基于空间抽样的农作物面积遥感测量

传统的农作物面积统计通常采用人工统计的方法,费时费力,并且精确度不高,实时性不强。为了快速、准确地获取农作物面积,本文根据实际业务需求,充分利用遥感技术,同时结合地理信息技术,与基于PPS二阶空间抽样主法提出了一套切实可行的农作物面积遥感测量方法和流程。     

清水河水氡观测的影响因素分析

2006年8月对清水河水氡进行异常核实发现,排除水点采样系统的变化和仪器标定的原因,2000年以来,该井水氡测值具有比较明显的“夏高冬低”的年变特征。分析认为,清水河水氡2005年8月开始出现的大速率转折下降的原因与采样系统发生了变化和原水口出水量逐步减小有关,是地震异常的可能性不大。     

Ground motion prediction with the empirical Green's function technique: an assessment of uncertainties and confidence level

An assessment of uncertainties for ground motion predictions with the aid of the empirical Green's function (EGF) technique is presented. The main input parameters were identified, and their respective uncertainties were assessed by means of an international expert inquiry. The repercussion of these input uncertainties on the final ground motion estimates were investigated by means of the Latin Hypercube Sampling technique. The mean ground motion estimates (response spectra) and their standard deviations were compared with results obtained from empirical attenuation laws. The most sensitive input parameter turned out to be the seismic moment corresponding to the EGF. In general, if the source parameters are well determined, equivalent uncertainties, statistically speaking, can be expected from the EGF technique and from the application of attenuation laws. Therefore, if EGFs with well known source parameters are available, the EGF technique seems to be preferable: site effects are automatically taken into account, and physically realistic acceleration time histories can be obtained. However, further investigations on the reliability of the EGF technique should be performed, and finally, it is recalled that the EGF technique is based on the assumption of linearity. If conditions are such that this assumption cannot be maintained, the EGF technique should be combined with non-linear geotechnical methods.     

Modeling distribution of temporal sampling errors in area-time-averaged rainfall estimates

In this paper, the authors examine models of probability distributions for sampling error in rainfall estimates obtained from discrete satellite sampling in time based on 5 years of 15-min radar rainfall data in the central United States. The sampling errors considered include all combinations of 3, 6, 12, or 24 h sampling of rainfall over 32, 64, 128, 256, or 512 km square domains, and 1, 5, or 30 day rainfall accumulations. Results of this study reveal that the sampling error distribution depends strongly on the rain rate; hence the conditional distribution of sampling error is more informative than its marginal distribution. The distribution of sampling error conditional on rain rate is strongly affected by the sampling interval. At sampling intervals of 3 or 6 h, the logistic distribution appears to fit the conditional sampling error quite well, while the shifted-gamma, shifted-weibull, shifted-lognormal, and normal distributions fit poorly. At sampling intervals of 12 or 24 h, the shifted-gamma, shifted-weibull, or shifted-lognormal distribution fit the conditional sampling error better than the logistics or normal distribution. These results are vital to understanding the accuracy of satellite rainfall products, for performing validation assessment of these products, and for analyzing the effects of rainfall-related errors in hydrological models.     

Application of vertically integrated sampling approach to study of new production via 234Th-238U disequilibria

I~IOWBecause of the imPOrtance of new production in the studies of the structure and function ofmarine eCOSystem and carhan cycleS, one should pay great attention tO the study of new production in biological oceanography, biogeOChendstry, and especially in the study of global change(Plait et al., 1992; Jiao and Wang, 1993; Wang, 1992). With the deepening of the study ofnew production, it has been found that the spatial and temporal distributions of new preductionvary largely in different…     

Improving benthic monitoring by combining trawl and grab surveys

Environmental monitoring is performed on seafloor communities since these organisms are relatively stationary and integrate the environmental conditions over many years. Standard practices involve sampling by grab. Epifaunal taxa, often missed by grab sampling, are likely to have different ecological functions. We investigate how current environmental assessments represent the benthic community as a whole by comparing taxonomic and functional components sampled by grabs and epibenthic trawls. Faunal communities sampled by trawl (filtrating or predator, epifauna) and grab (infaunal, detrivore) differs widely by sampling distinct functional components, and these may be expected to respond to different human-induced stressors. Neither component appears to be a good surrogate for the community as a whole. We suggest a benthic monitoring by combining both techniques. Sustainable ecosystem functioning is intimately tied to the health of both components of the benthic community, and is recognized as an important goal by signatories of the Convention on Biological Diversity.     

Plastic marine debris on the Portuguese coastline: a matter of size?

Plastic debris is a worldwide threat to marine environments and Portugal is not immune to it. Though never quantified, items of all sizes can be found in the Portuguese coastline; therefore the objective of this work is the identification of main size classes in stranded plastic debris. Beaches sediment was sampled and in the laboratory plastic items were sorted in 11 classes from <1 to >10 mm, counted and weighted. Plastic size ranged from 50 μm to 20 cm and microplastics (<5 mm) were the majority (72%). Most plastic fits in the smaller size classes, due to expected high residence time in the sea enhancing degradation processes, which increase surface exposure and potentially persistent organic pollutants (POP) adsorption. These results point out the important contribution of microplastics to marine debris pollution, its risks, and the need to set a higher focus on this size class.     

Development and testing of subsurface sampling devices for the Beagle 2 lander

For planetary landing missions, the capability to acquire samples of soil and rock is of high importance whenever complex analyses (e.g. isotopic studies) on these materials are to be carried out, or when samples are to be returned to Earth. Not only surface samples are of relevance, but in recent concepts at least for Mars landing missions also subsurface samples are required. Subsurface material on Mars is believed to have been protected from the inferred oxidants at the immediate surface while also being protected from the UV influx. Therefore, there is considerable hope that in subsurface soil samples on Mars, at least organic matter delivered by meteorites may be detected, and possibly also relics of earlier simple microbial life on the planet. Likewise, samples from the inside of Martian surface rocks promise to have been protected from weathering and for the same reason they are important for organic chemistry studies. In this paper, an overview is given of the development and science of two different subsurface sampling devices for the Beagle 2 lander of ESA's Mars Express mission, being a “Mole” subsurface soil sampler and a small rock coring and sampling mechanism. Besides their sampling function, both the Mole and the Corer/Grinder will provide data on physical properties of Martian soils and rock, respectively, through the way they interact with the sampled materials. Details of the Mole and Corer/Grinder design are presented, along with results of recent tests with prototypes in the laboratory on physically analogous sample materials.     

Parametric uncertainty and sensitivity analysis of hydrodynamic processes for a large shallow freshwater lake

Abstract

A parametric uncertainty and sensitivity analysis of hydrodynamic processes was conducted for a large shallow freshwater lake, Lake Taihu, China. Ten commonly used parameters in five groups were considered including: air–water interface factor, water–sediment interface factor, surrounding terrain factor, turbulent diffusion parameters and turbulent intensity parameters. Latin hypercube sampling (LHS) was used for sampling the parametric combinations, which gave predictive uncertainty results directly without using surrogate models, and the impacts of different parametric distribution functions on the results were investigated. The results showed that the different parametric distribution functions (e.g. uniform, normal, lognormal and triangular) for sampling had very little impact on the uncertainty and sensitivity analysis of the lake hydrodynamic model. The air–water interface factor (wind drag coefficient) and surrounding terrain factor (wind shelter coefficient) had the greatest influence on the spatial distribution of lake hydrodynamic processes, especially in semi-closed bays and lake regions with complex topography, accounting for about 60–70% and 20%, respectively, of the uncertainty on the results. Vertically, velocity in the surface layer was also largely influenced by the two factors, followed by velocity in the bottom layer; the middle velocity had minimal impact. Likewise, the water–sediment interface factor (i.e. bottom roughness height) ranked third, contributing about 10% to the uncertainty of the hydrodynamic processes of the lake. In contrast, turbulent diffusion parameters and turbulent intensity parameters in the lake hydrodynamic model had little effect on the uncertainty of simulated results (less than 1% contribution). The findings were sufficiently significant to reduce the parameter uncertainties and calibration workload of the hydrodynamic model in large shallow lakes.

Editor Z. W. Kundzewicz; Associate editor S. Grimaldi     

Ecological constraints on and consequences of land use heterogeneity: A case study of the Mongolian Gobi

Mongolian herders are transhumant and therefore follow a specific land use pattern. To understand their movements through a case study, we mapped and superimposed their seasonal camps on a vegetation map and a digital elevation model. We also questioned them about the reasons justifying the locations of their camps, and how they use the surrounding land. It appears that vegetation quality may play a role only in summer, whereas topography is a key driver during 3 seasons. In winter, herders seek shelter against cold winds in rugged places exposed to the south, while in spring and summer, they seek flat places. In spring, to have a clear view of their newborns and in summer, to allow wind to reduce the insect discomfort. Moreover, most of the livestock species stay within a certain distance of the camps depending on the season, but which never exceeds 5.1 km. This leads to a land use pattern where livestock is restrained to specific areas according to the season. Interestingly, during the growing season, when plants are most sensitive to defoliation, most livestock is concentrated on 30.92% of the site surface. Such information is important for range scientists working on grazing impacts at large scales.