Analysis and impact of recent climate trends on grape composition in north-east Italy

Climate is the most relevant factor influencing the ripening of high quality grapes to produce a given wine style. This notion should be taken into account, given the increase of extreme weather events (EWE) related to climate change. Under this evolving climate scenario, North-East Italian wine regions have seen a recent expansion, potentially disregarding optimal planting choices. The use of marginal land, indeed, could lead to the establishment of vineyards in areas where it is not possible to take advantage of the best row orientation, slope and aspect. Under these conditions, the consequences of some EWE may be more severe. The objective of this study is to verify whether planting options in combination with climate conditions, may affect yield and fruit quality. An area localised in Northern Italy was analysed for row orientation and slope, taking advantage of QGIS tools. The area was also examined for climate conditions, using weather conditions and climate indices. Such variables were combined with 10-year yield and must composition of four varieties (Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, Merlot and Glera) by using linear regression. The paper reports the most significant relationships between climatic conditions and grapevine composition. The results showed high positive correlation between sugar concentration and the number of frost days during the year in three varieties. The sugar content was positively correlated with the relative humidity in June in three varieties and negatively correlated with the number of days with a temperature >25°C during the month of June in two varieties. The content of tartaric acid showed high correlations with thermal indices of May in all varieties.

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Evaluating the Tourist Climate Comfortable Period of China in a Changing Climate

Advances in Meteorology ◽

10.1155/2020/8886316 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 2020 ◽

pp. 1-11

Author(s):

Dan-Dan Yu ◽

Shan Li ◽

Zhong-Yang Guo

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Global Climate ◽

Scientific Evidence ◽

Climatic Conditions ◽

Climate Index ◽

Climate Indices ◽

Climate Data ◽

Climate Conditions ◽

Positive Effects ◽

Changing Climate

The evaluation of climate comfort for tourism can provide information for tourists selecting destinations and tourism operators. Understanding how climate conditions for tourism evolve is increasingly important for strategic tourism planning, particularly in rapidly developing tourism markets like China in a changing climate. Multidimensional climate indices are needed to evaluate climate for tourism, and previous studies in China have used the much criticized “climate index” with low resolution climate data. This study uses the Holiday Climate Index (HCI) and daily data from 775 weather stations to examine interregional differences in the tourist climate comfortable period (TCCP) across China and summarizes the spatiotemporal evolution of TCCP from 1981 to 2010 in a changing climate. Overall, most areas in China have an “excellent” climate for tourism, such that tourists may visit anytime with many choices available. The TCCP in most regions shows an increasing trend, and China benefits more from positive effects of climate change in climatic conditions for tourism, especially in spring and autumn. These results can provide some scientific evidence for understanding human settlement environmental constructions and further contribute in improving local or regional resilience responding to global climate change.

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Influence of Climate Conditions on the Temporal Development of Wheat Yields in a Long-Term Experiment in an Area with Pleistocene Loess

Climate ◽

10.3390/cli8090100 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 8 (9) ◽

pp. 100 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Kurt Heil ◽

Anna Lehner ◽

Urs Schmidhalter

Keyword(s):

Field Experiments ◽

Wheat Yield ◽

Climatic Conditions ◽

Climate Indices ◽

Winter Period ◽

Climate Conditions ◽

Spring Frost ◽

Available Water ◽

Late Spring Frost

Field experiments were conducted to test different agronomic practices, such as soil cultivation, fertilization, and pest and weed management, in highly controlled plot cultivation. The inter-annual yields and the interpretation of such experiments is highly affected by the variability of climatic conditions and fertilization level. We examined the effect of different climate indices, such as winterkill, late spring frost, early autumn frost, different drought parameters, precipitation-free periods, and heat-related stress, on winter wheat yield. This experiment was conducted in an agricultural area with highly fertile conditions, characterized by a high available water capacity and considerable C and N contents in lower soil depths. Residuals were calculated from long-term yield trends with a validated method (time series autoregressive integrated moving average ARIMA) and these served as base values for the detection of climate-induced, short-term, and inter-annual variations. In a subsequent step, the real yield values were used for their derivations from climate factors. Residuals and real yields were correlated with climate variables in multiple regression of quantitative analyses of the yield sensitivity. The inter-annual variation of yields varied considerably within the observation period. However, the variation was less an effect of the climatic conditions during the main growing time periods, being more of an effect of the prevailing climate conditions in the winter period as well as of the transition periods from winter to the warmer season and vice versa. The high storage capacity of plant available water exerted a remarkable dampening effect on drought-induced effects during the main vegetation periods. Increasing fertilization led to increased susceptibility to drought stress. The results indicate a changed picture of the yield development in these fertile locations.

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Climate vs grapevine pests and diseases worldwide: the first results of a global survey

OENO One ◽

10.20870/oeno-one.2017.51.2.1780 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 51 (2) ◽

pp. 133-139 ◽

Cited By ~ 18

Author(s):

Benjamin Bois ◽

S. Zito ◽

A. Calonnec

Keyword(s):

Severity Index ◽

Climatic Conditions ◽

Climate Indices ◽

Climate Projections ◽

Climate Conditions ◽

Global Survey ◽

Pests And Diseases ◽

First Results ◽

The Relationship ◽

Grapevine Disease

Aim: This paper aimed to address the relationship between grapevine disease, pest occurrences and climate. The extremely large extension of viticulture worldwide offers the possibility to evaluate the impacts of climate variability on many aspects of the grape growing system. For this, we initiated a global survey to retrieve the most important diseases and pests in many grape growing regions worldwide and to identify the risk of exposure to pests and diseases of viticulture as a function of climate.Methods and results: Based on the answer of respondent about the main reported diseases/pests in their region, a severity index was calculated. Each region was geolocalised and data were compared to the WorldClim gridded climate database to document the range of climate conditions (growing season temperature and rainfall) associated to the main diseases/pests. The potential climatic-induced changes of grapevine disease and pest geography by 2050 are assessed using agro-climate projections from the ARPEGE CNRM model, using the RCP 4.5 scenario. The preliminary results allow to determine the distribution of diseases as function of agroclimatic indicators.Conclusion: While the distribution of diseases differs according to the region of the world, the current analysis suggests that mildews remain the major phytosanitary threat in most of the regions. Powdery mildew, trunk diseases and viruses were reported in extremely diverse climatic conditions, including intermediate and wet regions. Significance and impact of the study: This paper present an original methodology to address the relationship between grapevine disease and pest occurrences and climate. Such documentation is scarce in the current literature. Further analysis is currently being performed, including additional survey answers, climate indices and supplementary data collected (spatial extension, frequency of treatments…) to better depict the challenges of grapevine phytosanitary management in a changing climate.

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Recent Climatic Mass Balance of the Schiaparelli Glacier at the Monte Sarmiento Massif and Reconstruction of Little Ice Age Climate by Simulating Steady-State Glacier Conditions

Geosciences ◽

10.3390/geosciences10070272 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (7) ◽

pp. 272

Author(s):

Stephanie Suzanne Weidemann ◽

Jorge Arigony-Neto ◽

Ricardo Jaña ◽

Guilherme Netto ◽

Inti Gonzalez ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Steady State ◽

Mass Balance ◽

Air Temperature ◽

Little Ice Age ◽

Similar Rate ◽

Climatic Conditions ◽

Ice Age ◽

Balance Model ◽

Climate Conditions ◽

Recent Climate

The Cordillera Darwin Icefield loses mass at a similar rate as the Northern and Southern Patagonian Icefields, showing contrasting individual glacier responses, particularly between the north-facing and south-facing glaciers, which are subject to changing climate conditions. Detailed investigations of climatic mass balance processes on recent glacier behavior are not available for glaciers of the Cordillera Darwin Icefield and surrounding icefields. We therefore applied the coupled snow and ice energy and mass balance model in Python (COSIPY) to assess recent surface energy and mass balance variability for the Schiaparelli Glacier at the Monte Sarmiento Massif. We further used COSIPY to simulate steady-state glacier conditions during the Little Ice Age using information of moraine systems and glacier areal extent. The model is driven by downscaled 6-hourly atmospheric data and high resolution precipitation fields, obtained by using an analytical orographic precipitation model. Precipitation and air temperature offsets to present-day climate were considered to reconstruct climatic conditions during the Little Ice Age. A glacier-wide mean annual climatic mass balance of −1.8 ± 0.36 m w.e. a − 1 was simulated between between April 2000 and March 2017. An air temperature decrease between −0.9 ° C and −1.7 ° C in combination with a precipitation offset of up to +60% to recent climate conditions is necessary to simulate steady-state conditions for Schiaparelli Glacier in 1870.

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Climate vs grapevine pests and diseases worldwide: the first results of a global survey

OENO One ◽

10.20870/oeno-one.2016.0.0.1780 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 51 (2) ◽

pp. 133 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Benjamin Bois ◽

S. Zito ◽

A. Calonnec

Keyword(s):

Severity Index ◽

Climatic Conditions ◽

Climate Indices ◽

Climate Projections ◽

Climate Conditions ◽

Global Survey ◽

Pests And Diseases ◽

First Results ◽

The Relationship ◽

Grapevine Disease

Aim: This paper aimed to address the relationship between grapevine disease, pest occurrences and climate. The extremely large extension of viticulture worldwide offers the possibility to evaluate the impacts of climate variability on many aspects of the grape growing system. For this, we initiated a global survey to retrieve the most important diseases and pests in many grape growing regions worldwide and to identify the risk of exposure to pests and diseases of viticulture as a function of climate.Methods and results: Based on the answer of respondent about the main reported diseases/pests in their region, a severity index was calculated. Each region was geolocalised and data were compared to the WorldClim gridded climate database to document the range of climate conditions (growing season temperature and rainfall) associated to the main diseases/pests. The potential climatic-induced changes of grapevine disease and pest geography by 2050 are assessed using agro-climate projections from the ARPEGE CNRM model, using the RCP 4.5 scenario. The preliminary results allow to determine the distribution of diseases as function of agroclimatic indicators.Conclusion: While the distribution of diseases differs according to the region of the world, the current analysis suggests that mildews remain the major phytosanitary threat in most of the regions. Powdery mildew, trunk diseases and viruses were reported in extremely diverse climatic conditions, including intermediate and wet regions. Significance and impact of the study: This paper present an original methodology to address the relationship between grapevine disease and pest occurrences and climate. Such documentation is scarce in the current literature. Further analysis is currently being performed, including additional survey answers, climate indices and supplementary data collected (spatial extension, frequency of treatments…) to better depict the challenges of grapevine phytosanitary management in a changing climate.

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Always delayed? Holocene and current evolution of Pasterze Glacier, Austria

10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-9317 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Kurt Nicolussi ◽

Matthias Dusch ◽

Ruth Drescher-Schneider ◽

Andreas Kellerer-Pirklbauer ◽

Fabien Maussion

Keyword(s):

Organic Material ◽

Climatic Conditions ◽

Climate Conditions ◽

Middle Holocene ◽

Recent Climate ◽

The Alps ◽

Free Tree ◽

The One ◽

Early And Middle Holocene

The glaciers in the Alps are currently shrinking, in some cases dramatically, due to progressive warming. At some glaciers this recession has made it possible to find tree remains and other organic material at or near the termini. At Pasterze Glacier, such findings have been made since about 1990, allowing new insights into the Holocene evolution and variability of this glacier. Initially, only relocated wood and peat boulders were collected, but around 2010 an in-situ locality became ice-free. Tree remains and other organic material from this site have mainly provided dates for a period of more than a thousand years in the middle Holocene (around 6 ka) proving a continuously smaller extent of this glacier during this period compared to today. Furthermore, a comparative interpretation of all available, some 80 radiocarbon and dendro dates suggests that Pasterze Glacier was probably at least from about 10.2 ka to about 3.5 ka continuously shorter compared to the extent around 2010 AD. For the last nearly 2800 years there is no similar evidence of comparable small glacier extents. Finally, after the early- to mid-Holocene retreat phase, a relatively delayed increase of Pasterze Glacier during the early Neoglacial (in the Alps after about 4 ka) can be deduced. Other glaciers almost reached or even exceeded the later LIA dimensions already during this period.Moreover, Pasterze Glacier is also lagging behind the current climatic changes, i.e., its extent is not in equilibrium with the current warming. This circumstance is not only proven by the rapid recession during recent years, but also by simulations with the glacier model OGGM. The simulation results show on the one hand that Pasterze glacier has to melt back for several more kilometres to reach equilibrium with the climatic conditions of 1980-2010. On the other hand, this also documents that the recent climate conditions are already sufficient to allow a recession comparable to the early and middle Holocene stages of this glacier. Both the delayed increase in extent during the early Neoglacial and the considerably delayed current recession can be explained by the size of the glacier and the topographic conditions.

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Sugar Beet Harvests under Modern Climatic Conditions in the Belgorod Region (Southwest Russia)

Climate ◽

10.3390/cli8030046 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 8 (3) ◽

pp. 46

Author(s):

Maria G. Lebedeva ◽

Anthony R. Lupo ◽

Alexandr B. Solovyov ◽

Yury G. Chendev ◽

Lalith M. Rankoth

Keyword(s):

Sugar Beet ◽

Sugar Content ◽

Warm Season ◽

Vegetation Period ◽

Climatic Conditions ◽

Solar Cycles ◽

Regional Variability ◽

Climate Conditions ◽

Atmospheric Teleconnections ◽

Weather And Climate

The weather and climate conditions contributing to the energy and water availability during the sugar beet vegetation period within the Belgorod Region were studied. It was found that the sugar beet yield in the region currently depends on the climate at the 15% level. The variability and trends of sugar beet yields and sugar content dynamics correlated with that of the observed during a 60-year period are determined using statistical techniques such as correlation, and regression and time series analysis. The variation for the sugar content (or “sugariness”) over this period as related to the regional weather and climate showed a nonlinear relationship. The sugar content is related inversely to the combined (via the Hydrothermal Coefficient—HTC) influence of precipitation and temperature during the warm season (temperatures between 15 and 20 °C). A decrease (increase) in HTC contributes to an increase (decrease) in the beet sugar content. However, it was noted that during sugar content increases, there is a decrease in the regional sugar beet yield. We can conclude that the increased sugar content of beet in relevant years compensates for the decrease in the yield parameter. Finally, there was a correlation between the regional variability in the sugar content of beets with Bruckner solar cycles and atmospheric teleconnections in that during warm and dry periods, the sugar content increases, and for cold and wet periods is reduced.

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Degradation of buried ice and permafrost in the Veleta cirque (Sierra Nevada, Spain) from 2006 to 2013 as a response to recent climate trends

Solid Earth ◽

10.5194/se-5-979-2014 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 5 (2) ◽

pp. 979-993 ◽

Cited By ~ 23

Author(s):

A. Gómez-Ortiz ◽

M. Oliva ◽

F. Salvador-Franch ◽

M. Salvà-Catarineu ◽

D. Palacios ◽

...

Keyword(s):

20Th Century ◽

Sierra Nevada ◽

Active Layer ◽

The Body ◽

Ice Age ◽

Climate Trends ◽

Rock Glacier ◽

Climate Conditions ◽

Discontinuous Permafrost ◽

Recent Climate

Abstract. The Veleta cirque is located at the foot of the Veleta peak, one of the highest summits of the Sierra Nevada National Park (southern Spain). This cirque was the source of a glacier valley during the Quaternary cold periods. During the Little Ice Age it sheltered a small glacier, the most southerly in Europe, about which we have possessed written records since the 17th century. This glacier still had ice residues until the mid-20th century. This ice is no longer visible, but a residue persists along with discontinuous permafrost trapped under strata of rock blocks that make up an incipient rock glacier. From 2006 to 2013, this rock glacier was monitored by measurement of the temperature of the active layer, the degree of snow cover on the ground, movements of the body of the rock glacier and geophysical prospection inside it. The results show that the relict ice and trapped permafrost have been steadily declining. The processes that explain this degradation occur in chain, starting from the external radiation that affects the ground in summer, which is when the temperatures are higher. In effect, when this radiation steadily melts the snow on the ground, the thermal expansive wave advances into the heart of the active layer, reaching the ceiling of the frozen mass, which it then degrades and melts. In this entire linked process, the circulation of meltwaters fulfils a highly significant function, as they act as heat transmitters. The complementary nature of these processes explains the subsidence and continuous changes in the entire clastic pack and the melting of the frozen ceiling on which it rests. This happens in summer in just a few weeks. All these events, in particular the geomorphological ones, take place on the Sierra Nevada peaks within certain climate conditions that are at present unfavourable to the maintenance of snow on the ground in summer. These conditions could be related to recent variations in the climate, starting in the mid-19th century and most markedly since the second half of the 20th century. The work and results highlight the climate sensitivity of the peaks of the Sierra Nevada to the effect of climate change and its impact on the dynamics of ecosystems, which is a benchmark for evaluating the current evolution of landscapes of Mediterranean high mountains.

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Impacts of climatic seasonality on weathering of rock-cut structures at Lalibela, Ethiopia

10.5194/egusphere-egu21-16253 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Blen Taye ◽

Heather Viles

Keyword(s):

Climatic Conditions ◽

Rock Surface ◽

Salt Weathering ◽

Northern Ethiopia ◽

Climate Data ◽

Climate Trends ◽

Weathering Processes ◽

North East ◽

The North ◽

Diurnal Range

Weathering of rock-cut structures exposed to the environment is strongly influenced by fluctuations in climatic variables. Both macro and microclimate data are needed to identify key weathering types and rates likely to affect rock-cut structures in a specific region. The aim of this paper is to study the macro and micro climatic conditions affecting the rock-cut churches in Lalibela, Ethiopia to determine how the climate influences weathering at this site. Macro climate data collected over a 26-year period and microclimate data monitored on the north, east, south and west walls at one of the churches in the Lalibela church complex (Bete Mariam) are used to make these assessments. Microclimate data was monitored during the long rains (Kiremt), short rains (Belg) and dry (Bega) seasons in 2018 and 2019. The results showed a high seasonal variation in macro climatic conditions like rainfall and ambient relative humidity. The micro climatic (rock surface) conditions also tended to vary seasonally. The diurnal range of rock surface temperature during Bega varied significantly depending on which cardinal directions the walls were facing, with south and west facing walls having high diurnal thermal ranges. The influence of aspect was less pronounced in Belg and Kiremt, but cloud cover played an important role in varying the range of diurnal thermal and humidity cycles from day to day during these seasons. These climate trends are likely to cause seasonal variations in wetting and drying cycles, deep wetting, increased time of wetness and thermal cycling. These wetting/drying and heating/cooling characteristics affect weathering processes. During Kiremt, biological weathering, salt weathering and clay swelling are more likely to occur than in Belg and Bega. High diurnal thermal ranges in Bega are likely to cause thermal fatigue in this season. This is the first paper to address the macro and micro climatic trends that influence rock weathering at the rock-cut churches in Lalibela. The results of this study also have implications for rock-cut structures in northern Ethiopia having similar environmental conditions as Lalibela.

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Derivation of climate-indices and establishment of hazard-development-corridors along the ÖBB rail network

10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-10890 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Christian Wally ◽

Sebastian Lehner ◽

Christoph Matulla ◽

Katharina Enigl ◽

Helene Müller ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Natural Hazards ◽

Meteorological Data ◽

Principal Component ◽

Railway Track ◽

Extreme Weather Events ◽

Climate Indices ◽

Multivariate Statistic ◽

Rail Network ◽

Railway Traffic ◽

Recent Climate

The Austrian Federal Railways (&#214;BB) are operating about 4800 kilometers of railway track in all regions of Austria. Most parts of this infrastructure are exposed to various natural hazards like landslides, debris flows, rockfalls, floodings and avalanches but also extreme weather events like strong winds or extreme heat can disrupt railway traffic. The frequency of their occurrence is changing due to recent climate change.We use over 2000 events from 1990 to 2018 and a principal component approach to create an event space which lets us combine events and meteorological data on a fine spatial grid. This is necessary to detect characteristic climate-indices (CIs) in temporal series of meteorological parameters, like temperature or precipitation, that have negative effects on railway operation or trigger natural hazards that do so. The results are evaluated using various multivariate statistic methods to quantify the quality of the found CIs.After these steps we can estimate the frequency of CI occurrence in near (2036-2065) and remote future (2071-2100) by analyzing ensembles of downscaled GCM projections for different climate scenarios. The result are hazard-development-corridors that are a relative measure for the number of predicted hazard events during the two periods of time along the considered railway tracks.

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