The effect of truck traffic and road water content on sediment delivery from unpaved forest roads

A study investigated the effect of truck‐traffic intensity and road water‐content on the quality of runoff water from unsealed forest roads. Three sections of a gravel‐surfaced forest road were instrumented and exposed to low and high levels of truck traffic during wet winter conditions and dry summer conditions between July 2001 and December 2002. Rainfall, runoff, road moisture, and traffic were measured continuously, and suspended and bedload sediments were integrated measurements over 2‐week site‐service intervals. The median suspended sediment concentration from the three road segments under low truck‐traffic conditions (less than nine return truck passes prior to a storm) was 269 mg l^?1, increasing 2·7‐fold to a median of 725 mg l^?1 under high truck‐traffic conditions (greater than or equal to nine return truck passes prior to a storm). These concentrations, and increases due to traffic, are substantially less than most previously reported values. When these data are expressed as modified universal soil loss equation (MUSLE) erodibility values K, accounting for differences in rainfall energy, site characteristics and runoff, high traffic resulted in a road surface that was four times more erodible than the same road under low traffic conditions. Using multiple regression, traffic explained 36% of the variation in MUSLE erodibility, whereas road water content was not significant in the model. There was little difference in the erodibility of the road when trafficked in low water‐content compared with high water‐content conditions (MUSLE K values of 0·0084 versus 0·0080 respectively). This study shows that, for a good quality well‐maintained gravel forest road, the level of truck traffic affects the sediment concentration of water discharging from the road, whereas the water content of the road at the time of that traffic does not (note that traffic is not allowed during runoff events in Victoria). These conclusions are conditional upon the road being adequately maintained so that trafficking does not compromise the lateral drainage of the road profile. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Microbially-induced sedimentary wrinkle structures and possible impact of microbial mats for the enhanced preservation of dinosaur tracks from the Lower Cretaceous Jiaguan Formation near Qijiang (Chongqing,China)

Recently, a paleosurface with microbially-induced sedimentary wrinkle structures that are associated with abundant, well-preserved, iguanodon-type, tridactyl tracks has been documented at the Lotus tracksite near Qijiang (Chongqing, China) in fluvial deposits of the Lower Cretaceous Jiaguan Formation. Two different wrinkle structure types are identified and described from a macroscopic point of view and also by applying microstructure analysis with a scanning electron microscope (SEM) with energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) and other high-resolution instruments, that detected sheath-like and globular organic matter and thus confirm the microbial origin of the observed wrinkle structures. A model for the formation of the two microbial mat induced wrinkle structure types and associated preservation of dinosaur tracks is proposed. Finally, some human footprints were left in comparable modern environments covered with a thin microbial mat, and they are used as a modern analog in order to better understand the track formation and preservation mechanisms of the dinosaur tracks of the Lotus tracksite.     

A snapshot into the terrestrial ecosystem of an exceptionally well-preserved dinosaur (Hadrosauridae) from the Upper Cretaceous of North Dakota,USA

A palynological investigation of sedimentary rocks enclosing an exceptionally well-preserved fossil dinosaur (Hadrosauridae) discovered in the upper part of the Hell Creek Formation in south western North Dakota was conducted in order to document the immediate paleoenvironment of this dinosaur. The specimen, an Edmontosaurus annectens is remarkable in having exceptional three-dimensional preservation of soft tissue around the skeleton, indicating rapid burial. A well-preserved palynological assemblage dominated by fern and bryophyte spores, with lesser gymnosperm and angiosperm pollen was recovered. Sparse fresh-water algae and marine dinoflagellate cysts were also recorded. The palynofacies is dominated by wood fragments, including charcoal, with little amorphous organic matter. The presence of some typical pollen taxa of the Wodehouseia spinata Assemblage Zone including Striatellipollis striatellus, Tricolpites microreticulatus, Leptopecopites pocockii as well as a diverse suite of Aquilapollenites, is fully consistent with a Late Cretaceous (late Maastrichtian) age. The palynoflora indicates a local vegetation composed of a canopy of conifers dominated by Pinaceae and a minor sub-canopy of Taxodium and cycads, as well as an understory of hydrophilous ferns, mosses and herbaceous angiosperms, indicative of a warm and humid climate – an environment where this specific hadrosaur roamed over 66 million years ago.     

基于漂流浮标观测分析日本福岛以东表层海洋物质的散播轨迹

认识海洋中的物质如何散播对于理解海洋环境变化和人类活动污染在海洋中的扩散过程具有非常重要的意义。利用历史海表漂流浮标观测数据,对日本福岛以东海域的表层物质散播轨迹进行了拉格朗日示踪分析和观测模拟试验研究。结果发现,福岛以东海域海表浮标的散播路径主要分为东、南两支,其中速度较快的东支为主要通道,沿黑潮延伸体汇入北太平洋流,最短用时大约22个月即可到达北美西海岸;南支则沿黑潮延伸体以南的大范围南向流向西南方向运移,速度较慢且明显受涡旋活动影响,最快大约5个月即可到达吕宋海峡和中国台湾以东海域,进而进入南海和东海等中国近海海域。通过开展观测模拟试验,发现海表浮标散播的概率密度分布呈现以福岛附近海域为核心、向西南和正东方向递减扩展的形态,其中,到达中国近海的浮标主要通过吕宋海峡进入。文章详细讨论了研究结果的局限性、不足之处,以及因基于大量现场观测而具备的重要参考价值。     

Analysing the positional accuracy of GNSS multi-tracks obtained from VGI sources to generate improved 3D mean axes

ABSTRACT

The sharing of Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) tracks on the Internet is increasing enormously. Every day a great number of users capture routes using different devices and share these data. Individually these tracks present a poor positional accuracy because these devices obtain positions with accuracy of about 5-10 metres. In addition, they are usually captured for navigation and not for surveying. However, we can take advantage of the great quantity of tracks of the same linear element in order to obtain a more accurate solution. This study analyses this possibility using a wide set of tracks obtained in known conditions. We emulated those tracks obtained by Volunteered Geographic Information (VGI) users and we compared the mean axis obtained using all tracks with others obtained from a more accurate source. Additionally, we analyse the displacement of other axes obtained by varying several parameters such as the number of tracks and their length or by dividing the route into sections in function of sinuosity, etc. The results have shown an improved 3D mean axis and the viability of the method proposed in this study in order to use axes obtained from several tracks in maps at certain scales.     

Fossil footprints from the Dakota Group (Cretaceous) John Martin Reservoir, Bent County, Colorado: New insights into the paleoecology of the Dinosaur Freeway

The John Martin Reservoir tracksites from the Dakota Group of Bent County, in southeastern Colorado form part of the mid Cretaceous Dinosaur Freeway characterized by abundant ornithopod footprints (Caririchnium). Over 350 tracks (331 Caririchnium, 1 Magnoavipes, 22 crocodiles, and a few pterosaurs) were discovered at 10 new tracksites. All tracks were found as natural casts, including Caririchnium trackways that were still in-situ, parallel and regularly spaced, suggesting gregarious behavior. Most crocodile tracks are swimming tracks that consist of three or four scratch marks also with parallel orientations in many cases. A few pterosaur tracks consist of pes footprints and scratch marks suggesting swimming or floating activity in shallow water. This is the first pterosaur evidence from the Dakota Group. The Caririchnium size structure from John Martin Reservoir is consistent with the size structure tendency of the whole Dinosaur Freeway, which shows larger track size in the north. This tendency could be interpreted as evidence for more than one ornithopod species spread out across the Dinosaur Freeway. The alternative, that there was one ornithopod species that migrated north and south seasonally is less likely. The John Martin paleoecosystem is interpreted from the track evidence as a well-vegetated coastal plain environment with many ornithopods and a few theropods on land, crocodiles in the water, and pterosaurs in the skies and on the water.     

K-均值聚类法用于西北太平洋热带气旋路径分类

热带气旋(Tropical Cyclone,简称TC)路径分类是获得TC特征和影响评估的重要途径。采用联合台风警报中心(Joint Typhoon Warning Center,简称JTWC)近45年最佳台风路径资料,基于TC位置、强度、路径长度和方向等主要信息的特征参数,利用K-均值聚类法建立了西北太平洋TC路径的客观分类方法,并对分类得到的7个路径类型TC在生命史、能量、活动季节和登陆概率等方面进行了对比分析。结果表明各类TC的这些特征量具有明显的差异。从近20年的变化趋势看,西转向类(占总样本的21.3%)的频数为增加趋势,其生命史呈小幅增长趋势,和其余各类(或全部TC)的减小趋势或变化很小不一致。各类TC的年PDI(能量耗散指数)变化趋势主要取决于强度和频数的变化,多数类别的年PDI和强度的变化趋势一致,但西北行转向类和远海西-西北行类的年PDI变化趋势主要取决于频数的变化。      

Dinosaur footprint assemblage from the Lower Cretaceous Khok Kruat Formation,Khorat Group,northeastern Thailand

The Khok Kruat Formation is the upper part of the Khorat Group, which consists of upper Lower Cretaceous non-marine sedimentary rocks in northeastern Thailand. Many dinosaur footprints have been known from the upper Lower Cretaceous (Aptian–Albian) Khok Kruat Formation at the Huai Dam Chum (Tha Uthen) site, northeastern Thailand. Approximately 600 tracks occur in thin mudstone layer of the northern part of the outcrop at the Huai Dam Chum track site. Two types of footprints, small-sized theropod and crocodylomorph are imprinted with mud cracks and ripple marks on the thin mud layer. Most of footprints are referred to cf. Asianopodus, and are imprinted by small-sized theropoda, probably ornithomimosauria. Theropod tracks are mainly separated into two groups, Group A and Group B. From ichnological viewpoints, the small-sized theropod track assemblage indicates the herd behaviour and its idiosyncratic group composition. In particular, the histogram of size-frequency measurements of Group A shows the anomalous bimodal distribution. We consider that there are two hypotheses; the first one is due to the male-female difference, and the second is a result of the different growing stage.     

Three-dimensional simulation of track on poroelastic half-space vibrations due to a moving point load

An analytical approach is used to investigate dynamic responses of a track system and the poroelastic half-space soil medium subjected to a moving point load under three-dimensional condition. The whole system is divided into two separately formulated substructures, the track sub-system and the ground. The ballast supporting rails and sleepers is placed on the surface of the ground. The rail is modeled by introducing the Green function for an infinitely long Euler beam subjected to the action of the moving point load and the reaction of sleepers represented by a continuous mass. Using the double Fourier transform, the governing equations of motion are then solved analytically in the frequency–wave-number domain. The time domain responses are evaluated by the inverse Fourier transform computation for a certain load velocities. Computed results show that dynamic responses of the soil medium are considerably affected by the fluid phase as well as the load velocity.