Rapid vegetation change during the early Holocene in the Faroe Islands detected in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems

High‐resolution pollen, plant macrofossil and sedimentary analyses from early Holocene lacustrine sediments on the Faroe Islands have detected a significant vegetation perturbation suggesting a rapid change in climate between ca. 10 380 cal. yr BP and the Saksunarvatn ash (10 240±60 cal. yr BP). This episode may be synchronous with the decline in δ¹⁸O values in the Greenland ice‐cores. It also correlates with a short, cold event detected in marine cores from the North Atlantic that has been ascribed to a weakening of thermohaline circulation associated with the sudden drainage of Lake Agassiz into the northwest Atlantic, or, alternatively, a period with distinctly decreased solar forcing. The vegetation sequence begins at ca. 10 500 cal. yr BP with a succession from tundra to shrub‐tundra and increasing lake productivity. Rapid population increases of aquatic plants suggest high summer temperatures between 10 450 and 10 380 cal. yr BP. High pollen percentages, concentrations and influx of Betula, Juniperus and Salix together with macrofossil leaves indicate shrub growth around the site during the initial phases of vegetation colonisation. Unstable conditions followed ca. 10 380 cal. yr BP that changed both the upland vegetation and the aquatic plant communities. A decrease in percentage values of shrub pollen is recorded, with replacement of both aquatics and herbaceous plants by pioneer plant communities. An increase in total pollen accumulation rates not seen in the concentration data suggests increased sediment delivery. The catchment changes are consistent with less seasonal, moister conditions. Subsequent climatic amelioration reinitiated a warmth‐driven succession and catchment stabilisation, but retained high precipitation levels influencing the composition of the post‐event communities. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The diurnal and seasonal characteristics of urban heat island variation in Beijing city and surrounding areas and impact factors based on remote sensing satellite data

Based on the land surface temperature (LST), the land cover classification map,vegetation coverage, and surface evapotranspiration derived from EOS-MODIS satellite data, and by the use of GIS spatial analytic technique and multivariate statistical analysis method, the urban heat island (UHI) spatial distribution of the diurnal and seasonal variabilities and its driving forces are studied in Beijing city and surrounding areas in 2001. The relationships among UHI distribution and landcover categories, topographic factor, vegetation greenness, and surface evapotranspiration are analyzed. The results indicate that: (i) The significant UHI occur in Beijing city areas in the four seasons due to high heat capacity and multi-reflection of compression building, as well as with special topographic features of its three sides surrounded by mountains,especially in the summer. The UHI spatial distribution is corresponding with the urban geometry structure profile. The LST difference is approximately 4-6℃ between Beijing city and suburb areas, comparatively is 8- 10℃ between Beijing city area and outer suburb area in northwestern regions. (ii) The UHI distribution and intensity in daytime are different from nighttime in Beijing city area, the nighttime UHI is obvious. However, in the daytime, the significant UHI mainly appears in the summer, the autumn takes second place, and the UHI in the winter and the spring seem not obvious. The surface evapotranspiration in suburb areas is larger than that in urban areas in the summer, and high latent heat exchange is evident, which leads to LST difference between city area and suburb area. (iii) The reflection of surface landcover categories is sensitive to the UHI, the correlation between vegetation greenness and UHI shows obviously negative.The scatterplot shows that there is the negative correlation between NDVI and LST (R2 = 0.6481).The results demonstrate that the vegetation greenness is an important factor for reducing the UHI,and large-scale construction of greenbelts can considerably reduce the UHI effect.     

Effect of NOAA satellite orbital drift on AVHRR-derived phenological metrics

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center routinely produces and distributes a remote sensing phenology (RSP) dataset derived from the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) 1-km data compiled from a series of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) satellites (NOAA-11, −14, −16, −17, −18, and −19). Each NOAA satellite experienced orbital drift during its duty period, which influenced the AVHRR reflectance measurements. To understand the effect of the orbital drift on the AVHRR-derived RSP dataset, we analyzed the impact of solar zenith angle (SZA) on the RSP metrics in the conterminous United States (CONUS). The AVHRR weekly composites were used to calculate the growing-season median SZA at the pixel level for each year from 1989 to 2014. The results showed that the SZA increased towards the end of each NOAA satellite mission with the highest increasing rate occurring during NOAA-11 (1989–1994) and NOAA-14 (1995–2000) missions. The growing-season median SZA values (44°–60°) in 1992, 1993, 1994, 1999, and 2000 were substantially higher than those in other years (28°–40°). The high SZA in those years caused negative trends in the SZA time series, that were statistically significant (at α = 0.05 level) in 76.9% of the CONUS area. A pixel-based temporal correlation analysis showed that the phenological metrics and SZA were significantly correlated (at α = 0.05 level) in 4.1–20.4% of the CONUS area. After excluding the 5 years with high SZA (>40°) from the analysis, the temporal SZA trend was largely reduced, significantly affecting less than 2% of the study area. Additionally, significant correlation between the phenological metrics and SZA was observed in less than 7% of the study area. Our study concluded that the NOAA satellite orbital drift increased SZA, and in turn, influenced the phenological metrics. Elimination of the years with high median SZA reduced the influence of orbital drift on the RSP time series.     

辽宁省积雪对自动气象站观测地气温差的影响

利用1971—2016年辽宁省61个气象站气温、地表温度、积雪日数和积雪深度资料,分析了积雪的保温作用及其对地气温差的影响。结果表明：更换自动站前后地表温度观测方式的差异导致地气温差显著增大,地气温差的增大程度受所在区域积雪日数、积雪深度的影响显著。在积雪期较长、积雪较厚的地区,积雪引起反照率增大,使得雪面温度降低,导致雪气温差减小,而雪的保温作用使得地气温差显著增大。因此,更换自动站前地（雪）气温差与积雪日数呈显著负相关,而更换自动站后地气温差与积雪日数呈显著正相关。各台站之间地气温差随积雪深度的变化系数差异较大,为0.045~0.858 ℃?cm^-1,在年平均积雪日数＜40 d、年平均极端积雪深度＜10 cm的区域,积雪的保温作用随积雪深度增大而显著增大;在年平均积雪日数＞40 d、年平均极端积雪深度＞10 cm的区域,10 cm以下的积雪对土壤保温作用随积雪深度增大显著,当积雪深度＞10 cm后,其保温作用随积雪深度增大的幅度明显减小。     

Snow interception modelling: Isolated observations have led to many land surface models lacking appropriate temperature sensitivities

When formulating a hydrologic model, scientists rely on parameterizations of multiple processes based on field data, but literature review suggests that more frequently people select parameterizations that were included in pre-existing models rather than re-evaluating the underlying field experiments. Problems arise when limited field data exist, when “trusted” approaches do not get reevaluated, and when sensitivities fundamentally change in different environments. The physics and dynamics of snow interception by conifers is just such a case, and it is critical to simulation of the water budget and surface albedo. The most commonly used interception parameterization is based on data from four trees from one site, but results from this field study are not directly transferable to locations with relatively warmer winters, where the dominant processes differ dramatically. Here, we combine a literature review with model experiments to demonstrate needed improvements. Our results show that the choice of model form and parameters can vary the fraction of snow lost through interception by as much as 30%. In most simulations, the warming of mean winter temperatures from −7 to 0°C reduces the modelled fraction of snow under the canopy compared to the open, but the magnitude of simulated decrease varies from about 10% to 40%. The range of results is even larger when considering models that neglect the melting of in-canopy snow in higher-humidity environments where canopy sublimation plays less of a role. Thus, we recommend that all models represent canopy snowmelt and include representation of increased loading due to increased adhesion and cohesion when temperatures rise from −3 to 0°C. In addition to model improvements, field experiments across climates and forest types are needed to investigate how to best model the combination of dynamically changing forest cover and snow cover to better understand and predict changes to albedo and water supplies.     

新疆阿克苏地区城市自然灾害脆弱性评价研究

塔里木盆地是我国最大的半封闭型内陆盆地, 干旱、大风、沙尘暴、洪水以及地震、雪灾等自然灾害频繁.为了提高塔里木盆地城市应对自然灾害的能力, 以阿克苏地区为例, 在广泛借鉴国内外灾害脆弱性评价的指标体系与评价模型的基础上, 以多灾种复合情况为背景, 构建塔里木盆地自然灾害脆弱性评价指标体系, 运用模糊综合评价法进行脆弱性评价, 并对各指标进行对比分析.结果表明: 阿克苏市、新和县、阿瓦提县的高脆弱度值最高, 分别为0.48、0.36及0.40, 属于高脆弱度; 温宿县、沙雅县的中脆弱度值较高, 分别0.24和0.26, 属于中脆弱度; 库车县、拜城县、乌什县、柯坪县的低脆弱度值较高, 分别为0.48、0.45、0.36及0.35, 属于低脆弱度.根据各县市自然灾害脆弱性评价结果, 结合区域特点, 提出了防灾抗灾的对策建议, 对塔里木盆地城市降低脆弱性、减轻自然灾害影响有一定借鉴意义.     

海河流域水资源管理分区研究

流域水资源管理分区对制定流域水资源管理政策具有重要意义。作者根据环境、粮食、水资源和社会经济4大类30个指标,利用聚类分析方法和地理信息系统等工具,分析其聚类过程,把海河流域分为太行、燕山山区、山前洪、冲积扇区、京津唐地区、山前平原区、中东部平原区和淀东清南天津区 (天津市区) 和徒骇马颊河平原区7个区,分区结果符合流域水资源管理的要求。各区各具特点,应制定不同的水资源管理政策。     

Application of snowmelt runoff model for water resource management

Snow‐covered areas (SCAs) are the fundamental source of water for the hydrological cycle for some region. Accurate measurements of river discharge from snowmelt can help manage much needed water required for hydropower generation and irrigation purposes. This study aims to apply the snowmelt runoff model (SRM) in the Upper Indus basin by the Astore River in northern Pakistan for the years 2000 to 2006. The Shuttle Radar Topographic Mission (SRTM) data are used to generate the Digital Elevation Model (DEM) of the region. Various variables (snow cover depletion curves (SCDCs), temperature and precipitation) and parameters (degree‐day factor, recession coefficient, runoff coefficients, time lag, critical temperature and temperature lapse rate) are used as input in the SRM. However, snow cover data are direct and an important input to the SRM. Satellite data from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) are used to estimate the SCA. Normalized difference snow index (NDSI) algorithm is applied for snow cover mapping and to differentiate snow from other land features. Nash–Sutcliffe coefficient of determination (R²) and volume difference (D_V) are used for quality assessment of the SRM. The results of the current research show that for the study years (2000–2006), the average value of R² is 0·87 and average volume difference D_V is 1·18%. The correlation coefficient between measured and computed runoff is 0·95. The results of the study further show that a high level of accuracy can be achieved during the snowmelt season. The simulation results endorse that the SRM in conjunction with MODIS snow cover product is very useful for water resource management in the Astore River and can be used for runoff forecasts in the Indus River basin in northern Pakistan. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

东北三省城市扩展及植被覆盖状况

基于三期遥感影像数据( MSS、ETM、CBERS) 对城市建成区的面积进行了调查,研究30 多年来东北三省城市的扩展情况,并且结合NDVI 数据,对研究区范围内的植被覆盖情况进行了研究。结果表明: 1976-2000 年、2000-2007 年两个阶段,城市建成区的面积持续增加,年均扩展率由 5. 10%增加至6. 32%,扩展强度比较显著的区域主要分布在哈大交通经济带上; 研究区范围内东部的植被覆盖情况明显好于西部,NDVI 均值随与城市距离的增加而提高。     

Using live vegetation volume to analyze the effects of plot Pinus massoniana Lamb on water and soil conservation under natural rainfall events

The 3-D spatial distributions of vegetation are of great significance for water and soil conservation but are rarely concerned in literatures. The live vegetation volume （LVV） was used to relate to water/soil loss under 144 natural erosive rainfall events from 2007 to 2010 in a typical water-eroded area of southern China. Quadratic polynomial regression models were established for five pure tree （Pinus massoniana Lamb） plots between LVV and water （rtmoff）/soil conservation effects （RE/SE）. RE/SE corresponds to the ratios of runoff depth/soil loss of the pure tree plots to that of the control plot under each rainfall event. Increasing LVV exhibits descending （DS）, descending-ascending （DA）, ascending-descending （AD）, and ascending （AS） trends in the LVV-RE and LVV-SE curves. The effects of soil conservation on the plots were generally more noticeable than the effects of water conservation, and most of the RE and SE values reflected the positive effects of water and soil conservation. The effects were mainly positive under heavy rains （e.g., rainfall erosivity, R = 140 MJ mm ha-l h, maximum 30 min intensity, I30 = 16 mm h-l）, whereas the effects were mainly negative under light rains （e.g., R = 45 MJ mm ha-1 h, I30 = 8 mm h-l）. The trees＇ water/soil conservation effects notably transformed when rainfall erosivity and intensity were lower than the positive or negative effects to a certain threshold. About 50% rainfall events led to obvious transform effects when LVVs were near 0.5 or 0.6. These results are able to aid in the decision making on the forest reconstruction in water-eroded areas.