Feed aggregator

Elevation Regulates the Response of Climate Heterogeneity to Climate Change

GRL - Sat, 06/22/2024 - 17:44
Abstract

Climate change represents a profound threat to the diversity and stability of global climate zones. However, the complex interplay between climate change and elevation in shaping climate heterogeneity is not yet fully understood. Here, we combine Shannon's diversity index (SHDI) with the Köppen-Geiger climate classification to explore the altitudinal distributions of global climate heterogeneity; and their responses to climate change. The study reveals a distinctive pattern: SHDI, a proxy for climate heterogeneity tends to slow down or decline at lower elevations with increasing temperatures, while at higher elevations, it continues to rise due to continuing cold conditions. Examination of climate simulations, both with and without anthropogenic forcing, confirms that observed changes in climate heterogeneity are primarily attributable to anthropogenic climate change within these high-elevation regions. This study underscores the importance of high-elevation regions as not only custodians of diverse climate types but also potential refuges for species fleeing warmer climates.

Does Increasing Horizontal Resolution Improve the Simulation of Intense Tropical Rainfall in GFDL's AM4 Model?

GRL - Sat, 06/22/2024 - 17:38
Abstract

We examine tropical rainfall from the Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory's Atmosphere Model version 4 (GFDL AM4) at three horizontal resolutions of 100 km, 50 km, and 25 km. The model produces more intense rainfall at finer resolutions, but a large discrepancy still exists between the simulated and the observed frequency distribution. We use a theoretical precipitation scaling diagnostic to examine the frequency distribution of the simulated rainfall. The scaling accurately produces the frequency distribution at moderate-to-high intensity (≥10 mm day−1). Intense tropical rainfall at finer resolutions is produced primarily from the increased contribution of resolved precipitation and enhanced updrafts. The model becomes more sensitive to the grid-scale updrafts than local thermodynamics at high rain rates as the contribution from the resolved precipitation increases.

Evaluation of Nocturnal Aerosol Optical Depth Determining From a Lunar Photometry in Lanzhou of Northwest China

JGR–Atmospheres - Sat, 06/22/2024 - 15:38
Abstract

A Cimel Sun-sky-lunar photometer (CE318-T) is designed to perform daytime and nighttime photometric measurements and calculate diurnal cycle of aerosol optical depth (AOD). Nevertheless, the determination of nocturnal AOD from CE318-T requires a precise knowledge of extraterrestrial lunar irradiance, which significantly changes with moon's phase angle (MPA) and lunar libration in a single night. This study evaluated the 1-year nocturnal AODs at Lanzhou by using three different methods, which were validated by collocated measurements of DIAL Lidar (as a reference) and Cimel software (as a proxy). The results indicated that three independent approaches could implement a similar performance to compute nocturnal AOD near full moon phase (i.e., MPA = 0°) under moderate aerosol loading. The spectral AOD values at nighttime calculated by ROLO Lunar Langley (Robotic Lunar Observatory model) and Sun-moon Gain Factor (SMGF) methods are significantly underestimated under low moon's illumination or high MPA (MPA < −47° or MPA > 47°) and distinctly dependent on MPA. The RIMO correction factor (RCF) (ROLO Implementation for Moon photometry Observation correction factor) method could compensate the underestimated extraterrestrial lunar irradiances of ROLO model for about 6.76%–9.78%, and thus greatly improve the calculation accuracy of nighttime AOD. The day/night coherence transition test has demonstrated that we would obtain a good diurnal variation of AODs at Lanzhou after RCF correction. The overall averages of nocturnal AOD440nm differences between Cimel software and ROLO model and SMGF method are 0.064 ± 0.024 and 0.052 ± 0.022, respectively, while the corresponding difference of RCF is less than 0.021 ± 0.014 for all wavelengths, falling within uncertainty range of AERONET AOD products (∼±0.02). The diurnal variations of AODs determined from RCF method agree well with synchronous results of DIAL Lidar, with total mean AOD532nm differences of 0.038 ± 0.024 and 0.023 ± 0.017 in daytime and nighttime, respectively. The spectral AODs computed from RCF method are well consistent with Cimel software, although there are some discrepancies under low AOD cases (AOD440nm < 0.30), and the overall average of AOD440nm differences are less than −0.0053 ± 0.002 and −0.0185 ± 0.013 in daytime and nighttime, respectively. Our results confirmed that the CE318-T photometer can be reasonably calculated nighttime AOD and Ångström exponent (AE440–870nm) at urban Lanzhou by using three independent methods, although the former two need to be greatly improved under low moon's illumination. The RCF method was proved to reliably calculate nocturnal AOD from moonlight irradiance, which didn't rely on MPA. A more accurate lunar irradiance model needs to be developed to improve the underestimation of current ROLO model. Long-term climatological information of nocturnal AOD is crucial for comprehensively characterizing the diurnal variations of aerosol optical properties and atmospheric boundary layer structure during the winter at typical northern city of China, which deserves to be further investigated in the future.

Evaluation of the Planetary Boundary Layer Height From ERA5 Reanalysis With MOSAiC Observations Over the Arctic Ocean

JGR–Atmospheres - Sat, 06/22/2024 - 15:28
Abstract

The planetary boundary layer height (PBLH) is a crucial indicator reflecting the region of the atmosphere characterized by continuous turbulence. Here, we use radiosonde and surface meteorological observations (4–7 times per day, year-round measurements) during the Multidisciplinary drifting Observatory for the Study of Arctic Climate (MOSAiC) expedition to derive the PBLH (PBLH MOSAiC ), and further evaluate the PBLH from the ERA5 reanalysis (PBLH ERA5 ). Comparisons between PBLH MOSAiC and PBLH ERA5 from different perspectives reveal that: (a) The overestimation of PBLH ERA5 when the sea ice concentration is >90% is significant with the centered root mean squared error reaching up to 201 m; (b) The difference between the two products is notably pronounced in cold seasons, while it is comparatively diminished in warm seasons; (c) In neutral boundary layers, differences in PBLH ERA5 are larger compared with stable and convective boundary layers. In addition, the analysis of error sources indicates that the bias of PBLH ERA5 is sensitive to the bias of vertical thermal structure and wind speed profiles in ERA5 data sets in all conditions. Finally, we find a Random Forest model effectively reduces the bias of PBLH ERA5 with the index of agreement reaching up to 0.71 in the test data set, while a multiple linear regression demonstrates comparable performance to the Random Forest model.

Revising the Basal Permittivity of the South Polar Layered Deposits of Mars With a Surficial Dust Cover

GRL - Sat, 06/22/2024 - 11:57
Abstract

Bright basal reflections from the Mars Advanced Radar for Subsurface and Ionosphere Sounding (MARSIS) have been proposed to be consistent with permittivities characteristic of a wet material beneath the south polar layered deposits (SPLD). The characterization of a recently formed impact crater highlight the existence of a several meters thick ice-poor layer associated to a unit blanketing a large portion of the SPLD. We revise the radar propagation model used to invert the basal permittivity by including a surficial thin layer. We find that the inverted basal permittivity is highly sensitive to the properties of such a layer, with solutions ranging from common dry rocks to an unambiguously wet base. We advocate toward a better characterization of the surficial cover to assess the wet or dry nature for the base, and possibly reconcile most of the literature on the topic.

Disparate Far‐Field Responses of Deep Pacific‐Plate Subduction Beneath Northeastern Asia: Implication for the North–South Segmented Crustal Modification of the Great Khingan Range

JGR–Solid Earth - Sat, 06/22/2024 - 08:59
Abstract

The far limit of a plate subduction process and its related far-field dynamic process are fundamental topics for plate tectonics. The Great Khingan Range (GKAR) in the western flank of NE China is currently under the far-field influence of the Pacific plate subduction. Benefiting from the newly deployed seismic arrays in the northern GKAR, we take full advantage of seismic data from both temporary and permanent networks and employ an improved scheme of the H-κ stacking method by introducing surface wave dispersion to obtain the integrated maps of Moho depth and crustal bulk Vp/Vs ratio in this region. Our results show that the Moho depth has a giant step near the North–South Gravity Lineament (NSGL). Meanwhile, the distribution of bulk Vp/Vs ratio presents a north–south difference roughly by 50°N, where the south subregion consists of a collage of high and low Vp/Vs ratio; by contrast, the north subregion is characterized by unified high values. The east-west structural discrepancies across the NSGL from the Earth's surface to the mantle transition zone indicate the difference in the strength of modifications between the near and far-fields from the Pacific plate subduction. The complicated distribution of the Vp/Vs ratio in the south subregion supports that secondary small-scale upwellings underneath the Cenozoic volcanic groups dominate the tectonic reworking in this area. The lack of Cenozoic volcanism and a more straightforward distribution of the Vp/Vs ratio in the north subregion might allude to a tectonically inactive part of NE China.

Detection and Characterization of Seismic and Acoustic Signals at Pavlof Volcano, Alaska, Using Deep Learning

JGR–Solid Earth - Sat, 06/22/2024 - 08:55
Abstract

Volcanic tremor is a semi-continuous seismic and/or acoustic signal that occurs at time scales ranging from seconds to years, with variable amplitudes and spectral features. Tremor sources have often been related to fluid movement and degassing processes, and are recognized as a potential geophysical precursor and co-eruptive geophysical signal. Eruption forecasting and monitoring efforts need a fast, robust method to automatically detect, characterize, and catalog volcanic tremor. Here we develop VOlcano Infrasound and Seismic Spectrogram Network (VOISS-Net), a pair of convolutional neural networks (one for seismic, one for acoustic) that can detect tremor in near real-time and classify it according to its spectral signature. Specifically, we construct an extensive data set of labeled seismic and low-frequency acoustic (infrasound) spectrograms from the 2021–2022 eruption of Pavlof Volcano, Alaska, and use it to train VOISS-Net to differentiate between different tremor types, explosions, earthquakes and noise. We use VOISS-Net to classify continuous data from past Pavlof Volcano eruptions (2007, 2013, 2014, 2016, and 2021–2022). VOISS-Net achieves an 81.2% and 90.0% accuracy on the seismic and infrasound test sets respectively, and successfully characterizes tremor sequences for each eruption. By comparing the derived seismoacoustic timelines of each eruption with the corresponding eruption chronologies compiled by the Alaska Volcano Observatory, our model identifies changes in tremor regimes that coincide with observed volcanic activity. VOISS-Net can aid tremor-related monitoring and research by making consistent tremor catalogs more accessible.

Seismic Anisotropy From 6C Ground Motions of Ambient Seismic Noise

JGR–Solid Earth - Sat, 06/22/2024 - 08:49
Abstract

We propose a new approach capable of measuring local seismic anisotropy from 6C (three-component translation and three-component rotation) amplitude observations of ambient seismic noise data. Our recent theory demonstrates that the amplitude ratio of 6C cross-correlation functions (CCFs) enables retrieving the local phase velocity. This differs from conventional velocity extraction methods based on the travel time. Its local sensitivity kernel beneath the 6C seismometer allows us to study anisotropy from azimuth-dependent CCFs, avoiding path effects. Such point measurements have great potential in planetary exploration, ocean bottom observations, or volcanology. We apply this approach to a small seismic array at Pin˜ $\widetilde{n}$on Flat Observatory (PFO) in southern California, array-deriving retrieves rotational ground motions from microseismic noise data. The stress-induced anisotropy is well resolved and compatible with other tomography results, providing constraints on the origin of depth-dependent seismic anisotropy.

3D Shear‐Wave Velocity Structure of the Crust and Upper Mantle Beneath India, Himalaya and Tibet

JGR–Solid Earth - Sat, 06/22/2024 - 08:25
Abstract

We perform Rayleigh-wave group-velocity dispersion measurements from 14,706 regional-waveforms at periods of 10–120 s, followed by ray-based tomography and inversion to obtain 3D-V s structure of the crust and upper mantle. The group-velocity maps have 3–5° lateral resolution, and V s models have ∼3%–7% average-V s uncertainty. The Moho depth is assigned to the bottom of the steepest-gradient layer with V s between 4.1 and 4.5 km s−1, and the sedimentary-layers have V s  ≤ 2.9 km s−1. Indian cratons have high average-crustal-V s of 3.6–3.9 km s−1 and thickness of 40–50 km. The intervening rift-basins are filled with low-V s sedimentary-rocks. The Himalayan Foreland Basin has along-arc variation in sedimentary thickness with the thickest layer (8–10 km) beneath the Eastern Ganga Basin. The Indian lithospheric mantle has high-V s (>4.4 km s−1), and along with high-V s crust attest to a cold, rigid lithosphere. This lithosphere underthrust entire Western Tibet and up to the Qiangtang Terrane in Central-Eastern Tibet. The top of the underthrusting Indian-crust is marked by lower-V s and thrust-fault earthquakes. The shallow crust beneath Tibet (0–10 km) has high-V s and is mechanically strong; whereas, the mid-crust (20–40 km) has ∼5%–10% low-V s anomalies due to radiogenic/shear heating within the thickened crust. This layer is weak and decouples the deformation of the shallow and deep layers. Low-V s upper-mantle with deeper high-V s layer is present beneath the Deccan and Raj-Mahal Traps, suggesting plume-volcanism related thermal anomaly and refertilization of the upper mantle. The intra-cratonic basins with circular geometry, high-V s lithosphere and no basement earthquakes, possibly formed by thermal subsidence of isostatically-balanced cratonic lithosphere.

Laboratory Earthquakes Simulations—Emergence, Structure, and Evolution of Fault Heterogeneity

JGR–Solid Earth - Sat, 06/22/2024 - 08:05
Abstract

Seismic faults are known to exhibit a high level of spatial and temporal complexity, and the causes and consequences of this complexity have been the topic of numerous research works in the past decade. In this paper, we investigate the origins and the structure of this complexity by considering a numerical model of laboratory earthquake experiment, where we introduce a fault with homogeneous mechanical properties but allow it to evolve spontaneously to its natural level of complexity. This is achieved by coupling the elastic deformability of the off-fault medium (and therefore allowing for heterogeneous stress fields to develop) and the discrete degradation and gouge formation at the fault plane (and therefore allowing for structural heterogeneity to develop). Numerical results show the development of persistent stress, damage, and gouge thickness heterogeneities, with a much larger variability in space than in time. Strong positive correlations are found between these quantities, which suggest a positive feedback between local normal stress and damage rate, only mildly mitigated by the mobility of the granular gouge in the interface. For a wide range of confining stresses, after a sufficient number of seismic cycles, the fault reaches a state of established disorder with a constant roughness, a certain amount of periodicity at the millimetric scale, and a power law decay of the Power Spectral Density at smaller spatial scales. The typical height-to-wavelength ratio of geometrical asperities and the correlations between stress and damage profiles are in good agreement with previous field or lab estimates.

The Role of Precursor Disturbances on the Modulation of Western Pacific Tropical Cyclogenesis by the Madden‐Julian Oscillation

GRL - Sat, 06/22/2024 - 04:40
Abstract

The present study considers tropical cyclogenesis as a multi-stage process in which pre-cursor disturbances develop first and a fraction of them further strengthen to become a tropical cyclone (TC). Using this framework, we analyze the impact of Madden-Julian oscillation (MJO)- associated anomalous large-scale environmental conditions on the triggering of tropical convective clusters (TCCs)—a type of pre-cursor disturbance—and the TCC-to-TC transition in the western Pacific. We find that, within the MJO's lifecycle, the modulation of the TCC frequency by the MJO drives TC genesis frequency anomalies earlier than the TCC-to-TC transition rate. Also, the fluctuation of TCC occurrence frequency is most strongly associated with the MJO's large-scale ascent and relative humidity anomalies, while that of the transition of TCCs to a TC is mainly associated with the MJO's vorticity anomalies. Our results suggest the distinct roles of large-scale environmental variables in different stages of tropical cyclogenesis.

Enhanced Quantitative Precipitation Estimation (QPE) through the opportunistic use of Ku TV-sat links via a Dual-Channel Procedure

Atmos. Meas. techniques - Fri, 06/21/2024 - 19:09
Enhanced Quantitative Precipitation Estimation (QPE) through the opportunistic use of Ku TV-sat links via a Dual-Channel Procedure
Louise Gelbart, Laurent Barthès, François Mercier-Tigrine, Aymeric Chazottes, and Cecile Mallet
Atmos. Meas. Tech. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-2024-88,2024
Preprint under review for AMT (discussion: open, 0 comments)
In this paper, we present and evaluate a new method for the quantitative estimation of precipitation from a low-cost sensor. Based on previous work measuring the attenuation of an electromagnetic signal from a broadcast television satellite, we make this approach more accurate so that to be easily deployed and used operationally in areas where rainfall measurements are critical for applications like flood monitoring. In this article, the method is validated in France and applied in Ivory Coast.

Calibration of Hydroxyacetonitrile (HOCH2CN) and Methyl isocyanate (CH3NCO) Isomers using I- Chemical Ionization Mass Spectrometry (CIMS)

Atmos. Meas. techniques - Fri, 06/21/2024 - 19:09
Calibration of Hydroxyacetonitrile (HOCH2CN) and Methyl isocyanate (CH3NCO) Isomers using I- Chemical Ionization Mass Spectrometry (CIMS)
Zachary Finewax, Aparajeo Chattopadhyay, J. Andrew Neuman, James Roberts, and James Burkholder
Atmos. Meas. Tech. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-2024-94,2024
Preprint under review for AMT (discussion: open, 1 comment)
This work provides a comprehensive sensitivity calibration of a chemical ionization instrument commonly used in field measurements for the measurement of the toxic isomers methyl isocyanate and hydroxyacetonitrile that are found in the atmosphere. The results from this work has demonstrated that the hydroyacetonitrile isomer was observed in previous field studies rather than the stated identification of methyl isocyanate.

An open-source refactoring of the Canadian Small Lakes Model for estimates of evaporation from medium-sized reservoirs

Geoscientific Model Development - Fri, 06/21/2024 - 18:19
An open-source refactoring of the Canadian Small Lakes Model for estimates of evaporation from medium-sized reservoirs
M. Graham Clark and Sean K. Carey
Geosci. Model Dev., 17, 4911–4922, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-17-4911-2024, 2024
This paper provides validation of the Canadian Small Lakes Model (CSLM) for estimating evaporation rates from reservoirs and a refactoring of the original FORTRAN code into MATLAB and Python, which are now stored in GitHub repositories. Here we provide direct observations of the surface energy exchange obtained with an eddy covariance system to validate the CSLM. There was good agreement between observations and estimations except under specific atmospheric conditions when evaporation is low.

The unicellular NUM v.0.91: A trait-based plankton model evaluated in two contrasting biogeographic provinces

Geoscientific Model Development - Fri, 06/21/2024 - 18:19
The unicellular NUM v.0.91: A trait-based plankton model evaluated in two contrasting biogeographic provinces
Trine Frisbæk Hansen, Donald Eugene Canfield, Ken Haste Andersen, and Christian Jannik Bjerrum
Geosci. Model Dev. Discuss., https//doi.org/10.5194/gmd-2024-53,2024
Preprint under review for GMD (discussion: open, 0 comments)
We describe and test the size-based NUM model, that define organisms by a single set of parameters, on planktonic unicellular ecosystems in a eutrophic and an oligotrophic site. Results show both sites can be modelled with similar parameters, and a robust performance over a wide range of parameters. The study show that the NUM model is useful for non-experts and applicable for modelling domains with limited ecosystem data. It holds promise for evolutionary scenarios and deep-time climate models.

Implementing detailed nucleation predictions in the Earth system model EC-Earth3.3.4: sulfuric acid–ammonia nucleation

Geoscientific Model Development - Fri, 06/21/2024 - 17:57
Implementing detailed nucleation predictions in the Earth system model EC-Earth3.3.4: sulfuric acid–ammonia nucleation
Carl Svenhag, Moa K. Sporre, Tinja Olenius, Daniel Yazgi, Sara M. Blichner, Lars P. Nieradzik, and Pontus Roldin
Geosci. Model Dev., 17, 4923–4942, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-17-4923-2024, 2024
Our research shows the importance of modeling new particle formation (NPF) and growth of particles in the atmosphere on a global scale, as they influence the outcomes of clouds and our climate. With the global model EC-Earth3 we show that using a new method for NPF modeling, which includes new detailed processes with NH3 and H2SO4, significantly impacts the number of particles in the air and clouds and changes the radiation balance of the same magnitude as anthropogenic greenhouse emissions.

A parameterization scheme for the floating wind farm in a coupled atmosphere–wave model (COAWST v3.7)

Geoscientific Model Development - Fri, 06/21/2024 - 17:57
A parameterization scheme for the floating wind farm in a coupled atmosphere–wave model (COAWST v3.7)
Shaokun Deng, Shengmu Yang, Shengli Chen, Daoyi Chen, Xuefeng Yang, and Shanshan Cui
Geosci. Model Dev., 17, 4891–4909, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-17-4891-2024, 2024
Global offshore wind power development is moving from offshore to deeper waters, where floating offshore wind turbines have an advantage over bottom-fixed turbines. However, current wind farm parameterization schemes in mesoscale models are not applicable to floating turbines. We propose a floating wind farm parameterization scheme that accounts for the attenuation of the significant wave height by floating turbines. The results indicate that it has a significant effect on the power output.

Atmospheric River Rapids and Their Role in the Extreme Rainfall Event of April 2023 in the Middle East

GRL - Fri, 06/21/2024 - 17:54
Abstract

The mesoscale dynamics of a record-breaking Atmospheric River (AR) that impacted the Middle East in mid-April 2023 and caused property damage and loss of life are investigated using model, reanalysis and observational data. The high-resolution (2.5 km) simulations revealed the presence of AR rapids, narrow and long convective structures embedded within the AR that generated heavy precipitation (>4 mm hr−1) as they moved at high speeds (>30 m s−1) from northeastern Africa into western Iran. Gravity waves triggered by the complex terrain in Saudi Arabia further intensified their effects. Given the rising frequency of ARs in this region, AR rapids may be even more impactful in a warming climate, and need to be accounted for in reanalysis and numerical models.

Tidal Control of Equatorial Vertical E × B Drift Under Solar Minimum Conditions

GRL - Fri, 06/21/2024 - 17:54
Abstract

Observations show that equatorial ionospheric vertical drifts during solar minimum differ from the climatology between late afternoon and midnight. By analyzing WACCM-X simulations, which reproduce this solar cycle dependence, we show that the interplay of the dominant migrating tides, their propagating and in situ forced components, and their solar cycle dependence impact the F-region wind dynamo. In particular, the amplitude and phase of the propagating migrating semidiurnal tide (SW2) in the F-region plays a key role. Under solar minimum conditions, the SW2 tide propagate to and beyond the F-region in the winter hemisphere, and consequently its zonal wind amplitude in the F-region is much stronger than that under solar maximum conditions. Furthermore, its phase shift leads to a strong eastward wind perturbation near local midnight. This in turn drives a F-region dynamo with an equatorial upward drift between 18 and 1 hr local times.

Depth‐Dependent Anisotropy Along Northwest Segment of the North Anatolian Fault Zone: Evidence for Paleo‐Tectonic Structures Contributing to Overall Complexity

JGR–Solid Earth - Fri, 06/21/2024 - 16:34
Abstract

The North Anatolian Fault Zone (NAFZ) is a prominent tectonic structure with a significant impact on the observed active deformation in Türkiye. Detailed knowledge of the seismic anisotropy in the crust and mantle along this nascent shear deformation zone provides insights into the kinematics associated with past and present tectonic events. We employed teleseismic earthquakes observed by the Dense Array North Anatolia seismic network to map 3- D variations in crustal and mantle anisotropy in/around the NW segment of the NAFZ. To achieve this, we first performed a harmonic decomposition analysis of P-receiver functions. The results were then used as a priori information to conduct an anisotropic receiver function inversion with the Neighborhood Algorithm that enabled imaging of the actual orientation and geometry of anisotropic structures. SKS splitting measurements are further used to make a comparison between the anisotropic behavior of crustal and mantle structures. Crustal anisotropy parameters estimated in our analyses/models well identify the signature of deformation caused by accumulated strain in the earthquake cycle through the strike of shallow cutting faults in the brittle crust beneath the NAFZ. Diffuse intense anisotropic energy at lower crustal depths was attributed to lattice preferred orientation of crystals or partially molten lenses elongated along the shear direction. Strong harmonic energy variations beneath the northern part of the Istanbul Zone likely reflect imprints of LPO-originated frozen fabric at shallow depths (0–20 km) associated with the palaeotectonic Odessa Shelf, Intra-Pontide Suture Zones or remnants of the Tethys Ocean.

Theme by Danetsoft and Danang Probo Sayekti inspired by Maksimer