A ∼6100 14C yr record of El Niño activity from the Galápagos Islands

Lithostratigrahic and mineralogic analyses of sediments from hypersaline Bainbridge Crater Lake, Galápagos Islands, provide evidence of past El Niño frequency and intensity. Laminated sediments indicate that at least 435 moderate to very strong El Niño events have occurred since 6100 ¹⁴C yr BP (7130 cal yr BP), and that frequency and intensity of events increased at about 3000 ¹⁴C yr BP (3100 cal yr BP). El Niño activity was present between 6100 and 4000 ¹⁴C yr BP (4600 cal yr BP) but infrequent. The Bainbridge record indicates that there has been considerable millennial-scale variability in El Niño since the mid-Holocene.     

Designing a spatial pattern to rebalance the orientation of development and protection in Wuhan

Patterns of spatial development and protection form a basic category of geoscience,and redesigning them is a popular subject of research in regional sustainable development that is important for ecological civilization construction.The authors here report a case study of Wuhan city using the circuit theory model and minimum cumulative resistance(MCR)model to rebalance its spatial protection and development.The results show the following:(1)Using the density of the gross domestic product(GDP),density of population,rate of urbanization,and access to transportation as evaluation indicators,seven core areas of development in Wuhan were identified,accounting for 59%of the total number of streets,that exhibited a “circular-satellite”spatial structure.(2)According to the importance of ecosystem services,ecological sensitivity,land use type,and slope of the terrain,the resistance surface of spatial development in Wuhan had a stereoscopic spatial form of an“inverted pyramid,”with high surroundings and a low center.The area of low resistance accounted for 6.64%of the total area of Wuhan.(3)Based on coupling analysis using the MCR and spatial morphological characteristics of current,nine axes of spatial development with a total area of 427.27 km2 and eight key strategic points with a total area of 40.02 km2 were identified.Streets that were prioritized for development accounted for 9.63%of Wuhan's total area.(4)By combining the characterization of the development axis with the structure of the three-level core area,we extracted the structure of spatial development of "one heart,two wings,and three belts" in Wuhan.The research framework and empirical results can provide scientific guidance for the urban spatial layout,the development of regional linkages,and ecological environmental protection in China.     

Landscape Controls on Structural Variation in Eucalypt Vegetation Communities: Woronora Plateau,Australia

Quantification of landscape-based vegetation structural variation and pattern is a significant goal for a variety of ecological, monitoring and biodiversity studies. Vegetation structural metrics, derived from airborne laser scanning (ALS or aerial light detection and ranging—LiDAR) and QuickBird satellite imagery, were used to establish the degree of plot-based vegetation variation at a hillslope scale. Topographic position is an indicator of energy and water availability, and was quantified using DEM-based insolation and topographic wetness, respectively, stratifying areas into hot-warm-cold and wet-moist-dry topographic classes. A range of vegetation metrics—maximum and modal canopy height, crown cover, foliage cover, NDVI and semivariance—were compared among randomly selected plots from each topographic class. NDVI increases with increasing landscape wetness, whereas ALS-derived foliage cover decreases with increasing insolation. Foliage cover is well correlated with crown cover (R ² =0.65), and since foliage cover is readily calculable for whole-of-landscape application, it will provide valuable and complementary information to NDVI. Between-plot heterogeneity increases with increasing wetness and decreasing insolation, indicating that more sampling is required in these locations to capture the full range of landscape-based variability. Pattern analysis in landscape ecology is one of the fundamental requirements of landscape ecology, and the methods described here offer statistically significant, quantifiable and repeatable means to realise that goal at a fine spatial grain.     

岩石变形破坏的熵突变过程与破坏判据

在岩石的变形破坏过程中,当进入不稳定的破裂发展阶段之后,系统不断调整结构抵抗外力的扰动,裂纹向局域集中的有序方向发展,应变能不断耗散,并以应变能的耗散为媒介,使系统与外扰动所追加的负熵流产生能量流通,也使系统熵值和系统的维数逐次降低,这一阶段岩石系统远离平衡态,岩石的破坏是系统熵的突变过程。基于这一认识,并在验证应变能分布与结构块度分布模式的一致性的基础上,推导出包含了结构因素和能量分布的熵表达式;对熵表达式进行平衡分析获得局部突变的分岔集,得到了岩石局部破坏的熵折迭突变破坏准则;同时,探讨了熵表达式所表征的结构有序度的尖点突变性,解出岩石系统的分岔集,这个分岔集就是岩石系统熵突变的整体破坏准则。     

冬季北极涛动和北极海冰变化对东亚气候变化的影响

本文简要回顾了冬季北极涛动 (北大西洋涛动 )和北极海冰面积变化对东亚气候变化的影响、研究中存在的问题以及目前亟待解决的科学问题。     

三江平原气温降水变化分析——以建三江垦区为例

气温及降水与人类生产生活密切联系,其变化必然会对生态系统和社会经济等产生重大影响。利用三江平原建三江垦区15个农场气象站1965～2002年气温和降水资料,运用气候趋势系数和一元回归分析法进行气候变化分析。结果表明:近40年来本区气温呈显著上升趋势,平均气温以0.50℃/10a幅度升高,不同季节平均气温均呈上升趋势,且冬季增幅最大,达0.82℃/10a。气温升高存在显著的区域差异,最大的增温中心位于南部边缘,气温倾向率大于0.60℃/10a。降水趋势性变化不显著,但仍呈弱减少趋势,年降水量倾向率为-1.90mm/10a,四季降水量以秋季减少最为显著。在此基础上进行气候突变分析,结果表明气温突变出现在1987年,降水突变出现在1980年和1997年,但降水突变不明显。研究三江平原建三江垦区的气候变化对于保障区域粮食安全具有重要的指导意义。     

近2000年古里雅冰芯净积累量与南疆盆地南沿的干湿变化

利用1951-1991年古里雅冰芯净积累量、1951-2000年南疆盆地南沿的降水资料和1958-2000年NCEP/NCAR再分析的大气环流资料,讨论了它们之间的相互关系,并对其机理进行了初步分析,在此基础上建立了南疆盆地南沿近2000年高分辨率的干湿变化序列。     

Use of Geospatial Data and Technology for Wilderness Search and Rescue by Nonprofit Organizations

Geospatial data and tools are key in locating lost or missing persons in as short a time as possible. In this study, we used a geographic information system (GIS) to analyze four years of search and rescue (SAR) mission data from Colorado to determine the appropriate use of GIS for volunteer-based SAR organizations with limited resources and GIS expertise. GIS can provide more sophisticated analyses of geospatial data than simple mapping technologies, but our findings indicated that complex spatial analysis might not be required on all missions, because the majority of missions were completed within six to ten hours. Instead, new technologies such as tablets with mapping software and online GIS systems that provide quick and easy access to up-to-date geospatial data such as imagery offer capabilities that could improve mission planning. Here we provide a framework in which SAR missions can apply geospatial technologies to aid with missions, identify critical “hotspots,” and enhance postanalysis and training. The work here is highly applicable for nonprofit SAR groups when deciding on what GIS technologies to consider for their areas.     

Vulnerability of Kuwait coast to sea level rise

Assessing coastal vulnerability to sea level rise (SLR) at local and regional scales is a fundamental step for designing successful long-term coastal management plans. This study was thus designed to assess Kuwait coastal vulnerability to SLR at four scenarios (.5, 1, 1.5 and 2 m). Potential inundated areas and the number of people at risk were estimated based on these SLR scenarios. A coastal vulnerability index (CVI) map of Kuwait was then computed based on the lowest scenario using eight parameters: elevation, coastal slope, geomorphology, distance to 20-m isobath, population, land use, cultural heritage and transportation. The geographic distribution of inundated areas at an SLR of .5 m revealed that the northern islands of Kuwait and coastal areas along Kuwait Bay would be highly impacted, whereas the coastal area near Shuaibah Port was the most influenced among the southern coasts. Most of the coastal area exhibited a moderate vulnerability to SLR, especially the northern islands. This study presented an initial vulnerability assessment for Kuwait coasts to SLR, which can be extended with more variables. The integrated remote sensing and geographic information system methodology demonstrated in this study can be applied in similar studies elsewhere.