bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A multiscale deep learning model integrating satellite-based and in-situ data for high-resolution soil moisture predictions
Authors: Liu Jiangtao , Shen Chaopeng , Rahmani Farshid , Lawson Kathryn
Published: February 2023

Detailed and accurate soil moisture is critical for many applications, such as forecasting agricultural drought and pests and mapping landslides. Deep learning can perform extraordinarily well in soil moisture, streamflow, and model uncertainty estimation. However, these models may inherit disadvantages of training data, such as limited coverage of in situ data or low resolution/accuracy of satellite data. Here, we propose a novel multiscale DL scheme that learns from satellite and in situ data to predict daily soil moisture at 9 km. The model outperforms land surface models, the SMAP satellite product, and a candidate machine learning model. Based on spatial cross-validation, it achieved a median correlation of 0.901 and a root-mean-square error of 0.034 m3/m3 over sites in the conterminous United States. Our scheme generally applies to topics in the geosciences with multiscale data, breaking the limitations of a single dataset.
Sea Surface Temperature and Ocean Wind Speed Data in the Cyprus region from Sentinel-3 using Sentinel Application Platform (SNAP) and Arc GIS Pro.
Authors: Kalogirou Eleftheria , Melillos George , Hadjimitsis Diofantos , Makri Despoina
Published: February 2023

The ability to measure sea surface temperature allows us to observe the global system and quantify ongoing weather and climate change. Several industries are particularly affected by increased SST the shipping industry, the offshore oil and gas industry, the fishing industry, etc. Knowledge of ocean wind behaviour will enable ship masters to choose routes that avoid heavy seas or high headwinds that may slow the ship's travel, increase fuel consumption, or possibly cause damage to vessels and loss of life. This paper aims to realise the Cyprus region's sea surface temperature and wind speed data. The comparison of results obtained using Sentinel Application Platform (SNAP) and ArcGIS Pro, shows that both tools can be used to realise Sea Surface Temperature and Ocean Wind Speed Data and give satisfactory results.Keywords: Sea surface temperature, Ocean Wind Speed Data, Sentinel-3, SNAP, ArcGIS Pro.
Integrated Urban Planning Decision-Making Process Towards Water Neutral Solutions
Authors: Puchol-Salort Pepe , Boskovic Stanislava , Dobson Barnaby , Krivtsov Vladimir , Rico-Carranza Eduardo , van Reeuwijk Maarten , Whyte Jennifer , Mijic Ana
Published: February 2023

Urban water security levels will be threatened during the next few years due to new development pressures combined with the climate emergency and increasing population growth in cities. In the UK, London’s planning authorities have a target of more than half a million households for the next 10 years. This new housing will increase the current impacts on urban consumer demand, flood risk, and river water quality indicators. In our previous work, we developed a new concept for urban Water Neutrality (WN) inside an integrated urban planning sustainability framework called CityPlan to deal with water stress and urban complexity issues. This framework integrates the UK’s planning application process with systemic design solutions and evaluation, all being spatially represented in a GIS platform. With the new digital era, there is a constantly increasing number of spatial datasets that are openly available from different sources, but most of them are disaggregated and difficult to understand by key urban stakeholders such as Local Planning Authorities, housing developers, and water companies. Moreover, there are several Multi-Criteria Decision Support Tools (MCDST) that address water management challenges in the literature; but there is still little evidence of one that evaluates the impacts and opportunities to allocate water neutral urban developments.In this work, we expand the CityPlan framework and present an innovative fully data-driven approach to test WN indicators at different urban scales. WaNetDST integrates GIS spatial data with a series of rules for development impact and offset opportunity based on the current properties of the urban land. This integration is linked to a new scoring system from expert advice that maps strategic areas for water neutral interventions and links the most impactful zones with others more prone to be intervened. The tool connects different urban scales with a series of case study areas: from city (i.e., London), to borough (i.e., Enfield), and to urban development scale (i.e., Meridian Water Development). In the end, WaNetDST visually compares the need for housing vs. green spaces and the trade-offs between new housing vs. retrofitting existing infrastructure, providing a series of maps that guide the planning decision-making process in an integrated way. The results from CityPlan might potentially change the decision-making process for LPAs and housing developers and open a new dialogue between boroughs inside the same city, providing a novel and automated system for WN trade-offs and linking data-driven design with future planning decisions
Fire, Work with Me: A PAH record from a Southwestern US speleothem
Authors: Smolen Jonathan , Montañez Isabel , Hren Michael
Published: February 2023

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are molecules produced during incomplete combustion of organic matter and have been increasingly utilized as paleo-proxies for wildfires. More recently, their incorporation from drip water into speleothems has been utilized in conjunction with the stable isotopic and trace elemental measurements of host carbonate and fluid inclusions in order to assess a coupled record of fire and hydroclimate. Numerous studies have focused on cave systems in the Southwestern U.S., which has experienced highly variable hydroclimate and massive wildfires with past climate changes. Here, we present a PAH record covering ~19-11.5 ka obtained from a precisely dated and well-studied ML-1 stalagmite obtained from McLean’s Cave in the central Sierran foothills, CA. Total concentrations of four-ring PAHs reach maximum values from ~16.8-15 ka, associated with the first stage (1a) of Heinrich Stadial 1 (HS1) interval – this is interpreted as increased levels of soil PAHs produced from regional wildfires. Covariance of isomeric diagnostic ratios with total concentration indicates a shift in the nature of the associated fires, separating effects of PAH mobility in altered soils as well as shifts in soil water transport, stalagmite growth rates, and precipitation amounts. Paired climate signals from independent regional proxies are discussed, as well as factors affecting the interpretation of PAH signals in speleothems. Considerations and methods using small (~1g) speleothem samples are presented, with a focus on simultaneous extraction of useful paleoenvironmental information from other molecular biomarkers entombed within speleothems.
Long-term variability of the coastal ocean stratification in the Gulf of Naples:Two decades of monitoring the marine ecosystem at the LTER-MC site, between land and open Mediterranean sea
Authors: Kokoszka Florian , Le Roux Baptiste , Iudicone Daniele , Conversano Fabio , Ribera D'Alcalà Maurizio
Published: February 2023

We analyze 20 years (2001–2020) of temperature and salinity profiles at the LTER–MC coastal station in the Gulf of Naples, Mediterranean Sea. Surface and bottom layers show weak increases of temperature (+0.01°C ± 0.01°C /year and +0.03°C ± 0.02°C /year, 2005–2019); water-columns budgets (heat, freshwater) show pseudo-periodic oscillations every 3 to 5 years, and weak linear trends. Seasonal minimum of salinity occurs 2 months later than the runoff peak, pointing to the importance of horizontal circulation in regulating the inshore–offshore exchanges and the residence time of freshwater. Inter-annual variations of the mixed layer depth (MLD) indicate a shallowing (-1.27m ± 0.38m /year during winter) and a shortened time span of the fully mixed water-column. A visible decadal shift in the external forcings suggests an influence of winterly wind stress in 2010–2019, that prevailed over dominant buoyancy fluxes in 2001–2009. Changes are visible in the large-scale indices of the North Atlantic and Western Mediterranean Oscillations and highlight the role of wind direction, offshore or inshore oriented, in disrupting the stratification driven by freshwater runoff. A Random Forest Regression confirms that role and quantifies the MLD's drivers importance. This allows for a reliable prediction of the stratification using external variables independent from the in-situ observations.
Turbulence metrics at the surface of rivers, measured by Infrared Quantitative Image Velocimetry (IR-QIV)
Authors: Schweitzer Seth , Cowen Edwin A.
Published: February 2023

In recent years the changing climate has resulted in an increased prevalence of extreme weather, with corresponding extreme precipitation and surface flow events. Adapting management of water and other natural resources to these conditions requires accurate and robust tools to measure water flow, and in particular the development of non-contact measurement methods.Once such method is Infrared quantitative image velocimetry (IR-QIV), which is a large scale surface velocimetry method that uses infrared imagery to calculate the mean and instantaneous velocity at high resolution in space and time, over large spatial areas (Schweitzer & Cowen, WRR 2021). IR-QIV can operate continuously for extended periods (days, weeks, etc.) without requiring artificial illumination or particle seeding of the flow. The high resolution, continuous, measurement capabilities of IR-QIV make it particularly well suited to applications where the spatial and temporal variance of the flow must be resolved, such as fishery management, air-water heat and gas exchange, and flow-structure interaction studies.We present metrics of turbulence, estimates of gas transfer rates, and other hydrodynamic properties calculated from velocity measurements conducted by IR-QIV at the surface of several rivers in California, and Michigan, USA. The measurements were made as part of fishery management projects, motivated by efforts to better understand and manage the interaction of migrating fish and the hydrodynamic environment. Results are validated by comparison with acoustic velocity measurements. 
Carbon delivery to floodplain aquifers in response to water table fluctuations: Observations from soil column experiments
Authors: Scaccia Maria , Gabor Rachel , Wilbert Fabian , Roumelis Christian , Bernal Susana , Welch Susan , Carrera Ramirez Jesús , Folch Albert , Salgot Miquel , Insalaco Alycia , H. Sawyer Audrey
Published: February 2023

Water tables in floodplain aquifers rise and fall over a variety of timescales in response to changes in recharge, discharge, floods, and water use. To investigate the effects of water table fluctuations on DOC delivery to groundwater, an experiment was conducted at two Mediterranean sites: a pristine forested stream and an urban coastal floodplain. Groundwater was pumped into and out of the bottom of the soil column at varying rates to simulate water table fluctuations over a period of 16 days. Flooding events were imitated by inundating the top of the column with water sourced from nearby surface water features. The effects of repeated wetting and drying events on carbon mobilization, DOM quality, and geochemical responses were measured. Preliminary analysis reveals strong downward movement of DOC from soil layers after wetting events. SUVA at 254 nm increased with DOC concentrations compounds within pore waters during wetting events. During initial water table fluctuations, redox potential near the soil-aquifer interface was relatively stable but declined after subsequent wettings. Forthcoming analyses will also examine changes in the humification, fluorescence, and freshness indices of DOM from excitation-emission matrices. This study shows the influence of multiple saturation events on carbon mobilization and shallow groundwater biogeochemistry in unique floodplains.
Foraminifera Research Evolution: A Bibliometric Analysis of Scientific Production and Impact from 1841-202
Authors: Amao Abduljamiu , Frontalini Fabrizio , Kaminski Michael
Published: February 2023

This study  investigated the scientific production and impact of research on Foraminifera, a marine organism that has made significant contributions to understanding our planet and its evolution. Bibliometric data from Web of Science and SCOPUS was used to analyze 22,372 published works on Foraminifera between 1841-2020. The United States topped the list of countries conducting research on Foraminifera, followed by the United Kingdom, France, and Germany. The most productive journals were found to be Palaeogeography Palaeoclimatology Palaeoecology and Marine Micropaleontology. The majority of research focuses on Foraminifera's role in paleoceanography, paleoclimate, and biostratigraphy. Foraminifera was found to be a reliable material for age calibration in radiocarbon dating, as evidenced by the inclusion of one of the most cited reference materials in the top 20 most cited documents. The study provides insights into the scientific production and impact of research on Foraminifera and highlights the continued significance of this organism in the field of earth and environmental sciences
Improving the accuracy of SAR-based oil slick detection
Authors: Raphael Jonathan , Schatz Jason , Avery Ryan
Published: February 2023

SkyTruth has created a fully automated system to detect anthropogenic oil pollution across the world’s oceans in near-real-time using Sentinel-1 data. This system is called Cerulean and is designed to provide environmental organizations, researchers, governments, journalists, and other users with a global monitoring and reporting system for oil pollution.Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) data is commonly used to remotely sense the presence of oil on the surface of the ocean. However, SAR based oil slick detection is prone to false positives caused by wind shadows, sea ice, organic surfactants on the water surface, and other phenomena that cause look-alike dark patches in SAR data. We have taken a three tiered approach to reducing false positive detections from our oil slick detection model: (1) Providing a significant number of false-positive look-alikes in our training dataset, (2) Experimenting with different classes of deep learning model architectures, including a U-Net semantic segmentation model and a Mask R-CNN object segmentation model, (3) Leveraging various post-processing techniques to help distinguish true positives from false positives, including morphological characteristics of slicks, proximity to shipping lanes and offshore infrastructure, and weather data. Results of these analyses and promising avenues for improving oil slick discrimination with SAR data will be described in detail.
Can biodegradable mulch materials work similarly to polyethylene from an integral point of view?
Authors: Villena Jaime , González-Mora Sara , Moreno Marta M. , Morales Pablo A. , Campos Juan A. , Moreno Carmen
Published: February 2023

The agricultural practice of mulching with polyethylene (PE), despite the undeniable improvements it implies for the crops, leads a major problem of environmental pollution, especially remarkable in organic farming. Apart from its petrochemical origin, PE takes a long time to degrade, so that its use generates a significant volume of waste given the difficulty of soil removal and subsequent recycling after crop harvest. In response to this problem, since the last years of the 20th century, mulches of different origin and characteristics have been formulated and analyzed in a greater or lesser detail as an alternative to PE, more respectful with the environment. In general, they behave satisfactorily in relation to the aspects that focus on the herbicidal effect and the crop yields, fundamentally.
This research addresses on various aspects related to the use of different mulch materials in a sweet bell pepper crop for fresh consumption in Central Spain during four consecutive spring-summer seasons. The treatments tested include PE and unmulched controls (manual weeding and no-weeding), different starch-based (corn and potato) and polylactic acid bioplastics. Based on a joint study of the yield response, fruit quality and weed control, it is remarkable the similarity among different treatments but especially between PE and the corn starch-based material, which would define them as interchangeable mulch materials, with the environmental advantages it implies.
Acknowledgements: Project RTA2011-00104-C04-03 - INIA (Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness).
Mars Perseverance Panoramic Image for Self-Determination Mission Algorithm
Authors: Swida Okta Bramantio , Foing Bernard , Vleugels Constantijn
Published: February 2023

Aiming to unravel the astrobiology of Mars, the Perseverance mission came with a lot of unknowns. With the surface level knowledge that we have already known, The High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) can already determine the observation or experimental sites through the images generated from the orbiter. Although the resolution is high, with the power of a 1-meter-size object determinator, we can always expect so much more from the ground-level observation. The Mars Perseverance rover is equipped with a pair of Mastcam-Z set cameras that are equipped in a manner to simulate the human eye for depth determination in image processing. The instruments can process stereo colour images of the ground level. These images can be used to make detailed maps of the Mars surface scenery at ground level with high precision. Building and analyzing these images can take days to process on Earth manually. But if we utilise machine learning tools and onsite computation, it might save a lot of time for the mission. The current model used in the Mars Perseverance is the AutoNav Mark 4 with a lot of tasks, including spacecraft positioning, in-flight orbit determination, target tracking, and ephemeris calculations. All those might be computationally expensive to process. Therefore, the aim of this research is to develop a simple algorithm to do object and slope determinations to feed into an autonomous path determination process. The data fed into the algorithm are panoramic images captured by the MastCam-Z mounted on Mars Perseverance.
Socio-Political Feedback on the Path to Net Zero
Authors: Perri Saverio , Levin Simon , Hedin Lars , Wunderling Nico , Porporato Amilcare
Published: February 2023

Anthropogenic emissions of CO2 must soon approach net zero to stabilize the global mean temperature. Although several international agreements have advocated for coordinated climate actions, their implementation has remained below expectations. One of the main challenges of international cooperation is the different degrees of socio-political acceptance of decarbonization.In this contribution, we interrogate a minimalistic model of the coupled human-natural system representing the impact of such socio-political acceptance on investments in clean energy and the path to net-zero emissions. Despite its simplicity, the model can reproduce complex interactions between human and natural systems, and it can disentangle the effects of climate policies from those of socio-political acceptance on the path to net zero. Although perfect coordination remains unlikely, as clean energy investments are limited by myopic economic strategies and a policy system that promotes free-riding, more realistic decentralized cooperation with partial efforts from each actor could still lead to significant emissions cuts.Since the socio-political feedback on the path to net zero could influence the trajectories of the Earth System for decades to centuries and beyond, climate models need to incorporate better the dynamical bi-directional interactions between socio-political groups and the environment. Our model represents a first step for incorporating this feedback in describing complex coupled human and natural systems.
Emergent structure, dynamics and abrupt transitions in a cellular automaton of tropical forest and fire
Authors: Wuyts Bert , Sieber Jan
Published: February 2023

It is thought that tropical forests can exist as an alternative stable state to savanna. Therefore, perturbation by climate change or human impact may lead to crossing of a tipping point beyond which there is rapid large-scale forest dieback that is not easily reversed. Modelling studies of alternative stable tree cover states have either relied on mean-field assumptions or not included the spatiotemporal dynamics of fire, making it hard to compare their output to spatial data. In this talk, we analyse a microscopic model of tropical forest and fire and show how dynamics of forest area are linked to its emergent spatial structure. We find that the relation between forest perimeter and area determines the nonlinearity in forest growth while forest perimeter weighted by adjacent grassland area determines the nonlinearity in forest loss. Together with the linear changes, which are independent of spatial structure, these two effects lead to an emergent relation between forest area change and forest area, defining a single-variable ordinary differential equation. Such a relation between pattern and dynamics enables empiricists to assess forest stability and resilience directly from a single spatial observation of a tropical forest-grassland landscape.
Tropical to extratropical interactions in the Southern Hemisphere
Authors: Arblaster Julie
Published: February 2023

Tropical variability has long been identified as having an important influence on climate variability and change in the Southern Hemisphere (SH). In all three ocean basins, heating from tropical convection can generate stationary Rossby waves that propagate polewards and eastwards towards Antarctica, influencing temperature and rainfall patterns along the way. Recent studies have also highlighted the reverse – an influence of the polar regions on changes further north, for example, the stratospheric weakening of the SH polar vortex that contributed to the prolonged drought and extreme fire weather in Australia in the spring and summer of 2019. On longer timescales, the climate of the Southern Hemisphere has undergone significant changes over the past 30-50 years. The extratropical atmosphere has seen a shift to a more positive phase of the Southern Annular Mode and a stronger and more poleward eddy-driven jet, particularly in austral summer. While the influence of anthropogenic forcing such as ozone depletion and increasing greenhouse gases on these changes is well-established, the importance of tropical to extratropical interactions in shaping some recent events is becoming more evident. Examples include the deepening of the Amundsen Sea Low which has been associated with tropical Pacific decadal variability and the rapid decline in Antarctic sea ice in 2016 which was linked to a record positive Indian Ocean Dipole event. Recent insights into tropical to extratropical interactions, including the mechanisms through which they operate and links to observed changes on interannual to interdecadal timescales will be discussed.
Characterization and potential impacts of active nitrifier host–virus interactions in soil
Authors: Hazard Christina , Lee Sungeun , Nicol Graeme W.
Published: February 2023

While the complexity of prokaryotic communities in soil is relatively well understood, we are currently ignorant of the role of viruses in influencing their ecology. Viruses infect every living organism and affect rates of biogeochemical processes by killing active cells via cell lysis, or augmenting function through the transfer of auxiliary metabolic genes. The microbially-mediated process of nitrification is central to nitrogen losses and emissions of the greenhouse gas nitrous oxide, contributing to global warming and stratospheric ozone depletion, and viruses may impact this central step of the global N cycle. However, challenges remain in identifying active interactions with specific host or functional groups and virus populations within structurally complex and diverse soil environments. To address this, discrete active interactions between individual hosts and viruses in soil microcosms were examined using the transfer of assimilated carbon from autotrophic prokaryotes to viruses. Microcosms were established with amendments of urea to fuel nitrification and 13C carbon dioxide, followed by DNA stable-isotope probing (SIP) combined with metagenomic analyses. Hybrid analysis of GC mol% fractionation and 13C-DNA-SIP resulted in the identification of active ammonia oxidizing archaea (AOA) hosts and viruses only. To enable characterization of viruses actively infecting all active ammonia- and nitrite oxidizing bacteria (AOB, NOB), a second approach was used where incubations were performed using filtration of virus-like particles to increase the recovery of virus metagenomes. This included differential inhibition of specific nitrifier groups to alleviate competition and potentially increase the abundance of viruses infecting non-inhibited groups. Applications of DMPP or octyne were added to preferentially inhibit AOB and encourage growth of AOA, or acetylene to inhibit all ammonia oxidizing activity as a negative control. This approach dramatically increased the recovery of high-quality virus contigs, with 225 contigs associated with those infecting AOA, AOB or NOB including 69 complete or near-complete genomes. Viruses of ammonia-oxidizers contained auxiliary metabolic genes involved in central metabolic pathways, and analysis of viral hallmark genes revealed that they were distinct from previously cultivated viruses. Results demonstrate that virus infection of nitrifiers and propagation of viruses is a dynamic process during soil nitrification, providing insights into potential impacts of viruses on a specific functional process in soil.
Charged particle bombardment– a dominant surface modification process on the Uranian moons?
Authors: Nordheim Tom , Cartwright Richard , Regoli Leonardo , Sori Michael , Menten Stephanie , Beddingfield Chloe , Leonard Erin , Cochrane Corey , Elder Catherine , Masters Adam
Published: February 2023

The Uranus system hosts a diverse set of large moons, from the enigmatic Miranda with its striking coronae, to the outermost and second-largest moon Oberon with its dark and ancient surface. These moons mostly orbit within Uranus’ magnetosphere, which while relatively depleted in low energy-plasma, was found by Voyager 2 to possess surprisingly intense electron radiation belts. Prominent energetic electron absorptions associated with the Uranian moons were observed by Voyager 2, indicating that these particles interact significantly with the moons. Thus, the surfaces of the moons are continuously bombarded by high energy electrons, which are capable of breaking chemical bonds in surface material, leading to radiolytic chemistry that can alter surface composition. In addition, charged particle bombardment can alter the microstructure of surface ice as well as affect grain sizes by sputtering. Ground-based remote sensing observations have revealed planetocentric and hemispherical trends in several key spectral parameters, including the abundance of CO2 ice, whose concentration on the trailing hemispheres of the moon hint at a possible radiolytic origin. Furthermore, possible signatures of NH3 have been detected on the surfaces of several of the moons, including Ariel, where the sub-observer longitudinal distribution of this species appears to support spatial association with geologic features and terrains. It is known from laboratory experiments that NH3 is readily decomposed by charged particle radiation. If NH3 or NH3-related compounds are present on the moons, it therefore could be an indication of recent emplacement or exposure. Here, we will present possible signatures of charged particle surface modification on the Uranian moons and discuss implications for observations by future missions to the Uranus system.
Cartographic evaluation of the risk of Cu, Co and I deficiency in the soil cover of the Central Federal District (Russia) provoking spatial variation of the endemic morbidity level
Authors: Bech Jaume , Baranchukov Vladimir , Korobova Elena
Published: February 2023

The Central Federal District (CFD) of Russia is a highly populated area with a developed infrastructure where agriculture specializes in the cultivation of cereals, vegetables, sunflowers, and cattle breeding. The territory is also known for a deficiency of Cu, Co and I in the environment and respectively in the main agricultural plants and animals cultivated in the CFD, as well as in the diets of the local rural and urban population living on local products.The cartographic basis used for the creation of preliminary assessment maps of the distribution of trace elements in the soil cover of the region was the Unified State Register of Soil Resources of Russia (scale 1:2 500 000). Levels of Cu, Co and I content in soils were based on our original experimental database and published data of the elements concentration in the cartographic units "topsoil-subsoil". To estimate the ecological and geochemical risk we used threshold concentrations in soils leading to specific diseases in cattle grazing within the particular areas. These concentrations were based on numerous experimental data obtained by different scientific teams (Kovalsky, 1974, 1991; Korobova, 1992; Ermakov, 2015, etc.).The mapping allowed demonstration of zonal and regional peculiarities in Cu, Co and I status of the soil cover in CFD. The obtained cartographic estimates are comparable with the published averaged results at the oblast level. Comparison with the published medical information on the cases of thyroid disease registered  for the first time in their life for the period from 2013 to 2017 on the level of administrative unit "oblast" showed a significant (p=0.08) inverse (R=-0.47) correlation with our cartographic estimates of soil iodine status weighted for the corresponding oblast's with due regards to their soil structure (numbering 14 in CFD with exception of Bryansk and Oryol oblast'). The two indicated oblast's were considerably affected by radioiodine shock during the Chernobyl accident which contributed to increase of thyroid damage especially in case of its suffering from iodine deficiency.
Using Earth Observations to Measure Hydrological Effects of Wildfires in the Feather River Basin
Authors: Walters Avery , Lakshmi Venkataraman
Published: February 2023

The Feather River Basin is home to California’s deadliest wildfire, the 2018 Camp Fire, and to the largest single fire in the state’s history, the 2021 Dixie Fire (CalFire, 2022). Each of these events took place in the last five years. In 2021 alone, the Dixie Fire and the Beckwourth Complex Fire combined to burn over 1 million acres of land in the Feather River region (FRLT, 2022). The Dixie Fire burned despite taking place within the burn scar of the 2012 Chips Fire (Graff, 2021). Such exceptional wildfire activity is a cause for further studies.
Our research proposes analyzing satellite data for the Feather River Basin to measure the hydrological effects of wildfire. This study aims to produce monthly observations of major hydrological conditions (i.e. precipitation, soil moisture, vegetation index and streamflow) over the past five to ten years. A one-kilometer sub-daily soil moisture dataset will be used to characterize soil moisture anomalies. Additionally, visual as well as infrared imagery will be collected from commercial high-spatial resolution satellite sensors, which have revisit times of about one hour and resolutions of about one meter. This should help characterize fire extent as well as understand the effects of fire on soil moisture. In situ measurements, when available, will be used to validate satellite-derived observations. 
The Feather River Basin is a high-profile area of the United States with 27 million people dependent upon it for water. The Feather River is the Sierra Nevada’s largest and northernmost river, and the nearby Oroville Dam is America’s tallest dam. Furthermore, the basin is home to continental America’s largest high-alpine meadow– also an important stopover site for migratory birds (American Rivers, 2022). California’s dry climate, combined with shortened snowmelt periods, steep mountain terrain and strong winds, already make it a hotbed for wildfire. A warming climate threatens this landscape with even higher likelihoods of extreme wildfire events. The results of this study will help understand how increasingly common and severe wildfires affect watershed hydrology.
A new approach to modeling galactic cosmic rays in the heliosphere using arbitrary data driven MHD backgrounds
Authors: Florinski Vladimir , Alonso Guzman Juan , Opher Merav , Ghanbari Keyvan
Published: February 2023

The Voyager space probes provided us with a global perspective on galactic cosmic ray transport through the heliosphere at low to moderate heliographic latitudes, as well as their behavior at the boundary with the very local interstellar medium (VLISM). There remain, however, multiple interesting region the Voyagers have not visited, including high latitudes and the distant flanks of the heliopause where long-term trapping of charged particles is though to take place. We attempt to fill the gaps in our understanding of the distant heliosphere using computer simulations. The Space Plasma and Energetic Charged particle TRansport on Unstructured Meshes (SPECTRUM) code is a versatile software platform to perform tracing of particle trajectories using multiple physics models and internal or externally provided MHD background data. We apply the model to the problem of galactic cosmic ray transport in the outer heliosphere and the surrounding very local interstellar medium (VLISM) using the MHD background provided on a adaptive block mesh from the Space Weather Modeling Framework (SWMF). We compare the guiding center and nearly isotropic (Parker) physics models and elucidate the role of perpendicular diffusion in cosmic-ray penetration through the heliospheric boundary.
Investigating the impact of river flow and tidal level variations on river delta salinization through idealized numerical modelling
Authors: Matsoukis Constantinos , Amoudry Laurent , Bricheno Lucy , Leonardi Nicoletta
Published: February 2023

The world’s river deltas are increasingly vulnerable due to pressures from human activities and environmental change. In deltaic regions, the distribution of salinity controls the resourcing of fresh water for agriculture, aquaculture and human consumption; it also regulates the functioning of critical natural habitats. Excessive salinity can harm the sustainability of these delicate ecosystems and compromise the various anthropogenic activities taking place there. Currently, many deltas face the consequences of increased salinity due to sea level rise. Salt intrusion (i.e., upstream intrusion of the saltwater zone) is further exacerbated by shortages to freshwater availability due to changes in the hydrological cycle or upstream river diversions. Despite numerous insightful studies, there are still significant uncertainties on salinity’s spatio-temporal patterns response to changes in river flow and tidal range. In this study, an effort is done to fill this gap through idealized three-dimensional numerical modelling of a typical delta configuration. A series of simulations is carried out considering seasonal freshwater flow and tidal level variations. Model results demonstrated the existence of simple correlations and relationships describing the salinity field in a delta. In particular, salinity and river discharge are exponentially correlated through an equation that shows similarities to solutions of the one-dimensional advection-diffusion equation. The use of stream labelling methods (e.g., Strahler-Horton, width function) disclosed another correlation with salinity increasing as the channels’ order decreases.  In addition, small increases of the tidal amplitude in river-dominated or low tidal regime cases were found to have positive effects against salinization because of tide-induced mixing that can increase freshwater areas and volumes. Finally, results from simulations of different flow regimes indicated that it is possible to mitigate deltas’ salinization by water regulations and better use of existing resources instead of resorting to expensive and harmful for the environment technical solutions.
Coastal Circulation in a Western Boundary Current Using Gliders and a Wirewalker
Authors: Quezada Alfredo , Soloviev Alexander , Kluge John , Morrison Geoffrey , Thompson Terry , Ettinger Brian
Published: February 2023

We deployed a propulsion system-aided Slocum G3 glider in a high current environment off the Florida shelf fitted with an Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP), a Conductivity-Temperature-Depth (CTD) sensor, and optics channel sensors to obtain measurements of current velocities, salinity, temperature, pressure, dissolved organic matter (DOM), chlorophyll, and backscatter. We also used a Wirewalker, a wave-powered profiling platform, fitted with both an ADCP and a CTD to obtain measurements at a 120-m isobath nearby off the Florida shelf. CTD measurements, glider coordinates, and aligned temporal windows of relevant profiles were used to validate velocity comparisons between both ADCPs. Different processing procedures were also used to motion-correct velocity measurements from both devices. Glider optics channels were used to evaluate changes through time in particle distributions associated with the meandering of the currents. Wirewalker velocity measurements qualitatively coincided with the glider’s ADCP overall, albeit not perfectly quantitatively. However, this coherence was partly dependent on whether the platform’s upcasts or downcasts were compared, as well as distance from the glider. Both ADCPs’ velocity measurements show clear evidence of a southward-flowing intermittent undercurrent jet previously reported by Soloviev et al. (2017). This undercurrent’s effects are also seen through the glider’s optics channels, with influence in DOM and chlorophyll distributions. Changes in backscatter were seen to a much lesser degree and probably influenced by the diel vertical migration (DVM) of zooplankton. The volume transport by the southward flow is relatively small compared to the Florida Current’s transport. Nevertheless, the processes that maintain and account for the variability of the southward flow are important for a number of practical applications including the propagation of pollution and genetic information against the Florida Current.
A new software for spatio-temporal analysis of gridded data sources
Authors: Zambrano-Bigiarini Mauricio , Bernal Vallejos Sebastián
Published: February 2023

Several long-term gridded datasets have become available in the last decades on a global scale, at increasing spatial and temporal resolution, with low latency times. These datasetshave opened new opportunities to advance Earth Sciences modelling studies at different spatial and temporal scales, especially in poorly gauged areas. However, working with (hundreds of) thousands of raster time series (e.g., for (sub)daily precipitation), usually in different vectorial and raster formats, impose high computational challenges to efficiently analyse all the gridded datasets.In this work we introduce a new R package for easy processing and analysis of raster time series, to bring the use of gridded data closer to the Earth Sciences community. This package expands the large number of spatial functions provided by the terra package by taking advantage of the time attribute of raster objects. A particular emphasis of the package is exploring and comparing gridded datasets of hydrological variables with different time frequencies (e.g., sub-hourly, hourly, daily, monthly, seasonal, annual).General purpose functions include temporal subsetting, resampling, cropping, extracting time series for points or polygons, comparing two datasets using summary statistics, and exporting a raster time series as a collection of daily/monthly/annual files, each one of them with several layers of a higher temporal frequency. Also, temporal aggregation is possible from sub-hourly to hourly/daily/weekly/monthly/annual, among others. Most functions can take advantage of multi-core computers and network clusters, to reduce the computational burden.To illustrate the use of this new package, we compared different state-of-the-art gridded precipitation products (CHIRPSv2, CMORPH v1.0, IMERGv06B, MSWXv1.0, ERA5, ERA5-Land, CR2METv2.5), all of them with different data formats and spatial resolutions, using continental Chile as a case study. However, based on the package's flexibility and ease of use, we hope the broader community of hydro-scientists and water-engineers will use it to visualise the spatio-temporal variation of key hydrological/environmental variables,to carry out time series analysis, to combinedifferent types of models and data sources, and to improve our integrated knowledge of the water cycle.
ROLL IN STONES How to get students excited about studying rocks
Authors: Azevedo Marta , Fradique José
Published: February 2023

The main goal of this project is to increase students' interest in studying Geology and to show the relevance of geological systems in everyday life. Thus, its implementation is expected to contribute to arouse curiosity about the natural world and motivate for scientific learning, in a non-formal education environment that complements the formal classroom approach.A ballasted railway is composed of the substructure and the superstructure, the latter consisting of elements such as rails, sleepers and fasteners and also ballast. The substructure has as its constituent elements the sub-ballast, the track bed and the foundation. Ballasted track is the construction process with which we associate the railway, i.e. rails laid on sleepers and coarse granular material. Ballasted track can be differentiated according to the type of track construction. The sleepers can be made of wood, concrete or even metal. Ballast is a granular material resulting from the crushing of highly resistant rock material. Its function is to support and distribute the loads coming from superior elements, to drain water, to absorb vibrations and to oppose transversal and longitudinal displacements of the track. The ballasts must present high resistance, particularly to impact and wear, and must have a high durability, these characteristics are found in igneous rocks such as the healthy granites, in which one of the main minerals is quartz, this mineral has a higher resistance to chemical and mechanical changes than the generality of the minerals found in rocks.In this work, the students selected three stretches of the railway track of the city were selected based on a visual analysis of the rocky elements that composed these stretches: stretch 1 at the railway station, near the passenger boardings and alightings, on line 9; stretch 2-an area of the line only used for changing the direction of the compositions; stretch 3-an area north of line 9, used for the circulation of trains. The existing rocks in each section were collected and identified, the levels of contamination and deterioration of the materials were analysed and the results were discussed in the classroom.
A Causality-Based Learning Approach for Discovering the Underlying Dynamics of Complex Systems from Partial Observations with Stochastic Parameterization
Authors: Zhang Yinling , Chen Nan
Published: February 2023

Discovering the underlying dynamics of complex systems from data is an important practical topic. Constrained optimization algorithms are widely utilized and lead to many successes. Yet, such purely data-driven methods may bring about incorrect physics in the presence of random noise and cannot easily handle the situation with incomplete data. In this paper, a new iterative learning algorithm for complex turbulent systems with partial observations is developed that alternates between identifying model structures, recovering unobserved variables, and estimating parameters. First, a causality-based learning approach is utilized for the sparse identification of model structures, which takes into account certain physics knowledge that is pre-learned from data. It has unique advantages in coping with indirect coupling between features and is robust to the stochastic noise. A practical algorithm is designed to facilitate the causal inference for high-dimensional systems. Next, a systematic nonlinear stochastic parameterization is built to characterize the time evolution of the unobserved variables. Closed analytic formula via an efficient nonlinear data assimilation is exploited to sample the trajectories of the unobserved variables, which are then treated as synthetic observations to advance a rapid parameter estimation. Furthermore, the localization of the state variable dependence and the physics constraints are incorporated into the learning procedure, which mitigate the curse of dimensionality and prevent the finite time blow-up issue. Numerical experiments show that the new algorithm succeeds in identifying the model structure and providing suitable stochastic parameterizations for many complex nonlinear systems with chaotic dynamics, spatiotemporal multiscale structures, intermittency, and extreme events.
Comparing measured and perceived productivity of Earth scientists during COVID-19 work-from-home initiatives
Authors: Hatherly Sarah , Spencer Christopher
Published: February 2023

Bibliometric and survey-based data are used to evaluate and compare the productivity of Earth scientists. Work-from-home initiatives have led to disproportionate impact among different genders. An individual’s perception of their own productivity is significant in understanding how equity-deserving groups are affected by disruptions to normal routines. Additionally, peer-reviewed publications are a key metric of academic productivity, as they are a vital component of career advancement. Using sex- (female vs. male) and gender-based (women vs. men) methods, this study investigates how both the perceived and measured productivity of women and men was impacted by global COVID-19 work-from-home initiatives. Here we show that in a normal year females publish proportionally to males, and that the proportion of female first authors increased between the 2019-2020 (“pre-pandemic”) and 2020-2021 (“during pandemic”) years. This finding is contrary to the perceived productivity between women and men and indicates that our perceptions may not always match reality. Although women and men are publishing at nearly identical rates based on their proportions within our field, women are harder on themselves. Support structures should be focused on women and early-career researchers as their more negative perception of self-productivity can lead to mental health issues and a lack of confidence.  