Preprints
Filtering by Subject: Earth Sciences
Optical wave gauging using deep neural networks
Published: 2019-12-04
Subjects: Civil and Environmental Engineering, Earth Sciences, Engineering, Geomorphology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
We develop a remote wave gauging technique to estimate wave height and period from imagery of waves in the surf zone. In this proof-of-concept study, we apply the same framework to three datasets: the first, a set of close-range monochrome infrared (IR) images of individual nearshore waves at Duck, NC, USA; the second, a set of visible (i.e. RGB) band orthomosaics of a larger nearshore area near [...]
Abrupt Arctic Warming Repeatedly Led to Prolonged Drought and Glacial Retreat in the Tropical Andes During the Last Glacial Cycle
Published: 2019-12-03
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geochemistry, Geology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Sedimentology
A sediment core spanning the last ~50 ka from Lake Junín (Peru) in the tropical Andes reveals abrupt climatic events on a centennial-millennial time scale. These events, which involved the near-complete disappearance of glaciers below 4700 masl in the eastern Andean cordillera and major reductions in the level of Peru’s second largest lake, occurred during the abrupt warmings recorded in [...]
A 2,000-year Bayesian NAO reconstruction from the Iberian Peninsula
Published: 2019-11-26
Subjects: Applied Statistics, Climate, Earth Sciences, Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology, Other Earth Sciences, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Statistics and Probability
The North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) is the major atmospheric mode that controls winter European climate variability because its strength and phase determine regional temperature, precipitation and storm tracks. The NAO spatial structure and associated climatic impacts over Europe are not stationary making it crucial to understanding its past evolution in order to improve the predictability of [...]
Wind-driven evolution of the North Pacific subpolar gyre over the last deglaciation
Published: 2019-11-26
Subjects: Climate, Earth Sciences, Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
North Pacific atmospheric and oceanic circulations are key missing pieces in our understanding of the reorganisation of the global climate system since the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). Here, using a basin-wide compilation of planktic foraminiferal oxygen isotopes, we show that the North Pacific subpolar gyre extended ~3° further south during the LGM, consistent with sea surface temperature and [...]
Urban Near-surface Seismic Monitoring using Distributed Acoustic Sensing
Published: 2019-11-26
Subjects: Civil and Environmental Engineering, Civil Engineering, Earth Sciences, Engineering, Geophysics and Seismology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Urban subsurface monitoring requires high temporal-spatial resolution, low maintenance cost, and minimal intrusion to nearby life. Distributed acoustic sensing (DAS), in contrast to conventional station-based sensing technology, has the potential to provide a passive seismic solution to urban monitoring requirements. Based on data recorded by the Stanford Fiber Optic Seismic Observatory, we [...]
Plants as sensors: vegetation response to rainfall predicts subsurface water storage capacity in Mediterranean climates
Published: 2019-11-22
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Hydrology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Methods are lacking to characterize critical zone (CZ) structure at spatial scales relevant to earth system and dynamic global vegetation models. This knowledge gap results in poor quantification of CZ plant-available water storage capacity, hindering realistic prediction of the response of plants and streamflow to anticipated changes in the hydrological cycle. Here, we exploit the phase offset [...]
Effects of groundwater pumping on ground surface temperature: A regional modeling study in the North China Plain
Published: 2019-11-22
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Hydrology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Over-exploitation of groundwater (GW) in the North China Plain (NCP) since the 1960s has many environmental consequences. However, understanding of the dominant mechanisms remains limited, particularly at the regional scale. In this study, the coupled ParFlow.CLM model representing subsurface and land-surface processes and their interactions was applied in the NCP at high spatio-temporal [...]
A grid for multidimensional and multivariate spatial representation and data processing.
Published: 2019-11-22
Subjects: Computer Sciences, Earth Sciences, Geophysics and Seismology, Numerical Analysis and Scientific Computing, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Researchers use 2D and 3D spatial models of multivariate data of differing resolutions and formats. It can be challenging to work with multiple datasets, and it is time consuming to set up a robust, performant, grid to handle such spatial models. We share a Python module that provides a framework for containing multidi- mensional data and functionality to work with those data. The module provides [...]
Simulating Electropulse Fracture of Granitic Rock
Published: 2019-11-22
Subjects: Civil and Environmental Engineering, Earth Sciences, Engineering, Geology, Geotechnical Engineering, Mining Engineering, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Electropulse treatments employ a series of high-voltage discharges to break rock into small fragments. As these methods are particularly suited to fracturing hard brittle rocks, electropulse treatments can serve to enhance or substitute for more traditional mechanical approaches to drilling and processing of these materials. Nevertheless, while these treatments have the potential to improve [...]
Stratigraphic reservoir compartmentalization: causes, recognition, and implications for the geological storage of carbon dioxide
Published: 2019-11-22
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Sedimentology, Stratigraphy, Tectonics and Structure
The impact of carbon capture and storage (CCS) in mitigating anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases is potentially great, but its success is strongly dependent on identifying suitable geological storage sites. One of the key uncertainties in this regard is the degree of compartmentalization of the target storage horizon. Many studies have examined reservoir compartmentalization in oil and [...]
Revised timing of Cenozoic Atlantic incursions and changing hinterland sediment sources during southern Patagonian orogenesis
Published: 2019-11-21
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geochemistry, Geology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Stratigraphy
New detrital zircon U-Pb geochronology data from the Cenozoic Magallanes-Austral Basin in Argentina and Chile ~51°S establish a revised chronostratigraphy of Paleocene – Miocene foreland synorogenic strata and document the rise and subsequent isolation of hinterland sources in the Patagonian Andes from the continental margin. The upsection loss of zircons derived from the hinterland Paleozoic and [...]
Quantitatively deciphering paleostrain from digital outcrops model and its application in the eastern Tian Shan, China
Published: 2019-11-21
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
The knowledge of the strain/stress field evolution in time is fundamental to the understanding of the earth dynamic system. Based on the principle that past tectonic stress should have left traces in the rocks, geologists have been trying to determine the paleostress history from evidence found in rocks for decades. Recent development of techniques for automatic extraction of fracture surfaces [...]
Methane, Monsoons, and Modulation of Millennial-scale Climate
Published: 2019-11-20
Subjects: Climate, Earth Sciences, Hydrology, Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology, Other Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Speleology
Earths orbital geometry exerts a profound influence on climate by regulating changes in incoming solar radiation. Superimposed on orbitally-paced climate change, Pleistocene records reveal substantial millennial-scale variability characterized by trends, tipping points, and rapid swings. However, the extent to which orbital forcing modulates the amplitude and timing of these millennial variations [...]
Centroid moment tensor inversions of offshore earthquakes using a three-dimensional velocity structure model: Slip distributions on the plate boundary along the Nankai Trough
Published: 2019-11-20
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geophysics and Seismology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Planetary Sciences
Due to complex three-dimensional (3D) heterogeneous structures, conventional one-dimensional (1D) analysis techniques using onshore seismograms can yield incorrect estimation of earthquake source parameters, especially dip angles and centroid depths of offshore earthquakes. Combining long-term onshore seismic observations and numerical simulations of seismic wave propagation in a 3D model, we [...]
Simultaneous measurement of aqueous redox sensitive elements and their species across soil-water interface
Published: 2019-11-20
Subjects: Biogeochemistry, Earth Sciences, Environmental Monitoring, Environmental Sciences, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Soil-water interface (SWI) hosts versatile elements speciation and controls elements cycling in flooded lands. However, the study on the element’s interaction along SWI is limited by the sampling and analytical methods available. Here with an optimized ICP-MS method and an updated porewater sampler, we succeeded in simultaneously mapping the elements of environmental concerns in every 1.7 mm [...]