vertical velocity upon propagating upstream of a soft over hard contact. However, interactions with other transient perturbations produced by rock contacts make for nuances in knickpoint behavior. Rock contacts also influence the geometry of knickpoints, which can become particularly difficult to identify upstream of soft over hard rock contacts. Using our simulations, we demonstrate how a contact's along-stream horizontal migration rate and cross-contact change in rock strength control how much an upstream reach is perturbed from erosional steady state. When simulations include multiple contacts, the knickpoint is particularly prone to colliding with other transient perturbations and can even disappear altogether if rock contact dips are sufficiently shallow. Caution should be taken when analyzing stream profiles in areas with significant changes in rock strength, especially when rock contact dip angles are near the stream's slope.     

The Buck Creek-Boreas River Adirondack watershed monitoring program

The Buck Creek-Boreas River Adirondack Watershed Monitoring Program, located in the Adirondack region of New York State, United States, combines the monitoring of headwater streams, soils, and vegetation based on a watershed design. Continuous monitoring of six watersheds is linked to the sampling of more than 400 additional Adirondack streams between 2003 and 2019 for chemical analysis of 14 constituents throughout the highly valued Adirondack ecoregion that covers an area of more than 24 000 km². Much of this landscape has a low capacity for acid buffering, but due to spatial variation in geologic features, some areas are moderately to well acid buffered. This program includes data that extends back to the early 1980s and is ongoing. The focus of the program is on the watersheds of headwater Adirondack streams. Soil, vegetation and stream data are used to better understand environmental effects on the linkages of these ecosystem components. Documentation of the long-term responses of Adirondack ecosystems to environmental disturbances such as acid rain, climate change and other unforeseen factors is the primary objective of the program.     

CHARACTERISTICS OF MIDDLE EAST JET STREAM DURING SEASONAL TRANSITION AND ITS RELATION WITH INDIAN SUMMER MONSOON ONSET?

By using the NCEP/NCAR pentad reanalysis data from 1968 to 2009, the variation characteristics of Middle East jet stream(MEJS) and its thermal mechanism during seasonal transition are studied. Results show that the intensity and south-north location of MEJS center exhibit obvious seasonal variation characteristics. When MEJS is strong, it is at 27.5°N from the 67 th pentad to the 24 th pentad the following year; when MEJS is weak, it is at 45°N from the 38 th pentad to the 44 th pentad. The first Empirical Orthogonal Function(EOF) mode of 200-hPa zonal wind field shows that MEJS is mainly over Egypt and Saudi Arabia in winter and over the eastern Black Sea and the eastern Aral Sea in summer. MEJS intensity markedly weakens in summer in comparison with that in winter. The 26th-31 st pentad is the spring-summer transition of MEJS, and the 54th-61 st pentad the autumn-winter transition. During the two seasonal transitions, the temporal variations of the 500-200 hPa south-north temperature difference(SNTD) well match with 200-hPa zonal wind velocity, indicating that the former leads to the latter following the principle of thermal wind. A case analysis shows that there is a close relation between the onset date of Indian summer monsoon and the transition date of MEJS seasonal transition. When the outbreak date of Indian summer monsoon is earlier than normal, MEJS moves northward earlier because the larger SNTD between 500-200 hPa moves northward earlier, with the westerly jet in the lower troposphere over 40°-90°E appearing earlier than normal, and vice versa.     

Effects of grass and shrub cover on the critical unit stream power in overland flow

Improved knowledge of the effects of grass and shrub cover in overland flow can provide valuable information for soil and water conservation programs.Laboratory simulated rainfall studies were conducted to determine effects of grass and shrub on runoff and soil loss and to ascertain the relationship between the rate of soil loss and the unit stream power of runoff for a 20°slope subjected to rainfall intensities of 45,87,and 127 mm/h.The results indicated that the average runoff rates ranged from 4.2 to 73.1 mm/h for grass plots and from 9.3 to 58.2 mm/h for shrub plots.Runoff rates from shrub plots were less than those from grass plots for all but the 45 mm/h rainfall intensity regime. Average soil loss rates varied from 5.7 to 120.3 g/min.m~2 for grass plots and from 5.6 to 84.4 g/min.m~2 for shrub plots.Soil loss rates from shrub plots were generally lower than those from grass plots.Runoff and soil loss were strongly influenced by soil surface conditions due to the formation of erosion pits and rills.The rate of soil loss increased linearly with the unit stream power of runoff on both grass and shrub plots.Critical unit stream power values were 0.0127 m/s for grass plots and 0.0169 m/s for shrub plots.Shrub plots showed a greater stability to resist soil detachment and transport by surface flow than grass plots.     

近50年我国冰雹年代际变化及北方冰雹趋势的成因分析

利用1958-2007年中国755个站的逐日冰雹资料和同期NCEP/NCAR再分析资料及环流特征量,研究了中国近50年冰雹时空变化特征。研究表明,20世纪70年代末、80年代初我国冰雹呈下降趋势,尤其是80年代末以来降雹次数基本低于近50年的平均值,其中我国北方冰雹下降趋势比南方显著,除黄淮、江淮、长江中下游和华南地区外,全国大部分地区冰雹下降趋势都通过了0.05的显著性水平检验,尤其是东北、华北、西北和青藏高原中东部地区。分析表明,20世纪70年代末大尺度环流系统的一系列调整是我国北方冰雹减少的主要原因,200 hPa高空西风急流南移,导致我国北方纬向风场减弱,风速垂直切变减小,对流减弱;850 hPa高度场升高不利于极地冷空气南下和对流系统的建立;同时副高增强,极涡减弱使大气层结稳定,冷空气活动减弱。伴随着大尺度环流的调整,局地垂直温度场结构的变化是影响降雹次数的一个重要原因,局地0℃线和-20℃线之间过冷却水滴累积区距离缩短,不利于雹粒充分地碰并增长,这对东北、华北和西北西部降雹出现显著减少具有十分重要的作用。     

Post-glacial landscape response to climate variability in the southeastern San Juan Mountains of Colorado, USA

Geomorphic mapping in the upper Conejos River Valley of the San Juan Mountains has shown that three distinct periods of aggradation have occurred since the end of the last glacial maximum (LGM). The first occurred during the Pleistocene–Holocene transition (~ 12.5–9.5 ka) and is interpreted as paraglacial landscape response to deglaciation after the LGM. Evidence of the second period of aggradation is limited but indicates a small pulse of sedimentation at ~ 5.5 ka. A third, more broadly identifiable period of sedimentation occurred in the late Holocene (~ 2.2–1 ka). The latest two periods of aggradation are concurrent with increases in the frequency of climate change in the region suggesting that Holocene alpine and sub-alpine landscapes respond more to rapid changes in climate than to large singular climatic swings. Soil development and radiocarbon dating indicate that hillslopes were stable during the Holocene even while aggradation was occurring in valley bottoms. Thus, we can conclude that erosion does not occur equally throughout the landscape but is focused upslope of headwater streams, along tributary channels, or on ridge tops. This is in contrast to some models which assume equal erosion in headwater basins.