Automation of the measurement of time record in determining the hydraulic conductivity of saturated soil

ABSTRACT The objective of this study was to automate the acquisition of water travel time, as well as the computation of hydraulic conductivity of saturated soil by the falling head method, using water sensors and the Arduino platform. To automate the measurement of travel time, the Arduino Uno board was used, and two water sensors were installed at the initial (h0) and final (h1) heights of the water inside the core. When the water flows across the soil and the water level passes the bottom part of the initial sensor (h0), the time recording starts; it ends when the water is absent from the final height of the second sensor (h1). The equation for calculating the hydraulic conductivity was inserted into the algorithm so the calculation was automatic. Undisturbed soil samples were taken in a long-term no-tillage area. There were no significant differences for the time and hydraulic conductivity means between the permeameters. The coefficient of the residual mass index showed an overestimation of the time variable; thus, the automated permeameter improves the precision of time recording and saturated hydraulic conductivity estimated by the falling head method.

The bows and rings of dawn and dusk

The arcs of dawn and dusk are natural phenomena that define the boundary of the border between day and night. They are associated with the refraction of solar rays at high angles of incidence that converge to project an arc of light onto the back side of the earth's atmosphere. The rings of dawn and dusk, in turn, are associated with rays, also at large angles of incidence, which converge to project the image of the Sun. Arcs and rings become visible by scattering light by clouds or particles suspended in atmospheric air in the region in which they occur. Here we show a model that describes these natural phenomena and report the first-time record image produced in July of this year.

The Automated Map. Public innovation for the generation of the National Topographic Map of Spain

Several reasons have prompted the National Geographic Institute of Spain (IGN-Spain) to implement an automatic process to generate the National Topographic Map 1:25,000 (MTN) instead trough the traditional manual way, pointing out the growing lack of human resources, in addition to the search for a quick response to the increasing demand of updated geoinformation by the society.This new automated process provides an annual production of all the map sheets composing the MTN25 (4.019 files), what is an unprecedented time record, so that the users can quickly both download them from the Download Centre Website and visualize the maps through the visualization web services WMS and WMTS. This methodology is also applied to the creation of sheets for printed publication, whose final output requires a simplified manual editing process.

Observation of the Relationship between Ocean Bathymetry and Acoustic Bearing-Time Record Patterns Acquired during a Reverberation Experiment in the Southwestern Continental Margin of the Ulleung Basin, Korea

We observed a distinct drop-off region in the bearing-time record of acoustic reverberation data acquired from the south-western continental margin of the Ulleung Basin, East Sea, in the summer of 2015. 3 kHz continuous waves with pulse lengths of 0.1, 0.3, and 1.0 s were used as source pulses, with an R/V Cheonghae vessel towing a variable depth source and a triplet towed array toward the deep sea from shallow water. The observed pattern changed as the R/V Cheonghae moved across the continental slope further into the sea. This pattern arises as a result of the downward-refracted beams in the 1/2 convergence zone interacting with the soft bottom. In addition, the boundary of the drop-off region was modeled with the two-way maximum travel time of the first bottom-reflected rays using the bathymetry model of the General Bathymetric Chart of the Oceans, 2020. Some discrepancies were observed when comparing the modeled curve to the measured results, and the inaccuracy of the bathymetry model on the continental slope could be the main cause of these discrepancies. This pattern could be useful for bathymetry mapping, as well as estimations of source and receiver configurations.

A global ozone profile climatology for satellite retrieval algorithms based on Aura MLS measurements and the MERRA-2 GMI simulation

A new atmospheric ozone profile climatology has been constructed by combining daytime ozone profiles from the Aura Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS) and Modern-Era Retrospective Analysis for Research Applications version 2 (MERRA-2) Global Modeling Initiative (GMI) model simulation (M2GMI). The MLS and M2GMI ozone profiles are merged between 13 and 17 km (∼159 and 88 hPa), with MLS used for stratospheric and GMI for primarily tropospheric levels. The time record for profiles from MLS and GMI is August 2004–December 2016. The derived seasonal climatology consists of monthly zonal-mean ozone profiles in 5∘ latitude bands from 90∘ S to 90∘ N covering altitudes (in Z* log-pressure altitude) from zero to 80 km in 1 km increments. This climatology can be used as a priori information in satellite ozone retrievals, in atmospheric radiative transfer studies, and as a baseline to compare with other measured or model-simulated ozone. The MLS/GMI seasonal climatology shows a number of improvements compared with previous ozone profile climatologies based on MLS and ozonesonde measurements. These improvements are attributed mostly to continuous daily global coverage of GMI tropospheric ozone compared with sparse regional measurements from sondes. In addition to the seasonal climatology, we also derive an additive climatology to account for interannual variability in stratospheric zonal-mean ozone profiles which is based on a rotated empirical orthogonal function (REOF) analysis of Aura MLS ozone profiles. This REOF climatology starts in 1970 and captures most of the interannual variability in global stratospheric ozone including quasi-biennial oscillation (QBO) signatures.

Competition and Schedule Padding in the US Airline Industry

Disclosure programs can help consumers with limited information about product quality make better purchase decisions. A quality disclosure mandate such as the On-Time Disclosure Rule in the U.S. that requires airlines to provide information on the quality of their products can be beneficial, but can also be counterproductive if it encourages airlines to act deceptively by “gaming” the system. If airlines care about public perceptions of their on-time record, they have an incentive to improve their on-time performance ranking by resorting to unscrupulous means such as padding their schedules beyond normal time required to absorb scheduling stochastic fluctuations. This study investigates the impact of competition on airline schedule padding. We construct a measure for schedule padding under different optimal flight time choices. Using different measures of market structure, we find that more competitive (concentrated) markets are subject to less (more) schedule padding.

Lignin-Based Gel Polymer Electrolyte for Cationic Conductivity

The article presents the results of the preparation and study of a gel-polymer electrolyte based on lignin obtained from Pinus sylvestris. Sulfonation and subsequent chlorination of lignin make possible implementation of the principle of mono-ionic conductivity in a natural biopolymer matrix, which provides predominantly cationic conductivity of the electrolyte. Based on the results of the qualitative and quantitative analysis of the synthesized samples, the mechanisms of the chemical conversion of the biopolymer, the structure models of the converted fragments of macromolecules, as well as the quantum-chemical calculation of their electronic and geometric parameters are presented. The key electronic characteristics of the gel polymer electrolytes (GPE) based on a composite of lignins with 20 wt.% polyvinyl alcohol are determined by impedance spectroscopy. The maximum value of the specific volume conductivity is 2.48 × 10−4 S cm−1, which is comparable with most commercial electrolytes of this type, but at the same time, record values are reached in the number of lithium cation transfer tLi+ of 0.89. The studies allow to identify the basic laws of the effect of chemical modification on the structure of GPE and describe the mechanism of ionic conductivity.

Using Acoustic Travel Time to Monitor the Heat Variability of Glacial Fjords

Monitoring the heat content variability of glacial fjords is crucial to understanding the effects of oceanic forcing on marine-terminating glaciers. A Pressure-sensor equipped Inverted Echo Sounder (PIES) was deployed mid-fjord in Sermilik Fjord in southeast Greenland from August 2011 to September 2012 alongside a moored array of instruments recording temperature, conductivity and velocity. Historical hydrography is used to quantify the relationship between acoustic travel time and the vertically-averaged heat content, and a new method is developed for filtering acoustic return echoes in an ice-influenced environment. We show that PIES measurements, combined with a knowledge of the fjord’s two-layer density structure, can be used to reconstruct the thickness and temperature of the inflowing water. Additionally, we find that fjord-shelf exchange events are identifiable in the travel time record implying the PIES can be used to monitor fjord circulation. Finally, we show that PIES data can be combined with moored temperature records to derive the heat content of the upper layer of the fjord where moored instruments are at great risk of being damaged by transiting icebergs.

A Global Ozone Profile Climatology for Satellite Retrieval Algorithms Based on Aura MLS Measurements and the MERRA-2 GMI Simulation

A new atmospheric ozone profile climatology has been constructed by combining ozone profiles from the Aura Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS) and Modern‐Era Retrospective Analysis for Research Applications version 2 (MERRA2) Global Modeling Initiative (GMI) model simulation (M2GMI). The MLS and M2GMI ozone profiles are merged between 13 and 17 km (~159 and 88 hPa) with MLS used for stratospheric and GMI for primarily tropospheric levels. The time record for profiles from MLS and GMI is August 2004–December 2016. The derived seasonal climatology consists of monthly zonal-mean ozone profiles in 5-degree latitude bands from 90° S–90° N covering altitudes (in Z* log-pressure altitude) from zero to 80 km in 1 km increments. This climatology can be used as a priori information in satellite ozone retrievals, in atmospheric radiative transfer studies, and as a baseline to compare with other measured or model-simulated ozone. The MLS/GMI seasonal climatology shows a number of improvements compared to previous ozone profile climatologies based on MLS and ozonesonde measurements. These improvements are attributed mostly to continuous daily global coverage of GMI tropospheric ozone compared to sparse regional measurements from sondes. Only daytime measurements for MLS are used in the MLS/GMI climatology compared to the previous MLS/sonde climatology that averaged MLS day and night measurements together; the daytime-only measurements are important for applications involving the upper stratosphere and lower mesosphere where the ozone diurnal cycle is large. In addition to the seasonal climatology, we also derive an additive climatology to account for inter-annual variability in stratospheric zonal-mean ozone profiles which is based on a rotated empirical orthogonal function (REOF) analysis of Aura MLS ozone profiles. This REOF climatology starts in 1970 and captures most of the inter-annual variability in global stratospheric ozone including Quasi-Biennial Oscillation (QBO) signatures.

SECOND WAVE OF COVID 19 RISING CASES IN INDIA: SHORT COMMUNICATION SITUATION

Statistics currently indicated that the second wave of COVID 19 pandemic has killed over 2.94 million, and active cases 136.13 million globally as on April 12, 2021 reported by John Hopkins University and world health organization (WHO). India reported a first time record high ever of 13,689,453 COVID-19 infections, and 171,058 deaths from the ministry of health and WHO revealed on April 12, 2021. As India (13,873,825 confirmed cases and 172,085 deaths) (April, 14 2021) over takes Brazil, in the rising cases of Infection of COVID-19 as the second worst hit country in the world. It becomes the second-most affected country globally by the coronavirus after the United States (30, 888,765). Whereas the second wave is deadlier than the first wave according to the DG council of scientific and industrial research, Dr. Shekhar Mande.Preventable solutions are all but not limited to identify reasons for the spike and implement measures immediately. Some of which are uncontrolled gathering, floating of electoral commission (EC) guidelines on COVID-19 prevention during the election campaign political rallies. Some religious gatherings not adhering to the government protocol on COVID 19 prevention practices during this period (April 2021). Initially testing was limited to the high risk groups but has been expanded to cover several populations with the governments intervention. Further is to improve contact tracing, instead of negligence across the states. Drive for testing measures and rapid vaccination drive should continue as identified that authorities concerned are not testing enough. Lastly never ignore any warning signs or strange body feelings you might encounter. Act immediately, implement all preventive measures and seek medical help at once.