Preprints
Filtering by Subject: Life Sciences
High temporal resolution of leaf area data improves empirical estimation of grain yield
Published: 2019-05-30
Subjects: Agriculture, Life Sciences
Empirical yield estimation from satellite data has long lacked suitable combinations of spatial and temporal resolutions. Consequently, the selection of metrics, i.e., temporal descriptors that predict grain yield, has likely been driven by practicality and data availability rather than by systematic targetting of critically sensitive periods as suggested by knowledge of crop physiology. The [...]
Dark carbon fixation contributes to sedimentary organic carbon in the Arabian Sea oxygen minimum zone
Published: 2019-05-18
Subjects: Biogeochemistry, Earth Sciences, Environmental Microbiology and Microbial Ecology Life Sciences, Life Sciences, Microbiology, Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
In response to rising CO2 concentrations and increasing global sea surface temperatures, oxygen minimum zones (OMZ), or “dead zones”, are expected to expand. OMZs are fueled by high primary productivity, resulting in enhanced biological oxygen demand at depth, subsequent oxygen depletion, and attenuation of remineralization. This results in the deposition of organic carbon-rich sediments. Carbon [...]
Representation of European hydroclimatic patterns with Self-Organizing Maps
Published: 2019-05-14
Subjects: Climate, Earth Sciences, Environmental Sciences, Hydrology, Life Sciences, Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Physics, Planetary Sciences
Self-Organizing Maps provide a powerful, non-linear technique of dimensionality reduction that can be used to identify clusters with similar attributes. Here, they were constructed from a 1000-year-long gridded palaeoclimatic dataset, namely the Old World Drought Atlas, to detect regions of homogeneous hydroclimatic variability across the European continent. A classification scheme of 10 regions [...]
Mechanisms of fault mirror formation and fault healing in carbonate rocks
Published: 2019-05-13
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Life Sciences, Mineral Physics, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
The development of smooth, mirror-like surfaces provides insight into the mechanical behaviour of crustal faults during the seismic cycle. To determine the thermo-chemical mechanisms of fault mirror formation, we investigated carbonate fault systems in seismically active areas of central Greece. Using multi-scale electron microscopy combined with Raman and electron energy loss spectroscopy, we [...]
Using a Superconducting Gravimeter in Support of Absolute Gravity Campaigning — A feasibility study
Published: 2019-05-13
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Engineering, Life Sciences, Other Earth Sciences, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Preparing for joint analysis of absolute gravity (AG) campaigns, this report investigates whether a stationary superconducting gravimeter (SCG) can provide a long-term stable measurement of site-dependent perturbations that help in reduction to the local value of little-$g$ and its secular rate of change. The crucial element concerns the discrimination of instrumental drift components from trends [...]
Trends of hydroclimatic intensity in Colombia
Published: 2019-05-08
Subjects: Applied Statistics, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Climate, Earth Sciences, Engineering, Environmental Engineering, Environmental Sciences, Hydrology, Life Sciences, Meteorology, Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Risk Analysis, Statistics and Probability, Water Resource Management
Prediction of changes in precipitation in upcoming years and decades caused by global climate change associated with the greenhouse effect, deforestation and other anthropic perturbations is a practical and scientific problem of high complexity and huge consequences. To advance toward this challenge we look at the daily historical record of all available rain gauges in Colombia to estimate an [...]
Paleogeographic and Morphologic Reconstroction of a Buried Monogenetic Volcanic Field
Published: 2019-05-06
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Life Sciences, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Technological advances of our modern society motivated an unprecedented necessity to find natural resources in the subsurface of our planet. The search for these valuable resources has revealed an unexpected number of ancient volcanoes buried and preserved within sedimentary basins globally. Continuous improvements in remote sensing techniques such as seismic reflection can provide a valid [...]
What has Global Sensitivity Analysis ever done for us? A systematic review to support scientific advancement and to inform policy-making in earth system modelling
Published: 2019-04-08
Subjects: Civil and Environmental Engineering, Computer Sciences, Earth Sciences, Engineering, Environmental Sciences, Life Sciences, Mathematics, Medicine and Health Sciences, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Risk Analysis, Statistics and Probability
Computer models are essential tools in the earth system sciences. They underpin our search for understanding of earth system functioning and support decision- and policy-making across spatial and temporal scales. To understand the implications of uncertainty and environmental variability on the identification of such earth system models and their predictions, we can rely on increasingly powerful [...]
New insights on lake sediment DNA from the catchment: importance of taphonomic and analytical issues on the record quality
Published: 2019-02-27
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Geochemistry, Geology, Life Sciences, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Sedimentology, Soil Science, Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecology
Over the last decade, an increasing number of studies have used lake sediment DNA to trace past landscape changes, agricultural activities or human presence. However, the processes responsible for lake sediment formation might affect DNA archiving via taphonomic and analytical processes. It is crucial to understand these processes to ensure reliable interpretations for “palaeo” studies. Here, we [...]
Current Problems of Water Supply and Usage in Central Asia, Tian Shan Basin
Published: 2019-02-13
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Environmental Studies, Geography, Geology, Geomorphology, Glaciology, Hydrology, Life Sciences, Other Geography, Physical and Environmental Geography, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Social and Behavioral Sciences, Spatial Science
The paper focuses on analysis of Central Asian hydro-energetic system and water usage in Tian Shan region. Tian Shan system is an important water resource in Central Asia: river waters are intensely taken for hydropower energy, urban systems, irrigation. But geopolitics in Tian Shan is difficult: it crosses five densely populated countries. The problem consists in water delivery between countries [...]
Living at the Extremes: Extremophiles and the Limits of Life in a Planetary Context
Published: 2019-02-05
Subjects: Environmental Microbiology and Microbial Ecology Life Sciences, Life Sciences, Microbiology
Prokaryotic life has dominated most of the evolutionary history of our planet, evolving to occupy virtually all available environmental niches. Extremophiles, especially those thriving under multiple extremes, represent a key area of research for multiple disciplines, spanning from the study of adaptations to harsh conditions, to the biogeochemical cycling of elements. Extremophile research [...]
Factor Analysis by R Programming to Assess Variability Among Environmental Determinants of the Mariana Trench
Published: 2019-01-28
Subjects: Computer Sciences, Earth Sciences, Education, Engineering, Environmental Monitoring, Environmental Sciences, Environmental Studies, Geographic Information Sciences, Geography, Geology, Geomorphology, Geophysics and Seismology, Graphics and Human Computer Interfaces, Life Sciences, Marine Biology, Oceanography, Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology, Other Earth Sciences, Other Geography, Other Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology, Physical and Environmental Geography, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Programming Languages and Compilers, Remote Sensing, Science and Mathematics Education, Sedimentology, Social and Behavioral Sciences, Spatial Science, Tectonics and Structure, Water Resource Management
The aim of this work is to identify main impact factors affecting variations in the geomorphology of the Mariana Trench which is the deepest place of the Earth, located in the west Pacific Ocean: steepness angle and structure of the sediment compression. The Mariana Trench presents a complex ecosystem with highly interconnected factors: geology (sediment thickness and tectonics including four [...]
Effectiveness of the Geospatial Data Processing and Use of Statistical Information for Proper Environmental Planning and Zoning: Example of the Šumava National Park, Czech Republic
Published: 2019-01-28
Subjects: Biochemistry, Biophysics, and Structural Biology, Biodiversity, Cell and Developmental Biology, Earth Sciences, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Education, Educational Methods, Environmental Education, Environmental Health and Protection, Environmental Indicators and Impact Assessment, Environmental Monitoring, Environmental Sciences, Environmental Studies, Forest Biology, Forest Management, Forest Sciences, Geography, Geomorphology, Life Sciences, Natural Resources and Conservation, Natural Resources Management and Policy, Other Forestry and Forest Sciences, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Sedimentology, Social and Behavioral Sciences, Soil Science, Sustainability, Wood Science and Pulp, Paper Technology
Current paper details methodology and principles of the zoning and ranging of the nature reserve area of Sumava National Park (Czech Republic) aimed at the effective planning and monitoring special nature areas.Methodology includes complex geoecological assessment of the territory, GIS application and processing of statristical data. The specific case study includes unique nature area of the [...]
Sustainability of the Marine Environment Towards the Anthropogenic Impacts in the Ecosystem of the Barents Sea
Published: 2019-01-25
Subjects: Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Education, Environmental Education, Environmental Health and Protection, Environmental Indicators and Impact Assessment, Environmental Monitoring, Environmental Sciences, Environmental Studies, Geography, Life Sciences, Natural Resources and Conservation, Nature and Society Relations, Physical and Environmental Geography, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Science and Mathematics Education, Social and Behavioral Sciences, Sustainability, Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecology, Water Resource Management
Among all Arctic seas, the Barents Sea is characterized by its unique environment and high level of the biodiversity. At the same time the Gulf Stream waters transport large amounts of pollutants in the Barents Sea bringing various contaminants and substances from the North Sea. Nowadays, there are in Timan Pechora-Carboniferous basin located in the Barents Sea with 76 oil and gas subsidies, [...]
Google Earth web service as a support for GIS mapping in geospatial research at universities
Published: 2019-01-25
Subjects: Computer Sciences, Earth Sciences, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Education, Environmental Education, Environmental Monitoring, Environmental Sciences, Environmental Studies, Geographic Information Sciences, Geography, Life Sciences, Natural Resources Management and Policy, Other Computer Sciences, Other Earth Sciences, Other Environmental Sciences, Other Geography, Physical and Environmental Geography, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Remote Sensing, Science and Mathematics Education, Social and Behavioral Sciences, Spatial Science, Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecology
The geospatial work has been performed using combination of the Google Earth imagery, Landsat TM images and Erdas Imagine GIS software. The advantage of utilizing Google Earth scenes with Landsat TM satellite imagery, along with GIS techniques and methods, for inventorying land cover types has been demonstrated for landscape studies. Combination of land cover type characteristics and landscape [...]