Preprints
Filtering by Subject: Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Tracing Andean Origins: A Machine Learning Framework for Lead Isotopes
Published: 2024-03-19
Subjects: Physical Sciences and Mathematics
This study uses machine learning techniques to facilitate the geolocation of Andean lead isotopes, a novel approach in this geographical context. Two predictive models for latitude and longitude were developed based on the compilation of a database of the lead isotope ratios 206Pb/204Pb, 207Pb/204Pb, and 208Pb/204Pb from multiple Andean provinces. These models were cross-validated using [...]
A review on how Big Data can help to monitor the environment and to mitigate risks due to climate change
Published: 2024-03-18
Subjects: Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Climate change triggers a wide range of hydrometeorological, glaciological and geophysical processes that span across vast spatiotemporal scales. With the advances in technology and analytics, a multitude of remote sensing, geodetic and in situ instruments have been developed to effectively monitor and help comprehend the Earth's system including its climate variability and the recent anomalies [...]
ND70 Series Basaltic Glass Reference Materials for Volatile Element (H2O, CO2, S, Cl, F) Measurement and the C Ionisation Efficiency Suppression Effect of Water in Silicate Glasses in SIMS
Published: 2024-03-15
Subjects: Physical Sciences and Mathematics
We present a new set of reference materials, the ND70-series, for in situ measurement of volatile elements (H2O, CO2, S, Cl, F) in silicate glass of basaltic composition. The materials were synthesised in piston cylinders at pressures of 1 to 1.5 GPa under volatile-undersaturated conditions. They span mass fractions from 0 to 6% m/m H2O, from 0 to 1.6% m/m CO2 and from 0 to 1% m/m S, Cl and F. [...]
Executive Summary: The Anthropocene Epoch and Crawfordian Age: proposals by the Anthropocene Working Group
Published: 2024-03-15
Subjects: Physical Sciences and Mathematics
This is the Executive Summary of a report produced by the membership of the Anthropocene Working Group as part of a submission to the Subcommission on Quaternary Stratigraphy to seek formalisation of the Anthropocene as an epoch of geological time. It summarises the content of two reports and their associated appendices which provide a background to: the history of usage of the term Anthropocene, [...]
Assessing the mean output rate (MOR) of past effusive basaltic eruptions - a look at the postglacial volcanism of the Reykjanes Peninsula in Iceland
Published: 2024-03-14
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Volcanology
Volcanological approaches for assessing the effusion rate of past effusive volcanism are of great importance, to enable proper evaluation of the eruption magnitude and past tectono-magmatic conditions which are relevant for mitigating future volcanism. The reactivation of volcanism on the Reykjanes peninsula in 2021 after an 800-year hiatus, has incited the need for assessing the potential scale [...]
Turbulence and mixing from neighbouring stratified shear layers
Published: 2024-03-13
Subjects: Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Studies of Kelvin-Helmholtz instability (KHI) have typically modeled the initial mean flow as an isolated stratified shear layer. However, geophysical flows frequently exhibit multiple layers. As a step towards understanding these flows, we examine the case of two adjacent stratified shear layers {\color{black} using both linear stability analysis and direct numerical simulation}. With [...]
Natural sampling and aliasing of marine geochemical signals
Published: 2024-03-09
Subjects: Physical Sciences and Mathematics
It is well known that the sedimentary rock record is both incomplete and biased. Correlation between geographically distinct records is problematic in the absence of absolute age constraints, which can profoundly affect interpretations of geological and geochemical data. We use a computational process model to create canonical examples of carbonate-siliciclastic stratigraphic cross-sections from [...]
The Great Oxidation Event (GOE): Biogeochemical Feedback and Tipping Points
Published: 2024-03-09
Subjects: Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Approximately 1.4 Ga after life first appeared, atmospheric O2 suddenly jumped by more than an order of magnitude over a 20-50 Ma period. The contrast between these two timescales does not seem to be due to any sudden, large-amplitude change in external forcing. However, it could be due to processes intrinsic to the geobiological system itself, namely, positive feedback between atmospheric O2 and [...]
Lunar Crater Detection Using YOLOv8 Deep Learning
Published: 2024-03-09
Subjects: Engineering, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
In lunar exploration missions, the detection of lunar craters is essential for scientific inquiry, navigation, and terrain analysis. Conventional approaches for identifying craters depend on labor- and time-intensive manual inspection or semi-automated procedures. An effective and precise way to automate this procedure is through the use of deep learning algorithms. In this brief message, we [...]
Linking local climate scenarios to global warming levels: Applicability, prospects and uncertainties
Published: 2024-03-08
Subjects: Climate, Environmental Indicators and Impact Assessment, Environmental Sciences, Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Global warming levels (GWLs) are increasingly becoming a central concept in climate change studies. In recent years, their integrative quality for climate change impact analysis has been demonstrated, and methodological advancements have helped to compensate for some inherent shortfalls of the concept. However, their applicability at the regional level is debatable, and no study to date has [...]
Evaluation of the Sentinel-1 SAR image processing algorithms performance
Published: 2024-03-08
Subjects: Environmental Monitoring, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
The following paper discussed the performance of previously developed SAR algorithms applied to Sentinel-1 imagery. The outputs of algorithms were correlated to top-performing Sentinel-2 reNDVI algorithms. The study found that Levelled and Normalized Sigma nought outperformed the Gamma Nought, and, especially, Sigma Nought, and RVI algorithms.
Assessing the Earthquake Recording Capability of an Ocean-bottom Distributed Acoustic Sensing Array in the Sanriku region, Japan
Published: 2024-03-07
Subjects: Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Sparse seismic instrumentation in the oceans limits our understanding of the Earth’s dynamics. The emerging technology of Distributed Acoustic Sensing (DAS), which can turn existing fiber-optic cable arrays into thousands of seismic sensors, has the potential to fill the data gap. Yet, the power of OBDAS for routine seismic monitoring has to be further explored. In this study, we investigate the [...]
Moving graphs: Predicting barchan dune migration rates from their shapes
Published: 2024-03-07
Subjects: Physical Sciences and Mathematics
In this study, geometric perspectives on sand dune formation and motion are summarized, introduced, and combined to predict time-averaged velocities (migration rates) of barchan dunes directly from their shapes. First, it is proposed that smaller sediment accumulations outpace larger ones due to differences in surface-to-volume ratio. This ratio is defined by a bedform’s wavelength and its [...]
Plant controls over tropical wetland nitrous oxide dynamics: a review
Published: 2024-03-07
Subjects: Biogeochemistry, Earth Sciences, Environmental Sciences, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Tropical wetlands are an important global source of greenhouse gas emissions, including nitrous oxide, a potent and long-last greenhouse gas. Tropical wetland ecosystems can be highly heterogeneous, featuring a variety of vegetation types, from grasses through to palms and mangroves. A variety of plant-mediated processes can exert key controls over wetland plant/soil nitrogen transportation and [...]
Sediment Corrections for Distributed Acoustic Sensing
Published: 2024-03-06
Subjects: Physical Sciences and Mathematics
On continental margins, sediments cause significant and spatially variable delays in seismic phase arrival times. The strong impedance contrast of the sediment-bedrock interface causes P-wave splitting that is clearly seen on Distributed Acoustic Sensing recordings of earthquakes, resulting in additional phase arrivals that must be picked separately. We introduce sediment corrections to correctly [...]