bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Major elements, nutrients, and plankton biomass in the ice edge and an offshore region of the Indian Ocean sector of the Southern Ocean
Authors: Shirodkar P. V. , Goes J. I. , Alagarsamy R. , Fondekar S. P. 
Published: October 2009

AbstractPhysico-chemical and biological studies during the austral summer of 1986–87 in the ice-edge and a region offshore of Antarctica indicated significant spatial differences in concentrations of nutrients, dissolved oxygen (DO), Ca, Mg, and chlorophyll a, and in the rates of primary production. The waters within the ice-edge region were richer in nutrients and DO and showed a four-fold increase in chlorophyll a(1.98 mg m-3) and a 10-fold increase in primary productivity (0.74 mg C m-3 h-1) as compared with offshore waters. In the ice-edge region, Mg was high (1319 mg kg-1), whereas values of Ca (421.7 mg kg-1) were within the normal range. Offshore Ca (423.8 mg kg-1) and Mg (1297 mg kg-1) were within the expected limits. In the ice-edge region, Ca/Cl varied from 0.0202 to 0.0229, with a mean of 0.0220, and Mg/Cl varied from 0.0637 to 0.0737, with a mean of 0.0687. These figures were slightly higher than those offshore (Ca/Cl: 0.0205 to 0.0224, mean 0.0214; Mg/Cl: 0.0630 to 0.0693, mean 0.0657), indicating the addition of Mg to the waters in the ice-edge region. Nutrients in the ice-edge region showed increasing concentrations at deeper levels irrespective of their relationship with DO, indicating large amounts of preformed nutrients, a characteristic of Antarctic waters attributable to intense upwelling. Chlorophyll a showed a direct relation with primary productivity and an inverse relation with Mg, suggesting the release of Mg from biogenic matter. Offshore, phosphate-phosphorus (PO4-P) was significantly correlated with nitrate-nitrogen (NO3-N) and inversely correlated with primary productivity and chlorophyll a, indicating the utilization of PO4-P during high production. Significantly elevated concentrations of chlorophyll a, primary productivity and Mg, marked by a considerable decrease in nutrients, were observed at a frontal zone between 64° and 62°S.
Accident and risk evaluation on Finnish Antarctic expeditions
Authors: Pekkarinen Anneli , Soini Sinikka , Hassi Juhani , Laapio Heikki 
Published: October 2009

AbstractThe first Finnish expedition to the Antarctic, made in 1988–89, included five men. The second, a year later, included 57, mostly researchers. Accidents that occurred during the expeditions were recorded by a medical doctor and their incidence rate and severity were estimated. The few accidents that occurred did not cause disability. Some 20 risk factors were evaluated from two questionnaires filled out during the journeys to and from Antarctica, using a scale from extremely safe to extremely unsafe. Working conditions were judged safer than had been expected, as were weather factors (wind, temperature, ice and snow circumstances). The most dangerous items identified, in order of importance, were moving along unmarked routes, weariness, unexpected dangers, hurry and tight schedules, and snow and ice. During the homeward journey, equipment for communication and for moving as well as personal equipment were judged more dangerous than had been expected in advance. Preparations for future expeditions should give more attention to these factors.
Development of a sea-ice workstation for the automated monitoring of sea ice
Authors: Boardman Diane , Darwin David , Martin Jolyon , Mclntyre Neil , Sullivan Ken 
Published: October 2009

AbstractUK-based operations that range from ship routing and resource exploration to weather forecasting and glaciology have direct and growing interests in the oceans of the polar regions. Typically, information describing sea-ice conditions in localised regions is required on short time scales. To explore this market, the UK's Defence Research Agency, as part of a programme of the British National Space Centre, has commissioned the development of a prototype sea-ice workstation by a consortium led by Earth Observation Sciences Ltd.The sea-ice workstation (SIWS) uses data from several current earth observation sensors, thereby combining the advantages of regional survey, all-weather capability, and high-resolution imagery. The workstation has been designed to run with a minimum of operator intervention in order to optimise speed of operation and ensure consistency of results. The geophysical processing chains generate charts of the ice edge, ice type, ice concentration, ice-motion vectors, and sea-surface temperatures.Although taking full advantage of developments made elsewhere, the project has also made significant progress in research into the automated mapping of ice types. Existing ice-motion algorithms have been significantly enhanced as well. Considerable emphasis is being placed on the validation of the results from the system in order to assess their quality, this being one of the major concerns of potential users. The sea-ice workstation was completed in July 1994 and will form the basis for a series of evaluations that are intended to assess the value of the system for mapping and monitoring sea ice.
Atmospheric temperature variability in the Arctic as revealed in a TOVS data record
Authors: Khalsa Siri Jodha Singh , Key Jeffrey R. 
Published: October 2009

AbstractThe Earth's high-latitude regions are of critical importance in many climate-change scenarios, but a time continuous, spatially complete, and well-calibrated record of tropospheric temperatures is needed in order to assess past and future climate changes. Studies of recently compiled upper-air data sets show no evidence of CO2-induced warming, but the spatial pattern of tropospheric temperature variability in the Arctic has not been thoroughly examined. This study analyzes a 108-month segment of the data record from the TIROS Operational Vertical Sounder (TOVS) aboard NOAA polar-orbiting satellites to examine both the spatial and temporal variability of atmospheric temperature in the Arctic.Temperature retrievals based on clear-column radiances archived at NOAA/NESDIS were done using algorithms tuned to Arctic conditions. The retrieved temperatures compared well with Arctic rawinsonde data, and include lowlevel inversions that are often problematic for satellite retrievals. The amplitude of the seasonal cycle in 500 mbar temperatures from the TOVS, NMC, and rawinsonde data generally agreed, whereas the phase comparisons produced mixed results. Principal component analyses of the TOVS and NMC temperatures revealed both monopole and dipole spatial patterns in the component loadings. Spatial patterns of the correlation between the upper-air data and the TOVS retrievals were similar to the principal component loading patterns. Whereas no significant trends were found in the station data for the same period as the TOVS record, a significant negative trend could be seen in the first principal component scores of the TOVS retrievals.
Remote sensing, a tool for reindeer range land management
Authors: Colpaert Alfred , Kumpula Jouko , Nieminen Mauri 
Published: October 2009

AbstractThe Finnish reindeer-herding area lies in the northern boreal forest zone. The herding area is divided into 57 reindeer management districts with a total area of 114,355 km2 (excluding water areas). The official number of reindeer in the year 1992 was 263,789, or 2.3 reindeer per square kilometre. In 1946 the density was only about one reindeer per square kilometre. The increased pressure on the mid-winter lichen pastures has reduced the volume of lichen. Also the decreased area of old coniferous forests with arboreal lichens has diminished the supply of food during the late-winter months. The lack of suitable winter pastures has led to the need for supplementary feeding with hay.The intention of this study was to develop and test methods for cost-effective reindeer range land inventory and to assess the present state of pastures in seven districts. Use was made of Landsat 5 TM satellite imagery that was processed with remote sensing and GIS software. The analysis of well-known field sites proved the image classification to be between 80 and 90% accurate. By comparing field data and classification results, estimates can be made on the available fodder reserves in the different pasture types. The results show that mid-winter pastures are both scarce and degraded in six of the seven areas investigated. Only one area (Muotkatunturi) has mid-winter pastures in reasonably good condition. Late-winter pastures with arboreal lichens are more widespread than mid-winter pastures and determine the amount of additional winter feeding required. Summer pastures are abundant in all seven reindeer-herding districts and are therefore not a limiting factor. The method used is objective, inexpensive, and fast when compared to conventional methods. Information can be produced on the quantity and quality of reindeer pastures. This knowledge can be used to make better estimates of the natural grazing capacity of reindeer districts in Finland.
Merging remotely sensed data with geophysical models
Authors: Searcy Craig , Dean Ken , Stringer William 
Published: October 2009

AbstractGeophysical models are usually derived from the idealistic viewpoint that all required external parameters are, in principle, measurable. The models are then driven with the best available data for those parameters. In some cases, there are few measurements available, because of factors such as the location of the phenomena modeled. Satellite imagery provides a synoptic overview of a particular environment, supplying spatial and temporal variability as well as spectral data, making this an ideal source of data for some models. In other cases, although frequent satellite-image observations are available, they are of little use to the modeler, because they do not provide values for the parameters demanded by the model. This paper contains two examples of geophysical models that were derived expressly to utilize measurements and qualitative observations taken from satellite images as the major driving elements of the model. The methodology consists of designing a model such that it can be ‘run’ by numerical data extracted from image data sets, and using the image data for verification of the model or adjustment of parameters. The first example is a thermody namic model of springtime removal of nearshore ice from an Arctic river delta area, using the Mackenzie River as a study site. In this example, a multi-date sequence of AVHRR images is used to provide the spatial and temporal patterns of melt, allowing the required physical observations in the model to be parameterized and tested. The second example is a dynamic model simulating thq evolution of a volcanic ash cloud under the influence of atmospheric winds. In this case, AVHRR images are used to determine the position and size of the ash cloud as a function of time, allowing tuning of parameters and verification of the model.
Polar-glow aurora observed from Spitsbergen
Authors: Simmons D. A. R. , Henriksen K. 
Published: October 2009

AbstractPolar-glow aurora is a diffuse type of polar-cap event that follows bombardment of the auroral ionosphere with high-energy protons from ‘cosmic ray’ flares at times of great solar and geomagnetic activity. Observations of five polar glows are presented together with details of the circumstances surrounding their occurrence. The first three glows were associated with enhanced solar activity between 3 and 15 February 1986 and the fourth and fifth glows with enhanced solar activity between 3 December 1993 and 10 February 1994. Despite the fact that the flares associated with the latter solar outburst were much smaller than those associated with the former, both periods of solar activity showed equally marked geophysical, geomagnetic, and auroral activity.
Polar tourism regulation strategies: controlling visitors through codes of conduct and legislation
Authors: Johnston Margaret E. 
Published: October 2009

AbstractControlling visitor impacts in polar regions continues to be important in both the Antarctic and Arctic. Concerns relate to impacts on the physical environment, cultural heritage, and host communities or scientific bases, as well as a recognition that safety and liability are major issues for governments, commercial operators, and local populations. Strategies for controlling tourists include visitor and operator codes and formal legislation. This paper summarises several approaches to visitor regulation in polar regions in order to illustrate the ways in which concerns about tourist impacts are being addressed. Similar issues arise throughout the polar regions, although in some places a particular emphasis might indicate a specific area of concern for a community, region, nation, or segment of the tourism industry. While a comprehensive strategy might be appropriate in many respects in the Arctic, it is also important to acknowledge the significance of more specific concerns. This paper first describes regulation of tourist behaviour and considers general issues of strategy effectiveness. Then it examines the approaches to visitor regulation used in the Antarctic and on S valbard as examples that may be of use in the further development of strategies in the Arctic. The paper then discusses an evolving strategy for control in the Northwest Territories, Canada. This strategy differs from these other approaches in that it targets a specific segment of the visitor population: those undertaking adventure expeditions.
John Biscoe's meteorological and oceanographic observations in the Southern Ocean, 1830–1832
Authors: Rubin Morton J. 
Published: October 2009

AbstractJohn Biscoe's voyage of discovery in the ships Tula and Lively, undertaken at the directive of the owners of the firm Messrs Enderby between 1830 and 1833, was the third expedition to circumnavigate Antarctica at a high latitude. This paper presents a digest and assessment of meteorological and oceanographic data recorded by Biscoe on that voyage. These observations, which are not normally easily accessible, substantiate the reputation of Biscoe as an assiduous and careful observer, and, when compared, they expand on the observations made during earlier circumnavigations by James Cook (1772–1775) and Thaddeus Bellingshausen (1819–1821).
Measurements of precipitation and snow pack at Russian North Pole drifting stations
Authors: Colony Roger , Radionov Vladimir , Tanis Fred J. 
Published: October 2009

AbstractThe Russian Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute (AARI) has conducted long-term meteorological studies over the Arctic basin and adjacent Siberian seas. Standard measurements of precipitation and snow geophysical properties were made, consistent with methods recommended by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). An extensive set of snow and precipitation data has been collected during the last 40 years and has been assembled into a digital database. These data are now kept at the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) and World Data Center A for Glaciology. The geophysical properties of snow and sea ice together affect the conductive, turbulent, and radiative energy exchanges between the ocean and atmosphere. The spatial and temporal variations in these exchanges have an impact on virtually all the physical processes operating across this interface. This paper describes some of the basic characteristics of these snow and precipitation data, including seasonal and interannual variability.
Evaluating the effectiveness of visitor-regulation strategies for polar tourism
Authors: Johnston Margaret E. 
Published: October 2009

AbstractThe regulation of tourism in polar areas is increasingly of concern to scientists, policy makers, tourists, and tourist operators who wish to control negative impacts and promote positive ones. Given the growing emphasis on finding and using appropriate ways to control visitors to the polar regions, it is important to examine issues related to the effectiveness of individual measures of regulation and the broader strategies that are in effect in these places. This paper examines the effectiveness of visitor-regulation strategies by outlining a two-step approach to evaluation. The initial step should involve determining the nature and attributes of the measures that make up the strategy. Commonalities, differences, constraints, and complementarity in these measures must be assessed. Particular attributes outlined in the paper, such as scale of jurisdiction and degree of restrictiveness, can be examined to assess the compatibility and consistency of the measures, which have implications for overall strategy effectiveness. While it may be appropriate to evaluate individual measures further using a goal-achievement approach, the paper recommends evaluating strategies through a conceptual approach based on criteria related to the characteristics of an effective strategy. Four are described in the paper: comprehensiveness, enforceability, outcomes, and appropriateness.
The United Nations and Antarctica, 1996: maintaining consensus towards the millennium
Authors: Beck Peter J. 
Published: October 2009

AbstractThe thirteenth UN session on the ‘Question of Antarctica,’ held at the close of 1996, saw the reaffirmation of the consensus approach restored in 1994. One brief session of the First Committee, followed by the General Assembly's adoption of resolution A51/56 without a vote, signified the continued acceptance by UN members, including Antarctic Treaty Parties (ATPs), of the benefits of an agreed approach towards the ‘Question of Antarctica.’ Resolution A51/56, acknowledging the broader international community's interest in the continent, marked the ATPs' willingness to allow a limited UN role in Antarctica. UN members, identifying the merits of further research on environmental and scientific questions, pressed the case for a comprehensive report on the state of the Antarctic environment, as discussed at recent Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meetings. The ‘Question of Antarctica,’ having moved from annual to biennial UN discussions in 1994, has now been put on a three-year cycle; thus, it will not be placed on the UN agenda again until the close of 1999.
Tourism on Svalbard
Authors: Viken Arvid , Jørgensen Frigg 
Published: October 2009

AbstractThis article gives an overview of tourism on Svalbard. Tourism to this archipelago, which is under the jurisdiction of Norway, started more than 100 years ago. As a modern industry, however, the end of 1980s can be seen as the starting period. Since 1990, tourism development has been given priority by the Norwegian government, and there has been a significant increase both in commercial activities and in the number of tourists. Early and recent tourism developments are presented. In 1996 tourism accounted for almost 200 jobs, 48,000 commercial overnights, around 12,000 airborne tourists, and between 15,000 and 20,000 cruise-ship passengers. The article then describes the most frequent types of tourists, and discusses tourism's impact on the environment. So far, tourism has not produced many documented problems on biota and heritage. Tourism regulation on Svalbard is also described, showing a multitude of means and arrangements, including a proactive self-regulation by the tourism industry. The future challenges, particularly the questions connected to the limits of volume, are discussed. There is a broad understanding of the need of an active policy from the authorities to cope with these questions. The article concludes by referring to the increased emphasis on environmental questions in the Norwegian politics concerning Svalbard, which probably also indicates a willingness to intervene with tourism development.
Cooperative action between fishermen and inspectors in the Svalbard Zone
Authors: Hønneland Geir 
Published: October 2009

AbstractThis article demonstrates that, similar to the many cases of self-regulation of local commons, it is in certain conditions also possible to manage an international ocean-fishery without the use of direct coercion. The case study from the Svalbard Zone supports the argument of cooperative action theory: that a limited number of participants, rules at least partly designed by the users themselves, and a system of graduated punishment contribute to compliance with established rules. Based on observational data as well as in-depth interviews with Norwegian and Russian fishermen in the area, it seems particularly fruitful to conceive of the Norwegian Coast Guard not only as a state enforcement body in the Svalbard Zone, but its representatives also as constituent parts of a social system, a ‘seafaring community,’ in the area. When, due to jurisdictional dispute, it has been impossible to rely fully on external regulation in the area, the Coast Guard has taken upon itself the role of the mediator, admittedly representing state interests, but nevertheless aimed at achieving consensus with the fishing fleet on important regulation issues. Hence, the internal authority of this Arctic Ocean fisheries lies above all in the interface between fishermen's and inspector's arguments, and in the social relations accompanying the exchange of professional opinions.
Reindeer herding and petroleum development on Poluostrov Yamal: sustainable or mutually incompatible uses?
Authors: Forbes Bruce C. 
Published: October 2009

AbstractThe Yamal Nenets have exploited reindeer via hunting and/or husbandry in northwest Siberia for several hundred years, although wild reindeer have been virtually absent on Poluostrov Yamal since the early 1900s. Nonetheless, the region retains large populations of wild animals, indicating that nomadic pastoralists, semi-domestic animals, and wildlife were not competing vigorously for resources or space prior to industrialization. Natural-gas development is a relative newcomer to the region, but has already had a significant impact on the bio-physical and socioeconomic environments. The withdrawal of lands for industrial infrastructure, in addition to direct and cumulative impacts from three decades of exploration, has led to a serious decline in the quantity and quality of the remaining tundrasuitable for reindeer pasture.Available records indicate that some preferred fur-bearing game species have been significantly reduced in recent years, primarily by non-natives. At the same time, it appears that extensive grazing by the reindeer themselves is having an overall negative effect on the area's pastures. Specifically, reindeer grazing is resulting in the thinning of the organic layer on well-drained ground and the exposure of fine-grained sands. The surfaces of these patches are highly erodable and unstable, therefore spreading easily as long as they remain unvegetated. The significant expansion of such areas is a genuine threat as long as, first, industrial development continues to degrade the land, and, second, the numbers of reindeer remain at current levels or increase.
Stone Age settlement on Svalbard? A re-evaluation of previous finds and the results of a recent field survey
Authors: Bjerck Hein B. 
Published: October 2009

AbstractIt is much easier to doubt than it is to believe in the existence of prehistoric hunters on Svalbard. Few researchers categorically deny the possibility of early settlers in this region, yet fewer still advocate the possibility. Since Christiansson and Simonsen (1970) presented artifacts discovered on Svalbard that may date from the Stone Age, no one has undertaken further serious survey work for prehistoric settlements on Svalbard.In this article the research history of prehistoric archaeology on the archiepelago is reviewed, the artifacts from the Christiansson and Simonsen study are re-examined, and the results of field surveys conducted in Bellsund during the summer of 1997 are presented. The investigation produced a negative result. The test area was one of the richest and most stable contemporary hunting areas on Svalbard, and it is proposed, therefore, that this survey provides a qualified basis for concluding that circumpolar hunting groups did not settle in Svalbard.