bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Mantle-related late Cenozoic surface uplift in NW Iberia revealed by 10Be cosmogenic nuclide dating and non-linear river profile inversion
Authors: Babault Julien , Figueiredo Paula , Owen Lewis A. , Fullea Javier , Negredo Ana , Arroucau Pierre , Bodet Ludovic , Charco María , Van Den Driessche Jean , Caffee Marc
Published: March 2024

During the last decade there has been an increase in the study of transient topography because it gives information about surface uplift history. The onset of transient topography forms after a gain in potential energy which leads to the creation of slopes at the outlet of catchment. It is followed by a wave of transient erosion that propagates upstream along the main river, then across tributaries, and from the tributaries to the hillslopes. Records of incision history such as topographic data and landform dating can be gathered into inversion schemes to reconstruct base-level fall and uplift history. In this study, we employ a reversible jump Markov chain Monte Carlo Bayesian algorithm to perform an inversion of topographic data, landform dates, and erosion rates in order to unravel surface uplift history. By adopting a probabilistic approach, we generate an ensemble of solutions that comprise various combinations of model parameters. This methodology enables us to estimate uncertainties in the timing and amount of changes in uplift rates. In the forward model we use the non-linear analytical solutions of the stream power incision model that states that incision I = KAmSn is simply a function of S, the local channel gradient, and A, drainage area above that point and K incapsulates climatic conditions, geometrical and hydraulic characteristics of the stream, bedrock resistance to erosion. Our inversion is constrained by new river-sands 10Be cosmogenic nuclide data, and by incision rates derived from river terraces from the literature. Millennial scale erosion rates and topographic metrics helps us to calibrate the empirical scaling parameters of the stream power incision law. We apply our model to the Atlantic rivers draining NW Iberia where canyons are incised in low-relief erosional surfaces that developed in the last 100 Ma. We show that the transient topography is compatible with a regional late Cenozoic uplift of several hundreds of meters, most likely in response to a mantle-related continental-scale uplift.
Can we estimate snow accumulation and melt across climates using simple temperature-index modelling?
Authors: Fontrodona-Bach Adrià , Larsen Josh , Schaefli Bettina , Woods Ross
Published: March 2024

There are two main limitations to understanding large-scale impacts of environmental change on snow resources, 1) observational snow data at the point scale is highly limited, and 2) extrapolation using models can be challenging due to data availability and performance. This study seeks to address these limitations using widely available climate network data combined with a temperature-index snow model to derive large-scale estimates of mean snow water equivalent conditions across the Northern Hemisphere. Temperature-index modelling is a common approach for simulating snow accumulation and melt in hydrological models. Many studies use this method because of its simplicity, efficiency, and generally good performance if properly calibrated. The approach relies on three assumptions and parameters, namely the snowfall and snowmelt temperature thresholds and the degree-day factor. At scales beyond single gauged catchments, the estimation of these parameters was difficult to date due to a lack of observations on snowmelt. Using the new Northern Hemisphere snow water equivalent dataset (NH-SWE) and co-located climate network observations of temperature and precipitation, this work provides the first large-scale evaluation of temperature-index melt model assumptions and parameters across a diverse range of snow climates. Our study reveals the 0°C as snowfall air temperature threshold captures most snowfall events, especially in cold climates, but risks missing 13% of snowfall events, especially in climates hovering at near-freezing temperatures. Similarly, a snowmelt air temperature threshold of 0°C performs well for most daily snowmelt observations but may incorrectly identify the onset of the melt season too early. Estimated degree-day factors converge towards 3-5 mm/°C/day for deeper snowpack climates (> 300 mm), but their estimation may be more challenging for colder climates with shallower snowpacks (< 300 mm), conditions where the degree-day factors have much higher interannual variability. For estimating mean values of seasonal snow onset and snowmelt season onset and mean snow accumulation at a given location, the temperature-index melt model performs consistently well on average despite its simplicity, but challenges may arise due to warm biases in temperature records or solid precipitation undercatch, mainly over higher elevation areas. This study provides valuable insights into temperature-index melt modelling for large-scale applications, and the results should help refine modelling approaches to enhance our understanding of snowpack responses to global warming.
Global Sedimentary and Crustal Thickness Constraints: Implications for Lithosphere-Asthenosphere Dynamics.
Authors: Holdt Megan , White Nicky
Published: March 2024

Sedimentary and crustal thickness constraints are important for a wide range of geological and geophysical applications, including: a) measuring dynamic topography; b) calculating heat flow; c) generating seismic tomographic models; d) improving predictions of resource distribution; and e) accurately assessing seismic hazards. In this contribution, we present the methodology and preliminary results of an ongoing study to improve sedimentary and crustal thickness constraints in the continental realm. Active-source seismic experiments and well data provide high-accuracy constraints for total sedimentary thickness. Interpolation between sedimentary thickness measurements is undertaken using a minimum curvature gridding algorithm. We investigate the impact of varying the grid resolution across a range of sedimentary basins, and demonstrate that a high-resolution grid (e.g., ~ 0.03 degrees) is crucial in order to capture lateral heterogeneity. We define crustal thickness as the vertical distance between the base of the sediment (i.e. top basement) and the Moho. Our new sedimentary thickness estimates constrain the top basement while measurements from a new publication of active- and passive-source seismic data are used to constrain Moho depth. Resulting crustal thickness estimates show relatively thin crust beneath a number of continental sedimentary basins. We investigate whether our new estimates of sedimentary and crustal thickness can improve predictions of surface heat flow. Our results demonstrate that constraints of the outermost layers of the Earth are important for understanding the interaction between crust, lithosphere and asthenospheric mantle.
Uncovering Lāna’i's hidden heat: geophysical insights on the subsurface hydrothermal activity of this Hawaiian island 
Authors: Bolós Xavier , Lautze Nicole , Boijseauneau Mario , Telwar Mattox
Published: March 2024

The Hawaiian Islands, characterized by volcanic activity and complex hydrogeological systems, encounter energy challenges due to reliance on imported fossil fuels. Therefore, exploring geothermal sources is crucial for sustainable development, given the islands' isolation. Simultaneously, understanding freshwater reservoirs is vital for sustainable water resource management. This multidisciplinary study on Lāna’i Island integrates geophysical, groundwater, and mineralogical data, unveiling insights into concealed deep hydrothermal activity and its heat source. Correlations observed in newly acquired self-potential (SP) data combined with earlier gravity and magnetotellurics (MT) data reveal the presence of a hydrothermal upflow, perhaps originating from deep magma reservoirs beneath the Pālāwai caldera. The concealed hydrothermal system emerges as a potential geothermal resource at >2 km depth, requiring further deep drilling research to confirm its presence. In addition, XRD analysis reveals varying degrees of hydrothermal alteration, indicating high temperatures during fluid-rock interactions. The alignment of surface alteration with current upflow zones suggests an active hydrothermal system persists in the caldera faults since the shield-building stage, which causes warm brackish water within the Pālāwai basin. This prompts a discussion about the possible presence of a geothermal resource. This subject has been under investigation for the past seven years as part of the Hawaii Play Fairway project. The impact of hydrothermal activity appears limited to the Pālāwai caldera and the Canyon zone, contrasting with the Munro Trail ridge area, which serves as an independent freshwater source with impounded aquifers. Understanding this convergence of geothermal investigation and freshwater reservoir analysis holds significant importance for fostering sustainability in the Hawaiian archipelago.
Influence of diabatic heating on the maintenance of the midlatitude jet
Authors: White Ian , Lachmy Orli , Harnik Nili
Published: March 2024

Diabatic heating due to latent heat release in the storm tracks plays an important but poorly understood role in the maintenance of the zonal-mean midlatitude circulation. To examine how the midlatitude circulation is maintained in the presence of diabatic heating on either side of the jet, a dry model is used to apply mid-tropospheric perturbations to the radiative equilibrium temperature profile to which the model is relaxed, constituting an intermediate step between an externally-imposed diabatic heating and a setup that allows for full diabatic feedbacks. By applying transient switch-on perturbations at various latitudes, the mechanisms by which an equilibrated state is reached are examined. In all cases, the equilibrated circulation exhibits a dynamically-stable structure where the eddies maintain a region of concentrated baroclinicity, latitudinally shifted away from the region of the heating perturbation. However, the initial response is generally very different. When the heating is poleward of the jet, there is an initial thermal-wind adjustment to the heating and weakened eddy heat fluxes, followed later by weakened eddy momentum fluxes aloft that maintain an equilibrated equatorward shift of the jet. Conversely, when the heating is equatorward of the jet, the evolution is more complex with an initial strengthening of the eddy heat fluxes and a weakening of the Hadley cell to balance the heating, in addition to a thermal-wind adjustment that immediately modifies the critical latitudes and thus, the eddy momentum fluxes. These momentum-flux changes encourage a poleward propagation of the anomalies from the subtropics to midlatitudes over 40 days, where they straddle the jet and ultimately yield an equilibrated poleward jet shift. When the heating is at the jet core, the circulation simply weakens rather than exhibiting any latitudinal shift. These mechanisms of self-concentration of the baroclinicity are discussed and compared with previously proposed mechanisms of jet self-maintenance.
Seasonal classification of North American weather regimes and their effect on extreme weather
Authors: Borkotoky Swatah Snigdha , Schiro Kathleen , Grise Kevin
Published: March 2024

Large-scale (synoptic to planetary), quasi-stationary circulation patterns in the atmosphere modulate the local weather dynamics from seasonal to sub-seasonal scale. These circulation patterns are known as Weather Regimes (WRs) and are a prominent feature in the midlatitudes. Most studies so far have focused on specific regions (such as the west coast of the United States or the European sector), and during a specific time of the year (namely the boreal winter season). Little work has been done on understanding the spatiotemporal characteristics (frequency, duration, and orientation) of seasonal North American WRs and how they affect local weather, especially in terms of extremes. This study aims to fill this knowledge gap with an investigation of North American WRs independently for all four seasons. Using a k-means clustering algorithm on daily geopotential height anomalies (de-seasonalized at monthly scale) at the 500-hPa pressure level, we identify five WRs in each of the four seasons across three independent reanalysis datasets: 1) MERRA2; 2) ERA5; and 3) NCEP-NCAR Reanalysis 1, for the period 1980-2022. Initial analysis shows that the spatial patterns of these WRs are robust but have non-trivial differences in the frequency and duration of occurrences across different reanalysis datasets. Additionally, we explore the occurrence of local extreme weather (precipitation and temperature) across the contiguous United States (CONUS) during the presence of these seasonal WRs. This study aims to improve the understanding of the seasonal to sub-seasonal variations of North American WRs and their influence on local extreme weather.
WaterCROP, an agro-hydrological model as a decision-supporting tool for irrigation water management
Authors: Chiesa Turiano Nike , Tuninetti Marta , Laio Francesco , Ridolfi Luca
Published: March 2024

Water governance runs from international organizations to local consortiums through national governance. Thanks to the implementation of water policies and laws, governments are expected to ensure both (water-dependent) food and energy security without undermining environmental protection. Nowadays, agriculture accounts for 70% of the global freshwater withdrawals, and, due to the world population growth and dietary changes, this value is expected to increase. In fact, despite irrigation systems being present only in 20% of the cultivated areas, irrigated crops account for 50% of the total world’s food production. This sets the basis for local water management requirements even in generally water-rich countries. Future alterations of the hydrological cycle due to climate change are expected to further emphasize the need for water governance as they are going to affect the availability of natural water resources.Under these conditions, an effort is required to improve national agricultural water management efficiency and to reduce agriculture's vulnerability to climactic variability. Correct water management has, in fact, the potential benefit of regulating local withdrawals from water bodies, limiting excessive use of irrigation water, and reducing crop losses due to water stress.In this framework, agro-hydrological models can be a powerful decision-supporting tool to evaluate water requirements by agriculture at different scales. In this direction, we propose the physically-based, agro-hydrological model WaterCROP. It describes the main components of the soil-atmosphere-plant continuum (such as effective precipitation, leakage, evapotranspiration, etc.) as a function of soil, crop, and period during the growing season. The hourly temporal resolution, the spatial scales (which can span from municipal to national), and the requirement for generally accessible input-data strike a balance between highly complex and simplified models. The first ones are usually site-specific, computational-demanding hydrological models that require very detailed inputs hardly available at the national scale, while the latter, being large-scale models, provide generally too coarse results for water management decision-making.We apply the WaterCROP model to the Italian case, showing its use to describe irrigation water-saving scenarios both for cereals crops (wheat and maize) and cash crops (vine and olives).
Large-scale geodetic deformation measurements of the Indo-Burma Subduction Zone from multi-sensor InSAR and GNSS: implications for strain partitioning and earthquake hazard
Authors: Shen Lin , Steckler Michael , Lindsey Eric , Oryan Bar , Chong Jeng Hann
Published: March 2024

The Indo-Burma subduction zone (IBSZ) is an entirely subaerial plate boundary, where the Indian plate obliquely converges with the Burma microplate. Because the incoming plate includes the 16-20 km thick sediment of the Ganges-Brahmaputra Delta, the accretionary prism is over 250 km wide with numerous active splay thrust faults and strike slip faults. Accurately assessing the long- and short-term dynamics of this complex region is critical for determining its earthquake hazard.However, due in part to insufficient geodetic observations in the region to constrain the 3D shape of the megathrust and upper plate deformation, the kinematics of this plate boundary zone remain controversial. Ongoing debates focus on how strain is partitioned between the megathrust and strike-slip and oblique faults, whether the subduction zone is locked, and whether the multiple anticlines of the accretionary prism foldbelt are locked or actively deforming aseismically.In this study, we present the first large-scale Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) velocity field over the IBSZ. Considering the operational nature and radar characteristics of different satellites, we processed datasets of multiple satellites spanning from late 2014 to 2023, including Sentinel-1, ALOS-2, and the newly launched L-Band differential InSAR satellite of China, LuTan-1. This approach allows us to more accurately constrain deformation across such a heavily vegetated and topographically-varied region. We incorporated updated horizontal and vertical GNSS velocities from 60 sites obtained from 2003 to 2023 to derive a three-dimensional decomposed velocity field, and then we investigated faults activities by estimating interseismic strain rates across the IBSZ. Our preliminary results reveal how strain is distributed in the region, shedding light on seismic hazard across this densely populated area.
Heat storage in abandoned coal mine shafts in Scotland
Authors: Dassow Jessica , Molnar Ian , Burnside Neil , Ewe Win Eng , Flett Graeme , Flude Stephanie , Mukherjee Indrani , Tuohy Paul , Wang Huachuan , Whittington Daniel , Yang Shangtong , Shipton Zoe
Published: March 2024

Following an increase in demand and extent of renewable energy systems, one of the most urgent challenges in the energy transition is the storage of intermittent renewable energy. Storage would enable continuous energy supply and ease current difficulties in balancing the energy grid. For example, it is estimated that the UK spent over £500 million on wind energy curtailment payments in 2023, wasting thousands of GWh during valuable high output times. This curtailed wind energy could be stored as Underground Thermal Energy (UTES) and utilised when demand increases and outstrips production. Hundreds of abandoned legacy mine shafts across the UK contain a large volume of water and concrete lining surrounded by low permeability rocks, suggesting they can be used as valuable pre-existing structures for low-cost heat storage systems. The locality, availability and volume of flooded mine shafts make them an interesting asset of energy storage for space heating and cooling especially in Scotland.The STEaM project (Subsurface Thermal Energy storAge: Engineered structures and legacy Mine shafts) is investigating the challenges and safety of heat storage in abandoned coal mine shafts that have refilled with water via a joint experimental/modelling investigation and an upcoming pilot project at a legacy mineshaft in Scotland. While the overall project includes hydrogeochemical analysis, energy systems modelling, as well as mechanical and material investigation, this presentation focuses on simulating the coupled hydro-thermal-mechanical processes impacting the shaft and near-field environment such as e.g., development of natural convection cells. Specifically, this presentation will showcase a modelling sensitivity analysis of some of the common variabilities in mine shafts (such as shaft dimension, geology and groundwater flow) to evaluate heat storage efficiency for cyclic heating and cooling. Basis for the presented model is a 3D finite element analysis with COMSOL to study spatial and temporal developments of heat gain and loss underground.
Characterizing Rock Physical Properties in the Nevados de Chillán Geothermal System
Authors: Mura Valentina , Arancibia Gloria , Browning John , Healy David , Mecklenburgh Julian , Morata Diego
Published: March 2024

In geothermal systems the thermo-physical properties of the rocks change as they interact with fluids passing through the volcanic system and during discrete events such as earthquakes and magma intrusion. To characterize a geothermal system and the flow of fluid through a sub-volcanic complex, targeted rock physical tests are needed for the rocks of the area conducted at natural P-T conditions. Here, we present rock property characterization of the main geological units of the active Nevados de Chillan Geothermal System, located in the Southern Volcanic Zone (SVZ), an area with some of the largest geothermal potential in the Andes. Six representative blocks of the geothermal host reservoir and overlying strata were collected from the volcanic basement. The main geomechanical units of this system are (from oldest to youngest): 1) andesites, tuffs and breccia of the Cura-Mallin Formation (Miocene country rocks); 2) granodiorites and diorites of the Santa Gertrudis Bullileo Batholith (15.7 Ma and 5.9 Ma, respectively); and 3) hornfels from the contact between the granitoids and country rocks. Cylindrical core samples (26 mm diameter x 65 mm length) from each block were used to quantify density, porosity, and ultrasonic wave velocities at different confining pressures. All tests were carried out at the Rock Deformation Laboratory, University of Manchester. Polished thin sections were prepared from blocks of the same orientation as the cored directions and analyzed using petrographic.Granodiorite has the lowest porosity at between 2%) to the granodiorite and 4.8 to 5.7 km/s P-wave velocities and 2.7 to 3.3 km/s S-wave velocities. The andesitic lavas have porosities ranging 3-7%, while the tuffs and breccias have porosities of 12-30%. Elastic waves velocities in the andesitic lavas are around 2 km/s faster than the pyroclastic rocks.Tests with cycles of increasing and decreasing hydrostatic pressure (up to approximately 150 MPa) show that granodiorite and diorite exhibit sharp increases in P-wave velocity (Vp). This is attributable to the stiffening of the rock from the progressive closure of pre-existing cracks. Above 40 MPa, the rate of increase in Vp with pressure reduces markedly, implying that the remaining porosity is less compliant. This is consistent with the maximum burial depth of the rocks suggesting that those cracks formed because of bringing the rocks to the surface.Finally, in terms of microstructural observations, the granodiorites, diorites and hornfels have large intragranular and intergranular fractures with very high aspect ratio, which are commonly oriented and therefore impart anisotropy. In contrast, the andesitic, tuffs and breccias porosity is higher than the crystalline rocks and is mainly composed of intergranular pores with low aspect ratios and relatively isotropic.
Analytical regional inversion system for CO2 fluxes in Poland – first results from CoCO2 project
Authors: Zimnoch Mirosław , Gałkowski Michał , Sekuła Piotr
Published: March 2024

In order to accurately and precisely estimate anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions at different spatial and temporal scales, independent tools based on atmospheric observations are required as a necessary source of information for mitigation climate change efforts to be successful. Bayesian inversion systems utilizing state-of-the-art atmospheric transport models constitute a key element of anthropogenic emissions monitoring and verification systems, allowing for mathematically-grounded method of assessing emissions based on observed mole fractions.Poland, the fifth largest economy in the EU, is simultaneously the fourth largest emitter of GHGs in terms of CO2 equivalent, owing primarily to only slowly decreasing reliance on coal for power generation.  Here, we present first results of the developmental inversion framework consisting of the WRF-GHG model run at 5 km spatial resolution over Central Europe, coupled with an analytical system in order to explain total emissions of CO2 for selected months (February and July) over Poland and Germany, the largest emitter of CO2 in Europe, for comparison. We also compare results for both 2018 and 2021 in an attempt to capture changes in emission patterns following the implementation of the various policies both before and after Paris Agreement. We also focus on the ability of the inversion system to capture changes in biogenic and anthropogenic emissions and address challenges stemming from the limited ground-based observation network in Poland.Furthermore, we also discuss the ability of the system to distinguish emissions on the national, voivodeship (admin level 1) and city scale, thanks to the additional high-resolution simulations and in-situ observations in the city of Kraków. The presented work was funded by the CoCO2 project, which has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under Grant Agreement No. 958927 and the "Excellence Initiative - Research University" programme at AGH University of Kraków. We also gratefully acknowledge Polish high-performance computing infrastructure PLGrid (HPC Centres: ACK Cyfronet AGH) for providing computer facilities and support within computational grant no. PLG/2022/015860.
Impact of atmospheric turbulence on the accuracy of point source emission estimates
Authors: Galkowski Michal , Marshall Julia , Fuentes Andrade Blanca , Gerbig Christoph
Published: March 2024

Greenhouse gases have been extensively studied due to their key role in of Earth’s climate. Their anthropogenic fluxes are of particular interest for policies targeting the mitigation of climate change, as their long lifetimes, especially in case of most abundant CO2, will have an impact over several centuries. Monitoring of emissions is a critical part of climate mitigation, as without timely, accurate and precise information on the implementation progress, any potential diversions from the plan cannot be identified and acted upon in sufficient time. The scientific community has developed multiple observation-based emission estimation methods, among which application of space- and airborne state-of-the-art instrumentation hold much promise out thanks to their ability to provide relevant data on a global scale. Modern remote-sensing instruments have already demonstrated the ability to estimate emission from the strongest sources of greenhouse gases, like coal power plants, megacities or industrial sites. However, due to inherent technical difficulties as well as basic atmospheric physics, the accuracy of any single measurement is limited.Here, using the high-resolution atmospheric model WRF-GHG set over the largest point-like CO2 emitter in Europe, namely the Bełchatów Power plant, we demonstrate how atmospheric dynamics limit the potential accuracy of emission estimation using the cross-sectional mass-flux method. We show how atmospheric turbulence affects the plume structure, and how that translates into emission estimates. We demonstrate how assumptions about well-mixedness can cause inaccuracies in emission estimates. Furthermore, through a novel application of temporally-tagged tracers, we also show that part of the CO2 plume variability is projected from the emission point across distances considerably longer than PBL turbulent scales, larger than was previously assumed.Unless the discussed effects can be taken into the account when planning, executing and interpreting measurements, the discussed effects can have potentially detrimental consequences for the accuracy of estimated flux values. It is worth noting that the presented results are of general nature and will affect attempts to quantify emissions of any pollutant for which similar estimation techniques are applied, including CO2 and CH4, NOx and others.
Debris-covered area increased in the Central Andes of Argentina glaciers over the past four decades
Authors: Ghilardi Truffa Juan Cruz , Ruiz Lucas
Published: March 2024

In the Central Andes of Argentina, glaciers are crucial components of the mountain hydrological system, as they can provide up to 60% of river flow in the driest season. This region concentrates 82% of the debris-covered glaciers in the country. Most of them are small valley glaciers (< 2 km2). Nevertheless, a few large debris-covered valley glaciers (>10 km2) concentrated the most significant ice volume. Despite their abundance and regional importance, the processes underlying mass exchange and response to climate change in debris-covered glaciers have been little studied.We process over 60,000 images from Landsat and Sentinel satellites through Google Earth Engine to study changes in the extent of the debris-covered area and Debris Emergence Elevation (DEE) for 128 valley glaciers of the Central Andes of Argentina (42.6% of the debris-covered glacier area). Using an automated classification algorithm, we identified the different surface facies (snow, ice, debris, and water) at each glacier between 1985 and 2022. We validated our classification against the National Glacier Inventory of Argentina, obtaining coincidence in the classifications in more than 94% of the cases.Assuming there were no changes in glacier extent, we found a 27 ± 15% increase in debris cover along the studied glaciers. Between 1985 and 2009, the debris-covered area had a significant interannual variation, and from 2009 to 2022, there was a substantial increase in the debris-covered area. Indeed, almost 68% of the increase in debris-covered areas occurred in the last decade. During the last four decades, DEE showed a mean increase of 127 ± 109 meters for simple basin valley glaciers. These changes follow a similar pattern but with greater interannual variability than changes in debris-covered area.The increase of debris-covered area and DEE in the last decade coincides with an extensive drought period and an increase in the glacier mass loss in the Central Andes. Nevertheless, the automated classification algorithm cannot differentiate between debris-covered ice and internal outcrops. Thus, the increase in the debris-covered area includes the expansion of internal rock outcrop due to a loss of ice mass. Furthermore, we hypothesized that hypsometry and glacier morphology control the extent and elevation debris can reach. We found that low-slope glaciers are the ones that increase their debris cover the most. Meanwhile, glaciers with a very steep accumulation area or a strong slope change around the Equilibrium Line Altitude do not significantly change the debris-covered area. Also, due to the expansion of internal rock, the calculation of DEE at large compound or complex-basin glaciers shows more significant dispersion than at simple-basin glaciers. Improving the classification algorithm and assessing the influence of glacier morphology in the changes in debris-covered areas are crucial to better constrain the change in debris-covered glaciers.
Prospects of Neutrino Oscillation Tomography of the Earth 
Authors: Van Elewyck Veronique , Coelho Joao , Deniz Hernandez Yael Armando , Durand Stephanie , Fuji Nobuaki , Kaminski Edouard , Maderer Lukas , Mittelstaedt Eric , Pestes Rebekah
Published: March 2024

Much has been learned about the deep Earth through a combination of geophysical constraints, theories of Earth’s formation, and seismic measurements. However, such methods alone cannot directly resolve the full structure of the inner Earth, e.g. in terms of matter density, composition and temperature distributions.Complementary information about Earth’s interior can be provided by small, nearly massless elementary particles called neutrinos that propagate through the Earth. Neutrinos exist in different flavours and are known to experience a quantum phenomenon of flavour oscillation as they propagate. With an extremely small chance of interacting with matter, neutrinos can travel long distances through very dense materials (e.g., the Earth’s core). For atmospheric neutrinos of energy ~GeV crossing the Earth, the flavour oscillation patterns are distorted due to coherent forward scattering on electrons along their path. Measuring the flavour, energy and angular distributions of such neutrinos therefore provides sensitivity to a new observable of geophysical interest: the electron number density in the layers of matter traversed.After a short introduction to the concepts of neutrino oscillation tomography, we will discuss the potential of this method to address open questions concerning inner Earth's structure and composition (such as the amount of light elements in the core and the nature of LLSVPs), the status of sensitivity studies, and the perspectives opened by the next generation of atmospheric neutrino detectors.
Modeling the surface mass balance of Penny Ice Cap, Baffin Island, 1959–2099
Authors: Schaffer Nicole
Published: March 2024

Glaciers of Baffin Island and nearby islands of Arctic Canada have experienced rapid mass losses over recent decades. However, projections of loss rates into the 21st century have so far been limited by the availability of model calibration and validation data. In this study we model the surface mass balance of the largest ice cap on Baffin Island, Penny Ice Cap, since 1959, using an enhanced temperature index model calibrated with in situ data from 2006–2014. Subsequently, we project changes to 2099 based on the RCP4.5 climate scenario. Since the mid-1990s, the surface mass balance over Penny Ice Cap has become increasingly negative, particularly after 2005. Using volume–area scaling to account for glacier retreat, peak net mass loss is projected to occur between ~2040–2080, and the ice cap is expected to lose 22% (377.4 Gt or 60 m w.e. a–1) of its 2014 ice mass by 2099, contributing 1.0 mm to sea level rise. Our 2015–2099 projections are approximately nine times more sensitive to changes in temperature than precipitation, with an absolute cumulative difference of 566 Gt a–1 (90 m w.e.) between +2°C and –2°C scenarios, and 63 Gt a–1 (10 m w.e.) between +20% and –20% precipitation scenarios.
Assimilation of high-resolution node averaged water surface elevations from the SWOT mission towards improve discharge estimates.
Authors: K Soman Manu , Jayaluxmi Indu
Published: March 2024

Comprehensive and accurate quantification of inland surface water dynamics is vital to our understanding of terrestrial water cycle. Declining trend in availability of in-situ gauge stations elevates a need to switch to alternate measurement sources. In this context, satellite radar altimetric observations of Water Surface Elevations (WSE) offer vast possibilities, especially in poorly gauged basins.  The potential of altimetry is expected to escalate with the availability of high-resolution point cloud measurements of surface waters from the recently launched Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) mission. In the proposed research, we evaluate the potential of node averaged vector product of river WSE from SWOT to improve discharge estimation through assimilated hydrodynamic modelling over an entire river basin in India. The study uses proxy SWOT river products generated using an Observing System Simulation Experiment (OSSE), the CNES Large Scale SWOT Hydrology Simulator (Elmer et al., 2020; Nair et al., 2022) and RiverObs software. Here, we use the state-of-the-art CaMa-Flood (Catchment-based Macro-scale Floodplain Model) hydrodynamic model (Yamazaki et al., 2011) and the Local Ensemble Transform Kalman Filter (LETKF) assimilation algorithm (Hunt et al., 2007) with a physically based empirical localization approach (Revel et al., 2019). Normalized assimilation approach is adopted to handle the bias between modelled WSE and observed WSE from SWOT. The integration of SWOT altimetric observations in river modelling presents a promising avenue, considering its unprecedented spatiotemporal resolution and accuracy. The research addresses the challenges associated with the terrestrial water cycle, acknowledging the limitations of hydrodynamic modelling and uncertain space-borne observations. Results provide valuable insights into the potential of node averaged products of WSE from the SWOT mission in enhancing discharge estimation in the context of Indian river systems. The study is highly beneficial to sparsely gauged or ungauged basins, which are very common in India.
Snow Cover Area and Snow Water Equivalent Relation in Estonia to Model Surface Water-Groundwater Interactions
Authors: Hunt Marlen , Marandi Andres
Published: March 2024

Hydrological processes, especially snowmelt-related ones, are crucial in water resource management in cold climate regions. Process-based hydrological models, such as the Precipitation-Runoff Modeling System (PRMS), commonly utilize snow depletion curves to describe snowmelt dynamics. Understanding the seasonal variability of snowmelt processes and accurately simulating them through models is essential for assessing water resource sensitivity to various environmental changes in our climate. This study elucidates the relationship between normalized snow water equivalent (SWE) and snow cover area (SCA) in Estonia, northeastern Europe. The snow depletion curves were constructed for 40 gauged river catchments using SWE measurements from the eleven meteorological stations throughout Estonia and SCA data derived from Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-2 satellite imagery from 2016–2022. The resulting snow depletion curve provides valuable insights into the connection between SWE and SCA, allowing for estimating snow water equivalent using remote sensing data in regions lacking on-site measurements. This approach enables the assessment of snowmelt processes in these areas, contributing to improved streamflow and groundwater level forecasts through hydro(geo)logical models. Ultimately, integrating remotely sensed and in-situ data enhances our ability to understand and model the complex interactions between surface water and groundwater at regional and local scales. This research contributes to advancing the field of hydrology and supports informed water resource management decisions.
High-Efficiency Rainfall Data Compression Using Binarized Convolutional Autoencoder
Authors: Traub Manuel , Scholz Fedor , Scholten Thomas , Zarfl Christiane , Butz Martin V.
Published: March 2024

In the era of big data, managing and storing large-scale meteorological datasets is a critical challenge. We focus on high-resolution rainfall data, which is crucial to atmospheric sciences, climate research, and real-time weather forecasting. This study introduces a deep learning-based approach to compress the German Radar-Online-Aneichung (RADOLAN) rainfall dataset. We achieve a compression ratio of 200:1 while maintaining a minimal mean squared reconstruction error (MSE). Our method combines a convolutional autoencoder with a novel binarization mechanism, to compress data from a resolution of 900x900 pixels at 32-bit depth to 180x180 pixels at 4-bit depth. Leveraging the ConvNeXt architecture (Zhuang Liu, et al., 'A ConvNet for the 2020s'), our method learns a convolutional autoencoder for enhanced meteorological data compression. ConvNeXt introduces key architectural modifications, such as revised layer normalization and expanded receptive fields, taking inspiration from Vision Transformer to form a modern ConvNet. Our novel binarization mechanism, pivotal for achieving the high compression ratio, operates by dynamically quantizing the latent space representations using a novel magnitude specific noise injection technique. This quantization not only reduces the data size but also preserves crucial meteorological information as our low reconstruction MSE demonstrates. Beyond rainfall data, our approach shows promise for other types of high-resolution meteorological datasets, such as temperature, humidity, etc. Adapting our method to these modalities could further streamline the data management processes in meteorological deep learning scenarios and thus facilitate efficient storage and processing of diverse meteorological datasets.
A geometric mechanism explains the shape of scallops and other sharp patterns in dissolution or melting
Authors: Chaigne Martin , Carpy Sabrina , Massé Marion , Derr Julien , Courrech du Pont Sylvain , Berhanu Michael
Published: March 2024

In glaciology, karstology, speleology or planetology, regular and periodic patterns are oftenobserved on dissolving, melting or sublimating solid substrates. One of the most common isknown as scallops, and consists of a cellular pattern of cups-like concavities surrounded by verysharp crests. They can be found typically on the walls of limestone caves carved by undergroundrivers. Yet very similar patterns form on the immersed part of icebergs, on high-altitude glaciersor on the surface of meteorites during their entry into the atmosphere [1]. The similarity betweenthese patterns, despite the wide range of materials and hydrodynamic conditions, suggests acommon and general mechanism.By comparing field measurements, numerical models and experiments, we propose a geometricapproach to explain the generic emergence of scallops [2]. We first characterize the morphologyof scallops found on the walls of a limestone cave thanks to 3D reconstruction byphotogrammetry, and demonstrate the presence of crests which can be seen as singularstructures. Then, we discuss the results of numerical models of interface propagation. Theyallow us to interpret the appearance of crests and the formation of cellular structures as a directconsequence of the fact that the erosion velocity is always directed along the normal to theinterface. Finally, we carry out a simple experiment in which patterns are created by dissolution,on the surface of a block of salt, by a solutal convection instability [3]. In accordance with ourmodel, we report the emergence of a cellular pattern of concavities surrounded by sharp crests,very reminiscent of natural scallops. It confirms that the formation of scallops is largelyindependent of the details of the flow but rather results from a geometric mechanism. Thisgeneral mechanism can also explain the common presence of crests or spikes on othergeological patterns created by dissolution.[1] P. Meakin, B. Jamtveit, Geological pattern formation by growth and dissolution inaqueous systems. Proceedings of The Royal Society A 466, 659 (2010).[2] M. Chaigne, S. Carpy, M. Massé, J. Derr, S. Courrech du Pont, M. Berhanu, Emergence oftip singularities in dissolution patterns. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences120(48), e2309379120 (2023).[3] C. Cohen, M. Berhanu, J. Derr, S. Courrech du Pont, Buoyancy driven dissolution ofinclined blocks: Erosion rate and pattern formation. Physical Review Fluids 5, 053802 (2020).
An end-to-end workflow for climate data management and analysis integrating HPC, Big Data and Machine Learning 
Authors: D'Anca Alessandro , Scardigno Sonia , Ejarque Jorge , Accarino Gabriele , Peano Daniele , Immorlano Francesco , Donno Davide , Scoccimarro Enrico , Badia Rosa M. , Aloisio Giovanni
Published: March 2024

The advances in Earth System Models (ESM), jointly with the availability of more powerful computing infrastructures and novel solutions for Big Data and Machine Learning (ML) is allowing to push research in the climate change field forward. In such context, workflows are fundamental tools to automate the complex processes of model simulations, data preparation and analyses. Such tools are becoming more important as the complexity and heterogeneity in the software and computing infrastructures, as well as the data volumes to be handled, grow. However, integrating into a single workflow simulation and data centric processes can be very challenging due to their different requirements.This work presents an end-to-end workflow including the steps from the numerical ESM simulation run to the analysis of extreme weather events (e.g., heat waves and tropical cyclones) developed in the context of the eFlows4HPC EuroHPC project. It represents a real case study which requires components from High Performance Computing (HPC), Big Data and ML to carry out the workflow. In particular, the contribution demonstrates how the eFlows4HPC software stack can simplify the development, deployment, orchestration and execution of complex end-to-end workflows for climate science, as well as improve their portability over different computing infrastructures.
Microplastics in water and bed sediments from the Baluarte River Basin: Occurrence, behavior and composition
Authors: Green Ruiz Carlos René , Hernández-Angeles Jacqueline , Rivera-Hernández Jose Roberto
Published: March 2024

Given the concerning alert about the potential high toxicity of microplastics in the environment, in recent years, significant efforts have been made to understand more about the occurrence and behavior of microplastics on Earth. Focuses of these efforts include where they are found, mainly in higher concentrations; their transport pathways; their occurrence in a diversity of organisms; their toxicity; their relationship with other pollutants; and many other questions that still need to be answered. The present work is the first one to focus on the study of microplastics in a lotic exoreic environment in the tropical Mexican Pacific region. In this study, the occurrence, temporal variation, and chemical composition of microplastics found in the surface water and bed sediment of rivers of different orders from the Baluarte River Basin were investigated. In surface waters, an average of 0.23 microplastic-like particles per liter were found during both seasons, showing no significant differences between them. During the rainy season, there was an average concentration of 0.11 particles per liter. On the other hand, in sediment, the results showed average concentrations of 139.2 and 66.7 microplastic-like particles per kilogram for the dry and rainy seasons, respectively, with significantly higher concentrations during the dry season. Most of the analyzed microparticles were fibers and had light blue and transparent colours. Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) was the most found polymer in both environmental compartments, followed by cellophane and rayon. It is concluded that, in general, the microplastics found in the fluvial system of the Baluarte River Basin may come from the discharge of domestic wastewater, agriculture, fishing, garbage dumped on land, as well as the construction of a hydrological infrastructure in the area. For future more detailed studies, it is recommended to increase the number of sampling sites at varying distances from human settlements and to explore better methods for microplastic separation. If possible, it would be interesting to implement control measures in first-order rivers of the Baluarte River Basin.