bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Sludge valorisation to obtain high quality water from WWTP
Authors: Oliver Nuria , Año Miguel , Almenar Pura , Baeza Angela , Hernández-Crespo Carmen , Martín Miguel
Published: February 2023

In the face of insufficient water resources and the intensification of extreme events caused by climate change, the generation of non-conventional water sources is an option that should become a priority. Wastewater treated is a water resource that with proper post-treatment can be suitable for maintaining the environmental quality of rivers and wetlands or be used for productive activities such as agricultural uses.Returning water to the environment in similar conditions to its original state is vital to promote its reuse and to help maintain biodiversity. In this sense, the project Integrating circular economy and biodiversity in sustainable water treatments based on constructed wetlands LIFE RENATURWAT aims to demonstrate that it is possible to obtain high quality water from Waste Water Treatment Plants (WWTP) effluents by combining Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) and industrial wastes.One of the disruptive issues of this project is exactly the use of a waste generated in the integral water cycle itself, concretely during the production of drinking water, to produce quality water from WWTP. This sludge (DWTS) has inert and non-toxic properties, so usually is disposed in landfills, not taking profit of the economic and environmental benefits derived from its valorisation. Nevertheless, the DWTS has adsorbent capacities due to the coagulant used in the drinking water treatment process.LIFE RENATURWAT plans to use the DWTS as an active substrate in constructed wetlands (CWs) aimed at upgrading treated urban wastewater. This sludge is dewatered and milled to obtain a grain size similar to sand. The DWTS reinforces the wetland technology so that it can be more efficient and can efficiently remove phosphorus and other pollutants at the same time as generating a habitat in itself.The solution includes two kinds of CWs operating in series. The first is a vertical subsurface flow constructed wetland with DWTS as a filter medium and the second one is a free water surface constructed wetland. The described system is able to remove phosphorus from wastewater even at very low concentrations, achieving an average total phosphorus concentration in the effluent below than 0.1 mgP/l. This is considerably lower than the legal limit set by Directive 91/271/EEC, UWWTD (1 or 2 mg P/l), as well as the so-called sensitive area 0.6 mg P/l. In this way, a wastewater effluent with a very low phosphorus concentration is obtained, without additional consumption of reagents, addressing one of the main problems faced by WWTP managers, which is the eutrophication of the natural environment and compliance with phosphorus discharge limits. Within the framework of this project, two pilot projects have been implemented, one in the Valencian town of Carrícola, and the other in the Los Monasterios urbanisation (Puçol).
Estimating Supraglacial Lake Area for Greenland using Sentinel-2 Images and Deep Learning
Authors: Bahrami Zahra , Lutz Katrina , Braun Matthias
Published: February 2023

Ice loss from the Greenland ice sheet is one of the main sources of global sea level rise. Surface meltwater is one of the drivers of Greenland ice sheet mass loss. Supraglacial lakes are formed when meltwater accumulates in topographic depressions on glaciers or ice sheets during the melt season. The development and rapid drainage of supraglacial lakes in Greenland have been linked to the collapse of floating ice shelves. This can then lead to increased discharge of ice from outlet glaciers and increased ice velocity. Supraglacial lakes in Greenland are studied using Sentinel-2 images with daily observation intervals and high spatial resolution. The objective of this study is to estimate the maximum area of supraglacial lakes using Sentinel-2 L1C images between 2019 and 2022 in the months of July and August. After pre-processing Sentinel-2 L1C images, the detection and semantic segmentation of supraglacial lakes is carried out using a deep learning algorithm. As large labeled Sentinel-2 images are not available and labeling the training data is time-consuming, the F-mask algorithm is used for the training data labels. The deep learning algorithm consists of several stages, and the model is validated with manually labeled data at every stage. The training labels for the next stages are generated from the most successful model of its previous stage. After that, labels are generated for all acquired images, and the maximum area of the lakes in the months of July and August between 2019 and 2022 is calculated for supraglacial lakes in Greenland sub-regions.
Pre-conditioned seismic attributes applied to deep vintage seismic reflection line: enhancing fault patterns on the Italian CROP-04 .
Authors: Ercoli Maurizio , Carboni Filippo , Akimbekova A Assel , Carbonell Ramon B. , Barchi Massimiliano R.
Published: February 2023

Reflection seismic is the best active geophysical method to constrain the geometry and kinematics of faults at depth. In some specific areas, seismic profiles derived from industry or from past research programs can be nowadays still used in seismotectonic studies to link the surface faults traces with hypocentral earthquake sources. Deep reflection seismic profiles such as the ones recorded in the framework of  the Italian “CROP” aimed shed light on the deep subsurface structures, despite the high levels of random noise hampering the seismic interpretation. Also the CROP-04 “Agropoli-Barletta”, seismic transect acquired from the Tyrrhenian to the Adriatic Sea across the Southern Apennines fold-and-thrust belt and the foreland system, is strongly affected by random noise. Various geological interpretations based on this data are available in literature, as this seismic profile crosses important active faults such as the Irpinia fault, which produced the destructive 1980 Mw 6.9 earthquake. Aiming to improve the data quality, by reducing the noise, to perform a structural interpretation of its shallower sector, we applied a dedicated workflow encompassing pre-conditioning filters, selected seismic attributes and co-rendered views. Following this workflow we have considerably enhanced the reflection patterns and the overall data interpretability, unveil a dense and complex sets of normal faults, thus imaging tectonic structures which were invisible in the original CROP-04. In addition, the master faults mapped at surface well matches the seismic signature. The reprocessed profile displays also clear low-angle W-dipping thrusts and deep regional features, contributing to better understanding the complex subsurface geology of the Southern Apennines. Our advances interpretation strategy is able to efficiently revive deep legacy data like the CROP, which are unique and nowadays hardly to repeat. New important insights across seismically active areas worldwide can be obtained reproposing this workflow in other contexts, extending to depth the surface evidences of outcropping faults as well as revealing unknown structures to survey with targeted fieldwork mapping.
The influence of transient oxygen exposure on dissimilatory nitrate reduction to ammonium and sulfate reduction
Authors: Bourceau Olivia , van Erk Marit , de Beer Dirk
Published: February 2023

The dominant pathway for of dissimilatory nitrogen metabolism, dissimilatory nitrate reduction to ammonium (DNRA) versus denitrification, remains challenging to predict in costal sediments. In an intertidal sand flat in the Wadden Sea, the capacity for DRNA seems to relate directly to the capacity for sulfate reduction. Part of this capacity appears to be due to microorganisms capable of perform both DNRA and sulfate reduction switching metabolisms according to their environment. It has previously been hypothesized that the capacity for DNRA may help sulfate reducers cope with oxygen stress, as well as eliminate toxic nitrite from their surroundings. We investigated the effect of transient oxygen exposure on denitrification, DNRA, and sulfate reduction, as well as the impact of nitrate exposure on sulfate reducers subjected to oxygen exposure. We found that in incubations containing nitrate, denitrification was not affected by transient oxygen exposure while DNRA and sulfate reduction were both depressed. Since DNRA and sulfate reduction were simultaneously depressed, this change is not due to sulfate reducers switching their metabolism. In contrast, in the absence of nitrate, transient oxygen exposure did not affect the rate of sulfate reduction upon anoxia. As expected, the rate of sulfate reduction in the absence of nitrate was higher than in the presence of nitrate. Together, this suggests that an intermediate of nitrate reduction other than nitrite, which was higher in the anoxic group, affects the activity of sulfate reducers.
Enhanced channel mobility assessed from the preservation of floodplain elements in fluvial to coastal sandstones: An example from the Paleocene Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM) in the Southern Pyrenees (Spain)
Authors: Prieur Marine , Nuriel Perach , C. Whittaker Alexander , Schlunegger Fritz , O. Somme Tor , Braun Jean , Fillon Charlotte , Castelltort Sébastien
Published: February 2023

Climate is a primary driver of sedimentary processes from source to sink. A key challenge for stratigraphic studies in deep time is to constrain how perturbations of hydroclimate in the past have affected surface processes and source-to-sink dynamics. In modern fluvial systems, precipitation and the global hydrological cycles are fundamental determinants of sediment production, transport and deposition, and have also long been shown to exert major influence on river channel dynamics. For instance, recent works suggest that increased seasonality in precipitation could enhance lateral river dynamics, through less-frequent but higher-energy flood events and decreased bank stability associated to droughts and vegetation decline. In such settings, channel mobility has more impact than water discharge on the export of fine sediments downsystem, hence predicting specific stratigraphic patterns potentially diagnostic of hydroclimate perturbations in deep time.This hypothesis has been tested by paleohydraulic reconstructions and estimates of avulsion occurrences based on facies analyses, but lacks direct assessment of the intensity of floodplain reworking. Therefore, to further test this hypothesis, we propose to quantify the degree of floodplain reworking by looking at the amount and spatial distribution of floodplain elements contained in fluvial to coastal sandstones within a source-to-sink system during an important climate perturbation.Our study focuses on the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM, 56Myr) in the Southern Pyrenees (Tremp-Graus Basin, Spain). Several authors described the PETM in many localities over the area, showing a widespread deposition of an anomalously thick conglomeratic interval suggesting a perturbation of the fluvial channel dynamics at that time. We point-counted the content of 45 sandstone samples that span the pre-, syn- and post-PETM intervals in continental channels to deltas and carbonated platform depositional environments. Reworked floodplain was identified by the presence of microcodiums and carbonate nodules. To assess whether these elements were reworked from floodplain significantly older (erosion of underlying layers) or contemporaneous (lateral erosion by channel migration), we attempted LA-MC-ICPMS U-Pb dating on carbonates. Preliminary results show an increase of the amount of reworked floodplain in distal environments during the PETM climatic event. This observation is in adequation with other studies predicting a link between enhanced seasonality during global warming and channel migration rate, and provides a new way of assessing and testing fluvial dynamics in deep time as a proxy for perturbations of ancient hydroclimates.
Development of a ground platform to measure runoff data in rivers in the brazilian semiarid region
Authors: Rodrigues Rodrigo , Costa Carlos
Published: February 2023

The occurrence of floods dates back to the history of human civilization, and in recent years it has been increasing significantly. To minimize the risks and mitigate the damage caused by extreme events, an efficient warning system must exist. In Brazil, river discharge data are produced by means of fluviometric stations maintained by government agencies. A promising solution is the application of tools that employ image-based approaches, where it is possible to determine the surface velocity of the riverbed from a particle image velocimetry (VIP) analysis. To correct the topography of the riverbed, LIDAR sensors and structure-of-motion photogrammetry (EDM) techniques can be employed in association with the tool applied to determine surface velocity fluxes. After the generation of raw runoff data there will be a calibration and treatment of the obtained data. In this context, the objective of the project is to develop ground platforms capable of performing real-time estimates of river discharge. It is expected that after the development of the data collection platform it will be possible to apply the tool in the areas of sedimentology, hydrology, water quality simulation, urban macrodrainage, power generation, among others. 
Stochasticity and fractalityin irregular space plasmas
Authors: Materassi Massimo , Consolini Giuseppe
Published: February 2023

One of the most relevant feature of turbulent fluids, included Space Plasmas, is the irregularity of the fields defining their local state (for example $\vec{B}$, $\vec{j}$ and $\vec{v}$ in the Solar Wind). In particular, time series of local quantities collected by \emph{in situ} measurements, e.g. by satellites, as well as remote sensing data, e.g. those from trans-medium communications, show scale-dependent statistical behaviour suggesting the local state fields to be better represented as \emph{fractal} or \emph{multi-fractal measures} rather than smooth functions of time and position. In this presentation, the relationship between those measured fractal properties and the stochastic generalizations of fluid models describing the plasma is traced, suggesting a possible future development of Space Plasma turbulence theory.
Surrogate wave modelling to improve operational wave data for offshore wind farms
Authors: Ashton Ian , Chen Jiaxin , Steele Edward , Pillai Ajit
Published: February 2023

The continued expansion of offshore wind as a global energy technology represents a significant expansion of infrastructure into a range of coastal and oceanic regions. Effective design, operation and understanding physical impacts of turbines benefit from a detailed understanding of the wave conditions. In order to cover the spatial extent of offshore wind farms and to ensure high quality data, some combination of in-situ measurements and phase averaging wave modelling are commonly applied. These are used for monitoring current conditions and for short term forecasts that govern crucial operational decisions. Inaccuracies in this process lead to vessels missing suitable conditions to carry out an operation, or operations being aborted due to unsafe conditions. Both of these outcomes, cost money or affect safety.This work reviews recent progress in using machine learning to develop surrogate wave modelling that can offer real-time spatial wave data leveraging a combination of in-situ measurements and model hindcasts, but without relying on continuous processing from traditional wave models. The outcomes show an improvement in accuracy of real-time wave predictions when compared to regional wave modelling, available at a fraction of the computational cost. This highlights the potential of this approach to change how wave data is provided for operational purposes, with immediate potential for reduced costs and improved safety for vessels working at offshore wind farms. The results also highlight the ongoing potential for research and development of surrogate models as part of the future of numerical wave modelling.
Capabilities of the national scale TDR soil spectrum library for predicting primary soil properties and supporting their digital mapping
Authors: Kovács Zsófia Adrienn , Mészáros János , Szűcs-Vásárhelyi Nóra , László Péter , Szatmári Gábor , Árvai Mátyás , Pásztor László
Published: February 2023

Soil observations of the Hungarian Soil Degradation Information System were carried out between 2010 and 2012 on 2000 parcels of 285 farms representing the whole territory of Hungary. 6600 soil samples were collected and measured in laboratory for chemical parameters (pH, SOM, CaCO3, NO3, P2O5, K2O, Na, Mg, SO4, Mn, Zn, Cu). The soil samples were retained and they represent a countrywide soil data bank. Very recently we initiated the spectral characterization of the stored samples. The main objective is to establish relationships between traditionally measured soil properties and spectral features to support mapping activities, which tend to rely on hyperspectral remote sensing.The soil samples are measured with a portable spectral device, namely ASD Field Spec Pro spectroradiometer. By finalizing the spectral measurements, a nationally representative spectral library will be set up, which will contain data on (i) the above listed soil chemical parameters and (ii) reflectance values in 2151 spectral bands. This dataset provides a unique opportunity for testing the predictivity of soil chemical parameters by spectral variables.First predictivity tests have been carried out to estimate soil organic carbon, available phosphorus and potassium by reflectance spectra. Partial Least Square Regression, Support Vector Machine, Random Forest and Artificial Neural Network were used due to their well-known performance in similar situations using 10 fold cross-validation for the validation of the developed models.Our paper presents the elaboration of the soil spectrum library and the first results of the predictivity tests carried out between its elements.
Machine learning-based anomaly detection for real-time monitoring of urban waste water networks
Authors: Schmidt Lennart , Weise Felix , Schütze Manfred , Grimm Phillip , Polz Julius , Bumberger Jan
Published: February 2023

Urban waste water networks are influenced by extreme precipitation events, influencing surface water quality through combined sewer overflow events. Real-time monitoring and operation of waste water networks require methods for automated quality-control of sensor data. We evaluate multiple machine learning (ML) algorithms for anomaly detection on sensor data from the waste water network of a medium-sized German city. Our focus lies on a principal challenge in practical application, the reduction of the number of labels required during model training. Furthermore, we analyze whether methods for interpretable ML can be used to facilitate real-time monitoring by differentiating between sensor anomaly (e.g. sensor occlusion) and system anomaly (e.g. blockage). Preliminary results indicate that labeling efforts can be reduced substantially, making recent ML developments promising for practical application. Interpretable ML methods aid in anomaly type distinction by exploiting spatio-temporal patterns in the sensor data. However, the results require considerable manual post-processing to be used operationally.
Response of the Jovian radio emission to magnetospheric disturbances inferred from in situ Juno observations.
Authors: Louis Corentin , Jackman Caitriona , Hospodarsky George , O'Kane Hackett Aoife , Devon-Hurley Elliot , Zarka Philippe , Kurth William , Ebert Robert , Weigt Dale , Fogg Alexandra , Waters James , McEntee Seán , Connerney John , Louarn Philippe , Levin Steven , Bolton Scott
Published: February 2023

During its 53-day polar orbit around Jupiter, Juno often crosses the boundaries of the Jovian magnetosphere, namely the magnetopause and bow shock, as well as the plasma disc (located at the centrifugal equator). The positions of the magnetopause and bow shock allow us to determine the dynamic pressure of the solar wind (using both the updated model of Joy et al. 2002 by Ranquist et al., 2020 and/or in situ data) which allows us to infer magnetospheric compression or relaxation, while the observations of plasma disc perturbations allows us to infer magnetospheric reconfigurations.The aim of this study is to examine Jovian radio emissions during magnetospheric perturbations. We then use our analysis to determine the relationship between the solar wind and Jovian radio emissions (observed and emitted from different regions of the magnetosphere, from different mechanisms, and at different wavelengths from kilometers to decameters).In this presentation, we show case studies for each typical case (bow shock, magnetopause and plasma disk crossings) and show that the activation of new radio sources is related to magnetospheric disturbances. By performing a statistical study of these crossings, we show the relationship between the activation of new radio sources (emission intensity and extension, source positions) and the solar wind (dynamic pressure, magnetic intensity, …). The final aim is to be able to use observations of planetary radio emission as a proxy for the solar wind conditions.
The slip deficit rate, slow and fast earthquake at the Nankai subduction zone.
Authors: Plata Martinez Raymundo Omar , Iinuma Takeshi , Tomita Fumiaki , Nishimura3 Takuya , Hori Takane
Published: February 2023

The Nankai subduction zone is considered as a region with a high seismic risk. Large earthquakes with magnitudes larger than 8 have occurred and will recur in the future. Additionally, several observations of slow earthquakes at the shallow and deep plate interface have continuously been being happening. Large and slow earthquakes originate from different types of frictional characteristics, mostly driven by an accumulation of interplate slip deficit. Here, we present results from geodetic observations to estimate the slip deficit rate at the Nankai subduction zone based on displacement rate data of the dense onshore GNSS array as well as that of the offshore GNSS-Acoustic stations during the period 2002 to 2016 (Nishimura et al. 2018). After removing co-seismic and post-seismic deformations due to earthquakes in other regions, we estimated the slip deficit rate at the plate interface by using a trans-dimensional reversible jump Markov chain Monte Carlo algorithm (Tomita et al. 2021). To obtain a smooth slip distribution without imposing smoothing constraints we used a Voronoi partitioning for slip parameters, in which the number of cells is automatically set during the inversion, based on the spatial resolution of data. In contrast to previous slip deficit inversions at the Nankai region, we included scaling weight factors for different types of data. The scaling factors were parameterized to be adjusted in the inversion procedure. Furthermore, we used elastic Green Functions estimated from a three-dimensional heterogeneous structure of the Nankai regions (Hori et al. 2021), instead of a homogeneous medium as previously done. We accomplished a new model of slip deficit rate for the Nankai subduction zone that complements previous models. Regions with high slip deficits agree with the rupture areas of historic large earthquakes. Lastly, the location of deep and shallow slow earthquakes agrees with estimated intermediate values of slip deficit. The slow earthquake region defines the transition between a locked and unlocked plate interface, while shallow slow earthquakes can also be generated by shallow heterogeneous patches or subsurface structures at the subducting plate.
Tsunami Ready in Italy: towards the UNESCO recognition
Authors: Amato Alessandro , Valbonesi Cecilia , Cugliari Lorenzo , Graziani Laura , Romano Fabrizio
Published: February 2023

It is well known that an efficient end-to-end tsunami warning system must not only be fast and robust in delivering alert messages to the authorities, but also ensure that these messages reach the residents and the tourists, and that they are aware of the risk and of the right behavior in case of an alert. One of the most effective tools to reach this goal is through the Tsunami Ready programme, promoted by UNESCO IOC since 2015, and a key contribution to achieving the societal outcome ‘A Safe Ocean’ of the Ocean Decade. The NEAMTWS ICG has solicited Member States efforts towards Tsunami Ready since 2020.Italy has started to join the Tsunami Ready initiative in 2020. The main steps undertaken in these two years include:1) The identification of three pilot municipalities that decided enthusiastically to join the programme: Minturno (Lazio), Palmi (Calabria), Marzamemi/Pachino (Sicily) (September 2020)2) The formal deliberations of the three Local Tsunami Ready Committees ((between December 2020 and April 2021)3) The establishment of the Italian National Tsunami Ready Board - NTRB (May 4, 2021) and the acknowledgment by IOC Executive Secretary (May 18, 2021).Since then, several achievements have been reached in all three municipalities, including updating the civil protection plans, improving the local alerting systems, organizing outreach and educational activities in schools and with citizens, also during the World Tsunami Awareness Day (WTAD). At the same time, some criticalities have emerged, due to financial and bureaucratic reasons, that have delayed a full accomplishment until now.In this contribution, we report on the state of the art in the three municipalities, and discuss the achievements and the criticalities of the programme. We envisage that the first one or two formal candidatures will be advanced later this year to the NTRB.Finally, we will discuss a proposal to extend the results of this pilot project to all the coastal municipalities in Italy, also based on the analysis of the liability aspects of such recognition in the Italian legal system.
Extension and evaluation of the Integrated Forecast System (IFS) cycle 49R1 to stratospheric aerosols and chemistry for the global Copernicus Atmospheric Monitoring Service (CAMS)
Authors: Bingen Christine , Chabrillat Simon , Errera Quentin , Huijnen Vincent , Metzger Swen , Minganti Daniele , Rémy Samuel , Williams Jason , Flemming Johannes
Published: February 2023

The ECMWF’s Integrated Forecast System (IFS) is the global atmospheric model used by the Copernicus Atmospheric Monitoring Service (CAMS) to provide analyses and forecasts on atmospheric composition. Currently, the CAMS global model includes the aerosol model of the IFS, the aerosol module IFS-AER making use of a sectional-bulk scheme, and the chemistry scheme based on a CB05-based carbon-bond mechanism, with the option to couple this to stratospheric chemistry module BASCOE. The combined BASCOE will be used operationally in the CAMS global system starting from the upgrade to cycle 48R1 planned in June 2023. This abstract focuses on further developments related to stratospheric chemistry and aerosols that are to be implemented in the future operational cycle 49R1, as well as on a first evaluation of IFS’ performances in representing stratospheric aerosols and chemistry against different datasets.Initially focussing on the troposphere, IFS-AER has been extended to include and represent stratospheric sulfate aerosol processes, keeping the existing tracers. The extended IFS-AER(strato) has been coupled to IFS(BASCOE) through the gaseous sulphuric acid tracer, to the IFS radiation scheme, and to the 4Dvar assimilation scheme. The evaluation of aerosol aspects makes use of aerosol datasets (aerosol extinction, AOD, …) from the Global Ozone Monitoring by Occultation of Stars (GOMOS, onboard Envisat), and the Global Space-based Stratospheric Aerosol Climatology (GloSSAC), based on different cases studies including quiescent and (highly) volcanic periods. It has also been tested against reference simulations from WACCM-CARMA. These intercomparisons show a reasonable agreement against retrieval datasets such as GloSSAC and reference simulations from WACCM-CARMA. In quiescent conditions, the new system showed a decreasing trend with respect to the reference datasets.BASCOE includes a simple PSC parameterization, which has been updated and tuned in cycle 49R1. In order to assess the impact of this upgrade, we evaluate the composition of the polar lower stratosphere during the winter-spring seasons ("ozone hole" events) of 2008, 2009 and 2020 above the Antarctic and 2009, 2011, 2012 and 2020 above the Arctic, with a focus on 5 key species observed by Aura-MLS. This evaluation demonstrates the capacity of IFS(BASCOE) to forecast the chemical composition of the polar lower stratosphere above both the Arctic and the Antarctic for several years with very different evolution of the polar vortex. While further improvements are desirable and will require an overhaul of the PSC parameterization, the current performance allows us to study the interannual variability of ozone hole episodes.
Modelling assessment of the potential of adaptation measures to mitigate urban heat in future climate conditions
Authors: Polydoros Anastasios , Cartalis Constantinos , Kotroni Vasiliki , Lavouvardos Kostantinos , Agathangelidis Ilias , Giannaros Christos , Saliari Maria , Galanaki Elisavet
Published: February 2023

Urbanization is a substantial contributor to anthropogenic environmental change, and often occurs at a rapid pace that demands frequent and accurate monitoring. In the process of urbanization, urban climate is modified, leading to the degradation of the urban thermal environment, manifested as overheating. Excessive urban heat has negative impact to human health especially for vulnerable groups, increase energy use for cooling and lead to poor city energy efficiency, intensify energy poverty, deteriorate air quality and result in socio-economic problems in general. Yet, what is needed is to assess the state of the intra-urban thermal environment so as to take note of the spatial variability of the links between urban vulnerability and urban characteristics. In this study we develop a climate change thermal vulnerability index based on remote sensing data and GIS techniques. In addition a multi-scale numerical modeling system is used to analyze the urban climate and thermal bioclimate in the Athens urban area (AUA) which consists of the Weather Research and Forecasting model and an urban microclimate model (ENVI-met), while incorporating a proposed Urban Thermal Climate Zone (UTCZ) classification scheme. The goal of the proposed classification scheme is to distinguish homogenous areas that exhibit similar characteristics regarding their thermal environment. Based on the above system, we also evaluate the efficiency of climate change adaptation measures under the present and future climate conditions. The system's validation results demonstrated a robust modeling set-up, characterized by high capability in capturing the observed magnitude and diurnal variation of the urban meteorological conditions. Results of the microclimatic simulations showed that adaptation strategies led to a decrease in near air surface temperature of up to 1.5 C; it was also demonstrated the necessity of tailor-made solutions per urban district in order to maximize the cooling efficacy.
THOR-DAVIS: A neuromorphic camera to observe thunderstorms from inboard ISS.
Authors: Chanrion Olivier , Pedersen Nicolas , Stokholm Andreas , Hauptmann Benjamin , Neubert Torsten
Published: February 2023

The technical purpose of THOR-DAVIS is to test a new camera concept in space for observations of thunderclouds and their electrical activity at up to a resolution of 10 µs. The scientific purpose is to conduct video camera observations of thunderclouds and their electrical activity. The focus is on altitude-resolved measurements of activity at the top of the clouds and the stratosphere above. The camera type is a so-called neuromorphic camera (or event camera) where pixels are read out asynchronously when the pixel illumination changes. The goal is to understand, under realistic conditions, the use of such a camera for future use in space for observations of processes in severe electrical storms. The camera has a high temporal resolution 100.000 equivalent frame per second and a huge dynamic range of about 120 dB and is particularly well suited for this kind of observations. The camera weights about 200g and consumes about 1.5A in operation and is particularly well suited for space applications.In this presentation we will give the status of the development of the THOR-DAVIS experiment to be conducted by the Danish astronaut Andreas Mogensen during his upcoming ESA mission Huggin onboard the International Space Station (ISS). We’ll present the design of the payload based on a Davis 346 neuromorphic camera mounted on top of a Nikon D5 camera for handheld operation. The 2 cameras are controlled by an AstroPi unit based on a Raspberry Pi computer board.Finally, we’ll give preliminary results of laboratory measurements made with the flight model. 
TGFs - "Storm Activity" relationship
Authors: Navarro-González Javier , Connell Paul , Eyles Chris , Reglero Víctor , López Jesús Alberto , Montanyà Joan , Marisaldi Martino , Mezentzev Andrey , Lindanger Anders , Sarria David , Østgaard Nikolai , Chanrion Olivier , Christiansen Freddy , Neubert Torsten
Published: February 2023

In the first two years of ASIM operations from June 2018 till the end of 2019 486 TGFs have been observed, with a TGF rate of 0.84 per day. Their geographical distribution is consistent with the three main lightning chimneys Central America, Central Africa, and South East of Asia. Figure 1 displays the ISS footprint positions when the TGFs were detected.Figure 1: ISS position for the 2018-2019 ASIM TGFs. Red circles marked those within 4 minutes of the previous TGF detected.If the TGF occurrence follows a stochastic process (each TGF is not related to the next one), the time-difference distribution between a TGF detection and the next one should fit an exponential distribution. For a Δt < 4 minutes the number of TGFs following the exponential distribution is 16. Opposite we got 85 in groups of 2-3 TGFs displayed in Figure 1 in red circles. Analyzing the apparent strong discrepancy in the number of detection in less than 4 minutes (Figure 2) and the number derived from the exponential distribution is one of the motivations of this study.We build a grid of variable dimension cell size to keep the same ISS observing time for each cell in a Monte Carlo code to simulate the TGF generation that has into account the frequency and the anisotropy distribution of the TGFs over the earth.To preserve the total number of TGF observed in Δt < 4 minutes we need to add a parameter related to the “Storm Activity” defined as the time in a cell available to generate a TGF. The model fits observations when this parameter is 7%±1%. The good correlation between model/observation is displayed in Figure 2. Figure 2: The predicted distribution of the TGF pairs (Orange) in 15s bins fits the observations (Blue). The scope of this work is to check the adopted “Storm Activity” value using WWLLN sferics database as a good indicator of storm activity.       
The effect of Neodymium-Concentration Changes in Ocean Water Mass End-members on Neodymium-Isotopes at Mixing Locations: A Bayesian Approach
Authors: Yehudai Maayan , Tweed Lucy E. , Ridge Sean , Wu Yingzhe , Goldstein Steven L.
Published: February 2023

Geochemical reconstructions of past deep water-mass structure show that the deep Atlantic Ocean basin changed dramatically over glacial-interglacial timescales and that these changes were tightly linked to the climate system and the carbon cycle. Over the past two decades, Neodymium-isotopes (εNd) has emerged as one of the major tracers of past oceanic water-mass structure. In today’s Atlantic basin, εNd patterns trace the deep water-mass structure, similar to conservative tracers such as salinity, showing more negative values in the North Atlantic and more positive, Pacific-like values in the South Atlantic. This spread of εNd values between two end-members reflects the age differences between the Archean-to-Paleoproterozoic-aged continental-cratonic sources eroding into the North Atlantic, and inputs into the Pacific from mantle-derived volcanics around the Pacific rim. Therefore, to estimate past changes in the mixing proportions of the Pacific and the North Atlantic end-members, one can theoretically use a simple binary mixing equation. However, although the end-member εNd-values can be traced through time by εNd analyses of appropriate deep sea core samples, two major issues plague the εNd proxy, one being variable and largely unknown non-conservative effects such as submarine groundwater discharge, boundary exchange reactions and sedimentary benthic fluxes and the second being unknown past Nd concentrations of the Atlantic and Pacific endmembers. Here we address the latter “paleo-[Nd] problem” with a Bayesian analysis that examines the sensitivity of Nd-isotope ratios to Nd concentration changes in the end-member water masses over glacial-interglacial time scales. Results show that even substantial variability in end-member Nd-concentrations ratio likely has little impact on Nd-isotope ratios at intermediate locations, indicating that Nd-isotope changes reflect the water-mass mixtures throughout the Pleistocene, thus supporting its use to reconstruct Atlantic water-mass structure in the past. This finding is an important step in validating the use of εNd as a past ocean-mixing proxy as it indicates that given the right location choice, where non-conservative effects are minor, the fraction of the different end-members can be quantitatively estimated using the binary mixing equation and the modern end-member Nd-concentration ratio.
WASDI, a cloud platform for Earth Observation and Natural Hazards
Authors: Nattero Cristiano , Rudari Roberto , Chini Marco , Campanella Paolo , Menapace Marco
Published: February 2023

We present WASDI, an open-source, federated multi-cloud platform for Earth Observation (EO) data that has been used successfully in several impactful international projects in the field of Natural Hazards (NH), in particular with floods and wildfires. WASDI helps EO developers turn their algorithms into operational services in the cloud. These can also be published in a marketplace where end users can exploit them. The platform automatically interoperates with several data providers. The accessible data includes observations (such as those from the Copernicus and Landsat programmes), derived products (such as the Copernicus DEM and the ESA World Cover), and the output of simulations (such as ECMWF ERA5 reanalysis). A single interface simplifies the access and thus the development of algorithms that operate data fusion using different sources.Thanks to these capabilities, WASDI is used to daily monitor floods in several South East Asian countries, in the context of a World Bank initiative to promote parametric reinsurance of the financial risks associated with floods. The extent of the floods on bare soil are mapped mainly using an algorithm developed by the Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology (LIST), using Sentinel-1 data, and integrated by an algorithm that uses Sentinel-2 data developed by the CIMA Foundation. Urban floods are mapped with great accuracy using Sentinel-1 thanks to an innovative algorithm developed by LIST. These algorithms have been deployed to the platform and are now available in its marketplace.Recently, these technologies have been used to perform an extensive assessment of the effects caused by the very large floods in Pakistan in 2022 to support the Asian Development Bank (ADB) recovery efforts in the framework of ESA’s Global Development Assistance (GDA) Disaster Resilience program.The platform features also other algorithms, such as those for the detection of active fires based on Sentinel-3 data, which have been used for the assessment of wildfires in the Greek island of Evia in 2022, and for mapping burned areas using couples of Sentinel-2 images, developed by CIMA Foundation and used by the Civil Protection Department of Italy and other countries. This algorithm was also  used to help assess the impact of the wildfires of 2020 in Ukraine, close to the Chernobyl power plant.These cases demonstrate the effectiveness of Earth Observation data, algorithms and cloud technology in case of natural hazards for prevention, response and assessment.
Rich microbial diversity in tropospheric samples above the planetary boundary layer confirms long-distance transport of potential human pathogens
Authors: Rodó Xavier , Pozdniakova Sofya , Curcoll Roger , Fontal Alejandro , Matsuki Atsushi , Tanimoto Hiroshi , Armengol Maria Pilar , Pey Irina , Vila Jordi , Muñoz Laura , Cañas Lídia , Morguí Josep-Anton , Borràs Sílvia
Published: February 2023

Existence of viable human pathogens in air above the planetary boundary layer (PBL) susceptible of reaching far-distance regions has never been demonstrated. Now ten aircraft monitoring surveys conducted over Japan in 2014 confirm the existence of a vast diversity of microbial species between 1000-3000 m a.s.l. being dispersed through wind currents for distances up to 2000 Km. Use of atmospheric particle dispersion models and LIDAR data has enabled us to confirm that under very predominant wintertime atmospheric conditions, aerosolised particles are uplifted by seasonal strong winds from areas in NE China, travel near 2000 Km away from their source well above the PBL and subside over Japan in less than 2 days. The area in NE China is covered with vast amounts of frozen decaying organic material originating from massive cereal croplands. Characterisation of microbial species attached to those particles shows dominance of known human pathogens typically originating from sewage, pesticides, fertilisers or agricultural debris from decaying organic matter. A majority of fungal taxa (over 90% concentration at times) and/or bacterial taxa (up to 67%) found therein are known for their potential adverse effects on human health. Noticeably, for bacteria less of a 30% of the taxa appearing could be identified to the species level and an additional 30% at most only at the family level. Similar numbers for fungi appear. Over 390 different fungal genera and over 340 bacterial genera showed up in flight samples comprised in the 10 aircraft transects, showing a great resemblance between flight and surface origin. Overall diversity is similar in high-altitudes and the surface when entrainment of air develops. In our study, microbial viability has also been observed as well as transport of antimicrobial resistance genes (ARG) in the cultured flight bacteria. The former constitutes one of the first evidences of very far distant transport of ARG and adds to the current known mechanisms for ARG propagation.
Local stress field spatio-temporal variations at Campi Flegrei from crustal anisotropy measurements
Authors: Zaccarelli Lucia , Delle Donne Dario , Martino Claudio , Cusano Paola , Galluzzo Danilo , Ricciolino Patrizia , Bianco Francesca , Pino Nicola Alessandro
Published: February 2023

We compiled a database for the Campi Flegrei seismic events that occurred from 2011 to 2018 at all stations available (merging permanent and temporary networks). Then we computed the two observables of the crustal anisotropy: time delay between fast and slow S-wave’s arrivals, and polarization direction of the fast S-wave. These results provide useful information about the amount of crustal anisotropy and the main direction, respectively, with this latter representing a proxy for the local stress field. We could thus obtain a picture of their spatial and temporal distributions to be compared with other geophysical and geochemical observations. In particular we could identify common features, such as change points, to several time series. This helps us in building a more complete interpretation of the volcanic system changes that were occurring during the recent ongoing unrest phase, which started in 2005. 
Characterizing major anthropogenic point sources in the South African Highveld region using OCO-3 carbon dioxide Snapshot Area Maps and Sentinel-5P/TROPOMI nitrogen dioxide columns
Authors: Hakkarainen Janne , Ialongo Iolanda , Oda Tomohiro , Szeląg Monika , O'Dell Christopher W. , Eldering Annmarie , Crisp David
Published: February 2023

We characterize major anthropogenic point sources in the South African Highveld region using Orbiting Carbon Observatory-3 (OCO-3) Snapshot Area Map (SAM) carbon dioxide (CO2) and Sentinel-5 Precursor (S5P) TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument (TROPOMI) nitrogen dioxide (NO2) observations. Altogether we analyze six OCO-3 SAMs. We estimate the emissions of six power stations (Kendal, Kriel, Matla, Majuba, Tutuka and Grootvlei) and the largest single emitter of greenhouse gas in the world, Secunda CTL synthetic fuel plant. We apply the cross-sectional flux method for the emission estimation, and we extend the method to fit several plumes at the same time. Overall, the satellite-based emission estimates are in good agreement (within the uncertainties) as compared to emission inventories, even for the cases where several plumes are mixed. We also discuss the advantages and challenges of the current measurement systems for greenhouse gas emission monitoring and reporting, and the applicability of different emission estimation approaches to future satellite missions such as the Copernicus CO2 Monitoring Mission (CO2M) and the Global Observing SATellite for Greenhouse gases and Water cycle (GOSAT-GW), including the joint analysis of CO2 and NO2 observations.
Feedbacks between basal melt and cavity geometry in coupled ice+ocean simulations of the Amundsen Sea glaciers
Authors: De Rydt Jan , Naughten Kaitlin , Gudmundsson Hilmar
Published: February 2023

Ice-shelf cavities in the Amundsen Sea are expanding as the ice thins and grounding lines retreat. To sustain ice-shelf thinning, whilst accommodating a (up to) 2-fold increase in ice flux across the grounding line, basal melt and calving rates must respond. Changes in far-field ocean temperature are often evoked to explain the sustained thinning, but there is no indication of significant trends in ocean properties over the observational period. On the other hand, internal feedbacks between changes in ice-shelf geometry and basal melt could play a role in driving glacier retreat, but these processes remain poorly understood. Here we explore such melt-geometry feedbacks using a coupled ice+ocean model of the Amundsen Sea glaciers. Under present-day ocean conditions, all glaciers, including Pine Island and Thwaites glaciers, continue to retreat, and we find significant trends in ice-shelf melt rates despite the absence of trends in the far-field ocean forcing. For example, melt rates for Pine Island Glacier double over a 50-year period under constant ocean conditions. For all cavities, the trend in melt can be attributed to a reconfiguration of the ocean circulation beneath the ice shelf, in response to changes in cavity geometry. We argue that these melt-geometry feedbacks may play an important role in the evolution of the Amundsen Sea glaciers, and they should be adequately captured in numerical simulations – something simple basal-melt parameterizations are currently unable to do.