Control of wind strength and frequency in the Aral Sea basin during the late Holocene

Changing content of detrital input in laminated sediments traced by XRF scanning and microfacies analyses reflect prominent variations in sedimentation processes in the Aral Sea. A high-resolution record of titanium from a core retrieved in the northwestern Large Aral Sea allows a continuous reconstruction of wind strength and frequency in western Central Asia for the past 1500 yr. During AD 450–700, AD 1210–1265, AD 1350–1750 and AD 1800–1975, detrital inputs (bearing titanium) are high, documenting an enhanced early spring atmospheric circulation associated with an increase in intensity of the Siberian High pressure system over Central Asia. In contrast, lower titanium content during AD 1750–1800 and AD 1980–1985 reflects a diminished influence of the Siberian High during early spring with a reduced atmospheric circulation. A moderate circulation characterizes the time period AD 700–1150. Unprecedented weakened atmospheric circulation over western Central Asia are inferred during ca. AD 1180–1210 and AD 1265–1310 with a considerable decrease in dust storm frequency, sedimentation rates, lamination thickness and detrital inputs (screened at 40-μm resolution). Our results are concurrent with changes in the intensity of the Siberian High during the past 1400 yr as reported in the GISP2 Ice Core from Greenland.     

冬季北大西洋涛动与中国北方极端低温相关性的年代际变化

本文基于中国地面气温日值网格数据集（V2.0）,采用滑动相关和相关分析等方法,揭示了冬季北大西洋涛动（NAO）对中国北方极端低温影响的事实,进一步证实了东北后冬（1、2月）冷日（夜）与同期NAO相关性的年代际变化。研究发现:在20世纪80年代中期前,东北后冬冷日（夜）频发,与NAO的相关性较好,而在80年代中期后东北后冬冷日（夜）少发,与NAO的相关性减弱。其中,1月在1969~1988阶段,东北冷日（夜）与NAO的相关性最好,相关区域显著,相关系数可达-0.68（-0.66）,而在1989~2009阶段二者相关性最弱,相关区域不显著。进一步分析发现,在不同年代际背景下,NAO引起的大气环流异常是导致东北1月冷日（夜）与1月NAO相关性年代际变化的重要原因。相关性较好的年代,NAO引起的环流异常有利于冷涡等天气系统维持在贝加尔湖到东北一带,使东北地区气温偏低,冷日（夜）频发;相关性较弱的年代,不利于冷空气南下,使东北地区气温偏高,冷日（夜）少发。     

Assembly and concept of a web-based GIS within the paleolimnological project CONTINENT (Lake Baikal,Russia)

Web-based Geographical Information Systems (GIS) are excellent tools within interdisciplinary and multi-national geoscience projects to exchange and visualize project data. The web-based GIS presented in this paper was designed for the paleolimnological project ‘High-resolution CONTINENTal paleoclimate record in Lake Baikal’ (CONTINENT) (Lake Baikal, Siberia, Russia) to allow the interactive handling of spatial data. The GIS database combines project data (core positions, sample positions, thematic maps) with auxiliary spatial data sets that were downloaded from freely available data sources on the world wide web. The reliability of the external data was evaluated and suitable new spatial datasets were processed according to the scientific questions of the project. GIS analysis of the data was used to assist studies on sediment provenance in Lake Baikal, or to help answer questions such as whether the visualization of present-day vegetation distribution and pollen distribution supports the conclusions derived from palynological analyses. The refined geodata are returned back to the scientific community by using online data publication portals. Data were made citeable by assigning persistent identifiers (DOI) and were published through the German National Library for Science and Technology (TIB Hannover, Hannover, Germany).     

Stability analysis of membrane‐reinforced curved earth retaining walls,using a multiphase approach

The stability analysis of curved earth retaining walls, stabilized by reinforcing membranes, is investigated by means of a multiphase model developed in the framework of the yield design approach. This model is an extension of that previously developed for soils reinforced by linear inclusions. It combines the advantage of a homogenization approach in terms of improved computational efficiency, with its capability to account for a specific soil–reinforcement failure condition, in a rational and systematic way. Application of this model is performed on the illustrative example of a cylindrical‐reinforced retaining wall by means of the kinematic approach of yield design, which provides upper bound estimates for the retaining wall stability factor. Nondimensional charts are finally presented assessing the influence of relevant parameters such as the curvature of the wall, the length of the reinforcing membranes or the reinforcement pull‐out resistance. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Synsedimentary folding process and transtensive tectonic during Late Miocene to Quaternary in northeastern Tunisia: case of Mateur–Menzel Bourguiba region

The following paper presents an integrated approach of field observations and surface and subsurface data to precisely determine the geodynamic evolution during the Late Miocene of Mateur and Menzel Bourguiba region (northeastern Tunisia). Alternation between compressive and transtensive regime has been generated as a consequence of relative bringing of Africa and Eurasia plates. The first compressive regime controlled the Late Miocene M1 which edified folds and reverse faults. The second one during Late Miocene M2 was transtensive and remobilized E–W right lateral strike slip deep faults which generated the eastern Mateur distensional zone as a NW–SE releasing bend. The last compressive phase during Messinian and Pliocene–Early Quaternary has reactivated the E–W deep faults as right lateral strike slip movement with reverse component, the NE–SW faults were acted with reverse movement and the folding was accentuated. In this study, no deformation is observed affecting Middle Quaternary–actual series, but the compressive regime continues until the present according to the evidence existing in other regions of Tunisia.     

Evidence for a new regional NW–SE fault and crustal structure in Tunisia derived from gravity data

A new Tunisian gravity map interpretation based on the Gaussian filtered residual anomaly, total horizontal gradient, and Moho discontinuity morphology established from gravity data exhibit a new regional northwest–southeast fault extending from Eastern Kairouan to Ghardimaou (Algeria–Tunisia Boundary). It presents a horizontal gradient maximum lineament that terminates the north–south Jurassic structures in the Kairouan plain. Further, this interpretation reveals other known fault systems and crustal structures in Tunisia. The new regional northwest–southeast fault constitutes with the north–south axis and Gafsa–Jefara faults the deepest faults coinciding with the Moho flexures, which had an important role in their initiation. They constitute the border intra‐continental crust faults of the Mesozoic rift. The newly recognized deep fault has critical implications for mineral and petroleum perspectives.     

华中地区不同地形下的雷暴地闪特征分析

利用湖北省2013-2018年6-8月ADTD闪电探测数据对该地区的闪电活动进行特征分析后发现,地闪密度和日变化特征与地形密切相关,其中,闪电密度高值区出现在海拔500～1500m的中尺度山脉向平原的过渡地带以及山脉之间的平原(河谷)地区;山区的地闪集中在午后至傍晚时段,具有明显的单峰特征,平原的地闪日变化相对平缓,虽...     

Regional Features and Seasonality of Land–Atmosphere Coupling over Eastern China

Land-atmosphere coupling is a key process of the climate system, and various coupling mechanisms have been proposed before based on observational and numerical analyses. The impact of soil moisture(SM) on evapotranspiration(ET) and further surface temperature(ST) is an important aspect of such coupling. Using ERA-Interim data and CLM4.0 offline simulation results, this study further explores the relationships between SM/ST and ET to better understand the complex nature of the land-atmosphere coupling(i.e., spatial and seasonal variations) in eastern China, a typical monsoon area. It is found that two diagnostics of land-atmosphere coupling(i.e., SM-ET correlation and ST-ET correlation) are highly dependent on the climatology of SM and ST. By combining the SM-ET and ST-ET relationships, two "hot spots" of land-atmosphere coupling over eastern China are identified: Southwest China and North China. In Southwest China, ST is relatively high throughout the year, but SM is lowest in spring, resulting in a strong coupling in spring. However, in North China, SM is relatively low throughout the year, but ST is highest in summer, which leads to the strongest coupling in summer. Our results emphasize the dependence of land-atmosphere coupling on the seasonal evolution of climatic conditions and have implications for future studies related to land surface feedbacks.     

Dust deposition in the Aral Sea: implications for changes in atmospheric circulation in central Asia during the past 2000 years

We investigated mineral aerosol (dust) deposition in the Aral Sea with intention to understand the variability of dust in central Asia and its implications for atmospheric circulation change in the late Holocene. Using an 11.12-m sediment core of the lake, we calculated bulk sediment fluxes at high time-resolution and analyzed grain-size distributions of detrital sediments. A refined age-depth model was established by combined methods of radiocarbon dating and archeological evidence. Besides, a principal component analysis (PCA) of grain-size fractions and elements (Fe, Ti, K, Ca, Sr) was used to assess the potential processes controlling detrital inputs. The results suggest that two processes are mainly relevant for the clastic input as the medium silt fractions and Ti, Fe and K are positively correlated with Component 1 (C1), and the fine size fractions (<6 μm) are positively correlated with Component 2 (C2). Taking the results of the PCA, geological backgrounds, clastic input processes into account, we propose that the medium silt fractions and, in particular, the grain-size fraction ratio (6–32 μm/2–6 μm), can serve as indicators of the variability of airborne dust in the Aral Sea region. On the contrary, the fine size fractions appear to be contributed mainly by the sheetwash processes. The bulk sediment deposition fluxes were extremely high during the Little Ice Age (LIA; AD 1400–1780), which may be related to the increased dust deposition. As indicated by the variations of grain-size ratio and Ti, the history of dust deposition in central Asia can be divided into five distinct periods, with a remarkably low deposition during AD 1–350, a moderately high value from AD 350–720, a return to relatively low level between AD 720 and AD 1400 (including the Medieval Warm Period (MWP, AD 755–1070)), an exceptionally high deposition from AD 1400 to 1940s and an abnormally low value since 1940s. The temporal variations in the dust deposition are consistent with the changes in the Siberian High (SH) and mean atmospheric temperature of the northern hemisphere during the past 2000 years, with low/high annual temperature anomalies corresponding to high/low dust supplies in the Aral Sea sediments, respectively. The variations in the fine size fraction also show a broadly similarity to a lacustrine δ¹⁸O record in Turkey (Jones et al., 2006), implying that there was less moisture entering western central Asia from the Mediterranean during the LIA than during the MWP.