Planetary-Scale Wave Structures of the Earth’s Atmosphere Revealed from the COSMIC Observations

GPS radio occultation（GPS RO） method,an active satellite-to-satellite remote sensing technique,is capable of producing accurate,all-weather,round the clock,global refractive index,density,pressure,and temperature profiles of the troposphere and stratosphere.This study presents planetary-scale equatorially trapped Kelvin waves in temperature profiles retrieved using COSMIC（Constellation Observing System for Meteorology,Ionosphere,and Climate） satellites during 2006-2009 and their interactions with background atmospheric conditions.It is found that the Kelvin waves are not only associated with wave periods of higher than 10 days（slow Kelvin waves） with higher zonal wave numbers（either 1 or 2）,but also possessing downward phase progression,giving evidence that the source regions of them are located at lower altitudes.A thorough verification of outgoing longwave radiation（OLR） reveals that deep convection activity has developed regularly over the Indonesian region,suggesting that the Kelvin waves are driven by the convective activity.The derived Kelvin waves show enhanced（diminished） tendencies during westward（eastward） phase of the quasi-biennial oscillation（QBO） in zonal winds,implying a mutual relation between both of them.The El Nino and Southern Oscillation（ENSO） below 18 km and the QBO features between 18 and 27km in temperature profiles are observed during May 2006-May 2010 with the help of an adaptive data analysis technique known as Hilbert Huang Transform（HHT）.Further,temperature anomalies computed using COSMIC retrieved temperatures are critically evaluated during different phases of ENSO,which has revealed interesting results and are discussed in light of available literature.     

Coal fire mapping of East Basuria Colliery,Jharia coalfield using vertical derivative technique of magnetic data

The present study deals with the coal fire mapping of East Basuria Colliery, Jharia coalfield, India, using the magnetic method. It is based on the fact that rise in temperature would result significant changes in magnetic susceptibility and thermo-remanent magnetization (TRM) of the overlying rocks. Magnetism increases slowly with the rise of temperature until the Curie temperature. Generally, rock/ overburden loses magnetization and becomes paramagnetic due to heating to Curie temperature, which results with significant reduction in magnetic susceptibility. However, magnetism increases significantly after cooling below the Curie temperature. Several data processing methods such as diurnal correction, reduction to pole (RTP), first and second vertical derivatives have been used for analysis of magnetic data and their interpretation. It is observed that the total magnetic field intensity anomaly of the area varies approximately from 44850 to 47460 nT and the residual magnetic anomaly varies approximately from ?1323 to 1253 nT. The range of the magnetic anomaly after RTP is approximately 1050–1450 nT. About 20 low magnetic anomaly zones have been identified associated with active coal fire regions and 11 high magnetic anomaly zones have been identified associated with non-coal fire regions using vertical derivative techniques.     

A Preliminary Evaluation on the Prospects of Hydrocarbon Potential in the Carbonaceous Shales of Spiti and Chikkim Formations,Tethys Himalaya,India

In the present investigation, an attempt has been made to explore the possibility of hydrocarbon prospects in the carbonaceous shale deposits of Spiti and Chikkim formations exposed in the Spiti valley of the Tethys Himalaya. Twenty samples, collected from successive levels of these litho-units, have been subjected to maceral analysis, Rock-Eval Pyrolysis and six samples to Fourier Transform Infra-red Spectroscopy (FTIR) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) analyses. The study reveals the presence of mainly kerogen-III type of organic matter but some of the shale samples have shown a good amount of total organic carbon (TOC) to the tune of 3.19% which is sufficient to produce hydrocarbon. The results indicate the presence of methane occurring as free and fixed hydrocarbon in the shale samples. Few levels are especially rich in hydrocarbon. They have shown encouraging results with potential for generating liquid as well as lighter hydrocarbon. The data is also supported by the FTIR and NMR studies.     

Upper ocean high resolution regional modeling of the Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal

In this paper, effort is made to demonstrate the quality of high-resolution regional ocean circulation model in realistically simulating the circulation and variability properties of the northern Indian Ocean(10°S–25°N,45°–100°E) covering the Arabian Sea(AS) and Bay of Bengal(BoB). The model run using the open boundary conditions is carried out at 10 km horizontal resolution and highest vertical resolution of 2 m in the upper ocean.The surface and sub-surface structure of hydrographic variables(temperature and salinity) and currents is compared against the observations during 1998–2014(17 years). In particular, the seasonal variability of the sea surface temperature, sea surface salinity, and surface currents over the model domain is studied. The highresolution model's ability in correct estimation of the spatio-temporal mixed layer depth(MLD) variability of the AS and BoB is also shown. The lowest MLD values are observed during spring(March-April-May) and highest during winter(December-January-February) seasons. The maximum MLD in the AS(BoB) during December to February reaches 150 m (67 m). On the other hand, the minimum MLD in these regions during March-April-May becomes as low as 11–12 m. The influence of wind stress, net heat flux and freshwater flux on the seasonal variability of the MLD is discussed. The physical processes controlling the seasonal cycle of sea surface temperature are investigated by carrying out mixed layer heat budget analysis. It is found that air-sea fluxes play a dominant role in the seasonal evolution of sea surface temperature of the northern Indian Ocean and the contribution of horizontal advection, vertical entrainment and diffusion processes is small. The upper ocean zonal and meridional volume transport across different sections in the AS and BoB is also computed. The seasonal variability of the transports is studied in the context of monsoonal currents.     

Assessment of Thermal Maturity,Source Rock Potential and Paleodepositional Environment of the Paleogene Lignites in Barsingsar,Bikaner–Nagaur Basin,Western Rajasthan,India

Natural Resources Research - Investigations on the Paleogene lignites were carried out through geochemical, mineralogical and petrographic analyses to assess their paleodepositional environment,...     

Upper Ocean Four-Dimensional Variational Data Assimilation in the Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal

A regional ocean circulation model with four-dimensional variational data assimilation scheme is configured to study the ocean state of the Indian Ocean region (65°E–95°E; 5°N–20°N) covering the Arabian Sea (AS) and Bay of Bengal (BoB). The state estimation setup uses 10 km horizontal resolution and 5 m vertical resolution in the upper ocean. The in-situ temperature and salinity, satellite-derived observations of sea surface height, and blended (in-situ and satellite-derived) observations of sea surface temperature alongwith their associated uncertainties are used for data assimilation with the regionally configured ocean model. The ocean state estimation is carried out for 61 days (1 June to 31 July 2013). The assimilated fields are closer to observations compared to other global state estimates. The mixed layer depth (MLD) of the region shows deepening during the period of assimilation with AS showing higher MLD compared to the BoB. An empirical forecast equation is derived for the prediction of MLD using the air–sea forcing variables as predictors. The surface and sub-surface (50 m) heat and salt budget tendencies of the region are also investigated. It is found that at the sub-surface, only the advection and diffusion temperature and salt tendencies are important.     

Imaging Spectropolarimeter for the Multi-Application Solar Telescope at Udaipur Solar Observatory: Characterization of Polarimeter and Preliminary Observations

The Multi-Application Solar Telescope (MAST) is a 50 cm off-axis Gregorian telescope that has recently become operational at the Udaipur Solar Observatory (USO). An imaging spectropolarimeter is being developed as one of the back-end instruments of MAST to gain a better understanding of the evolution and dynamics of solar magnetic and velocity fields. This system consists of a narrow-band filter and a polarimeter. The polarimeter includes a linear polarizer and two sets of liquid crystal variable retarders (LCVRs). The instrument is intended for simultaneous observations in the spectral lines 6173 Å and 8542 Å, which are formed in the photosphere and chromosphere, respectively. In this article, we present results from the characterization of the LCVRs for the spectral lines of interest and the response matrix of the polarimeter. We also present preliminary observations of an active region obtained using the spectropolarimeter. For verification purposes, we compare the Stokes observations of the active region obtained from the Helioseismic Magnetic Imager (HMI) onboard the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) with that of MAST observations in the spectral line 6173 Å. We find good agreement between the two observations, considering the fact that MAST observations are limited by seeing.