Assessment of Hydrogen Generation Potential from Biomass and its Application for Power Generation in Andaman and Nicobar Islands: A Review

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Vinaya C. Mathad

2016-09-01

Full Text Available The Andaman and Nicobar Islands located southeast of Bay of Bengal in the Indian Ocean comprises of several small islands separated by sea over large distances which makes it impractical for electrifying all the islands by a single grid. A population of 380,581 (Census, 2011 living in these group of islands get their electricity demand catered through Diesel Generator Sets from 34 power houses with an aggregate capacity of 67.8 MW. Unavailability of any form of conventional fossil fuel reserves in the islands makes the diesel supplied in barges from southeastern coast of India as a sole lifeline for its power generation. Hence there is an urgent need for the development of a self sustainable model from non conventional energy resources to not only cater for the power demands but also to reduce the GHG emissions related with diesel powered generator sets. This paper discusses a self sustainable model for Andaman and Nicobar Islands that would cater the electrical demand through hydrogen produced from waste biomass resource which has a potential of replacing 86.65% of the diesel utilized in the diesel generator sets. The reduction in both the GHG emission and the cost of power generation would be evaluated to understand the impact of the self sustainable model on the environment and the livelihood of the local population of Andaman and Nicobar Islands

Conservation status of Dendrobium tenuicaule Hook. f. (Orchidaceae, a Middle Andaman Island endemic, India

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B.R.P. Rao

2012-12-01

Full Text Available The current distribution and threat assessment of Dendrobium tenuicaule Hook. f. (Orchidaceae, an endemic orchid of Middle Andaman Island is presented here. New data available from field surveys indicated the species is Critically Endangered as per the 2001 IUCN Red List Catagories and Criteria.

Ethno medicine and healthcare practices among Nicobarese of Car Nicobar - an indigenous tribe of Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

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Chander, M Punnam; Kartick, C; Gangadhar, J; Vijayachari, P

2014-12-02

This study is an attempt to document the use of medicinal plants by Nicobarese tribe from the Car Nicobar Island of Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Inspite of the availability of modern healthcare facilities tribal people often take herbal medicines and Traditional Knowledge Practitioners (TKPs) serve as the local medical experts in Car Nicobar Island. The present study was to conduct an ethnomedicinal survey among the TKPs of Nicobarese tribe of the inhabitants of Car Nicobar Island, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India. Field research was conducted in 15 villages of Car Nicobar Island during March 2011-February 2012. TKPs were interviewed with a questionnaire-guided ethnomedical survey protocol. The data obtained were quantitatively analysed using the informant consensus factor (ICF) and use value (UV). Voucher specimens of all cited plants were collected and deposited at Regional Medical Research Centre (ICMR), Port Blair. Use of 150 medicinal plant species, belonging to 122 genera encompassing 59 families were recorded during the survey. These 150 species are employed to treat 47 different medicinal uses, divided into nine categories of use. The highest ICF (0.68) was obtained for the gastrointestinal system. The Euphorbiaceae family exhibited the highest number of citations, and the species with the highest UVs were Morinda citrifolia L., Tabernaemontana crispa Roxb. and Colubrina asiatica (L.) Brongn. Of the medicinal plants reported, the most common growth form was shrubs (28%). Among several parts of individual plant species which are used, leaves constitute the major portion in preparation of medicines. Remedies were generally prepared using water as the excipient. This study is an attempt to document the use of medicinal plants from the Car Nicobar Island of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Future phytochemical and pharmacological studies are needed to confirm the efficacy and safety of the identified plants. Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier Ireland

Altered environment and risk of malaria outbreak in South Andaman, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, India affected by tsunami disaster

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Shriram AN

2005-07-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Pools of salt water and puddles created by giant waves from the sea due to the tsunami that occurred on 26th December 2004 would facilitate increased breeding of brackish water malaria vector, Anopheles sundaicus. Land uplifts in North Andaman and subsidence in South Andaman have been reported and subsidence may lead to environmental disturbances and vector proliferation. This warrants a situation analysis and vector surveillance in the tsunami hit areas endemic for malaria transmitted by brackish water mosquito, An. sundaicus to predict the risk of outbreak. Methods An extensive survey was carried out in the tsunami-affected areas in Andaman district of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India to assess the extent of breeding of malaria vectors in the habitats created by seawater flooding. Types of habitats in relation to source of seawater inundation and frequency were identified. The salinity of the water samples and the mosquito species present in the larval samples collected from these habitats were recorded. The malaria situation in the area was also analysed. Results South Andaman, covering Port Blair and Ferrargunj sub districts, is still under the recurring phenomenon of seawater intrusion either directly from the sea or through a network of creeks. Both daily cycles of high tides and periodical spring tides continue to cause flooding. Low-lying paddy fields and fallow land, with a salinity ranging from 3,000 to 42,505 ppm, were found to support profuse breeding of An. sundaicus, the local malaria vector, and Anopheles subpictus, a vector implicated elsewhere. This area is endemic for both vivax and falciparum malaria. Malaria slide positivity rate has started increasing during post-tsunami period, which can be considered as an indication of risk of malaria outbreak. Conclusion Paddy fields and fallow land with freshwater, hitherto not considered as potential sites for An. sundaicus, are now major breeding sites due to

The Central Pine Barrens of Long Island, New York - Steps to improve community preparedness for wildfire

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Rachel Hudson; Kristen Nelson; Erika Lang

2004-01-01

This handout provides cooperators and high fire risk communities in the area in and around the central pine barrens of Long Island, New York examples of steps to take to increase wildfire preparedness.

Estimation of phytochemicals and antioxidant activity of underutilized fruits of Andaman Islands (India).

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Singh, D R; Singh, Shrawan; Salim, K M; Srivastava, R C

2012-06-01

The present study aimed to determine the antioxidant activity and phytochemical contents in 10 underutilized fruits of Andaman Islands (India) namely Malpighia glabra L., Mangifera andamanica L., Morinda citrifolia L., Syzygium aqueum (Burm.f) Alst., Annona squamosa L., Averrhoa carambola L., Averrhoa bilimbi L., Dillenia indica L., Annona muricata L. and Ficus racemosa L. The antioxidant activity varied from 74.27% to 98.77%, and the methanol extract of M. glabra showed the highest antioxidant activity (98.77%; inhibitory concentration, IC(50) = 262.46 μg/ml). Methanol was found to be a better solvent than acetone and aqueous for estimating the antioxidant activity. M. glabra was found to be rich in phytochemicals viz. polyphenol (355.74 mg/100 g), anthocyanin (91.31 mg/100 g), carotenoids (109.16 mg/100 g), tannin (24.39 mg/100 g) and ascorbic acid (394.23 mg/100 g). Carbohydrate content was estimated to be highest in M. glabra (548 mg/100 g). Phenols, tannins, anthocyanins and carotenoids contents showed positive correlation (r² = 0.846, r² = 0.864, r² = 0.915 and r² = 0.806, respectively) with antioxidant activity. The information generated in present study will be useful for bioprospecting of underutilized fruits of Andaman Islands.

Coastal plain pond water quality and mercury contend of biota of the Long Island Central Pine Barrens and Mashomack Preserve: Effects of atmospheric deposition and human development

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Lawrence, Gregory B.; Siemion, Jason; Lane, Oksana P.

2015-01-01

Pine barrens are considered an imperiled ecosystem in the northeastern U.S. The Suffolk County Pine Barrens, once the second largest in the Northeast, were substantially reduced and fragmented by development during the 20th century. The coastal plain ponds being considered in this study occur in central Suffolk County within the Long Island Central Pine Barrens region. This highly unique natural environment, embedded with forests and woodlands, resulted from its glacial origins and a land use history that predates European colonization. Included in this study was The Nature Conservancy’s Mashomack Preserve, located on Shelter Island between Peconic Bay and Gardiner’s Bay. There are no freshwater ponds in the Mashomack Preserve, but this area was included with the Central Pine Barrens investigation, because Shelter Island has a similar geologic and land-use history that has resulted in a similarly unique low-nutrient forest and woodland ecosystem with extremely coarse-textured soils.

Draft Genome Sequence of Halostagnicola sp. A56, an Extremely Halophilic Archaeon Isolated from the Andaman Islands

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Kanekar, Sagar P.; Saxena, Neha; Pore, Soham D.; Arora, Preeti; Kanekar, P. P.

2015-01-01

The first draft genome of Halostagnicola sp. A56, isolated from the Andaman Islands is reported here. The A56 genome comprises 3,178,490 bp in 26 contigs with a G+C content of 60.8%. The genome annotation revealed that A56 could have potential applications for the production of polyhydroxyalkanoate or bioplastics. PMID:26564049

Novel marine actinobacteria from emerald Andaman & Nicobar Islands: a prospective source for industrial and pharmaceutical byproducts.

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Meena, Balakrishnan; Rajan, Lawrance Anbu; Vinithkumar, Nambali Valsalan; Kirubagaran, Ramalingam

2013-06-22

Andaman and Nicobar Islands situated in the eastern part of Bay of Bengal are one of the distinguished biodiversity hotspot. Even though number of studies carried out on the marine flora and fauna, the studies on actinobacteria from Andaman and Nicobar Islands are meager. The aim of the present study was to screen the actinobacteria for their characterization and identify the potential sources for industrial and pharmaceutical byproducts. A total of 26 actinobacterial strains were isolated from the marine sediments collected from various sites of Port Blair Bay where no collection has been characterized previously. Isolates were categorized under the genera: Saccharopolyspora, Streptomyces, Nocardiopsis, Streptoverticillium, Microtetraspora, Actinopolyspora, Actinokineospora and Dactylosporangium. Majority of the isolates were found to produce industrially important enzymes such as amylase, protease, gelatinase, lipase, DNase, cellulase, urease and phosphatase, and also exhibited substantial antibacterial activity against human pathogens. 77% of isolates exhibited significant hemolytic activity. Among 26 isolates, three strains (NIOT-VKKMA02, NIOT-VKKMA22 and NIOT-VKKMA26) were found to generate appreciable extent of surfactant, amylase, cellulase and protease enzyme. NIOT-VKKMA02 produced surfactant using kerosene as carbon source and emulsified upto E(24)-63.6%. Moreover, NIOT-VKKMA02, NIOT-VKKMA22 and NIOT-VKKMA26 synthesized 13.27 U/ml, 9.85 U/ml and 8.03 U/ml amylase; 7.75 U/ml, 5.01 U/ml and 2.08 U/ml of cellulase and 11.34 U/ml, 6.89 U/ml and 3.51 U/ml of protease enzyme, respectively. High diversity of marine actinobacteria was isolated and characterized in this work including undescribed species and species not previously reported from emerald Andaman and Nicobar Islands, including Streptomyces griseus, Streptomyces venezuelae and Saccharopolyspora salina. The enhanced salt, pH and temperature tolerance of the actinobacterial isolates along with their

Tropical storm off Myanmar coast sweeps reefs in Ritchie's Archipelago, Andaman

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Krishnan, P.; Grinson-George, G.; Vikas, N.; Titus-Immanuel, T.; Goutham-Bharathi, M.P.; Anand, A; VinodKumar, K.; SenthilKumar, S.

The reefs in some islands of Andaman and Nicobar suffered severe damage following a tropical storm in the Bay of Bengal off Myanmar coast during 13-17 March 2011. Surveys were conducted at eight sites in Andaman, of which five were located...

Geomorphology and geology of the Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Sea

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Rao, V.P.; Kessarkar, P.M.

-slope region. The 'Bengal Fan' is a major physiographic feature. The Andaman Sea consists of several seamounts, valleys and fracture zones. Reefal structures occur around the Andaman Islands and on the outer shelf off Visakhapatnam. Lithogenic sediments (clayey...

Enrichment Method for the Isolation of Bioactive Actinomycetes From Mangrove Sediments of Andaman Islands, India

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Baskaran, R.

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Various pre-treatment methods and three different media were employed for the isolation of bioactive actinomycetes from mangrove sediments of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India. Sediments from four different sites of mangrove forest were collected and pre-treated by dry heat method, and the media were supplemented with cycloheximide 80 µg/mL and nalidixic acid 75 µg/mL. The mean actinomycetes population density in sediment samples were recorded as 22 CFU-10^-6/gm in KUA medium followed by 12 CFU-10^-6/gm in AIA medium and 8 CFU-10^-6/gm in SCA medium. A total of 42 actinomycetes were isolated, and all the isolates were evaluated for their antibacterial activity against pathogenic bacteria on two different media. Among 42 isolates tested, 22 species were found to be antibacterial metabolite producer against test bacteria namely, Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis, Salmonella typhi and Klebsiella pneumoniae. Particularly, the actinomycete strains such as A101, A102, A107, A116, A121, A125, A130, F101, F102, F104, F106, De101 and De102 significantly inhibited the growth of all bacteria which were tested. Of these strains, A107 was identified as Streptomyces spp. This strain had the maximum activity against all used pathogens on both medium. Hence, the isolation, characterization and studies of secondary metabolites of actinomycetes from mangrove sediments in Andaman and Nicobar Island could be a pathway for discovery of antibiotics from marine actinomycetes.

Malnutrition and high childhood mortality among the Onge tribe of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

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Rao, V G; Sugunan, A P; Murhekar, M V; Sehgal, S C

2006-02-01

A study was conducted among the Onge tribe of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands with the objectives of identifying demographic factors responsible for the decline in their population and assessing their nutritional status, which is an important determinant of child survival. The study included estimation of indices of fertility and child mortality, and assessment of nutritional status. All individuals of the Onge community settled on Little Andaman Island were included. The mean total marital fertility rate was estimated to be 5.15 live births per woman and the general fertility rate was 200 live births per 1000 married-woman-years. Although the gross reproduction rate was estimated to be 2.2 female children per married woman, the net reproduction rate was only 0.9 surviving female child per married woman. The mean infant mortality rate during the past 30 years was 192.7 per 1000 live births, and the child survival rate was found to be only 53.2%. A mild to moderate degree of malnutrition was found in 85% of children of pre-school age and severe malnutrition in 10%. The Onges had low intakes of iron, vitamin A and vitamin C. All the screened Onges were found to be infested with one or more intestinal parasites. High childhood mortality appears to be the predominant demographic factor responsible for the decline in the Onge population. The high prevalence of undernutrition and micronutrient deficiency disorders could be important factors contributing to the high childhood mortality.

Ichthyoplankton from Andaman and Nicobar seas

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Devi, C.B.L.; Stephen, R.; Aravindakshan, P.N.; Meenakshikunjamma, P.P.

. Maximum number of 4938 larvae/1000 m sup(3) was obtained from an offshore station north of Andaman Island (lat. 13 degrees 57'N and long. 92 degrees 38'E). Fish eggs and larvae were represented in all months. Fish eggs were found throughout the year...

Journal of Earth System Science | Indian Academy of Sciences

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Although Barren Island (Andaman Sea, Indian Ocean) witnessed several volcanic eruptions during historic times, the eruptions that led to the formation of this volcanic island occurred mainly during prehistoric times. It is still active and currently in the fumarolic stage. Its volcanic evolution appears to be characterized by a ...

A first sighting report of six fishes from the Mahatma Gandhi Marine National Park, South Andaman, India

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Kamla Devi

2015-09-01

Full Text Available From the fish and fisheries point of view, the Andaman and Nicobar islands are the  most interesting and fascinating owing to a diversity of ichthyofauna occurring in the varied marine habitats, such as  mangroves, creeks, rocky beaches, extensive sandy beaches, muddy shores, coral reefs, etc. During a recent underwater survey around different islands inside the Mahatma Gandhi Marine National Park (MGMNP, Wandoor, South Andaman six new records of marine fishes belonging to the families Apogonidae, Labridae and Scaridae, were reported as a new record from the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. This paper deals with the morphological features, habitats and distribution of these fishes from this Marine National Park. 

Record of the genus Arrhenophagoidea Girault (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea: Encyrtidae from India, description of a new species from the Andaman Islands

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M. Hayat

2014-05-01

Full Text Available The genus Arrhenophagoidea Girault (Hymenoptera: Encyrtidae is recorded for the first time from India and the Oriental region, and a new species, A. andamanica sp. Nov. is described from material collected in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India. As the genus is newly recorded from the Oriental region, a brief diagnosis is also given.

PERSISTENT HIGH WATER LEVELS AROUND ANDAMAN & NICOBAR ISLANDS FOLLOWING THE 26 DECEMBER 2004 TSUNAMI

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A.D. Rao

2006-01-01

Full Text Available During the tsunami of 26th December 2004 in the Indian Ocean, media reports suggested that high water levels persisted around the Andaman & Nicobar Islands for several days. These persistent high water levels can be explained by invoking the existence of trapped and partially leaky modes on the shelves surrounding these islands. It has been known in the studies of tides in the global oceans, that there are two distinct types of oscillations, separated in their frequencies by the period of the pendulum day. One species are the gravity waves, and the others are the rotational waves, associated with earth's rotation. Both these species can be found in tidal records around islands as well as near coastlines. Essentially these are either trapped or partly leaky modes, partly trapped on the continental shelves. These two types of modes are usually found in the tsunami records on tide gauges. The tide gauge records as well as visual descriptions of the water levels during and after the occurrence of a tsunami clearly show the presence of these oscillations.

Micro-textures in plagioclase from 1994–1995 eruption, Barren Island Volcano: Evidence of dynamic magma plumbing system in the Andaman subduction zone

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M.L. Renjith

2014-01-01

Full Text Available A systematic account of micro-textures and a few compositional profiles of plagioclase from high-alumina basaltic aa lava erupted during the year 1994–1995, from Barren Island Volcano, NE India ocean, are presented for the first time. The identified micro-textures can be grouped into two categories: (i Growth related textures in the form of coarse/fine-sieve morphology, fine-scale oscillatory zoning and resorption surfaces resulted when the equilibrium at the crystal-melt interface was fluctuated due to change in temperature or H2O or pressure or composition of the crystallizing melt; and (ii morphological texture, like glomerocryst, synneusis, swallow-tailed crystal, microlite and broken crystals, formed by the influence of dynamic behavior of the crystallizing magma (convection, turbulence, degassing, etc.. Each micro-texture has developed in a specific magmatic environment, accordingly, a first order magma plumbing model and crystallization dynamics are envisaged for the studied lava unit. Magma generated has undergone extensive fractional crystallization of An-rich plagioclase in stable magmatic environment at a deeper depth. Subsequently they ascend to a shallow chamber where the newly brought crystals and pre-existing crystals have undergone dynamic crystallization via dissolution-regrowth processes in a convective self-mixing environment. Such repeated recharge-recycling processes have produced various populations of plagioclase with different micro-textural stratigraphy in the studied lava unit. Intermittent degassing and eruption related decompression have also played a major role in the final stage of crystallization dynamics.

Yoga Reduces Symptoms of Distress in Tsunami Survivors in the Andaman Islands

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Shirley Telles

2007-01-01

Full Text Available A month after the December 2004 tsunami the effect of a 1 week yoga program was evaluated on self rated fear, anxiety, sadness and disturbed sleep in 47 survivors in the Andaman Islands. Polygraph recordings of the heart rate, breath rate and skin resistance were also made. Among the 47 people, 31 were settlers from the mainland (i.e. India, ML group and 16 were endogenous people (EP group. There was a significant decrease in self rated fear, anxiety, sadness and disturbed sleep in both groups, and in the heart and breath rate in the ML group, and in the breath rate alone in the EP group, following yoga (P < 0.05, t-test. This suggests that yoga practice may be useful in the management of stress following a natural disaster in people with widely differing social, cultural and spiritual beliefs.

Some physical characteristics of Andaman sea waters during winter

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

RamaRaju, D.V.; Gouveia, A.D.; Murty, C.S.

Based on the data collected during the cruises of R V Gaveshani in Jan-Feb of 1979 and 1980 around the Andaman Islands, 6 transects are selected, along which the present study on some physical properties of the waters derived from the distributions...

A comparative study on mesozooplankton abundance and diversity between a protected and an unprotected coastal area of Andaman Islands.

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Pillai, H.U.K.; Jayalakshmy, K.V.; Biju, A.; Jayalakshmi, K.J.; Paulinose, V.T.; Devi, C.B.L.; Nair, V.R.; Revichandran, C.; Menon, N.R.; Achuthankutty, C.T.; Panampunnayil, S.U.

(station 3), North Bay (station 4), Haddo jetty (station 5) and Viper Island (station 6). The MPA which is situated on the western side of the south Andaman is a very popular tourist spot, mainly because of its rich coral reef resources and scenic beauty... by the Centre for Marine Living Resource & Ecology, Ministry of Earth Sciences, Government of India. This is a NIO contribution. References Achuthankutty, C. T, Madhupratap, M., Nair, V. R., Nair, S. R. S. & Rao, T. S. S. (1980), Zooplankton biomass...

Tree Diversity and Structure of Andaman Giant Evergreen Forests, India

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M. Rajkumar

2008-12-01

Full Text Available We investigated tree diversity in ‘giant evergreen forest’ of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, which falls within the Indo-Burma hot spot of biodiversity in the world. A one hectare square plot was established in sites Kalapahad (KP and Macarthy Valley (MV of Middle Andamans, in which all trees ≥ 30 cm girth at breast height (gbh were enumerated. Tree diversity totaled 105 species that belonged to 63 genera and 49 families. Site MV harboured ~10% greater species richness than KP. Species diversity indices did not vary much between the two sites. In the two sites, there were 1311 individuals of trees (579 ha-1 in KP and 732 in MV. The stand basal area was nearly equal in both the sites (KP- 45.59 m2 ha-1; MV- 47.93 m2 ha-1. Thirteen tree species (12.38% were strict endemics to Andamans. Ten species recorded are rare to the flora of these islands. The two sites are distinctly dominated by two different plant families; Dipterocarpaceae in KP and Myristicaceae in MV. Most of the species were common to central and lower region of Myanmar and Indian mainland. The forest stand structure exhibited a typical reverse-J shape, but site MV had double the density of stems in the lower tree size class than that of KP. The voluminous dipterocarps contributed more to the total above-ground live biomass. The need to preserve these species- and endemics- rich, fragile island forests, prioritized for biodiversity conservation, is emphasized.

New records of Chondrilla australiensis and Chondrilla grandistellata (Demospongiae: Chondrosida: Chondrillidae from Havelock Island, South Andaman, India

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Titus Immanuel

2015-11-01

Full Text Available The genus Chondrilla is reported from the Andaman group of Islands off Havelock Island for the first time, with two species, C. grandistellata and C. australiensis in this study.  This genus has previously been reported and represented by four species in Indian waters viz., Chondrilla mixta, C. sacciformis, C. kilakaria and C. australiensis. C. australiensis is light brown to reddish-brown in colour; encrusts primarily on live boulder corals; contains oxyasters measuring 14.8-(18.5-22.2 µm and spherasters measuring 17.3-(26-29.7 µm. C. grandistellata is tan or brown in colour with unevenly distributed white speckles; Contains large spherasters that measure 106.3-(143.3-175.6 µm.  In this study it is suggested that C. sacciformis specimens reported previously from India may be C. grandistellata; this probable conspecificity is also discussed.  

Aira (Poaceae: a new generic record for Nicobar Islands, India

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Kumar Vinod Chhotupuri Gosavi

2016-06-01

Full Text Available During plant exploration of Andaman and Nicobar in 2014, we were collected some interesting grass specimens from Kamorta Islands of Nicobar. After critical study and taxonomic analysis the unidentified grass species has identified as an Aira caryophyllea L.  Perusals of relevant literature were revealed that, the genus Aira L. has so far not reported from Andaman and Nicobar islands. Hence, it is reported in present communication for new record to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. 

Coral community composition and reef development at the Similan Islands, Andaman Sea, in response to strong environmental variations

KAUST Repository

Schmidt, GM; Phongsuwan, N; Jantzen, C; Roder, Cornelia; Khokiattiwong, S; Richter, C

2012-01-01

The Similan Islands, a Thai archipelago in the Andaman Sea located near the shelf break, are subjected to frequent (up to several events per hour) and abrupt changes in physico-chemical conditions, particularly during the dry season (NE monsoon, January through April) and to an intense monsoon season with strong surface wave action (May to October). The exposed west slopes of the islands feature more coral species, but lack a carbonate reef framework. By contrast, the sheltered east sides show a complex reef framework dominated by massive Porites. Our results suggest that the sudden changes in temperature, pH and nutrients (drops of up to 10°C and 0.6 U and increases of up to 9.4 µmol NOx l−1, respectively) due to pulsed upwelling events may rival the importance of surface waves and storms in shaping coral distribution and reef development.

Coral community composition and reef development at the Similan Islands, Andaman Sea, in response to strong environmental variations

KAUST Repository

Schmidt, GM

2012-06-07

The Similan Islands, a Thai archipelago in the Andaman Sea located near the shelf break, are subjected to frequent (up to several events per hour) and abrupt changes in physico-chemical conditions, particularly during the dry season (NE monsoon, January through April) and to an intense monsoon season with strong surface wave action (May to October). The exposed west slopes of the islands feature more coral species, but lack a carbonate reef framework. By contrast, the sheltered east sides show a complex reef framework dominated by massive Porites. Our results suggest that the sudden changes in temperature, pH and nutrients (drops of up to 10°C and 0.6 U and increases of up to 9.4 µmol NOx l−1, respectively) due to pulsed upwelling events may rival the importance of surface waves and storms in shaping coral distribution and reef development.

Antimalarial efficacy of nine medicinal plants traditionally used by the Karens of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India

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M. Punnam Chander

2016-03-01

Full Text Available The aim of this study was to assess the antimalarial activity of nine medicinal plants used by Karens of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, against Plasmodium falciparum chloroquine-sensitive MRC-2 isolate. The methanol extracts were obtained by cold percolation method and in vitro antimalarial activity was assessed using M-III method. The results indicated that out of nine plant species tested, four plants, viz., Z. spectabilis, S. wallichiana, C. pulcherrima and Amomum sp. demonstrated significant antimalarial activity (50% inhibitory concentration values were 5.5 ± 0.7, 12.0 ± 2.5, 14.6 ± 1.3 and 37.3 ± 2.5 μg/mL respectively with no toxicity effect on erythrocytes.

Changing patterns and widening of antibiotic resistance in Shigella spp. over a decade (2000-2011), Andaman Islands, India.

Science.gov (United States)

Bhattacharya, D; Bhattacharya, H; Sayi, D S; Bharadwaj, A P; Singhania, M; Sugunan, A P; Roy, S

2015-02-01

This study is a part of the surveillance study on childhood diarrhoea in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands; here we report the drug resistance pattern of recent isolates of Shigella spp. (2006-2011) obtained as part of that study and compare it with that of Shigella isolates obtained earlier during 2000-2005. During 2006-2011, stool samples from paediatric diarrhoea patients were collected and processed for isolation and identification of Shigella spp. Susceptibility to 22 antimicrobial drugs was tested and minimum inhibitory concentrations were determined for third-generation cephalosporins, quinolones, amoxicillin-clavulanic acid combinations and gentamicin. A wide spectrum of antibiotic resistance was observed in the Shigella strains obtained during 2006-2011. The proportions of resistant strains showed an increase from 2000-2005 to 2006-2011 in 20/22 antibiotics tested. The number of drug resistance patterns increased from 13 in 2000-2005 to 43 in 2006-2011. Resistance to newer generation fluoroquinolones, third-generation cephalosporins and augmentin, which was not observed during 2000-2005, appeared during 2006-2011. The frequency of resistance in Shigella isolates has increased substantially between 2000-2006 and 2006-2011, with a wide spectrum of resistance. At present, the option for antimicrobial therapy in shigellosis in Andaman is limited to a small number of drugs.

Common murre abundance, phenology, and productivity on the Barren Islands, Alaska: The Exxon Valdez oil spill and long-term environmental change

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Boersma, P.D.; Parrish, J.K.; Kettle, A.B.

1995-01-01

Principally because of the paucity of prespill data on the Barren Islands murre population size and reproductive success, it is impossible to quantify any effect on the spill on these populations. Available prespill data (1976--1978) on the East Amatuli murre population size ranges from 19,000 to 61,000 birds. These data are not systematic, replicated counts but rather are estimates indicating a broad range within which the true attendance figure probably resided. The postspill attendance counts range from 31,041 to 37,128 (1990--1992). Comparisons between matched historical and 1990s photographs showed nearly identical attendance patterns, although there were significantly more murres in the 1990s photographs. Postspill attendance data from multiply censused areas suggest a recovery may have been taking place because of greater than expected annual increases (+25% from 1990 to 1991). Prespill data on reproductive activity of the murres nesting in the Barren Islands were collected from a single 5 x 5-m plot located in a dense, flat section of the East Amatuli Light Rock colony. Comparisons with similarly collected postspill data suggest that phenology, egg production, and chick production are extremely variable among years, although chicks were fledged in all years. Egg and chick production were highest in 1977 and 1991 and lowest in 1992. 72 refs., 9 figs., 5 tabs

Extensive Chaetoceros curvisetus bloom in relation to water quality in Port Blair Bay, Andaman Islands.

Science.gov (United States)

Begum, Mehmuna; Sahu, Biraja Kumar; Das, Apurba Kumar; Vinithkumar, Nambali Valsalan; Kirubagaran, Ramalingam

2015-05-01

Blooming of diatom species Chaetoceros curvisetus (Cleve, 1889) was observed in Junglighat Bay and Haddo Harbour of Port Blair Bay of Andaman and Nicobar Islands during June 2010. Physico-chemical parameters, nutrient concentrations and phytoplankton composition data collected from five stations during 2010 were classified as bloom area (BA) and non-bloom area (NBA) and compared. Elevated values of dissolved oxygen were recorded in the BA, and it significantly varied (p NBA. Among the nutrient parameters studied, nitrate concentration indicated significant variation in BA and NBA (p NBA, indicating its utilization. In Junglighat Bay, the C. curvisetus species constituted 93.4 and 69.2% composition of total phytoplankton population during day 1 and day 2, respectively. The bloom forming stations separated out from the non-bloom forming station in non-parametric multidimensional scaling (nMDS) ordinations; cluster analysis powered by SIMPROF test also grouped the stations as BA and NBA.

Differential bleaching of corals based on El Niño type and intensity in the Andaman Sea, southeast Bay of Bengal.

Science.gov (United States)

Lix, J K; Venkatesan, R; Grinson, George; Rao, R R; Jineesh, V K; Arul, Muthiah M; Vengatesan, G; Ramasundaram, S; Sundar, R; Atmanand, M A

2016-03-01

The Andaman coral reef region experienced mass bleaching events during 1998 and 2010. The purpose of this study is to investigate the role of the El Niño in the coral reef bleaching events of the Andaman region. Both Niño 3.4 and 3 indices were examined to find out the relationship between the mass bleaching events and El Niño, and correlated with sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies in the Andaman Sea. The result shows that abnormal warming and mass bleaching events in the Andaman Sea were seen only during strong El Niño years of 1997-1998 and 2009-2010. The Andaman Sea SST was more elevated and associated with El Niño Modoki (central Pacific El Niño) than conventional El Niño (eastern Pacific El Niño) occurrences. It is suggested that the development of hot spot patterns around the Andaman Islands during May 1998 and April-May 2010 may be attributed to zonal shifts in the Walker circulation driven by El Niño during the corresponding period.

Benthic reef primary production in response to large amplitude internal waves at the Similan Islands (Andaman Sea, Thailand)

KAUST Repository

Jantzen, Carin

2013-11-29

Coral reefs are facing rapidly changing environments, but implications for reef ecosystem functioning and important services, such as productivity, are difficult to predict. Comparative investigations on coral reefs that are naturally exposed to differing environmental settings can provide essential information in this context. One prevalent phenomenon regularly introducing alterations in water chemistry into coral reefs are internal waves. This study therefore investigates the effect of large amplitude internal waves (LAIW) on primary productivity in coral reefs at the Similan Islands (Andaman Sea, Thailand). The LAIW-exposed west sides of the islands are subjected to sudden drops in water temperature accompanied by enhanced inorganic nutrient concentrations compared to the sheltered east. At the central island, Ko Miang, east and west reefs are only few hundred meters apart, but feature pronounced differences. On the west lower live coral cover (-38%) coincides with higher turf algae cover (+64%) and growth (+54%) compared to the east side. Turf algae and the reef sand-associated microphytobenthos displayed similar chlorophyll a contents on both island sides, but under LAIW exposure, turf algae exhibited higher net photosynthesis (+23%), whereas the microphytobenthos displayed reduced net and gross photosynthesis (-19% and -26%, respectively) accompanied by lower respiration (-42%). In contrast, the predominant coral Porites lutea showed higher chlorophyll a tissues contents (+42%) on the LAIW-exposed west in response to lower light availability and higher inorganic nutrient concentrations, but net photosynthesis was comparable for both sides. Turf algae were the major primary producers on the west side, whereas microphytobenthos dominated on the east. The overall primary production rate (comprising all main benthic primary producers) was similar on both island sides, which indicates high primary production variability under different environmental conditions. �

Effect of oil spill on the microbial population in Andaman Sea around Nicobar Island

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Gupta, R.

The microbial studiees of the follow up cruise by FORV Sagar Sampada (cruise No. 113), 9 months after the oil spill in the Andaman Sea due to accident of VLCC Maersk Navigator revealed disturbance in the natural microbial population. Higher...

Provenance and paleo-weathering of Tertiary accretionary prism-forearc sedimentary deposits of the Andaman Archipelago, India

Science.gov (United States)

Awasthi, Neeraj

2017-12-01

In order to understand the provenance and tectono-sedimentary processes occurring in the Andaman Subduction Zone (ASZ), the Late Cretaceous to Oligocene sedimentary records from the Andaman Islands have been studied. These sedimentary records are considered to have preserved the history of the India-Asia collision, evolution of the Himalayas, climatic development and palaeo-drainage reorganizations on the Indian and Asian plates. About 47 sandstones and mudstones (shales and siltstones) samples were analyzed for whole rock major, trace, and rare earth element compositions. The geochemical results suggest mixing of sediments derived from the mafic igneous sources comprising local ophiolites and volcanic arc of the ASZ and an older Archean to Proterozoic age felsic cratonic source with compositions similar to average granodiorite or upper continental crustal sources. The compositions were dominated by sources of the mafic arc during deposition of the Mithakhari Group, whereas they were controlled by continental sources during deposition of the Andaman Flysch Group. The Hope Town Conglomerate unit of the Mithakhari Group was mainly derived from weathering and erosion of the subaerially exposed local ophiolite thrust sheets, whereas its Namunagarh unit contains significant detritus from volcanic arcs. The Andaman Flysch turbidites were deposited with a greater supply of sediments from first-cycle active continental margin sources probably located in the Tibetan and eastern Myanmar region and recycled quartzose sedimentary sources within the nascent Himalayas. The sediments supplied to both the Mithakhari and the Andaman Flysch Groups were characterized by varying values of CIA, PIA and W. These variable values were either due to non-steady state weathering conditions in the sources or the changing climatic conditions owing to the motion of Indian plate with reference to the equator. The uniformly high CIA and W values in the Andaman Flysch rocks can be related to high

Disease and stress-induced mortality of corals in Indian reefs and observations on bleaching of corals in the Andamans

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Ravindran, J.; Raghukumar, C.; Raghukumar, S.

A study was carried out in the Lakshadweep and Andaman islands and the Gulf of Kutch to assess the health of corals in Indian reefs. Disease, predation and stress were the major factors of coral mortality. Death caused by diseases - the black band...

Near-island biological hotspots in barren ocean basins.

Science.gov (United States)

Gove, Jamison M; McManus, Margaret A; Neuheimer, Anna B; Polovina, Jeffrey J; Drazen, Jeffrey C; Smith, Craig R; Merrifield, Mark A; Friedlander, Alan M; Ehses, Julia S; Young, Charles W; Dillon, Amanda K; Williams, Gareth J

2016-02-16

Phytoplankton production drives marine ecosystem trophic-structure and global fisheries yields. Phytoplankton biomass is particularly influential near coral reef islands and atolls that span the oligotrophic tropical oceans. The paradoxical enhancement in phytoplankton near an island-reef ecosystem--Island Mass Effect (IME)--was first documented 60 years ago, yet much remains unknown about the prevalence and drivers of this ecologically important phenomenon. Here we provide the first basin-scale investigation of IME. We show that IME is a near-ubiquitous feature among a majority (91%) of coral reef ecosystems surveyed, creating near-island 'hotspots' of phytoplankton biomass throughout the upper water column. Variations in IME strength are governed by geomorphic type (atoll vs island), bathymetric slope, reef area and local human impacts (for example, human-derived nutrient input). These ocean oases increase nearshore phytoplankton biomass by up to 86% over oceanic conditions, providing basal energetic resources to higher trophic levels that support subsistence-based human populations.

Recent sightings of marine mammals in Andaman Islands, India

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Bitopan Malakar

2015-04-01

Full Text Available This study reports opportunistic sightings of marine mammals between August 2013 and January 2014 in the Andaman region.  Seven sightings were recorded during this period out of which one was of a Dugong, which is significant considering its small population size in India and limited data on its distribution and abundance.  The rest were 24 dolphins (Tursiops sp..  Four sightings were of the same pod of dolphins on different days at the same location.  Two sightings occurred during regular coral reef monitoring survey and the other five during fishery resource survey by trawling operations.  These sightings are of great significance as there is a lack of studies on marine mammals from the region.  Sighting records are useful for understanding aggregation site, behaviour, habits and habitat and residency patterns and provide important information for conservation of marine mammals. 

Host-feeding pattern of Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus (Diptera: Culicidae) in heterogeneous landscapes of South Andaman, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India.

Science.gov (United States)

Sivan, Arun; Shriram, A N; Sunish, I P; Vidhya, P T

2015-09-01

Mosquito foraging behavior is a determinant of host-vector contact and has an impact on the risk of arboviral epidemics. Therefore, blood-feeding patterns is a useful tool for assessing the role in pathogen transmission by vector mosquitoes. Competent vectors of dengue and chikungunya viz. Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus are widely prevalent in the Andaman and Nicobar archipelago. Considering the vector potential, medical importance of both these mosquito species and lack of information on host-feeding patterns, blood meal analysis of both these vector mosquitoes was undertaken. Biogents Sentinel traps were used for sampling blooded mosquitoes, for identifying the source of blood meal by agar gel-precipitin test. We identified vertebrate source of 147 and 104 blood meals in Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus from heterogeneous landscapes in South Andaman district. Results revealed that Ae. aegypti (88 %) and Ae. albopictus (49 %) fed on human and a small proportion on mammals and fowls, indicative of predominance of anthropophilism. Ae. aegypti predominantly fed on human blood (94.2 %-densely built urban, 89.8 %-low vegetation coverage, and 78.3 %-medium vegetation coverage). Anthropophilism in Ae. albopictus was maximal in densely built urban (90.5 %) and progressively decreased from low vegetation-vegetation/forested continuum (66.7, 36.4, and 8.7 %), indicating plasticity in feeding across these landscapes. Epidemiological significance of the findings is discussed.

Short communication: QTL mapping for ear tip-barrenness in maize

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ding, J.; Ma, J.; Chen, J.; Ai, T.; Li, Z.; Tian, Z.; Wu, S.; Chen, W.; Wu, J.

2016-11-01

Barren tip on corn ear is an important agronomic trait in maize, which is highly associated with grain yield. Understanding the genetic basis of tip-barrenness may help to reduce the ear tip-barrenness in breeding programs. In this study, ear tip-barrenness was evaluated in two environments in a F2:3 population, and it showed significant genotypic variation for ear tip-barrenness in both environments. Using mixed-model composite interval mapping method, three additive effects quantitative trait loci (QTL) for ear tip-barrenness were mapped on chromosomes 2, 3 and 6, respectively. They explained 16.6% of the phenotypic variation, and no significant QTL × Environment interactions and digenic interactions were detected. The results indicated that additive effect was the main genetic basis for ear tip-barrenness in maize. This is the first report of QTL mapped for ear tip-barrenness in maize. (Author)

Kelp Forests versus Urchin Barrens: Alternate Stable States and Their Effect on Sea Otter Prey Quality in the Aleutian Islands

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Nathan L. Stewart

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Macroalgal and urchin barren communities are alternately stable and persist in the Aleutians due to sea otter presence and absence. In the early 1990s a rapid otter population decline released urchins from predation and caused a shift to the urchin-dominated state. Despite increases in urchin abundance, otter numbers continued to decline. Although debated, prey quality changes have been implicated in current otter population status. This study examined otter prey abundance, size, biomass, and potential energy density in remnant kelp forest and urchin-dominated communities to determine if alternate stable states affect prey quality. Findings suggest that although urchin barrens provide more abundant urchin prey, individual urchins are smaller and provide lower biomass and potential energy density compared to kelp forests. Shifts to urchin barrens do affect prey quality but changes are likely compensated by increased prey densities and are insufficient in explaining current otter population status in the Aleutians.

Multi-phase structural and tectonic evolution of the Andaman Sea Region

Science.gov (United States)

Masterton, Sheona; Hill, Catherine; Sagi, David Adam; Webb, Peter; Sevastjanova, Inga

2017-04-01

We present a new regional tectonic interpretation for Myanmar and the Andaman Sea, built within the framework of global plate motions. In our model the Present Day Andaman Sea region has been subjected to multiple phases of extension, culminating in its mid-Miocene to Present Day opening as a rhomboidal pull-apart basin. The Andaman Sea region is historically thought to have developed as a consequence of back-arc opening associated with plate convergence at the Andaman-Nicobar subduction system. We have undertaken detailed structural interpretation of potential field, Landsat and SRTM data, supported by 2-D crustal models of the Andaman Sea. From this analysis we identified several major north-south striking faults and a series of northeast-southwest striking structures across the region. We have also mapped the extent of the Andaman-Nicobar Accretionary Prism, a fore arc trough and volcanic arc, which we associate with a phase of traditional trench-parallel back-arc extension from the Paleocene to the middle Miocene. A regional tectonic event occurred during the middle Miocene that caused the cessation of back-arc extension in the Present Day Andaman Sea and an eastward shift in the locus of arc-related volcanism. At that time, N-S striking faults onshore and offshore Myanmar were reactivated with widespread right-lateral motion. This motion, accompanied by extension along new NE-SW striking faults, facilitated the opening of the Central Andaman Basin as a pull-apart basin (rhombochasm) in which a strike-slip tectonic regime has a greater impact on the mode of opening than the subduction process. The integration of our plate model solution within a global framework allows identification of major plate reorganisation events and their impact on a regional scale. We therefore attribute the onset of pull-apart opening in the Andaman Sea to ongoing clockwise rotation of the western Sundaland margin throughout the late Paleogene and early Miocene, possibly driven by the

Residues leaching from 'Factory of barren ores'

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rakhmatov, N.; Khakimov, N.; Nazarov, Kh.M.; Barotov, A.M.

2012-01-01

The objective of the present work is safe management of residues from Factory of Barren Ores, their reprocessing, expenditures reduction for remediation of Istiklol city former uranium tailings. For this purpose, some experiences were adopted - Factory of Barren Ores tailing use for filling up the open pit where water with uranium content 3-5 mg/l is located. Factory of Barren Ores waste are passed through heap leaching and have some amount of uranium salts dissolved in water. Thus, we propose to dissolve uranium from Factory of Barren Ores wastes with uranium bearing water flowing out from gallery and filling up the open-pit by radioactive wastes. In so doing, uranium content flowing out from gallery will increase twice, and further, passing them through apricot's shell, as a sorbent, we will clean the water against radionuclides. Residue samples with uranium content 0,015% from Factory of Barren Ores and uranium bearing waters from gallery 1 with uranium content 0,0025 g/l were used for laboratory tests. After which, a slurry was prepared by means of residue mixing with water in ratio of solid and liquid phases (S:L) - 1:2 and 9,7 ml of sulfuric acid (Ρ=1,82) was added which corresponds consumption by H 2 SO 4 176,54 kg/t. For the first test, leaching was carried out during 4 hours at ph=1,6 at room temperature. For the second test, leaching was carried out at 60 d eg C a nd ph=1,6 during 4 hours. Slurry heating and mixing was carried out by means of magnetic mixer. The basic residue leaching indicators are provided in this article.

Coral microatoll as geodetic tool in North Andaman and Little ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

... 2004 earthquake at eastern coast of North Andaman has been determined by Global Ocean Tide Model. The present position of recently dead flat top microatoll with preserved internal structure at the eastern coast of North. Andaman mainland indicates 31.21 cm uplift due to the 26 December, 2004 earthquake. Compara-.

Transferrin variation and evolution of Canadian barren-ground caribou

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Knut H. Røed

1990-09-01

Full Text Available Blood samples were obtained from 95 barren-ground caribou (Rangifer tarandus groenlandicus of the Beverly herd in Northwest Territories, Canada. Polyacrylamid gel electrophoresis was used to score for genetic variation in the locus coding for transferrin. The pattern of allele frequency distribution are compared with previously reported values of Eurasian tundra reindeer (R.t. tarandus, Alaska caribou (R.t. granti, Peary caribou (R.t. pearyi, and Svalbard reindeer (R.t. platyrhynchus. In the Beverly herd a total of 21 different transferrin alleles were detected. The amount of genetic variation was higher in the Canadian barren-ground caribou than what has been detected in other subspecies of reindeer/caribou. Highly gene-tical differences in the allele frequencies were detected between the Canadian barren-ground caribou and the other subspecies. The genetic identity analyses indicates approximately the same amount of genetic differentiation when the Canadian barren-ground caribou are compared with Alaska caribou as with the Peary caribou. The allele frequency pattern could be explained by a possible origin of the Canadian barren-ground caribou from an ancestral population which was genetical influenced by animals surviving the We-ichselian glaciation in refugia both in high Arctic, in Beringia, and south of the ice sheet.

Status assessment of the Saddlepeak Dewflower (Murdannia saddlepeakensis Ramana & Nandikar: Commelinaceae: an endemic spiderwort plant of Andaman Islands, India

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Johny Kumar Tagore

2016-12-01

Full Text Available The current distribution and threat assessment of Murdannia saddlepeakensis Ramana & Nandikar (Commelinaceae, an endemic plant of Saddle Peak National Park, northern Andaman is presented here.  The data available from field surveys indicate that this species is Critically Endangered according to the 2011 IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria. 

Food components of the Andaman Sea

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Qasim, S.Z.; Ansari, Z.A.

is inverse. The Andaman Sea is oligotrophic in nature with low primary and secondary productivity and hence the production of large quantities of detritus appears to supplement the nutritional inadequacy of these waters...

Stress Transfer Processes during Great Plate Boundary Thrusting Events: A Study from the Andaman and Nicobar Segments

Science.gov (United States)

Andrade, V.; Rajendran, K.

2010-12-01

Diglipur (depth: 21 km) and the August 10, 2009, Mw 7.5 normal faulting earthquake near Coco Island (depth: 22 km), within the northern terminus of the 2004 rupture are cited as examples of the alternating pre and post earthquake stress conditions. The major pre and post 2004 clusters were associated with the Andaman Spreading Ridge (ASR). In the Nicobar segment, the most recent earthquake on June 12, 2010, Mw 7.5 (focal depth: 35 km) occurred very close to the plate boundary, through left lateral strike-slip faulting. A segment that does not feature any active volcanoes unlike its northern and southern counterparts, this part of the plate boundary has generated several right lateral strike-slip earthquakes, mostly on the Sumatra Fault System. The left-lateral strike-slip faulting associated with the June 12 event on a nearly N-S oriented fault plane consistent with the trend of the Ninety East ridge and the occasional left-lateral earthquakes prior to the 2004 mega-thrust event suggest the involvement of the Ninety East ridge in the subduction process.

Meiofauna of the Andaman Sea

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Ansari, Z.A.; Parulekar, A.H.

Total meiofauna of the Andaman Sea, in the depth range 30-2150m was between 68 and 438/10cm2 (X-bar = 247.8). The biomass was within the range 3.57 and 32.8mg/10cm 2 (X-bar = 14.46). faunal components were maximum in sandy sediments which contained...

Heat storage in the Andaman Sea

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

RameshBabu, V.; Sastry, J.S.

Heat storage in the Andaman Sea in upper 20 m, where a strong halocline seems to inhibit vertical heat transport has been evaluated and discussed in relation to the other parameters of heat budget. Estimation of annual evaporation gives rise to 137...

Emergence of influenza A (H1N1) PDM09 in the remote Islands of India--a molecular approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Muruganandam, N; Bhattacharya, D; Chaaithanya, I K; Bhattacharya, H; Reesu, R; Maile, A; Bharathi, G S J; Sugunan, A P; Vijayachari, P

2015-01-01

A disease outbreak of A (H1N1) PDM09 was reported in Andaman and Nicobar islands in 2009 with an attack rate of 33.5% among settler population and 26.3% among the aboriginal Nicobarese tribe. During the ongoing outbreak of A (H1N1) PDM09 disease in different parts of the world, a subject working in Dubai city of Saudi Arabia, came to Port Blair, following which the pandemic triggered for the first time in these Islands. During the period August 2009 to January 2011, 30 confirmed cases of Influenza A (H1N1) PDM09 virus infection was detected. To understand the genetic relationship, the NA gene sequences of the viruses were phylogenetically analysed together along with the virus sequence isolated from other parts of the world. Formation of multiple clusters were observed, with the sequences of Andaman Islands, mainland India, Mexico, Saudi Arabia and few other counties clustering together. The sequence analysis data revealed that there was no specific mutation conferring resistance to oseltamivir among the Andaman A (H1N1) PDM09 virus isolates. The result of phylogenetic analysis have also revealed that the A (H1N1) PDM09 virus might have spread in these remote Islands of India via the subject from Saudi Arabia/Dubai. A (H1N1) PDM09 Influenza outbreak have highlighted the need to strengthen the region-specific pandemic preparedness plans and surveillance strategies.

Numerical Simulation of Internal Waves in the Andaman Sea

Science.gov (United States)

Mohanty, Sachiko; Devendra Rao, Ambarukhana

2017-04-01

The interactions of barotropic tides with irregular bottom topography generate internal waves with high amplitude known as large-amplitude internal waves (LAIW) in the Andaman Sea. These waves are an important phenomena in the ocean due to their influence on the density structure and energy transfer into the region. These waves are also important in submarine acoustics, underwater navigation, offshore structures, ocean mixing, biogeochemical processes, etc. over the shelf-slope region. In the present study, energetics analysis of M2 internal tides over the Andaman Sea is carried out in detail by using a three-dimensional MIT general circulation ocean model (MITgcm). In-situ observations of temperature, conductivity and currents with high temporal resolution are used to validate the model simulations. From the spectral energy estimate of density, it is found that the peak estimate is associated with the semi-diurnal frequency at all the depths in both observations and model simulations. The baroclinic velocity characteristics, suggests that a multi-mode features of baroclinic tides are present at the buoy location. To understand the generation and propagation of internal tides over this region, energy flux and barotropic-to-baroclinic M2 tidal energy conversion rates are examined. The model simulation suggests that the internal tide is generated at multiple sites and propagate off of their respective generation sources. Most of the energy propagation in the Andaman Sea follows the 1000m isobath. The maximum horizontal kinetic energy follows the energy flux pattern over the domain and the available potential energy is found to be maximum in the north of the Andaman Sea.

Isolation and molecular characterization of Chikungunya virus from the Andaman and Nicobar archipelago, India: evidence of an East, Central, and South African genotype.

Science.gov (United States)

Muruganandam, N; Chaaithanya, I K; Senthil, G S; Shriram, A N; Bhattacharya, D; Jeevabharathi, G S; Sudeep, A B; Pradeepkumar, N; Vijayachari, P

2011-12-01

Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) is an Alphavirus belonging to the family Togaviridae. In 2006, CHIKV infection struck the Andaman and Nicobar archipelago, with an attack rate of 60%. There were more than 10 cases with acute flaccid paralysis simulating the Guillian Barre Syndrome. The majority of the patients presented severe joint pain. The cause for such an explosive nature of the outbreak with increased morbidity was not known. The isolation of CHIKV was attempted and succeeded from nine subjects presenting clinical symptoms of Chikungunya fever. The cDNA of all the isolates was sequenced for partial E1 and nsP1 genes. Sequences were aligned based on the double locus sequence typing concept. The phylogenetic analysis shows that sequences of Andaman isolates grouped with the East, Central, and South African genotype of virus isolates from India, Sri Lanka, and Réunion. The genetic distance between Andaman isolates and the Réunion isolates was very small. The phylogenetic analysis confirmed the origin of the isolates responsible for the first ever confirmed CHIKV outbreak in these islands to be the East, Central, and South African genotype. In this manuscript, we discuss the involvement of the East, Central, and South African strain with the Chikungunya fever outbreak in this archipelago and double locus sequence typing as a first time approach.

Emergence of influenza A (H1N1 PDM09 in the remote Islands of India - A molecular approach

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N Muruganandam

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Background: A disease outbreak of A (H1N1 PDM09 was reported in Andaman and Nicobar islands in 2009 with an attack rate of 33.5% among settler population and 26.3% among the aboriginal Nicobarese tribe. During the ongoing outbreak of A (H1N1 PDM09 disease in different parts of the world, a subject working in Dubai city of Saudi Arabia, came to Port Blair, following which the pandemic triggered for the first time in these Islands. Materials and Methods: During the period August 2009 to January 2011, 30 confirmed cases of Influenza A (H1N1 PDM09 virus infection was detected. To understand the genetic relationship, the NA gene sequences of the viruses were phylogenetically analysed together along with the virus sequence isolated from other parts of the world. Result: Formation of multiple clusters were observed, with the sequences of Andaman Islands, mainland India, Mexico, Saudi Arabia and few other counties clustering together. The sequence analysis data revealed that there was no specific mutation conferring resistance to oseltamivir among the Andaman A (H1N1 PDM09 virus isolates. The result of phylogenetic analysis have also revealed that the A (H1N1 PDM09 virus might have spread in these remote Islands of India via the subject from Saudi Arabia/Dubai. Conclusion: A (H1N1 PDM09 Influenza outbreak have highlighted the need to strengthen the region-specific pandemic preparedness plans and surveillance strategies.

Observations and predictability of internal solitons in the northern Andaman Sea

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hyder, P. [Fugro GEOS Ltd., Wallingford (United Kingdom); Met Office, National Centre for Ocean Forecasting, Exeter (United Kingdom); Jeans, D.R.G. [Fugro GEOS Ltd., Wallingford (United Kingdom); Cauquil, E. [Total, Paris la Defense Cedex, 92 (France); Nerzic, R. [Actimar, Brest, 29 (France)

2005-04-15

Internal solitons are potentially hazardous to sub-sea oil and gas drilling operations. The ability to predict these waves can therefore improve the cost effectiveness and safety of offshore drilling. Theory suggests that solitons are generated when strong tidal currents flow over a bathymetric feature, in a stratified water column. Therefore, with knowledge of the tidal currents, bathymetry and stratification these waves are potentially predictable. Observations were conducted between January and April 1998 at a proposed drilling location in water 440 m deep to the north-east of the Andaman Islands. These observations indicated the occurrence of internal solitons with thermocline depressions of up to 50 m and upper layer currents of up to 1.2 ms{sup -1}. The solitons only occurred on spring tides, when the tidal range exceeded 1.5 m and their probability of occurrence increased with tidal range. Thus, in this location, predictions of tidal range can be used to forecast soliton occurrence. (Author)

Two-phase opening of Andaman Sea: a new seismotectonic insight

Science.gov (United States)

Khan, P. K.; Chakraborty, Partha Pratim

2005-01-01

High-resolution reconstruction of Benioff zone depth-dip angle trajectory for Burma-Java subduction margin between 2° and 17°N Lat. reveals two major episodes of plate geometry change expressed as abrupt deviation in subduction angle. Estimation of effective rate of subduction in different time slices (and then length of subducted slab) allowed drawing of isochrones in Ma interval through these trajectories for the time period 5-12 Ma. With these isochrones, the deformation events on the subducting Indian plate are constrained in time as of 4-5 and 11 Ma old. This well-constrained time connotation offered scope for the correlation of slab deformation events with the well-established two-phase opening history of the Andaman Sea. While the 11 Ma event recorded from southern part of the study area is correlated with early stretching and rifting phase, the 4-5 Ma event is interpreted as major forcing behind the spreading phase of the Andaman Sea. Systematic spatio-temporal evaluation of Indian plate obliquity on the Andaman Sea evolution shows its definite control on the early rifting phase, initiated towards south near northwest Sumatra. The much young spreading phase recorded towards north of 7° Lat. is possibly the result of late Miocene-Pliocene trench retreat and follow-up transcurrent movement (along Sagaing and Sumatran fault system) with NW-SE pull-apart extension. Nonconformity between plate shape and subduction margin geometry is interpreted as the causative force behind Mid-Miocene intraplate extension and tearing. Enhanced stretching in the overriding plate consequently caused active forearc subsidence, recorded all along this plate margin. Initial phase of the Andaman Sea opening presumably remains concealed in this early-middle Miocene forearc subsidence history. The late Miocene-Pliocene pull-apart opening and spreading was possibly initiated near the western part of the Mergui-Sumatra region and propagated northward in subsequent period. A temporary

Biochemical composition of zooplankton from the Andaman Sea

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Goswami, S.C.; Rao, T.S.S.; Matondkar, S.G.P.

Protein was the dominant constituent in mixed zooplankton major planktonic groups and some common species collected from the Andaman Sea. Overall mean values, calculated as a percentage of dry weight, were 45,14 protein, 10.6 lipid, 4.2 carbohydrate...

Provenance analysis of the Oligocene turbidites (Andaman Flysch ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

d. F. L. L. L. P. P. Figure 2. Field photographs of the Andaman Flysch turbidites. ... sandstone bed and produce flame (F) structures; (e) A variety of sole marks at the base of an ...... Nicobar: The Neogene; Capital Publishing Company, New.

Port Blair declaration pledged to establish and develop Andaman and Nicobar Ocean Biogeographic Information System - Meeting report

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Chavan, V.S.; Achuthankutty, C.T.; Nazar, A.K.A.

to implement such an inform a tion system, and monitor the progress of ANOBIS. The task force would comprise of techn i cal and da ta - management representatives from pa r - ticipating institutions, and would ensure seamless establishment and development... Declaration pledged to establish and develop Andaman and Nicobar Ocean Biogeographic Information Sy s tem* T he Andaman and Nicobar (A&N) I s- lands are located in the Indian Ocean, in the southern reaches of the Bay of Be n gal. The Andaman Sea...

Crustal accretion at a sedimented spreading center in the Andaman Sea

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Jourdain, A.; Singh, S.C.; Escartin, J.; Klinger, Y.; KameshRaju, K.A.; Mc

sedimented spreading center in the 1 Andaman Sea2 Aurélie Jourdain1, Satish C. Singh1, Javier Escartin1, Yann Klinger1, K. A. Kamesh Raju2,3 J. McArdle3 4 1Institut de Physique du Globe de Paris, Sorbonne Paris Cité, UMR7154-CNRS, 1 rue Jussieu, 5 78238... Singh, S. C., Moeremans, R., McArdle, J., and Johansen, K., 2013, Seismic images of the sliver 327 strike-slip fault and back thrust in the Andaman-Nicobar region: Journal of Geophysical 328 Research: Solid Earth, v. 118, p. 5208-5224. 329 Sleep, N. H...

Transient postseismic mantle relaxation following 2004 Sumatra earthquake: implications of seismic vulnerability in the Andaman-Nicobar region

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

C. D. Reddy

2012-02-01

Full Text Available Throughout the world, the tsunami generation potential of some large under-sea earthquakes significantly contributes to regional seismic hazard, which gives rise to significant risk in the near-shore provinces where human settlements are in sizeable population, often referred to as coastal seismic risk. In this context, we show from the pertinent GPS data that the transient stresses generated by the viscoelastic relaxation process taking place in the mantle is capable of rupturing major faults by stress transfer from the mantle through the lower crust including triggering additional rupture on the other major faults. We also infer that postseismic relaxation at relatively large depths can push some of the fault segments to reactivation causing failure sequences. As an illustration to these effects, we consider in detail the earthquake sequence comprising six events, starting from the main event of M_w = 7.5, on 10 August 2009 and tapering off to a small earthquake of M_w = 4.5 on 2 February 2011 over a period of eighteen months in the intensely seismic Andaman Islands between India and Myanmar. The persisting transient stresses, spatio-temporal seismic pattern, modeled Coulomb stress changes, and the southward migration of earthquake activity has increased the probability of moderate earthquakes recurring in the northern Andaman region, particularly closer to or somewhat south of Diglipur.

The capacity to adapt?: communities in a changing climate, environment, and economy on the northern Andaman coast of Thailand

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nathan J. Bennett

2014-06-01

Full Text Available The health and productivity of marine ecosystems, habitats, and fisheries are deteriorating on the Andaman coast of Thailand. Because of their high dependence on natural resources and proximity to the ocean, coastal communities are particularly vulnerable to climate-induced changes in the marine environment. These communities must also adapt to the impacts of management interventions and conservation initiatives, including marine protected areas, which have livelihood implications. Further, communities on the Andaman coast are also experiencing a range of new economic opportunities associated in particular with tourism and agriculture. These complex and ongoing changes require integrated assessment of, and deliberate planning to increase, the adaptive capacity of communities so that they may respond to: (1 environmental degradation and fisheries declines through effective management interventions or conservation initiatives, (2 new economic opportunities to reduce dependence on fisheries, and (3 the increasing impacts of climate change. Our results are from a mixed methods study, which used surveys and interviews to examine multiple dimensions of the adaptive capacity of seven island communities near marine protected areas on the Andaman coast of Thailand. Results show that communities had low adaptive capacity with respect to environmental degradation and fisheries declines, and to management and conservation interventions, as well as uneven levels of adaptive capacity to economic opportunities. Though communities and households were experiencing the impacts of climate change, especially storm events, changing seasons and weather patterns, and erosion, they were reacting to these changes with limited knowledge of climate change per se. We recommend interventions, in the form of policies, programs, and actions, at multiple scales for increasing the adaptive capacity of Thailand's coastal communities to change. The analytical and methodological

Energy values of suspended detritus in Andaman Sea

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Krishnakumari, L.; Royan, J.P.; Sumitra-Vijayaraghavan

Energy content of suspended detritus was determined in Andaman Sea waters during April-May 1988. The caloric content of suspended detritus ranged from 987 to 7040 cal. per gram dry wt with an average value of 5530 cal. per gram dry wt. The results...

Evidence for hydrothermal activity in the Andaman Backarc Basin

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Rao, P.S.; KameshRaju, K.A.; Ramprasad, T.; Nath, B.N.; Rao, B.R.; Rao, Ch.M.; Nair, R.R.

Multibeam bathymetric, magnetic, gravity and seismic surveys revealed a complex morphotectonic fabric of the Andaman Backare Basin with a spreading ridge, several seamounts and faults. The ridge trending SW-NE direction is segmented and shows...

Hydrotalcite formation facilitates effective contaminant and radionuclide removal from acidic uranium mine barren lixiviant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Douglas, Grant; Shackleton, Mark; Woods, Peter

2014-01-01

Highlights: • Remediation of barren lixiviant using hydrotalcite precipitation. • High U and rare earth element concentration factor. • Hydrotalcite may be further modified for long-term disposal. • Potential application to U and other commodities. - Abstract: An assessment of hydrotalcite (HT) formation as a method to neutralise acidity and remove trace elements was undertaken using barren lixiviant from Heathgate Resources’ Beverley North in situ recovery (ISR) U mine in South Australia. This study demonstrated proof of concept in terms of the neutralisation of acidity and concomitant removal of a range of trace elements and U–Th series radionuclides from the barren lixiviant using MgCl 2 as a supplementary Mg source to optimise Mg:Al mol ratios and NaOH as the neutralising agent. Hydrotalcite was the predominant mineral formed during neutralisation, hosting a range of elements including substantial U (∼0.2%) and rare earth elements (REE ∼0.1%). High U and REE recovery (∼99%) from barren lixiviant after HT precipitation indicates a potential to both remediate barren lixiviant and to offset remediation costs. Alternatively, HT precipitates formed during barren lixiviant neutralisation may be further stabilised via calcination, silicification or a combination thereof forming minerals potentially amenable for inclusion in a long-term waste repository at the cessation of ISR mining. Importantly, the composition of the neutralised barren lixiviant produced via HT precipitation is similar to that of existing groundwater allowing for the possibility of direct aquifer re-injection after remediation. A potential exists to apply this HT-based remediation technology to conventional or ISR U mines (or mines exploiting other commodities) and allows for the prospect of a fully integrated ISR mining, processing and lixiviant remediation strategy consistent with stringent environmental and mine closure standards

Restoration of Black Oak (Quercus velutina) Sand Barrens via Three Different Habitat Management Approaches

Science.gov (United States)

Kriska, David John

Disturbance regimes, i.e. frequent fires, historically maintained oak barrens until European settlement patterns, and eventually, Smoky the Bear and the fire suppression campaign of the U.S. Forest Service snuffed out the periodic flames. In the absence of a disturbance regime, ground layer floral composition at many historical oak sand barrens will change predominantly because of a buildup of leaf litter and shading of the soils. Termed mesophication, this process of ecological succession will drive Black Oak Sand Barrens to an alternate steady state. A survey conducted on Singer Lake Bog in Green, Ohio, demonstrated that succession shifted the community to red maple-black cherry woodlands more typical of a dry southern forest. In an attempt to revive disturbance, three restoration techniques were applied at ten degraded northeast Ohio oak barrens to contrast their effectiveness in restoring black oak sand barren flora. The three restoration treatments were select canopy tree reduction favoring 5% to 30% tree canopy cover, forest floor leaf litter removal, and prescribed fire. Vegetation responses to manipulations were monitored prior to and following treatment applications, and were compared against both baseline data from before-treatment surveys and paired control sites adjacent treated areas. Imposing disturbance successfully increased species diversity and abundance above that found across Singer Lake Bog compared to sampling made prior to and adjacent to treated areas. Select canopy tree removal exhibited the largest floral responses from targeted barrens species, i.e. graminoids. A forest floor invertebrate family (Carabidea: Coleoptera) was measured for species richness and abundance pre and post treatment, where a noticeable shift occurred away from woodland obligate ground beetles toward open grassland species. Replicating oak barren structure, prior to replicating disturbance processes, is the first step in the ecological restoration of these systems.

Resource-use efficiencies of three indigenous tree species planted in resource islands created by shrubs: implications for reforestation of subtropical degraded shrublands

Science.gov (United States)

Nan Liu; Qinfeng Guo

2012-01-01

Shrub resource islands are characterized by resources accumulated shrubby areas surrounded by relative barren soils. This research aims to determine resource-use efficiency of native trees species planted on shrub resource islands, and to determine how the planted trees may influence the resource islands in degraded shrublands in South China. Shrub (Rhodomyrtus...

A study of medusae from Andaman and Nicobar waters

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Santhakumari, V.

The results obtained from 14 cruises undertaken by FORV Sagar Sampada during the period 1986-1990 from Andaman and Nicobar waters are detailed. 346 zooplankton collections were made during this period and medusae were found from 307 stations. A...

Some heavy metals in fishes from the Andaman sea

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Kureishy, T.W.; Sanzgiri, S.; Braganca, A.

Muscles, liver, gills and heart of several fishes and some zooplankton(whole sample) collected from the Andaman Sea were analysed for Cu, Mn, Zn, Fe, Ni and Co. The concentrations of practically all the metals were highest in the liver. The edible...

Biodiversity of chaetognaths of the Andaman Sea, Indian Ocean.

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Nair, V.R.; Gireesh, R.

Andaman Sea is a prominent biodiversity hotspot in the Indian Ocean. Stratified zooplankton collections were taken at 33 locations during 2003-2006. Average density of chaetognaths was 8.5/msup(3) in open ocean and 41.6/m sup(3) in coastal waters...

Optimization of the recycling process of precipitation barren solution in a uranium mine

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Long Qing; Yu Suqin; Zhao Wucheng; Han Wei; Zhang Hui; Chen Shuangxi

2014-01-01

Alkaline leaching process was adopted to recover uranium from ores in a uranium mine, and high concentration uranium solution, which would be later used in precipitation, was obtained after ion-exchange and elution steps. The eluting agent consisted of NaCl and NaHCO 3 . Though precipitation barren solution contained as high as 80 g/L Na 2 CO 3 , it still can not be recycled due to presence of high Cl - concentration So, both elution and precipitation processes were optimized in order to control the Cl - concentration in the precipitation barren solution to the recyclable concentration range. Because the precipitation barren solution can be recycled by optimization, the agent consumption was lowered and the discharge of waste water was reduced. (authors)

Petrology of the prehistoric lavas and dyke of the Barren Island ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

R. Narasimhan (Krishtel eMaging) 1461 1996 Oct 15 13:05:22

historic times, the eruptions that led to the formation of this volcanic island occurred mainly during prehistoric times. ... eruptions occurred from its centre, producing a. 250m high ... non-eruptive lateral landslide of the original cone or by vertical ...

Application of inversion techniques on marine magnetic data: Andaman shelf

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Sarma, K.V.L.N.S.; Ramana, M.V.; Murty, G.P.S.; Subrahmanyam, V.; Krishna, K.S.; Chaubey, A.K.; Rao, M.M.M.; Narayana, S.L.

with optimisation procedure of iteration modelling. The depths derived from these methods match well with the acoustic basement mapped by seismic reflection survey across the Andaman shelf. The interpretation by these methods demonstrates the rapid utility in virgin...

The nonlinear Fourier analysis of internal solitons in the Andaman sea

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Osborne, A.R.; Provenzale, A.; Bergamasco, L.

1983-01-01

A preliminary spectral analysis of large-amplitude internal solitons in the Andaman Sea was conducted, employing method based upon the spectral (or scattering) transform solution of the Korteweg-de Vries equation

Functional and molecular characterization of a lipopeptide surfactant from the marine sponge-associated eubacteria Bacillus licheniformis NIOT-AMKV06 of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India.

Science.gov (United States)

Lawrance, Anburajan; Balakrishnan, Meena; Joseph, Toms Cheriath; Sukumaran, Dheenan Palaiya; Valsalan, Vinithkumar Nambali; Gopal, Dharani; Ramalingam, Kirubagaran

2014-05-15

The production of a lipopeptide surfactant from the sponge-associated eubacteria Bacillus licheniformis NIOT-AMKV06 from the Andaman and Nicobar Islands was investigated. The highest production was attained with glucose and yeast extracts as the carbon and nitrogen sources (1.789 mg mL(-1)), respectively. The surfactant was highly stable over a pH range of 5.0-10 and a temperature range of 20-70°C with high NaCl concentrations. Excellent emulsification activity was exhibited by the purified surfactant with crude oil, kerosene, and diesel. A two-fold increase in surfactant production (3.0 mg mL(-1)) was observed using the newly formulated medium in this study. The surfactant biosynthesis gene cluster (sfp, sfpO, and srfA) from B. licheniformis NIOT-AMKV06 was heterologously expressed in Escherichia coli, and the production was increased three-fold (11.78 g L(-1)) over the original strain. The results confirm the potential of the surfactant for use in bioremediation of hydrocarbons in a marine environment and for enhanced oil recovery. To our knowledge, this is the first report on the ability of a hydrocarbon degrading B. licheniformis from marine sponges for the biosynthesis of a potent lipopeptide surfactant possessing characteristics of maximum stability, outstanding surfactant activity, and exceptional emulsifying capability. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Physical oceanography of the Bay of Bengal and Andaman Sea

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Varkey, M.J.; Murty, V.S.N.; Suryanarayana, A.

Physical oceanography of the Bay of Bengal and Andaman Sea is reviewed for the first time. All available information for over 50 years is consolidated in this review. To begin with, information on peripheral or related aspects of climate...

Differential bleaching of corals based on El Nino type and intensity in the Andaman Sea, southeast Bay of Bengal

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Lix, J.K.; Venkatesan, R.; Grinson, G.; Rao, R.R.; Jineesh, V.K.; Arul, M.M.; Vengatesan, G.; Ramasundaram, S.; Sundar, R.; Atmanand, M.A.

The Andaman coral reef region experienced mass bleaching events during 1998 and 2010. The purpose of this study is to investigate the role of the El Nino in the coral reef bleaching events of the Andaman region. Both Nino 3.4 and 3 indices were...

Organic richness and gas generation potential of Permian Barren ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

this study, a total of 32 core samples of Permian Barren Measures from four boreholes in Raniganj field of Damodar Basin ... number of factors like (i) quality and quantity of organic matter ...... Gujarat Energy Research and Management Insti-.

Relationships between behavioral and meat quality characteristics of pigs raised under barren and enriched housing conditions

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Klont, R.E.; Hulsegge, B.; Hoving Bolink, A.H.; Gerritzen, M.A.; Kurt, E.; Winkelman Goedhart, H.A.; Jong, de I.C.; Kranen, R.W.

2001-01-01

In this study the effects of barren vs enriched housing conditions of pigs on their behavior during the lairage period (2-h holding period before slaughter), carcass characteristics, postmortem muscle metabolism, and meat quality were studied. The barren housing system was defined by common

The 2005 volcano-tectonic earthquake swarm in the Andaman Sea: Triggered by the 2004 great Sumatra-Andaman earthquake

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Kundu, B.; Legrand, D.; Gahalaut, K.; Gahalaut, V.K.; Mahesh, P.; KameshRaju, K.A.; Catherine, J.K.; Ambikapthy, A.; Chadha, R.K.

Raju3, J.K. Catherine1, A. Ambikapthy1, R.K.Chadha1 1. National Geophysical Research Institute (CSIR), Hyderabad-500007, India 2. UNAM, Instituto de Geofísica, Av. Universidad 3000, Ciudad Universitaria, Del. Coyoacán, C.P. 04510. México D....F. México. 3. National Institute of Oceanography (CSIR), Dona Paula, Goa-403004, India *Corresponding Author (Email: rilbhaskar@gmail.com) Abstract: A 6-days duration earthquakes swarm occurred in the Andaman Sea, 31 days after the giant 2004...

Nutrient dynamics and primary production in a pristine coastal mangrove ecosystem: Andaman Islands, India

Science.gov (United States)

Jenkins, E. N.; Nickodem, K.; Siemann, A. L.; Hoeher, A.; Sundareshwar, P. V.; Ramesh, R.; Purvaja, R.; Banerjee, K.; Manickam, S.; Haran, H.

2012-12-01

Mangrove ecosystems play a key role in supporting coastal food webs and nutrient cycles in the coastal zone. Their strategic position between the land and the sea make them important sites for land-ocean interaction. As part of an Indo-US summer field course we investigated changes in the water chemistry in a pristine mangrove creek located at Wright Myo in the Andaman Islands, India. This study was conducted during the wet season (June 2012) to evaluate the influence of the coastal mangrove wetlands on the water quality and productivity in adjoining pelagic waters. Over a full tidal cycle spanning approximately 24 hrs, we measured nutrient concentrations and other ancillary parameters (e.g. dissolved oxygen, turbidity, salinity, etc.) hourly to evaluate water quality changes in incoming and ebbing tides. Nutrient analyses had the following concentration ranges (μM): nitrite 0.2-0.9, nitrate 2.0-11.5, ammonium 1.3-7.5, dissolved inorganic phosphate 0.7-2.8. The dissolved inorganic nitrogen to dissolved inorganic phosphate (DIN/DIP) ratio was very low relative to an optimal ratio, suggesting growth is nitrogen limited. In addition, we conducted primary production assays to investigate the factors that controlled primary production in this pristine creek. The experiment was carried out in situ using the Winkler method at low and high tide. Four-hour incubation of light and dark bottles representing a fixed control, non-fertilized, fertilized with nitrate, and fertilized with phosphate enabled the measurement of both net oxygen production and dark respiration. The low tide experiment suggests the ecosystem is heterotrophic because the oxygen measured in the light bottles was consistently less than that of the dark bottles. This result may be an experimental artifact of placing the glass bottles in the sun for too long prior to incubation, potentially leading to photolysis of large organic molecules in the light bottles. The high tide experiment also displayed

Acidic Barren Slope Profiling using Electrical Resistivity Imaging (ERI) at Ayer Hitam area Johor, Malaysia

Science.gov (United States)

Azhar, A. T. S.; Hazreek, Z. A. M.; Aziman, M.; Haimi, D. S.; Hafiz, Z. M.

2016-04-01

Recently, non-destructive method such as the electrical resistivity technique has become increasingly popular in engineering, environmental, mining and archeological studies nowadays. This method was popular in subsurface profiling due to its ability to replicate the images of the subsurface indirectly. The soil slope found in Batu Pahat, specifically in Ayer Hitam, is known to be problematic due to its barren condition. This location is believed to contain futile soil due to its difficulty in supporting the growth of vegetations. In the past, acidic barren slope assessment using non-destructive method was rarely being used due to several reasons related to the equipment and knowledge constraints. Hence, this study performed an electrical resistivity imaging using ABEM Terrameter LS in order to investigate the acidic barren slope conditions. Field data acquisition was based on Schlumberger and Wenner arrays while RES2DINV software was used to analyze and generate a 2-D model of the problematic subsurface profile. Based on electrical resistivity results, it was found that the acidic barren slope studied consists of two main zones representing residual soil (electrical resistivity value = 10 - 600 Ωm) and shale (electrical resistivity value = 20 - 2000 Ωm). The results of resistivity value were correlated with the physical mapping and the in situ mackintosh probe test for verification purposes. It was found that the maximum depth of the mackintosh probe test was 1.8 m due to its ground penetration limitation. However, the results of the resistivity section managed to achieve greater depth up to 40 m. Hence, the correlation between electrical resistivity and mackintosh probe results can only be performed at certain depth of the acidic barren slope profile in contrast with the physical mapping which able to define the whole section of the barren soil slope structure. Finally, a good match of electrical resistivity results calibrated with mackintosh and physical

Landscape Dynamics on the Island of La Gonave, Haiti, 1990–2010

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lisa M. Kennedy

2013-09-01

Full Text Available The island of La Gonave lies northwest of Port-au-Prince and is representative of the subsistence Haitian lifestyle. Little is known about the land cover changes and conversion rates on La Gonave. Using Landsat images from 1990 to 2010, this research investigates landscape dynamics through image classification, change detection, and landscape pattern analysis. Five land cover classes were considered: Agriculture, Forest/Dense Vegetation (DV, Shrub, Barren/Eroded, and Nonforested Wetlands. Overall image classification accuracy was 87%. Results of land cover change analysis show that all major land cover types experienced substantial changes from 1990 to 2010. The area percent change was −39.7, −22.7, 87.4, and −7.0 for Agriculture, Forest/Dense Vegetation, Shrub, and Barren/Eroded. Landscape pattern analysis illustrated the encroachment of Shrub cover in core Forest/DV patches and the decline of Agricultural patch integrity. Agricultural abandonment, deforestation, and forest regrowth combined to generate a dynamic island landscape, resulting in higher levels of land cover fragmentation.

ASSIMILATION OF REAL-TIME DEEP SEA BUOY DATA FOR TSUNAMI FORECASTING ALONG THAILAND’S ANDAMAN COASTLINE

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Seree Supharatid

2008-01-01

Full Text Available The occurrence of 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami enhanced the necessity for a tsunami early warning system for countries bordering the Indian Ocean, including Thailand. This paper describes the assimilation of real-time deep sea buoy data for tsunami forecasting along Thailand’s Andaman coastline. Firstly, the numerical simulation (by the linear and non-linear shallow water equations was carried out for hypothetical cases of tsunamigenic earthquakes with epicenters located in the Andaman micro plate. Outputs of the numerical model are tsunami arrival times and the maximum wave height that can be expected at 58 selected communities along Thailand Andaman coastline and two locations of DART buoys in the Indian Ocean. Secondly, a “neural” network model (GRNN was developed to access the data from the numerical computations for subsequent construction of a tsunami database that can be displayed on a web-based system. This database can be updated with the integration from two DART buoys and from several GRNN models.

Organic richness and gas generation potential of Permian Barren

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

The organic geochemistry of shales in terms of its organic richness, hydrocarbon source potential, thermal maturity, depositional environment, etc., are essential stipulations for shale gas resources assessment. In this study, a total of 32 core samples of Permian Barren Measures from four boreholes in Raniganj field of ...

The Mysidacea of the Andaman Sea

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Panampunnayil, S.U.

Press 2002 The Mysidacea of the Andaman Sea S. U. PANAMPUNNAYIL NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF OCEANOGRAPHY, REGIONAL CENTRE, COCHIN ., INDIA E-MAIL: sara@niokochi.org Fifteen species belonging to eight genera were collected from the shallow waters (0–150 m... the distal border of the telson (Figures 2C,D) the middle is longer while in female the apex is slightly expanded and the outer two pairs are longer and subequal (Figures 2E,F). In Hansen’s and Pillai’s speci- mens the middle pair of spines is the longest...

Multiplexed SNP Typing of Ancient DNA Clarifies the Origin of Andaman mtDNA Haplogroups amongst South Asian Tribal Populations

Science.gov (United States)

Endicott, Phillip; Metspalu, Mait; Stringer, Chris; Macaulay, Vincent; Cooper, Alan; Sanchez, Juan J.

2006-01-01

The issue of errors in genetic data sets is of growing concern, particularly in population genetics where whole genome mtDNA sequence data is coming under increased scrutiny. Multiplexed PCR reactions, combined with SNP typing, are currently under-exploited in this context, but have the potential to genotype whole populations rapidly and accurately, significantly reducing the amount of errors appearing in published data sets. To show the sensitivity of this technique for screening mtDNA genomic sequence data, 20 historic samples of the enigmatic Andaman Islanders and 12 modern samples from three Indian tribal populations (Chenchu, Lambadi and Lodha) were genotyped for 20 coding region sites after provisional haplogroup assignment with control region sequences. The genotype data from the historic samples significantly revise the topologies for the Andaman M31 and M32 mtDNA lineages by rectifying conflicts in published data sets. The new Indian data extend the distribution of the M31a lineage to South Asia, challenging previous interpretations of mtDNA phylogeography. This genetic connection between the ancestors of the Andamanese and South Asian tribal groups ∼30 kya has important implications for the debate concerning migration routes and settlement patterns of humans leaving Africa during the late Pleistocene, and indicates the need for more detailed genotyping strategies. The methodology serves as a low-cost, high-throughput model for the production and authentication of data from modern or ancient DNA, and demonstrates the value of museum collections as important records of human genetic diversity. PMID:17218991

Using apatite to discriminate synchronous ore-associated and barren granitoid rocks: A case study from the Edong metallogenic district, South China

Science.gov (United States)

Duan, Deng-Fei; Jiang, Shao-Yong

2018-06-01

In order to find criteria to discriminate the synchronous ore-associated and barren granitoid rocks, we have determined apatite chemistry associated with ore-associated (Cu-Au) and barren granitoid rocks in the Edong district of the Middle and Lower Yangtze River metallogenic belt, South China. Both rock types give zircon U-Pb ages between 135.0 and 138.7 Ma. Apatite has a higher volatile and Li content (Cl: 0.19-0.57 wt%, average 0.35 wt%, SO3: 0.08-0.71 wt%, average 0.32 wt%, Li: 0.49-7.99 ppm, average 3.23 ppm) in ore-associated rocks than those in barren rocks (Cl: 0.09-0.31 wt%, average 0.16 wt%, SO3: 0.06-0.28 wt%, average 0.16 wt%, Li: 0.15-0.89 ppm, average 0.36 ppm). Apatite (La/Yb)N ratios and Eu/Eu* values are relatively high and show wider variation in ore-associated rocks than those in barren rocks. Apatite (La/Sm)N and (Yb/Sm)N show positive correlation in ore-associated rocks but negative in barren rocks. The higher volatile content occurs in ore-associated magma, favoring Cu-Au transportation and deposition. Furthermore, amphibole fractional crystallization in ore-associated magma further enriched the ore elements in the residual melt. Barren rocks may have undergone fluid exsolution before emplacement, which makes it barren in Cl, S and ore elements (Cu, S). These signatures emphases the significance of volatile and magma evolution in mineralization and indicate that analyses of magmatic apatite can serve to distinguish ore-associated from barren intrusions.

Writing Indigenous women's lives in the Bay of Bengal: cultures of empire in the Andaman Islands, 1789-1906.

Science.gov (United States)

Anderson, Clare

2011-01-01

This article explores the lives of two Andamanese women, both of whom the British called “Tospy.” The first part of the article takes an indigenous and gendered perspective on early British colonization of the Andamans in the 1860s, and through the experiences of a woman called Topsy stresses the sexual violence that underpinned colonial settlement as well as the British reliance on women as cultural interlocutors. Second, the article discusses colonial naming practices, and the employment of Andamanese women and men as nursemaids and household servants during the 1890s–1910s. Using an extraordinary murder case in which a woman known as Topsy-ayah was a central witness, it argues that both reveal something of the enduring associations and legacies of slavery, as well as the cultural influence of the Atlantic in the Bay of Bengal. In sum, these women's lives present a kaleidoscope view of colonization, gender, networks of Empire, labor, and domesticity in the Bay of Bengal.

Journal of Earth System Science | Indian Academy of Sciences

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Felsic tuff from Rutland Island – A pyroclastic flow deposit in Miocene-sediments of Andaman-Java subduction complex · Tapan Pal Biswajit Ghosh Anindya Bhattacharya S K Bhaduri · More Details Abstract Fulltext PDF. The bedded felsic tuff exposed in Rutland Island, Andaman, consists of two facies: white massive tuff ...

Evaluation of egg quality traits of endangered Nicobari fowl and its crosses under intensive and backyard system of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

N. C. Choudhuri

2014-09-01

Full Text Available Aim: In the present study, egg quality traits of endangered Nicobari fowl and its crosses (Nicorock and Nishibari were evaluated under intensive (deep litter as well as backyard system, in the regions of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India. Materials and Methods: Fresh eggs (15 of all the three genetic groups of birds were collected randomly from institute farm (intensive system and from farmers’ field. The eggs were collected from adult birds (50 weeks of age 3 times with 5 in number in each time. All the genetic groups of birds were subjected to same husbandry practices. The eggs were subjected to external and internal quality parameters study. Results: The effect of genetic groups on egg weight was significant (p<0.05 for all the groups. Nicorock had significantly higher egg weight (g (56.79±0.77 in comparison to Nicobari (53.20±0.34 and Nishibari (48.98±0.22 under intensive system of management. Under backyard condition, the egg weight (g of Nicorock (48.60±1.04 was significantly higher than Nicobari but not with Nishibari. In general, the egg weight was found less under backyard system than intensive system that might be due to scavenging nature of birds. Egg length, egg width and shape index differed significantly (p<0.05 among the genetic groups. Yolk index of Nicorock was significantly (p<0.05 higher than Nishibari under intensive as well as backyard condition. The shell thickness varied significantly (p<0.05 among different genetic groups. Haugh unit of Nicorock was significantly (p<0.05 lower in comparison to Nicobari and Nishibari under intensive system, but did not vary significantly among genetic groups under backyard condition. Conclusions: The study revealed that there was a significant effect of genetic groups on different egg quality traits; both in intensive system and backyard condition.

Geophysical characteristics of the Ninetyeast Ridge–Andaman island arc/trench convergent zone

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Subrahmanyam, C.; Gireesh, R.; Chand, S.; KameshRaju, K.A.; Rao, D.G.

] N. Furus, Y. Kono, Slab residual gravity anomaly: gravity reduction due to subducting plates beneath the Japanese Islands, J. Geodyn. 36 (2003) 497-514. 19 [15] S Dasgupta, M. Mukhopadhyay, A. Bhattacharya, T. K. Jana, The geometry...

A study on inorganic carbon components in the Andaman Sea during the post monsoon season

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Sarma, V.V.S.S.; Narvekar, P.V.

saturated with respect to calcite. © 2001 Ifremer/CNRS/IRD/Éditions scientifiques et médicales Elsevier SAS Résumé − Étude du système dioxyde de carbone en mer d’Andaman après la mousson. Des données extensives sur le système dioxyde de carbone ont été... recueillies en saison post-mousson dans la partie est du golfe du Bengale et la mer d’Andaman (océan Indien NE). La distribution verticale de la température et de la salinité est similaire dans ces deux parties jusqu’à l’horizon 700 à 800 m. En dessous de 1200...

High-Ti type N-MORB parentage of basalts from the south Andaman ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

R. Narasimhan (Krishtel eMaging) 1461 1996 Oct 15 13:05:22

by Irvine and Baragar (1971) or MacDonald and. Katsura (1964) were not included here because of the considerable uncertainty that exists in such a classification scheme (see Sheth et al 2002 for more explanation). The Andaman ophiolite samples are mainly basalts (20 samples), with some basaltic andesites.

Population dynamics of Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis in kelpforests and barren grounds in Norway

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Fagerli, Camilla W.; Gran Stadniczeñko, Sandra; Pedersen, Morten Foldager

2015-01-01

A northward trend of declining abundance of sea urchins (Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis) and increasing kelp recovery along the coast of Norway has provided an opportunity to explore whether the decline of sea urchins can be explained by systematic variations in demographic or fitness-related ......A northward trend of declining abundance of sea urchins (Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis) and increasing kelp recovery along the coast of Norway has provided an opportunity to explore whether the decline of sea urchins can be explained by systematic variations in demographic or fitness......-related traits. The population density of sea urchins in mid-Norway (65°70′N) close to the boundary between barren grounds and recently recovered kelp forests was only 26 % of that on barren grounds in northern Norway (70°70′N). Populations were dominated by young (2–4 years) individuals and age-specific numbers...... decreased nearly exponentially with age. The variation in most demographic variables was high among replicate sampling sites and test size. Mean age and growth rates did not differ consistently among sites in mid- and northern Norway nor between barren ground and kelp sites. In contrast, mortality rates...

Sediment Characteristics of Mergui Basin, Andaman Sea based on Multi-proxy Analyses

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Rina Zuraida

2018-02-01

Full Text Available This paper presents the characteristics of sediment from core BS-36 (6°55.85’ S and 96°7.48’ E, 1147.1 m water depth that was acquired in the Mergui Basin, Andaman Sea. The analyses involved megascopic description, core scanning by multi-sensor core logger, and carbonate content measurement. The purpose of this study is to determine the physical and chemical characteristics of sediment to infer the depositional environment. The results show that this core can be divided into 5 lithologic units that represent various environmental conditions. The sedimentation of the bottom part, Units V and IV were inferred to be deposited in suboxic to anoxic bottom condition combined with high productivity and low precipitation. Unit III was deposited during high precipitation and oxic condition due to ocean ventilation. In the upper part, Units II and I occurred during higher precipitation, higher carbonate production and suboxic to anoxic condition. Keywords: sediment characteristics, Mergui Basin, Andaman Sea, suboxic, anoxic, oxic, carbonate content

Earthquake clustering in the tectonic pattern and volcanism of the Andaman Sea region

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Špičák, Aleš; Vaněk, Jiří

2013-01-01

Roč. 608, November (2013), s. 728-736 ISSN 0040-1951 R&D Projects: GA MŠk ME09011 Institutional support: RVO:67985530 Keywords : earthquake swarm * Andaman Sea region * global seismological data * submarine volcanism * magma intrusion Subject RIV: DC - Siesmology, Volcanology, Earth Structure Impact factor: 2.866, year: 2013

Tsunami Forecasting: The 10 August 2009 Andaman tsunami Demonstrates Progress

Science.gov (United States)

Titov, Vasily; Moore, Christopher; Uslu, Burak; Kanoglu, Utku

2010-05-01

The 10 August 2009 Andaman non-destructive tsunami in the Indian Ocean demonstrated advances in creating a tsunami-resilient global society. Following the Indian Ocean tsunami on 26 December 2004, scientists at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Center for Tsunami Research (NCTR) at the Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory (PMEL) developed an interface for its validated and verified tsunami numerical model Method of Splitting Tsunamis (MOST). MOST has been benchmarked substantially through analytical solutions, experimental results and field measurements (Synolakis et al., 2008). MOST and its interface the Community Model Interface for Tsunami (ComMIT) are distributed through extensive capacity-building sessions for the Indian Ocean nations using UNESCO/Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC), AusAID, and USAID funding. Over one hundred-sixty scientists have been trained in tsunami inundation mapping, leading to the first generation of inundation models for many Indian Ocean shorelines. During the 10 August 2009 Andaman tsunami event, NCTR scientists exercised the forecast system in research mode using the first generation inundation models developed during ComMIT trainings. Assimilating key data from a Kingdom of Thailand tsunameter, coastal tsunami amplitudes were predicted in Indonesia, Thailand, and India coastlines, before the first tsunami arrival, using models developed by ComMIT trainees. Since its first test in 2003, one more time, NCTR's forecasting methodology proved the effectiveness of operational tsunami forecasting using real-time deep-ocean data assimilated into forecast models (Wei et al., 2008 and Titov, 2009). The 2009 Andaman tsunami demonstrated that operational tsunami forecasting tools are now available and coupled with inundation mapping tools can be effective and can reduce false alarms. International collaboration is required to fully utilize this technology's potential. Enhanced educational efforts both at

Journal of Earth System Science | Indian Academy of Sciences

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

sediments of Andaman-Java subduction complex · Tapan Pal Biswajit Ghosh Anindya Bhattacharya S K Bhaduri · More Details Abstract Fulltext PDF. The bedded felsic tuff exposed in Rutland Island, Andaman, consists of two facies:.

Estimating changes in lichen mat volume through time and related effects on barren ground caribou (Rangifer tarandus groenlandicus) movement.

Science.gov (United States)

Rickbeil, Gregory J M; Hermosilla, Txomin; Coops, Nicholas C; White, Joanne C; Wulder, Michael A

2017-01-01

Lichens form a critical portion of barren ground caribou (Rangifer tarandus groenlandicus) diets, especially during winter months. Here, we assess lichen mat volume across five herd ranges in the Northwest Territories and Nunavut, Canada, using newly developed composite Landsat imagery. The lichen volume estimator (LVE) was adapted for use across 700 000 km2 of barren ground caribou habitat annually from 1984-2012. We subsequently assessed how LVE changed temporally throughout the time series for each pixel using Theil-Sen's slopes, and spatially by assessing whether slope values were centered in local clusters of similar values. Additionally, we assessed how LVE estimates resulted in changes in barren ground caribou movement rates using an extensive telemetry data set from 2006-2011. The Ahiak/Beverly herd had the largest overall increase in LVE (median = 0.033), while the more western herds had the least (median slopes below zero in all cases). LVE slope pixels were arranged in significant clusters across the study area, with the Cape Bathurst, Bathurst, and Bluenose East herds having the most significant clusters of negative slopes (more than 20% of vegetated land in each case). The Ahiak/Beverly and Bluenose West had the most significant positive clusters (16.3% and 18.5% of vegetated land respectively). Barren ground caribou displayed complex reactions to changing lichen conditions depending on season; the majority of detected associations with movement data agreed with current understanding of barren ground caribou foraging behavior (the exception was an increase in movement velocity at high lichen volume estimates in Fall). The temporal assessment of LVE identified areas where shifts in ecological conditions may have resulted in changing lichen mat conditions, while assessing the slope estimates for clustering identified zones beyond the pixel scale where forage conditions may be changing. Lichen volume estimates associated with barren ground caribou

Estimating changes in lichen mat volume through time and related effects on barren ground caribou (Rangifer tarandus groenlandicus) movement

Science.gov (United States)

Hermosilla, Txomin; Coops, Nicholas C.; White, Joanne C.; Wulder, Michael A.

2017-01-01

Lichens form a critical portion of barren ground caribou (Rangifer tarandus groenlandicus) diets, especially during winter months. Here, we assess lichen mat volume across five herd ranges in the Northwest Territories and Nunavut, Canada, using newly developed composite Landsat imagery. The lichen volume estimator (LVE) was adapted for use across 700 000 km2 of barren ground caribou habitat annually from 1984–2012. We subsequently assessed how LVE changed temporally throughout the time series for each pixel using Theil-Sen’s slopes, and spatially by assessing whether slope values were centered in local clusters of similar values. Additionally, we assessed how LVE estimates resulted in changes in barren ground caribou movement rates using an extensive telemetry data set from 2006–2011. The Ahiak/Beverly herd had the largest overall increase in LVE (median = 0.033), while the more western herds had the least (median slopes below zero in all cases). LVE slope pixels were arranged in significant clusters across the study area, with the Cape Bathurst, Bathurst, and Bluenose East herds having the most significant clusters of negative slopes (more than 20% of vegetated land in each case). The Ahiak/Beverly and Bluenose West had the most significant positive clusters (16.3% and 18.5% of vegetated land respectively). Barren ground caribou displayed complex reactions to changing lichen conditions depending on season; the majority of detected associations with movement data agreed with current understanding of barren ground caribou foraging behavior (the exception was an increase in movement velocity at high lichen volume estimates in Fall). The temporal assessment of LVE identified areas where shifts in ecological conditions may have resulted in changing lichen mat conditions, while assessing the slope estimates for clustering identified zones beyond the pixel scale where forage conditions may be changing. Lichen volume estimates associated with barren ground caribou

Manganese cycling and its implication on methane related processes in the Andaman continental slope sediments

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Sujith, P.P.; Gonsalves, M.J.B.D.; Rajkumar, V.; Sheba, M.

In the deep subsurface sediments of the Andaman continental slope, in situ methane generation/oxidation could be coupled to the cycling of Mn, as the fluid flow characterized by high methane and Mn could occur in accretionary wedge sediments...

Gendered character of barrenness in an African context: An African pastoral study

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Magezi E. Baloyi

2017-02-01

Full Text Available The importance of children for African people has been prioritised above many other reasons for marriage. Besides the fact that every childless marriage has only a slim chance of survival, women are the main objects of this pressure. Some African researchers have revealed that it is usually women who are traditionally held responsible for childlessness. It becomes evident when a man takes a second wife without first seeking medical proof of his wife’s barrenness. In other instances, suspicions force men to divorce women or claim their bride price back as a result of childlessness. Besides being a humiliation for women, it is also a gender inequality issue that deserves theological attention and research to make suggestions and advise on how to reduce or eliminate some practices that promote the subjection of women. The purpose of this article is to research how gender inequality and women abuse continue to manifest because of barrenness. A theoretical framework will direct the research methods – the reading of African-based books, articles, newspapers and other relevant media sources will be utilised.

Fire and human history of a barren-forest mosaic in Southern Indiana

Science.gov (United States)

Richard P. Guyette; Daniel C. Dey; Michael C. Stambaugh

2002-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to provide quantitative fire history information from a historically unique region, the oak barrens of the Interior Low Plateau Ecoregion. We sampled 27 post oak (Quercus stellata Wangenh.) trees from the Boone Creek watershed in southern Indiana. The period of tree-ring record ranged in calendar years from 1654 to 1999...

Contrasting recruitment seasonality of sea urchin species in Gran Canaria, Canary Islands (eastern Atlantic

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S. GARCIA-SANZ

2014-03-01

Full Text Available Despite sea-urchins can play an important role affecting the community structure of subtidal bottoms, factors controlling the dynamics of sea-urchin populations are still poorly understood. We assessed the seasonal variation in recruitment of three sea-urchin species (Diadema africanum, Paracentrotus lividus and Arbacia lixula at Gran Canaria Island (eastern Atlantic via monthly deployment of artificial collectors throughout an entire annual cycle on each of four adjacent habitat patches (seagrasses, sandy patches, ‘urchin-grazed’ barrens and macroalgal-dominated beds within a shallow coastal landscape. Paracentrotus lividus and A. lixula had exclusively one main recruitment peak in late winter-spring. Diadema africanum recruitment was also seasonal, but recruits appeared in late summer-autumn, particularly on ‘urchin-grazed’ barrens with large abundances of adult conspecifics. In conclusion, this study has demonstrated non-overlapping seasonal recruitment patterns of the less abundant species (P. lividus and A. lixula with the most conspicuous species (D. africanum in the study area.

Variations in sea surface roughness induced by the 2004 Sumatra-Andaman tsunami

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O. A. Godin

2009-07-01

Full Text Available Observations of tsunamis away from shore are critically important for improving early warning systems and understanding of tsunami generation and propagation. Tsunamis are difficult to detect and measure in the open ocean because the wave amplitude there is much smaller than it is close to shore. Currently, tsunami observations in deep water rely on measurements of variations in the sea surface height or bottom pressure. Here we demonstrate that there exists a different observable, specifically, ocean surface roughness, which can be used to reveal tsunamis away from shore. The first detailed measurements of the tsunami effect on sea surface height and radar backscattering strength in the open ocean were obtained from satellite altimeters during passage of the 2004 Sumatra-Andaman tsunami. Through statistical analyses of satellite altimeter observations, we show that the Sumatra-Andaman tsunami effected distinct, detectable changes in sea surface roughness. The magnitude and spatial structure of the observed variations in radar backscattering strength are consistent with hydrodynamic models predicting variations in the near-surface wind across the tsunami wave front. Tsunami-induced changes in sea surface roughness can be potentially used for early tsunami detection by orbiting microwave radars and radiometers, which have broad surface coverage across the satellite ground track.

Oceanographic observation in the Andaman Sea from 22 January 1972 to 05 May 1972 (NODC Accession 7400236)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Physical, oxygen, and other data were collected using thermometer and bottle casts from the KLEDKEO in the Andaman Sea from January 31, 1972 to May 5, 1972. Data...

Maersk navigator oil spill in the great channel (Andaman Sea) in January 1993 and its environmental impact

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

SenGupta, R.; Fondekar, S.P.; Shailaja, M.S.; Sankaranarayanan, V.N.

Observations on oil slicks, tar residues and dissolved petroleum hydrocarbons (DPH) shortly after the oil spill resulting from the tanker accident in January 1993 showed negligible impact on the Indian EEZ of the Great Channel (Andaman Sea). DPH...

Natural transmission of dengue virus serotype 3 by Aedes albopictus (Skuse) during an outbreak in Havelock Island: Entomological characteristics.

Science.gov (United States)

Sivan, Arun; Shriram, A N; Sugunan, A P; Anwesh, Maile; Muruganandam, N; Kartik, C; Vijayachari, P

2016-04-01

From May to June 2014, an outbreak of dengue virus (DENV) illness occurred in the Havelock Island, South Andaman. Entomological investigations were undertaken during the peak of the outbreak, from 26th May-4th June, to identify the primary vector(s) involved in the transmission so that appropriate public health measures could be implemented. Adult mosquitoes were collected by BG-Sentinel traps in houses and neighborhoods of clinically ill patients. Water holding containers were inspected for the presence of mosquito larvae and pupae. Adult mosquitoes were analyzed by RT-PCR for the presence of nucleic acids of DENV and CHIKV. A total of 498 mosquitoes were collected and processed in 27 pools. The species composition comprised of 58.3% Aedes albopictus, 7.5% Aedes aegypti and 4.2% Aedes edwardsi and 3.1% constituted others. Two A. albopictus pools were found to be positive for DENV RNA. Sequencing of the RT PCR 511 base pair amplicon positive samples showed homology with DENV-3, suggesting that serotype-3 was responsible for the outbreak and A. albopictus was the primary vector responsible. This was supported by high container (10.1%), premise (25.4%) and Breteau (27.9) indices, with miscellaneous receptacles (2.4%), tree holes (1.2%) and discarded tires (1.2%) registering relatively higher container indices. This is the first report of detection of DENV in A. albopictus from Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Vertical distribution of mesozooplankton biomass in relation to oxygen minimum layer in the Andaman Sea during February 1999

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Madhu, N.V.; Jyothibabu, R.; Ramu, K.; Sunil, V.; Gopalakrishnan, T.C.; Nair, K.K.C.

Mesozooplankton biomass in the upper 1000m of the Andaman Sea was studied as part of the Marine Research-Living Resources (MR-LR) assessment programme during February 1999 providing baseline information on stratification of mesozooplankton...

Temporal and geographic variation in fish communities of lower Cook Inlet, Alaska

Science.gov (United States)

Robards, Martin D.; Piatt, John F.; Kettle, Arthur B.; Abookire, Alisa A.

1999-01-01

Nearshore and shelf fish communities were studied in three areas of lower Cook Inlet, Alaska: the Barren Islands (oceanic and well-mixed waters), Kachemak Bay (mixed oceanic waters with significant freshwater runoff), and Chisik Island (estuarine waters). Fish were sampled with beach seines (n=413 sets) and midwater trawls (n=39 sets). We found that lower Cook Inlet supported a diverse nearshore fish community of at least 52 species. Fifty of these species were caught in Kachemak Bay, 24 at Chisik Island, and 12 at the Barren Islands. Pacific sand lance dominated Barren Islands and Kachemak Bay nearshore habitats, comprising 99% and 71% of total individuals, respectively. The nearshore Chisik Island fish community was not dominated by any one species; instead it exhibited higher diversity. These spatial differences appeared linked to local oceanographic regimes and sediment influx. Analysis of historical data revealed that the nearshore Kachemak Bay fish community changed significantly between 1976 and 1996, showing increased diversity and abundance in several taxa, notably gadids, salmonids, pleuronectids, and sculpins. Decadal differences appeared to be related to large-scale climate changes in the North Pacific. Catches of most taxa peaked in May-August, and were low during other months of the year. Several species were present for only part of the summer. Species composition of seine catches differed significantly between consecutive high and low tides, but not between consecutive sets or years. Midwater trawls took 26 species, 14 of which were present in Kachemak Bay, 19 near Chisik Island, and 7 at the Barren Islands. Community structures in shelf and nearshore waters were similar: diversity was high and abundance low at Chisik Island, whereas a few abundant species dominated at both Kachemak Bay and the Barren Islands. In addition, the low fish abundance near Chisik Island appeared to be related to declining seabird numbers at this colony.

Plant growth promoting capability and genetic diversity of bacteria isolated from mud volcano and lime cave of Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

Science.gov (United States)

Venkadesaperumal, Gopu; Amaresan, Natrajan; Kumar, Krishna

2014-01-01

Twenty four bacterial strains from four different regions of mud volcano and lime cave were isolated to estimate their diversity, plant growth promoting and biocontrol activities to use them as inoculant strains in the fields. An excellent antagonistic effect against four plant pathogens and plant growth promoting properties such as IAA production, HCN production, phosphate solubilization, siderophore production, starch hydrolysis and hydrolytic enzymes syntheses were identified in OM5 (Pantoea agglomerans) and EM9 (Exiguobacterium sp.) of 24 studied isolates. Seeds (Chili and tomato) inoculation with plant growth promoting strains resulted in increased percentage of seedling emergence, root length and plant weight. Results indicated that co-inoculation gave a more pronounced effects on seedling emergence, secondary root numbers, primary root length and stem length, while inoculation by alone isolate showed a lower effect. Our results suggest that the mixed inocula of OM5 and EM9 strains as biofertilizers could significantly increase the production of food crops in Andaman archipelago by means of sustainable and organic agricultural system.

Plant growth promoting capability and genetic diversity of bacteria isolated from mud volcano and lime cave of Andaman and Nicobar Islands

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gopu Venkadesaperumal

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Twenty four bacterial strains from four different regions of mud volcano and lime cave were isolated to estimate their diversity, plant growth promoting and biocontrol activities to use them as inoculant strains in the fields. An excellent antagonistic effect against four plant pathogens and plant growth promoting properties such as IAA production, HCN production, phosphate solubilization, siderophore production, starch hydrolysis and hydrolytic enzymes syntheses were identified in OM5 (Pantoea agglomerans and EM9 (Exiguobacterium sp. of 24 studied isolates. Seeds (Chili and tomato inoculation with plant growth promoting strains resulted in increased percentage of seedling emergence, root length and plant weight. Results indicated that co-inoculation gave a more pronounced effects on seedling emergence, secondary root numbers, primary root length and stem length, while inoculation by alone isolate showed a lower effect. Our results suggest that the mixed inocula of OM5 and EM9 strains as biofertilizers could significantly increase the production of food crops in Andaman archipelago by means of sustainable and organic agricultural system.

@iMaersk navigator@@ oil spill in the great channel (Andaman Sea) in January 1993 and its environmental impact

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

SenGupta, R.; Fondekar, S.P.; Shailaja, M.S.; Sankaranarayanan, V.N.

Observations on oil slicks, tar residues and dissolved petroleum hydrocarbons (DPH) shortly after the oil spill resulting from the tanker accident in January 1993 showed negligible impact on the Indian EEZ of the Great Channel (Andaman Sea). DPH...

Lithology, monsoon and sea-surface current control on provenance, dispersal and deposition of sediments over the Andaman continental shelf

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Damodararao, K.; Singh, S.K.; Rai, V.K.; Ramaswamy, V.; Rao, P.S.

, constrain their transport pathways and assess the factors influencing the erosion in the catchment and their dispersal and deposition over the Andaman Shelf region. Major elemental compositions of the shelf sediments suggest mafic lithology...

Book review: Three great tsunamis: Lisbon (1755), Sumatra-Andaman (2004), and Japan (2011)

Science.gov (United States)

Geist, Eric L.

2014-01-01

“Three Great Tsunamis: Lisbon (1755), Sumatra–Andaman (2004), and Japan (2011)” is published in Springer’s new series SpringerBriefs. According to Springer’s website, the SpringBriefs volumes are intended to provide “concise summaries of cutting-edge research and practical applications across a wide spectrum of fields”. Among the several categories considered for SpringerBriefs are in-depth case studies, for which this volume is most closely aligned.

Carbon sequestration in the New Jersey Pine Barrens under different scenarios of fire management

Science.gov (United States)

Robert M. Scheller; Steve Van Tuyl; Kenneth L. Clark; John Hom; Inga. La Puma

2011-01-01

The New Jersey Pine Barrens (NJPB) is the largest forested area along the northeastern coast of the United States. The NJPB are dominated by pine (Pinus spp.) and oak (Quercus spp.) stands that are fragmented and subject to frequent disturbance and forest management. Over long time periods (>50 years), the balance between oak...

Spatial distribution of dinoflagellates from the tropical coastal waters of the South Andaman, India: Implications for coastal pollution monitoring

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Narale, D.D.; Anil, A.C.

Dinoflagellate community structure from two semi-enclosed areas along the South Andaman region, India, was investigated to assess the anthropogenic impact on coastal water quality. At the densely inhabited Port Blair Bay, the dominance of mixotrophs...

Hydrothermal petroleum in the sediments of the Andaman Backarc Basin, Indian Ocean

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Venkatesan, M.I.; Ruth, E.; Rao, P.S.; Nath, B.N.; Rao, B.R.

inthesediments ofthe AndamanBackarc Basin, IndianOcean § M.I.Venkatesan a, *,E. Ruth b ,P.S. Rao c ,B.N. Nath c , B.R. Rao c a Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics and NASA Astrobiology Institute, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1567, USA... b Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1593, USA c National Institute of Oceanography, Dona Paula, Goa 403 004, India Received 1 March 2002; accepted 13 August 2002 Editorial handling by B...

Grain size analysis of sediments from the northern Andaman Sea: Comparison of laser diffraction and sieve-pipette techniques

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Ramaswamy, V.; Rao, P.S.

measured with laser diffraction show that 99% of the particles have an upper size range between 4.8 and 7.7 mu m. A calibration relationship between pipette and laser diffraction techniques has been developed for the northern Andaman Sea. A clay particle...

The composition and the source of hydrocarbons in sediments taken from the tectonically active Andaman Backarc Basin, Indian Ocean

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Chernova, T.G.; Rao, P.S.; Pikovskii, Yu.I.; Alekseeva, T.A.; Nath, B.N.; Rao, B.R.; Rao, Ch.M.

or hydrothermal organic matter. Anthropogenic sources in region studied are of minor importance. From the results obtained, it may be deduced that the hydrocarbons in the sediments of the tectonically active part of the Andaman Basin are mainly due...

Fertility Island Formation and Evolution in Dryland Ecosystems

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Luca Ridolfi

2008-06-01

Full Text Available Vast dryland regions around the world are affected by the encroachment of woody vegetation, with important environmental and economical implications. Grassland-to-shrubland conversions are often triggered by disturbance of grassland vegetation, and the consequent formation of barren areas prone to erosion-induced nutrient losses. Inhibition of encroachment by erosion-induced depletion of soil nutrients contributes to the emergence of highly heterogeneous landscapes with shrub-dominated fertility islands surrounded by nutrient-poor bare soil. Here, we develop a process-based simplistic model thataccounts for the two competing processes of resource depletion and shrub encroachment by a non-linear diffusion mechanism. The proposed model is able to generate stable vegetation patterns with the same statistical properties as those observed in areas with well-developed fertility islands. We also show how a subsequent disturbance of shrubland vegetation can shift the dynamics toward states with smaller vegetation biomass. The process of land degradation may then occur through a number of irreversible intermediate transitions associated with losses in ecosystem function.

Simulation of barotropic wind-driven circulation in tbe Bay of Bengal and Andaman Sea during premonsoon and postmonsoon seasons

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Unnikrishnan, A.S.; Bahulayan, N.

Two-dimensional vertically integrated model has been used to simulate depth-mean wind-driven circulation during premonsoon and postmonsoon seasons in the upper layers of the Bay of Bengal and Andaman Sea. The model is integrated for 365 d, forcEd...

Genetic divergence in the Indian mackerel Rastrelliger kanagurta (Cuv) from the coastal waters of Peninsular India and the Andaman Sea

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Menezes, M.R.; Naik, S.; Martins, M.

Genetic divergence in the Indian mackerel Rastrelliger kanagurta (Cuv) from the west coast (Goa), east coast (Madras) and the Andaman Sea was estimated, using allozyme markers. Skeletal muscle and eye proteins were electrophoretically analysed for 5...

New insights into the tectonic evolution of the Andaman basin, northeast Indian Ocean

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

KameshRaju, K.A.; Ramprasad, T.; Rao, P.S.; Rao, B.R.; Varghese, J.

rifts and transforms in the central basin of the Andaman Sea has been suggested to be the con- sequence of spreading with an opening rate of 3.72 cm/yr [2]. This spreading center is connected to the Sagaing fault system in the eastern Burma highlands... spreading center. The western part is dominated by volcanic con- structs that are related to arc volcanism and back- arc spreading activity, whereas the eastern part represents distinctly smooth topography probably resulting from the sediment ¢ll...

Contrasts in the marine ecosystem of two Macaronesian islands: A comparison between the remote Selvagens Reserve and Madeira Island.

Science.gov (United States)

Friedlander, Alan M; Ballesteros, Enric; Clemente, Sabrina; Gonçalves, Emanuel J; Estep, Andrew; Rose, Paul; Sala, Enric

2017-01-01

The islands of Madeira and Selvagens are less than 300 km apart but offer a clear contrast between a densely populated and highly developed island (Madeira), and a largely uninhabited and remote archipelago (Selvagens) within Macaronesia in the eastern Atlantic. The Madeira Archipelago has ~260,000 inhabitants and receives over six million visitor days annually. The Selvagens Islands Reserve is one of the oldest nature reserves in Portugal and comprises two islands and several islets, including the surrounding shelf to a depth of 200 m. Only reserve rangers and a small unit of the maritime police inhabit these islands. The benthic community around Selvagens was dominated by erect and turf algae, while the community at Madeira was comprised of crustose coralline and turf algae, sessile invertebrates, and sea urchin barrens. The sea urchin Diadema africanum was 65% more abundant at Madeira than at Selvagens. Total fish biomass was 3.2 times larger at Selvagens than at Madeira, and biomass of top predators was more than 10 times larger at Selvagens. Several commercially important species (e.g., groupers, jacks), which have been overfished throughout the region, were more common and of larger size at Selvagens than at Madeira. Important sea urchin predators (e.g., hogfishes, triggerfishes) were also in higher abundance at Selvagens compared to Madeira. The effects of fishing and other anthropogenic influences are evident around Madeira. This is in stark contrast to Selvagens, which harbors healthy benthic communities with diverse algal assemblages and high fish biomass, including an abundance of large commercially important species. The clear differences between these two island groups highlights the importance of expanding and strengthening the protection around Selvagens, which harbors one of the last intact marine ecosystems in the North Atlantic, and the need to increase management and protection around Madeira.

Contrasts in the marine ecosystem of two Macaronesian islands: A comparison between the remote Selvagens Reserve and Madeira Island.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alan M Friedlander

Full Text Available The islands of Madeira and Selvagens are less than 300 km apart but offer a clear contrast between a densely populated and highly developed island (Madeira, and a largely uninhabited and remote archipelago (Selvagens within Macaronesia in the eastern Atlantic. The Madeira Archipelago has ~260,000 inhabitants and receives over six million visitor days annually. The Selvagens Islands Reserve is one of the oldest nature reserves in Portugal and comprises two islands and several islets, including the surrounding shelf to a depth of 200 m. Only reserve rangers and a small unit of the maritime police inhabit these islands. The benthic community around Selvagens was dominated by erect and turf algae, while the community at Madeira was comprised of crustose coralline and turf algae, sessile invertebrates, and sea urchin barrens. The sea urchin Diadema africanum was 65% more abundant at Madeira than at Selvagens. Total fish biomass was 3.2 times larger at Selvagens than at Madeira, and biomass of top predators was more than 10 times larger at Selvagens. Several commercially important species (e.g., groupers, jacks, which have been overfished throughout the region, were more common and of larger size at Selvagens than at Madeira. Important sea urchin predators (e.g., hogfishes, triggerfishes were also in higher abundance at Selvagens compared to Madeira. The effects of fishing and other anthropogenic influences are evident around Madeira. This is in stark contrast to Selvagens, which harbors healthy benthic communities with diverse algal assemblages and high fish biomass, including an abundance of large commercially important species. The clear differences between these two island groups highlights the importance of expanding and strengthening the protection around Selvagens, which harbors one of the last intact marine ecosystems in the North Atlantic, and the need to increase management and protection around Madeira.

Species delimitation in congenerics of Genus Daemonorops from India using DNA barcodes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Senthilkumar Umapathy

2014-10-01

Full Text Available Daemonorops is one of the largest genus of palms, widely distributed in tropical evergreen forests of South and Southeast Asia and especially abundant in peninsular Malaysia. It shares the phylogenetic clade with genus Calamus, but distinctly characterized by the presence of the prophyllar bracts in subtribe Calaminae of family Arecaceae (Palmae. However, the species of Daemonorops are highly variable and homoplasious in their morphological characters. Indian Daemonorops has six species, of which five distributed in Andaman group of islands and one in Indo-China. The study mainly focused on the species of Indo-Myanmar (Andaman Islands because they have showed uncertainty in their stand as distinct species. Hence it was attempted to test the species delimitation in congenerics using phylogenetic and character analysis of the nuclear genes. The study indicates three species of both Griffith and Beccari (D. jenkinsiana, D. manii, and D. kurziana in India, and another three species of Renuka et al. (D. wrightmyoensis, D. aurea, and D. rarispinosa from Andaman group of islands could be the variabilities of D. manii that is colonized throughout the archipelago.

Overwinter changes in urea nitrogen:creatinine and cortisol:creatinine ratios in urine from Banks Island Peary caribou

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Nicholas C. Larter

2000-04-01

Full Text Available Over 200 snow urine samples were collected from Banks Island Peary caribou between March 1993 and May 1998. Most (n = 146 samples were collected during 3 time periods in 5 successive years: early winter (3 November-3 December, mid-winter (9 February-1 March, and late-winter (23 April-2 May. We determined the ratios of urea nitrogen:creatinine (U:C and cortisol:creatinine (C:C for each sample. U:C ratios had significant year, time, and year x time interaction effects. Mid-winter ratios were higher than early or late-winter ratios. U:C ratios ranged from 0.53 to 19.05 mg/mg, and were lowest in 1997-98. Five calf caribou sacrificed in February 1994 had significantly (P<0.02 higher U:C ratios than other caribou in mid-winter. Three adult male and 2 calf caribou sacrificed in November 1993 had U:C ratios similar to other caribou in early winter. Sacrificed caribou were in similar condition to animals that have been harvested for subsistent use in other years, not overly fat nor in an advanced state of starvation. U:C ratios for Peary caribou range from 10 to ca. 100-fold higher than those reported for barren-ground caribou; ratios > 60-fold higher than those indicative of prolonged undernutrition in barren-ground caribou were common. This difference is likely because the winter diet of Peary caribou has a higher crude protein content than that of barren-ground caribou. C:C ratios had significant year and year x time interaction effects, and were highest in 1996-97 and 1997-98. C:C ratios of sacrificed caribou were similar to those of other animals during early and mid-winter. C:C ratios for Peary caribou ranged from 0.0120 ug/mg to 0.2678 ug/mg; ratios indicative of morbidity in mule deer were common. C:C and U:C ratios from the same individuals were not correlated (R = -0.073. Monitoring U:C ratios of Banks Island Peary caribou may provide useful management information.

Hydrography, bacteria and protist communities across the continental shelf and shelf slope of the Andaman Sea (NE Indian Ocean)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Torkel Gissel; Bjørnsen, P.K.; Boonruang, P.

2004-01-01

The hydrography and plankton community structure was investigated in the Andaman Sea off Phuket, Thailand. Two cruises were conducted in 1996, one representing the calm dry NE monsoon season (March) and the other representing the stormy and rainy SW monsoon season (August). Sampling was performed...

Post Tsunami Job Satisfaction among the Fishers of Na Pru Village, on the Andaman Sea Coast of Thailand

Science.gov (United States)

Pollnac, Richard B.; Kotowicz, Dawn

2012-01-01

The paper examines job satisfaction among fishers in a tsunami-impacted area on the Andaman coast of Thailand. Following the tsunami, many predicted that fishers would be reluctant to resume their fishing activities. Observations in the fishing communities, however, indicated that as soon as fishers obtained replacements for equipment damaged by…

Metamastophora flabellata (Sonder) Setchell (Corallinaceae, Rhodophyta) a new addition to the coaral reef flora, from the Andaman Sea (Indian Ocean)

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Jagtap, T.G.; Chaugule, B.B.

Stray occurrence of Metamastophora flabellata is recorded, for the first time from the Andaman Sea, India. Earlier this alga was reported to be confined only to the coasts of southern Australia and Africa. The specimen is smaller than that described...

New records of marine water mites (Acari: Hydrachnidia: Pontarachnidae) from the Pujada Bay (West Pacific Ocean) and the Andaman Sea (Indian Ocean)

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Pesic, V.; Chatterjee, T.; Troch, M. de; Ingole, B.S.

sabangensis Viets, 1984 are known from India and the Philippines, respectively. Materials examined in the present study were collected among sea grasses Thalassia hemprichii (Pujada Bay) and marine macroalgae, Padina (Andaman Sea). The collected sea grasses...

Defining the Pen Islands Caribou Herd of southern Hudson Bay

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Kenneth F. Abraham

1998-03-01

Full Text Available In this paper, we describe the Pen Islands Herd of caribou, the largest aggregation of caribou in Ontario (it also occupies a portion of northeastern Manitoba. Photographic counts showed the herd had a minimum population of 2300 in 1979, 4660 in 1986, 7424 in 1987 and 10 798 in 1994. Throughout the 1980s, the Pen Islands caribou exhibited population behaviour similar to migratory barren-ground caribou herds, although morphology suggests they are woodland caribou or possibly a mixture of subspecies. The herd had well-defined traditional tundra calving grounds, formed nursery groups and large mobile post-calving aggregations, and migrated over 400 km between tundra summer habitats and boreal forest winter habitats. Its migration took it into three Canadian jurisdictions (Ontario, Manitoba, Northwest Territories and it was important to residents of both Manitoba and Ontario. It is clear that the herd should be managed as a migratory herd and the critical importance of both the coastal and variable large winter ranges should be noted in ensuring the herd's habitat needs are secure.

77 FR 99 - Barren River Lake Hydro LLC; Notice of Application Tendered for Filing With the Commission...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-01-03

... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Federal Energy Regulatory Commission [Project No. 13022-003] Barren River Lake Hydro LLC; Notice of Application Tendered for Filing With the Commission, Soliciting Additional Study Requests, and Establishing Procedural Schedule for Licensing and a Deadline for Submission of Final Amendments Take notice that the following...

Distribution and sources of organic carbon, nitrogen and their isotopic signatures in sediments from the Ayeyarwady (Irrawaddy) continental shelf, northern Andaman Sea

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Ramaswamy, V.; Gaye, B.; Shirodkar, P.V.; Rao, P.S.; Chivas, A.R.; Wheeler, D.; Thwin, S.

Total organic carbon (TOC), total nitrogen (TN) and their delta sup(13) C and delta sup (15) N values were determined from 110 sediment samples from the Ayeyarwady (Irrawaddy) continental shelf, northern Andaman Sea to decipher the concentration...

Assessment of Spatio-temporal Barren-lands Expansion and Agricultural Adaptation due to Climate Change and Anthropogenic Activity: A Geospatial Approach in Hot Semi-arid Region of Maharashtra State, India

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Roy, A.; Inamdar, A. B.

2017-12-01

Major parts of Upper Godavari River Basin are intensely drought prone and climate vulnerable in Maharashtra State, India. The economy of the state depends on the agronomic productivity of this region. So, it is necessary to monitor and regulate the effects of climate change and anthropogenic activity on agricultural land in that region. This study investigates and maps the barren-lands and alteration of agricultural lands, their decadal deviations with the multi-temporal LANDSAT satellite images; and finally quantifies the agricultural adaptations. This work involves the utilization of remote sensing and GIS tools and modeling. First, climatic trend analysis is carried out with dataset obtained from India Meteorological Department. Then, multi-temporal LANDSAT images are classified (Level I, hybrid classification technique are followed) to determine the decadal Land Use Land Cover (LULC) changes and correlated with the agricultural water demand. Finally, various LANDSAT band analysis is conducted to determine irrigated and non-irrigated cropping area estimation and identifying the agricultural adaptations. The analysis of LANDSAT images shows that barren-lands are most increased class during the study period. The overall spatial extent of barren-lands are increased drastically during the study period. The geospatial study (class-to-class conversion study) shows that, most of the conversion of the barren-lands are from the agricultural land and reserve or open forests. The barren-lands are constantly increasing and the agricultural land is linearly decreasing. Hence, there is an inverse correlation between barren-lands and agricultural land. Moreover, there is a shift to non-irrigated and less water demanding crops, from more water demanding crops, which is a noticeable adaptation. The surface-water availability is highly dependent on rainfall and/or climatic conditions. It is changing either way in a random fashion based upon the quantity of rainfall occurred in

Back-arc extension in the Andaman Sea: Tectonic and magmatic processes imaged by high-precision teleseismic double-difference earthquake relocation

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Diehl, T.; Waldhauser, F.; Cochran, J. R.; KameshRaju, K.A.; Seeber, L.; Schaff, D.; Engdahl, E.R.

-Plate) by the � � underthrusting Indian-Australian plate, ‘pull-apart’ basins develop along the plate ��� boundary, resulting in NE-SW extension of the Andaman Sea [e.g., Curray, 2005; ��� McCaffrey, 2009]. While the term ‘pull-apart’ usually refers to intracrustal extension...

Barren Miocene granitoids in the Central Andean metallogenic belt, Chile: Geochemistry and Nd-Hf and U-Pb isotope systematics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Deckart, Katja; Godoy, Estanislao; Bertens, Alfredo; Jerez, Daniela; Saeed, Ayesha

2010-01-01

Four Middle-to-Late Miocene barren plutonic complexes that occur between the giant porphyry copper deposits of the central Chilean Andes were selected for U-Pb LA-ICPMS geochronology and Hf-isotope systematics on single zircon grains. Major and trace elements and Sr-Nd-Hf isotope whole rock geochemical studies were undertaken to compare with slightly younger or coeval barren and fertile intrusive rocks between 32 o and 34 o S. The studied granitoids yield resolvable crystallization ages of 11.3±0.1 Ma (Cerro Meson Alto massif), 10.3±0.2 Ma (La Gloria pluton), 14.9±0.2 Ma/14.9±0.1 Ma (Yerba Loca stock) and 11.2±0.1 Ma/14.7±0.1 Ma (San Francisco Batholith). Major and trace elements discard an adakitic signature as suggested for coeval porphyric intrusions at 32 o S, slightly younger mineralized porphyries at Rio Blanco-Los Bronces deposit and other Cenozoic adakites. Volcanic host rocks are less fractionated than the intrusive rock units. The same observation can be made for the unmineralized northern plutons compared to the southern ones. Initial Sr-Nd isotope data show insignificant variation (0.703761-0.704118 and 0.512758- 0.512882), plotting in the mantle array. Trace element enrichment can be explained by addition of subducted-slab fluids and/or terrigenous sediments to the mantle wedge prior to and/or slight crustal input during magma ascent. Zircon grains separated from these barren intrusives share a similar initial εHf-data variation for the younger age group (10-12 Ma; 7.04-9.54) and show a more scattered range for the older one (14-15 Ma; 8.50-15.34); both sets plot between the DM and CHUR evolution lines. There is evidence that magma evolution was slightly distinct through time from older to younger barren magmatism, compared to a few fertile porphyritic rocks from Rio Blanco-Los Bronces porphyry copper deposit. It is suggested that chronological inconsistencies within these complexes might be related to differential shortening across the NE

Carbon stocks in mangroves, salt marshes, and salt barrens in Tampa Bay, Florida, USA: Vegetative and soil characteristics.

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Moyer, R. P.; Radabaugh, K.; Chappel, A. R.; Powell, C.; Bociu, I.; Smoak, J. M.

2017-12-01

When compared to other terrestrial environments, coastal "blue carbon" habitats such as salt marshes and mangrove forests sequester disproportionately large amounts of carbon as standing plant biomass and sedimentary peat deposits. This study quantified total carbon stocks in vegetation and soil of 17 salt marshes, salt barrens, and mangrove forests in Tampa Bay, Florida, USA. The sites included natural, restored, and created wetlands of varying ages and degrees of anthropogenic impacts. The average vegetative carbon stock in mangrove forests was 60.1 ± 2.7 Mg ha-1. Mangrove forests frequently consisted of a few large Avicennia germinans trees with smaller, abundant Rhizophora mangle and/or Laguncularia racemosa trees. The average vegetative carbon stock was 11.8 ± 3.7 Mg ha-1 for salt marshes and 2.0 ± 1.2 Mg ha-1 for salt barrens. Vegetative carbon did not significantly differ between natural and newly created salt marsh habitats, indicating that mature restored wetlands can be included with natural wetlands for the calculation of vegetative carbon in coastal blue carbon assessments. Peat deposits were generally less than 50 cm thick and organic content rapidly decreased with depth in all habitats. Soil in this study was analyzed in 1 cm intervals; the accuracy of subsampling or binning soil into depth intervals of 2-5 cm was also assessed. In most cases, carbon stock values obtained from these larger sampling intervals were not statistically different from values obtained from sampling at 1 cm intervals. In the first 15 cm, soil in mangrove forests contained an average of 15.1% organic carbon by weight, salt marshes contained 6.5%, and salt barrens contained 0.8%. Total carbon stock in mangroves was 187.1±17.3 Mg ha-1, with 68% of that carbon stored in soil. Salt marshes contained an average of 65.2±25.3 Mg ha-1 (82% soil carbon) and salt barrens had carbon stocks of 21.4±7.4 Mg ha-1 (89% soil carbon). These values were much lower than global averages for

Marine Biodiversity in Juan Fernández and Desventuradas Islands, Chile: Global Endemism Hotspots.

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Friedlander, Alan M; Ballesteros, Enric; Caselle, Jennifer E; Gaymer, Carlos F; Palma, Alvaro T; Petit, Ignacio; Varas, Eduardo; Muñoz Wilson, Alex; Sala, Enric

2016-01-01

The Juan Fernández and Desventuradas islands are among the few oceanic islands belonging to Chile. They possess a unique mix of tropical, subtropical, and temperate marine species, and although close to continental South America, elements of the biota have greater affinities with the central and south Pacific owing to the Humboldt Current, which creates a strong biogeographic barrier between these islands and the continent. The Juan Fernández Archipelago has ~700 people, with the major industry being the fishery for the endemic lobster, Jasus frontalis. The Desventuradas Islands are uninhabited except for a small Chilean military garrison on San Félix Island. We compared the marine biodiversity of these islands across multiple taxonomic groups. At San Ambrosio Island (SA), in Desventuradas, the laminarian kelp (Eisenia cokeri), which is limited to Desventuradas in Chile, accounted for >50% of the benthic cover at wave exposed areas, while more sheltered sites were dominated by sea urchin barrens. The benthos at Robinson Crusoe Island (RC), in the Juan Fernández Archipelago, comprised a diverse mix of macroalgae and invertebrates, a number of which are endemic to the region. The biomass of commercially targeted fishes was >2 times higher in remote sites around RC compared to sheltered locations closest to port, and overall biomass was 35% higher around SA compared to RC, likely reflecting fishing effects around RC. The number of endemic fish species was extremely high at both islands, with 87.5% of the species surveyed at RC and 72% at SA consisting of regional endemics. Remarkably, endemics accounted for 99% of the numerical abundance of fishes surveyed at RC and 96% at SA, which is the highest assemblage-level endemism known for any individual marine ecosystem on earth. Our results highlight the uniqueness and global significance of these biodiversity hotspots exposed to very different fishing pressures.

Marine Biodiversity in Juan Fernández and Desventuradas Islands, Chile: Global Endemism Hotspots

Science.gov (United States)

Friedlander, Alan M.; Ballesteros, Enric; Caselle, Jennifer E.; Gaymer, Carlos F.; Palma, Alvaro T.; Petit, Ignacio; Varas, Eduardo; Muñoz Wilson, Alex; Sala, Enric

2016-01-01

The Juan Fernández and Desventuradas islands are among the few oceanic islands belonging to Chile. They possess a unique mix of tropical, subtropical, and temperate marine species, and although close to continental South America, elements of the biota have greater affinities with the central and south Pacific owing to the Humboldt Current, which creates a strong biogeographic barrier between these islands and the continent. The Juan Fernández Archipelago has ~700 people, with the major industry being the fishery for the endemic lobster, Jasus frontalis. The Desventuradas Islands are uninhabited except for a small Chilean military garrison on San Félix Island. We compared the marine biodiversity of these islands across multiple taxonomic groups. At San Ambrosio Island (SA), in Desventuradas, the laminarian kelp (Eisenia cokeri), which is limited to Desventuradas in Chile, accounted for >50% of the benthic cover at wave exposed areas, while more sheltered sites were dominated by sea urchin barrens. The benthos at Robinson Crusoe Island (RC), in the Juan Fernández Archipelago, comprised a diverse mix of macroalgae and invertebrates, a number of which are endemic to the region. The biomass of commercially targeted fishes was >2 times higher in remote sites around RC compared to sheltered locations closest to port, and overall biomass was 35% higher around SA compared to RC, likely reflecting fishing effects around RC. The number of endemic fish species was extremely high at both islands, with 87.5% of the species surveyed at RC and 72% at SA consisting of regional endemics. Remarkably, endemics accounted for 99% of the numerical abundance of fishes surveyed at RC and 96% at SA, which is the highest assemblage-level endemism known for any individual marine ecosystem on earth. Our results highlight the uniqueness and global significance of these biodiversity hotspots exposed to very different fishing pressures. PMID:26734732

Post-eruption legacy effects and their implications for long-term recovery of the vegetation on Kasatochi Island, Alaska

Science.gov (United States)

Talbot, S. S.; Talbot, S.L.; Walker, L.R.

2010-01-01

We studied the vegetation of Kasatochi Island, central Aleutian Islands, to provide a general field assessment regarding the survival of plants, lichens, and fungi following a destructive volcanic eruption that occurred in 2008. Plant community data were analyzed using multivariate methods to explore the relationship between pre- and post-eruption plant cover; 5 major vegetation types were identified: Honckenya peploides beach, Festuca rubra cliff shelf, Lupinus nootkatensisFestuca rubra meadow, Leymus mollis bluff ridge (and beach), and Aleuria aurantia lower slope barrens. Our study provided a very unusual glimpse into the early stages of plant primary succession on a remote island where most of the vegetation was destroyed. Plants that apparently survived the eruption dominated early plant communities. Not surprisingly, the most diverse post-eruption community most closely resembled a widespread pre-eruption type. Microhabitats where early plant communities were found were distinct and apparently crucial in determining plant survival. Comparison with volcanic events in related boreal regions indicated some post-eruption pattern similarities. ?? 2010 Regents of the University of Colorado.

Observation of Arctic island barren-ground caribou (Rangifer tarandus groenlandicus migratory movement delay due to human induced sea-ice breaking

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mathieu Dumond

2013-06-01

Full Text Available Normal 0 21 false false false SV X-NONE X-NONE /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Normal tabell"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0cm; mso-para-margin-right:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0cm; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-language:EN-US;} The seasonal migration of the Dolphin and Union caribou (Rangifer tarandus groenlandicus herd between Victoria Island and the mainland (Nunavut/Northwest Territories, Canada relies on the formation of sea-ice that connects the Island to the mainland from late-October to early-June.  During an aerial survey of the Dolphin and Union caribou herd in October 2007 on southern Victoria Island, Nunavut, Canada, we documented the short-term effects of the artificial maintenance of an open water channel in the sea-ice on caribou migratory movements during staging along the coast.

Tsunami induced transportation of the coastal marine sediments to distant onshore regions: Some indications from foraminiferal and microbenthic studies of new Wandoor region (Andaman & Nicobar)

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Khare, N.; Chaturvedi, S.K.; Ingole, B.S.

regions near New Wandoor (Andaman and Nicobar) suggested the areal extent of marine transgression due to tsunami waves on December 26, 2004. There is a need to investigate coastal marine sediments with multi-disciplinary approach to understnd impact...

Decision support tools to improve the effectiveness of hazardous fuel reduction treatments in the New Jersey Pine Barrens

Science.gov (United States)

Kenneth L. Clark; Nicholas Skowronski; John Hom; Matthew Duveneck; Yude Pan; Stephen Van Tuyl; Jason Cole; Matthew Patterson; Stephen Maurer

2009-01-01

Our goal is to assist the New Jersey Forest Fire Service and federal wildland fire managers in the New Jersey Pine Barrens evaluate where and when to conduct hazardous fuel reduction treatments. We used remotely sensed LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging System) data and field sampling to estimate fuel loads and consumption during prescribed fire treatments. This...

Determination of rare earth, major and trace elements in authigenic fraction of Andaman Sea (Northeastern Indian Ocean) sediments by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Alagarsamy, R.; You, C.-F.; Nath, B.N.; SijinKumar, A.V.

Downcore variation of rare earth elements (REEs) in the authigenic Fe-Mn oxides of a sediment core (covering a record of last approx. 40 kyr) from the Andaman Sea, a part of the Indian Ocean shows distinctive positive Ce and Eu anomalies...

Coseismic and postseismic deformation of the great 2004 Sumatra-Andaman earthquake

Science.gov (United States)

Hughes, Kristin Leigh Hellem

The 26 December 2004 M9.2 Sumatra-Andaman earthquake (SAE) induced a devastating tsunami when it ruptured over 1300 km of the boundary between the Indo-Australian plate and Burma microplate (Vigny et al., 2005; Bilek, 2007). Three months later on 28 March 2005, the M8.7 Nias earthquake (NE) ruptured over 400 km along the same trench overlapping and progressing to the south of the M9.2 rupture (Banerjee et al., 2007). The spatial and temporal proximity of these two earthquakes suggests that the SAE mechanically influenced the timing of the NE. I analyze the coseismic and postseismic deformation, stress, and pore pressure of the 2004 SAE using 3D finite element models (FEMs) in order to determine the mechanical coupling of the SAE and NE. The motivation for using FEMs is two-fold. First, FEMs allow me to honor the geologic structure of the Sumatra-Andaman subduction zone, and second, FEMs simulate the mechanical behavior of quasi-static coseismic and postseismic deformation systems (e.g., elastic, poroelastic, and viscoelastic materials). The results of my study include: (1) Coseismic slip distributions are incredibly sensitive to the distribution of material properties (Masterlark and Hughes, 2008), (2) Slip models derived from tsunami wave heights do not match slip models derived from GPS data (Hughes and Masterlark, 2008), (3) These FEMs predict postseismic poroelastic deformation and viscoelastic deformation simultaneously (Masterlark and Hughes, 2008), (4) Pore pressure changes induced by the SAE triggered the NE via fluid flow in the subducting oceanic crust and caused the NE to occur 7 years ahead of interseismic strain accumulation predictions (Hughes et al., 2010; Hughes et al., 2011), (5) Global Conductance Matrices provide a way to smooth an underdetermined FEM for arbitrarily irregular surfaces, and (6) FEMs are capable and desired to model subduction zone deformation built around the complexity of a subducting slab which is usually ignored in geodetic

Alternative technologies for remediation of technogenic barrens in the Kola Subarctic

Science.gov (United States)

Koptsik, G. N.; Koptsik, S. V.; Smirnova, I. E.

2016-11-01

The efficiency of remediation of technogenic barrens under the reduction of air pollutant emissions from the Severonikel smelter in the Kola Subarctic is determined largely by the soil state and the technology applied. The covering of the contaminated soils with artificially made material based on organomineral substrates and the following liming and fertilization promoted a sharp and long-term reduction of acidity, decrease in the biological availability of heavy metals, increase in the supply with nutrients, and improvement of the life state of willow and birch plantations. The effect of economically more profitable chemo-phytostabilization is short-term; it requires constant maintenance. Under the current production and a high level of soil contamination, repeated measures are required to optimize the soil reaction, supply with nutrients, and to correct the availability of heavy metals in the soils based on the results of continuous monitoring

The Glacial and Relative Sea Level History of Southern Banks Island, NT, Canada

Science.gov (United States)

Vaughan, Jessica Megan

The mapping and dating of surficial glacial landforms and sediments across southern Banks Island document glaciation by the northwest Laurentide Ice Sheet (LIS) during the last glacial maximum. Geomorphic landforms confirm the operation of an ice stream at least 1000 m thick in Amundsen Gulf that was coalescent with thin, cold-based ice crossing the island's interior, both advancing offshore onto the polar continental shelf. Raised marine shorelines across western and southern Banks Island are barren, recording early withdrawal of the Amundsen Gulf Ice Stream prior to the resubmergence of Bering Strait and the re-entry of Pacific molluscs ~13,750 cal yr BP. This withdrawal resulted in a loss of ~60,000 km2 of ice --triggering drawdown from the primary northwest LIS divide and instigating changes in subsequent ice flow. The Jesse moraine belt on eastern Banks Island records a lateglacial stillstand and/or readvance of Laurentide ice in Prince of Wales Strait (13,750 -- 12,750 cal yr BP). Fossiliferous raised marine sediments that onlap the Jesse moraine belt constrain final deglaciation to ~12,600 cal yr BP, a minimum age for the breakup of the Amundsen Gulf Ice Stream. The investigation of a 30 m thick and 6 km wide stratigraphic sequence at Worth Point, southwest Banks Island, identifies an advance of the ancestral LIS during the Mid-Pleistocene (sensu lato), substantially diversifying the glacial record on Banks Island. Glacial ice emplaced during this advance has persisted through at least two glacial-interglacial cycles, demonstrating the resilience of circumpolar permafrost. Pervasive deformation of the stratigraphic sequence also records a detailed history of glaciotectonism in proglacial and subglacial settings that can result from interactions between cold-based ice and permafrost terrain. This newly recognized history rejects the long-established paleoenvironmental model of Worth Point that assumed a simple 'layer-cake' stratigraphy.

Geologic map of Saint Lawrence Island, Alaska

Science.gov (United States)

Patton, William W.; Wilson, Frederic H.; Taylor, Theresa A.

2011-01-01

Saint Lawrence Island is located in the northern Bering Sea, 190 km southwest of the tip of the Seward Peninsula, Alaska, and 75 km southeast of the Chukotsk Peninsula, Russia (see index map, map sheet). It lies on a broad, shallow-water continental shelf that extends from western Alaska to northeastern Russia. The island is situated on a northwest-trending structural uplift exposing rocks as old as Paleozoic above sea level. The submerged shelf between the Seward Peninsula and Saint Lawrence Island is covered mainly with Cenozoic deposits (Dundo and Egiazarov, 1982). Northeast of the island, the shelf is underlain by a large structural depression, the Norton Basin, which contains as much as 6.5 km of Cenozoic strata (Grim and McManus, 1970; Fisher and others, 1982). Sparse test-well data indicate that the Cenozoic strata are underlain by Paleozoic and Proterozoic rocks, similar to those exposed on the Seward Peninsula (Turner and others, 1983). Saint Lawrence Island is 160 km long in an east-west direction and from 15 km to 55 km wide in a north-south direction. The east end of the island consists largely of a wave-cut platform, which has been elevated as much as 30 m above sea level. Isolated upland areas composed largely of granitic plutons rise as much as 550 m above the wave-cut platform. The central part of the island is dominated by the Kookooligit Mountains, a large Quaternary shield volcano that extends over an area of 850 km2 and rises to an elevation of 630 m. The west end of the island is composed of the Poovoot Range, a group of barren, rubble-covered hills as high as 450 m that extend from Boxer Bay on the southwest coast to Taphook Mountain on the north coast. The Poovoot Range is flanked on the southeast by the Putgut Plateau, a nearly flat, lake-dotted plain that stands 30?60 m above sea level. The west end of the island is marked by uplands underlain by the Sevuokuk pluton (unit Kg), a long narrow granite body that extends from Gambell on the

Atmospheric deposition as a source of carbon and nutrients to barren, alpine soils of the Colorado Rocky Mountains

Science.gov (United States)

Mladenov, N.; Williams, M. W.; Schmidt, S. K.; Cawley, K.

2012-03-01

Many alpine areas are experiencing intense deglaciation, biogeochemical changes driven by temperature rise, and changes in atmospheric deposition. There is mounting evidence that the water quality of alpine streams may be related to these changes, including rising atmospheric deposition of carbon (C) and nutrients. Given that barren alpine soils can be severely C limited, we evaluated the magnitude and chemical quality of atmospheric deposition of C and nutrients to an alpine site, the Green Lake 4 catchment in the Colorado Rocky Mountains. Using a long term dataset (2002-2010) of weekly atmospheric wet deposition and snowpack chemistry, we found that volume weighted mean dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentrations were approximately 1.0 mg L-1and weekly concentrations reached peaks as high at 6-10 mg L-1 every summer. Total dissolved nitrogen concentration also peaked in the summer, whereas total dissolved phosphorus and calcium concentrations were highest in the spring. Relationships among DOC concentration, dissolved organic matter (DOM) fluorescence properties, and nitrate and sulfate concentrations suggest that pollutants from nearby urban and agricultural sources and organic aerosols derived from sub-alpine vegetation may influence high summer DOC wet deposition concentrations. Interestingly, high DOC concentrations were also recorded during "dust-in-snow" events in the spring. Detailed chemical and spectroscopic analyses conducted for samples collected in 2010 revealed that the DOM in many late spring and summer samples was less aromatic and polydisperse and of lower molecular weight than that of winter and fall samples and, therefore, likely to be more bioavailable to microbes in barren alpine soils. Bioavailability experiments with different types of atmospheric C sources are needed to better evaluate the substrate quality of atmospheric C inputs. Our C budget estimates for the Green Lake 4 catchment suggest that atmospheric deposition represents an

A review on earthquake and tsunami hazards of the Sumatran plate boundary: Observing expected and unexpected events after the Aceh-Andaman Mw 9.15 event

Science.gov (United States)

Natawidjaja, D.

2013-12-01

The 600-km Mentawai megathrust had produced two giant historical earthquakes generating big tsunamies in 1797 and 1833. The SuGAr (Sumatran GPS continuous Array) network, first deployed in 2002, shows that the subduction interface underlying Mentawai Islands and the neighboring Nias section in the north are fully locked, thus confirming their potential hazards. Outreach activities to warn people about earthquake and tsunamies had been started since 4 months prior to the 26 December 2004 in Aceh-Andaman earthquake (Mw 9.15). Later in March 2005, the expected megathrust earthquake (Mw 8.7) hit Nias-Simelue area and killed about 2000 people, releasing the accumulated strain since the previous 1861 event (~Mw 8.5). After then many Mw 7s and smaller events occured in Sumatra, filling areas between and around two giant ruptures and heighten seismicities in neighboring areas. In March 2007, the twin earthquake disaster (Mw 6.3 and Mw 6.4) broke two consecutive segments of the transcurrent Sumatran fault in the Singkarak lake area. Only six month later, in September 2007, the rapid-fire-failures of three consecutive megathrust patches (Mw 8.5, Mw 7.9 and Mw 7.0) ruptured a 250-km-section of the southern part of the Mentawai. It was a big surprise since this particular section is predicted as a very-low coupled section from modelling the SuGAr data, and hence, bypassing the more potential fully coupled section of the Mentawai in between the 2005 and 2007 ruptures. In September 2009, a rare unexpected event (Mw 7.6) suddenly ruptured an intracrustal fault in the subducted slab down under Padang City and killed about 500 people. Padang had been in preparation for the next tsunami but not for strong shakes from near by major earthquake. This event seems to have remotely triggered another Mw 6.7 on the Sumatran fault near kerinci Lake, a few hundred kilometers south of Padang, in less than a day. Just a year later, in November 2010, again an unexpected large slow-slip event of

Journal of Earth System Science | Indian Academy of Sciences

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Impact of global warming on the energetics of lower tropospheric ultra-long waves and the .... Geomorphic settings of mangrove ecosystem in South Andaman Island: A ... Mantle source characterization of Sylhet Traps, northeastern India: A ...

Chromian spinel-rich black sands from eastern shoreline of ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Chromian spinel; detrital sand; ophiolites; Andaman Island; India. J. Earth Syst. .... (olivine: ol) inclusion; (e) peridotitic spinel with extensive fracturing; and (f) heavily altered rim of a peridotitic spinel. ..... The authors acknowledge the financial.

Population Recovery of Nicobar Long-Tailed Macaque Macaca fascicularis umbrosus following a Tsunami in the Nicobar Islands, India.

Science.gov (United States)

Velankar, Avadhoot D; Kumara, Honnavalli N; Pal, Arijit; Mishra, Partha Sarathi; Singh, Mewa

2016-01-01

Natural disasters pose a threat to isolated populations of species with restricted distributions, especially those inhabiting islands. The Nicobar long tailed macaque.Macaca fascicularis umbrosus, is one such species found in the three southernmost islands (viz. Great Nicobar, Little Nicobar and Katchal) of the Andaman and Nicobar archipelago, India. These islands were hit by a massive tsunami (Indian Ocean tsunami, 26 December 2004) after a 9.2 magnitude earthquake. Earlier studies [Umapathy et al. 2003; Sivakumar, 2004] reported a sharp decline in the population of M. f. umbrosus after thetsunami. We studied the distribution and population status of M. f. umbrosus on thethree Nicobar Islands and compared our results with those of the previous studies. We carried out trail surveys on existing paths and trails on three islands to get encounter rate as measure of abundance. We also checked the degree of inundation due to tsunami by using Normalized Difference Water Index (NDWI) on landsat imageries of the study area before and after tsunami. Theencounter rate of groups per kilometre of M. f. umbrosus in Great Nicobar, Little Nicobar and Katchal was 0.30, 0.35 and 0.48 respectively with the mean group size of 39 in Great Nicobar and 43 in Katchal following the tsunami. This was higher than that reported in the two earlier studies conducted before and after the tsunami. Post tsunami, there was a significant change in the proportion of adult males, adult females and immatures, but mean group size did not differ as compared to pre tsunami. The results show that population has recovered from a drastic decline caused by tsunami, but it cannot be ascertained whether it has reached stability because of the altered group structure. This study demonstrates the effect of natural disasters on island occurring species.

Simulation of barotropic wind-driven circulation in the upper layers of Bay of Bengal and Andaman Sea during the southwest and northeast monsoon seasons using observed winds

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Bahulayan, N.; Unnikrishnan, A.S.

A two-dimensional, nonlinear, vertically integrated model was used to simulate depth-mean wind-driven circulation in the upper Ekman layers of the Bay of Bengal and Andaman Sea. The model resolution was one third of a degree in the latitude...

Supra-generic radiolarian transfer function based late Miocene palaeomonsoonal changes in the northeastern tropical Indian Ocean

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Gupta, S.M.; Fernandes, A.A.

and PPT changes using % data of the late Miocene radiolarian sequence from the Sawai Bay Formation, Neill Island, Andamans. Estimated SST and salinity during southwest monsoon are not only conformable with the qualitative paleoceanography in terms...

Perceptions of Wildfire Threat and Mitigation Measures by Residents of Fire-Prone Communities in the Northeast: Survey Results and Wildland Fire Management Implications

Science.gov (United States)

Robert L. Ryan; Mark B. Wamsley

2006-01-01

We surveyed residents of fire-prone areas of the Central Pine Barrens of Long Island, New York, and the Plymouth Pine Barrens in Massachusetts to learn how they perceived wildland fire risk and management techniques for reducing fire hazard. We found that residents considered the fire threat to their own property to be relatively low in spite of first-hand experience...

Contrasting feeding patterns among species of fish larvae from the tropical Andaman Sea

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Østergaard, P.; Munk, Peter; Janekarn, V.

2005-01-01

Feeding habits of tropical fish larvae were analysed in a comparative study of four species (Scorpaenodes sp., Carangoides sp., Acanthocepola sp. and Cynoglossus sp.) from the Andaman Sea. We investigated morphological characteristics and their potential influence on larval feeding, and looked...... for common patterns in larval prey preference. Gut contents of a total of 300 larvae were examined and compared with local zooplankton composition. The feeding habits of the investigated larvae shared a number of characteristics. During ontogeny both the preferred prey size and the number of prey in the gut...... increased, and across all larval size classes the relative prey size spectrum stayed constant, of approximately the same magnitude for all four species. On the other hand, larval feeding also differed in a number of aspects, especially differences in the taxonomic composition of preferred prey were apparent...

Halgerda dalanghita Fahey & Gosliner, 1999 (Gastropoda: Nudibranchia: Discodorididae - a new record for India from the Andaman Islands

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Titus Immanuel

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Halgerda dalanghita Fahey & Gosliner, 1999, a discodoridid nudibranch was reported from Havelock Island of Ritchie’s Archipelago representing a new addition to the Opisthobranch fauna of India. This species is characterized by a firm, bright orange coloured mantle with a network of angular ridges on the dorsum that is ornate with white lines and dots; rhinophores with 17 brown lamellae on a translucent white stalk; highly pinnate gills with eight branchial leaves. The present record extends the known geographical distribution of H. dalanghita and this is the sixth species representing the genus in India. 

Assessment of undiscovered oil and gas resources of the Central Burma Basin and the Irrawaddy-Andaman and Indo-Burman Geologic Provinces, Myanmar

Science.gov (United States)

Wandrey, Craig J.; Schenk, Christopher J.; Klett, Timothy R.; Brownfield, Michael E.; Charpentier, Ronald R.; Cook, Troy A.; Pollastro, Richard M.; Tennyson, Marilyn E.

2012-01-01

The Irrawaddy-Andaman and Indo-Burman Geologic Provinces were recently assessed for undiscovered technically recoverable oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids resources as part of the U.S. Geological Survey's (USGS) World Oil and Gas Assessment. Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the USGS estimated mean volumes of 2.3 billion barrels of oil, 79.6 trillion cubic feet of gas, and 2.1 billion barrels of natrual gas liquids.

Plant colonization, succession and ecosystem development on Surtsey with reference to neighbouring islands

Science.gov (United States)

Magnússon, B.; Magnússon, S. H.; Ólafsson, E.; Sigurdsson, B. D.

2014-10-01

Plant colonization and succession on the volcanic island of Surtsey, formed in 1963, have been closely followed. In 2013, a total of 69 vascular plant species had been discovered on the island; of these, 59 were present and 39 had established viable populations. Surtsey had more than twice the species of any of the comparable neighbouring islands, and all of their common species had established on Surtsey. The first colonizers were dispersed by sea, but, after 1985, bird dispersal became the principal pathway with the formation of a seagull colony on the island and consequent site amelioration. This allowed wind-dispersed species to establish after 1990. Since 2007, there has been a net loss of species on the island. A study of plant succession, soil formation and invertebrate communities in permanent plots on Surtsey and on two older neighbouring islands (plants and soil) has revealed that seabirds, through their transfer of nutrients from sea to land, are major drivers of development of these ecosystems. In the area impacted by seagulls, dense grassland swards have developed and plant cover, species richness, diversity, plant biomass and soil carbon become significantly higher than in low-impact areas, which remained relatively barren. A similar difference was found for the invertebrate fauna. After 2000, the vegetation of the oldest part of the seagull colony became increasingly dominated by long-lived, rhizomatous grasses (Festuca, Poa, Leymus) with a decline in species richness and diversity. Old grasslands of the neighbouring islands Elliđaey (puffin colony, high nutrient input) and Heimaey (no seabirds, low nutrient input) contrasted sharply. The puffin grassland of Elliđaey was very dense and species-poor. It was dominated by Festuca and Poa, and very similar to the seagull grassland developing on Surtsey. The Heimaey grassland was significantly higher in species richness and diversity, and had a more even cover of dominants (Festuca

Effects of pregelatinized vs. native potato starch on intestinal weight and stomach lesions of pigs housed in barren pens or on straw bedding

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bolhuis, J.E.; Brand, van den H.; Staals, S.; Gerrits, W.J.J.

2007-01-01

In a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement, 16 groups of 12 pigs (approximately 25 kg) were assigned to either barren or straw housing and to native or pregelatinized potato starch included in the diet (35%) to investigate effects on intestinal weight and gastric lesions. Pigs were fed restrictedly (2.5 ×

Random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers reveal genetic ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The present study evaluated genetic variability of superior bael genotypes collected from different parts of Andaman Islands, India using fruit characters and random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers. Genomic DNA extracted from leaf material using cetyl trimethyl ammonium bromide (CTAB) method was ...

Some physical characteristics of the Antarctic and western Indian Ocean

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

RamaRaju, D.V.; Somayajulu, Y.K.

Based on the data collected during the cruises of R V Gaveshani in Jan-Feb. of 1979 and 1980 around the Andaman Islands, 6 transects are selected, along which the present study on some physical properties of the waters derived from the distributions...

Effect of vertical stability and circulation on the depth of the chlorophyll maximum in the Bay of Bengal during May-June, 1996

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Murty, V.S.N.; Gupta, G.V.M.; Sarma, V.V.; Rao, B.P.; Jyothi, D.; Shastri, P.N.M.; Supraveena, Y.

A two-gyre circulation system consisting of an anticyclonic gyre (ACG) in the northwestern Bay of Bengal and a cyclonic gyre (CG) west of the Andaman Islands is shown by the hydrographic data collected during May-June, prior to the southwest monsoon...

Fungal invasion of massive corals

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Raghukumar, C.; Raghukumar, S.

Five species of corals from the Andaman Islands in the Bay of Bengal (Indian Ocean) have been regularly found to have single or multiple necrotic patches. The occurrence of such corals with necrotic patches varied from 10-50% in the field. Sections...

Rolled lawn as tool for industrial barren remediation

Science.gov (United States)

Gorbacheva, T. T.; Ivanova, L. A.; Kikuchi, R.; Gerardo, R.

2009-04-01

Fast development of the industrial and urban territories during last century has led to great disturbance of natural ecosystems in a lot of regions of the world. In the Far North the risk resulted from technogenic influence involves essentially more expressed negative consequences for the nature comparing to a regions of averages and southern latitudes due to higher sensitivity of northern ecosystems. Since thirtieth years of last century industrial complexes on extraction and processing of nonferrous metals ores are functioned on Kola peninsula territory. They are powerful sources of emissions of acidifying substances and heavy metals. Long term influence of these emissions resulted in deep degradation of terrestrial ecosystems up to industrial barren arising in immediate proximity to industrial centre Monchegorsk. The most radical way of disturbed territories rehabilitation is biological remediation. In 2006-2008 innovative methods of high-quality grass cover performance was developed in local enterprise «VIPON» in Apatity. Vermiculite trademark «VIPON» is characterized by not broken structure of minerals combined with week reactance, high mechanical durability, favorable рН equal 6.5-7.0, valuable absorptive and ion exchange properties. Final product of proposed technology was rolled lawn which successfully applied for remediation of disturbed sites in urban territories as such as industrial plots with low contamination. One of abstract authors namely L.Ivanova is one of technology implementators. During 2008 the field test was performed near the smelter complex (67°51'N, 32°48'E) to estimate suitability of proposed method for site remediation in more severe conditions such as in industrial barren. The method is based on cultivation of perennial grasses using hydroponics with thermally inflated vermiculite from local deposit (Kovdor) followed by rolled lawn placement on very contaminated sites near Monchegorsk. Great advantage of rolled lawn is short

The Relationship Between Ants and Lycaeides melissa samuelis (Lepidoptera: Lycaenidae) at Concord Pine Barrens, NH, USA.

Science.gov (United States)

Pascale, Elizabeth G; Thiet, Rachel K

2016-04-22

The Karner blue butterfly (Lycaeides melissa samuelis Nabokov) (Lepidoptera: Lycaenidae) is a federally listed, endangered species that has experienced dramatic decline over its historic range. In surviving populations, Karner blue butterflies have a facultative mutualism with ants that could be critically important to their survival where their populations are threatened by habitat loss or disturbance. In this study, we investigated the effects of ants, wild blue lupine population status (native or restored), and fire on adult Karner blue butterfly abundance at the Concord Pine Barrens, NH, USA. Ant frequency (the number of times we collected each ant species in our pitfall traps) was higher in restored than native lupine treatments regardless of burn status during both Karner blue butterfly broods, and the trend was statistically significant during the second brood. We observed a positive relationship between adult Karner blue butterfly abundance and ant frequency during the first brood, particularly on native lupine, regardless of burn treatment. During the second brood, adult Karner blue butterfly abundance and ant frequency were not significantly correlated in any treatments or their combinations. Our findings suggest that a combination of native and restored lupine is important for supporting both Karner blue butterflies and ants at the Concord Pine Barrens, and that burning does not affect the mutualism. Thus, scientists and managers at the site may wish to target their habitat management activities to best support both Karner blue butterflies and the particular ant species that provide the greatest benefit to their survival. © The Authors 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Seismoturbidite record as preserved at core sites at the Cascadia and Sumatra–Andaman subduction zones

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J. R. Patton

2013-04-01

Full Text Available Turbidite deposition along slope and trench settings is evaluated for the Cascadia and Sumatra–Andaman subduction zones. Source proximity, basin effects, turbidity current flow path, temporal and spatial earthquake rupture, hydrodynamics, and topography all likely play roles in the deposition of the turbidites as evidenced by the vertical structure of the final deposits. Channel systems tend to promote low-frequency components of the content of the current over longer distances, while more proximal slope basins and base-of-slope apron fan settings result in a turbidite structure that is likely influenced by local physiography and other factors. Cascadia's margin is dominated by glacial cycle constructed pathways which promote turbidity current flows for large distances. Sumatra margin pathways do not inherit these antecedent sedimentary systems, so turbidity currents are more localized.

Characterization and diversity assessment in coconut collections of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

SUBDIC

conservation. Therefore, the present study was undertaken with the aim to characterize morphological, biochemical and nut component traits and to assess the diversity among 24 exotic and six indigenous in coconut accessions conserved at World Coconut Germplasm. Centre (WCGC) in Andaman and Nicobar Islands ...

Journal of Earth System Science | Indian Academy of Sciences

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Ownership of majority of forest lands by non-governmental agencies and large scale shifting cultivation are responsible for higher deforestation rates in the Northeastern states. The six states of the Northeast (Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Tripura) and one union territory (Andaman & Nicobar Islands) ...

DECAPODA, BRACHYURA, MAJIDAE

African Journals Online (AJOL)

BRIAN KENS LEY. South African Museum. Cape Town. Accepted: May 1977. ABSTRACT. Lambrachaew rami/er Alcock, previously known only from a single record from the Andaman. Islands, is recorded from a shallow reef off Zululand. The specimen, an ovigerous female, is described and figured. INTRODUCTION.

Larvae of commercial  and other oyster species in Thailand (Andaman Sea and Gulf of Thailand)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bussarawit, Somchai; Cedhagen, Tomas

2012-01-01

The development of larvae of some Thai commercial oyster species (Crassostrea belcheri (Sowerby, 1871), Crassostrea bilineata (Röding, 1798), Saccostrea forskali (Gmelin, 1791) and Dendrostrea folium (Linnaeus, 1758)) is described from newly hatched to the settlement stage with particular...... reference to changes in shell morphology. Planktonic oyster larvae were collected in the Andaman Sea and the Gulf of Thailand. Different species of oyster larvae were found in the genera Crassostrea, Saccostrea, Ostrea, Dendrostrea, Nanostrea, Planostrea, Lopha, and Hyotissa. Detailed morphological...... descriptions and measurements are provided. Diagnostic features of the larval shape, hinge teeth, and prodissoconch sizes were identified in order to allow separation of commercial oyster larvae from other oyster species in Thai waters. Brooding species (incubatory) of the subfamilies Ostreinae (Ostrea...

Journal of Earth System Science | Indian Academy of Sciences

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Home; Journals; Journal of Earth System Science. K Dharanirajan. Articles written in Journal of Earth System Science. Volume 123 Issue 8 December 2014 pp 1819-1830. Geomorphic settings of mangrove ecosystem in South Andaman Island: A geospatial approach · E Yuvaraj K Dharanirajan S Jayakumar Saravanan.

Molecular and functional diversity in Capsicum landraces of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The present study analyzed the diversity in 26 landraces of Capsicum from Andaman Islands using 20 morphological, 16 biochemical and 10 DNA markers. Significant differences were observed in tested landraces and 16 reference genotypes from mainland India. Biochemical markers grouped all the genotypes into eight ...

Understanding of Emergency Contraception among Nursing Staff in ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

2017-07-20

Jul 20, 2017 ... a Tertiary Care Hospital of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India ... Context: Emergency contraception (EC) offers women a last chance to prevent pregnancy after unprotected ... to create awareness, improve their understanding and change their attitude towards EC. ..... the right message to the right person.

A taxonomic study on the diversity of Indian Knema Lour. (Myristicaceae

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dipanwita Banik

2016-06-01

Full Text Available A taxonomic study on the diversity of the genus Knema Lour. belonging to the family Myristicaceae R. Br. in India revealed the distribution of the ten taxa under four series in North East and Peninsular India and Andaman and Nicobar Islands including two endemic species. Knema ser. Obovoideae W.J. de Wilde is synonymised here under ser. Knema. Series Knema is represented by two species and ser. Glaucae W.J. de Wilde by one species in North East India, while ser. Laurinae W.J. de Wilde is represented by three species and two subspecies in North East India and Andaman and Nicobar Island, and ser. Glomeratae W.J. de Wilde by 2 species in South and NE India. This is the first taxonomic study on the genus in India. All the taxa are cited with updated nomenclature, diagnostic characters, distribution, phonological data, vernacular names, line drawings, photo plates and specimens examined in various herbaria. Taxonomic keys are provided for easy identification of these taxa.

Spatial and seasonal variation of the gonad index of Diadema antillarum (Echinodermata:Echinoidea in the Canary Islands

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

José Carlos Hernández

2006-12-01

Full Text Available Diadema antillarum Philippi occurs in high density populations in the Canary Islands, creating extensive barren areas. During one year we determined seasonal changes in the algal abundance and population densities, test diameter, gut contents and gonad index of sea urchins in two localities (Abades and Boca Cangrejo. Boca Cangrejo shows higher algae cover and species richness than Abades. The sea urchin population at Abades had a higher density and smaller urchins than Boca Cangrejo. Boca Cangrejo sea urchins showed higher specific richness in gut contents than Abades urchins. The sea urchin population at Abades did not have a clearer reproductive periodicity or higher gonad index than the Boca Cangrejo population. Temporal and spatial changes in gonad periodicity of Diadema antillarum are attributed, at least in part, to benthic food availability (algal cover and algal species number and intra-specific competition.

Traditional behaviour and fidelity to caribou calving grounds by barren-ground caribou

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anne Gunn

1986-06-01

Full Text Available Evidence for the fidelity of female barren-ground caribou (Rangifer tarandus spp. of each herd to specific calving grounds is convincing. Involvement of learned behaviour in the annual return of those cows to the same calving grounds implies such actions are a form of «traditional» behaviour. Even wide variations in population size have not yet knowingly led to marked changes in size or location of calving grounds or prolonged abandonment of established ones. Rarely is the adoption of new calving grounds reported and emigration to another herd's calving ground or interchange between calving grounds has not yet been unequivocally documented. The calving experience of individual caribou and environmental pressures may modify the cow's use patterns of her calving grounds. The current definition of herds based on traditional calving grounds may require modification, if increasing caribou numbers result in changes in traditions. However, current data do not contradict either the fidelity to traditional calving grounds or the concept of herd identity based on that fidelity.

SUBJECT INDEX

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

ages: Lower Narmada basin, western India. 413. Advective heat transfer. Advective heat transfer and fabric development in a shallow crustal intrusive granite – the case of Pro- terozoic Vellaturu granite, south India. 433. Andaman Islands. Improved bathymetric datasets for the shallow water regions in the Indian Ocean. 261.

Satellite-derived geoid for the estimation of lithospheric cooling and ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

The northern Indian Ocean consists of older Bay of Bengal (BOB) oceanic .... Andaman & Nicobar Islands m ... The long wavelength classical geoid anomaly over the northern Indian Ocean with the largest geoid anomaly low ... and 'Snm' are the mass distribution functions. ..... in the Pacific Plate that caused the long wave-.

In vivo carbon tetrachloride-induced hepatoprotective and in vitro ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Background: Garcinia hombroniana, known as “manggis hutan” (jungle mangosteen) in Malaysia, is distributed in tropical Asia, Borneo, Thailand, Andaman, Nicobar Islands, Vietnam and India. In Malaysia, its ripened crimson sour fruit rind is used as a seasoning agent in curries and culinary dishes. Its roots and leaves ...

Uncertainties in the 2004 Sumatra–Andaman source through nonlinear stochastic inversion of tsunami waves

Science.gov (United States)

Venugopal, M.; Roy, D.; Rajendran, K.; Guillas, S.; Dias, F.

2017-01-01

Numerical inversions for earthquake source parameters from tsunami wave data usually incorporate subjective elements to stabilize the search. In addition, noisy and possibly insufficient data result in instability and non-uniqueness in most deterministic inversions, which are barely acknowledged. Here, we employ the satellite altimetry data for the 2004 Sumatra–Andaman tsunami event to invert the source parameters. We also include kinematic parameters that improve the description of tsunami generation and propagation, especially near the source. Using a finite fault model that represents the extent of rupture and the geometry of the trench, we perform a new type of nonlinear joint inversion of the slips, rupture velocities and rise times with minimal a priori constraints. Despite persistently good waveform fits, large uncertainties in the joint parameter distribution constitute a remarkable feature of the inversion. These uncertainties suggest that objective inversion strategies should incorporate more sophisticated physical models of seabed deformation in order to significantly improve the performance of early warning systems. PMID:28989311

Journal of Earth System Science | Indian Academy of Sciences

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Geomorphic settings of mangrove ecosystem in South Andaman Island: A geospatial approach ... Topography and bathymetry of the coast result in three dominant features like rivers, tides and waves, which play a role in shaping the geomorphic settings of mangroves, which are classified into five major types. In this study, it ...

New records of the bobtail squid, Euprymna hyllebergi Nateewathana, 1997 with designation of a neotype

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Aungtonya, Charatsee; Nateewathana, Anuwat; Tendal, Ole Secher

2011-01-01

reported as a new record for Myanmar waters and the distribution in the Indian Ocean has been extended to the west of the Andaman Islands. Amale neotype is designated on a specimen collected from the original locality in order to replace the lost male holotype specimen. The neotype is deposited...

Description of a new species of the Nitidulid genus Platynema, Rits. (Orthogramma, Murray nec Guenée)

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Ritsema Cz., C.

1885-01-01

Of this species I have seen three specimens, captured in the Andaman Islands, and of these Mr. A. Sidney Olliff has been good enough to let the Leyden Museum have two; I therefore propose to call the species Platynema Olliffi. Length 4,5 mm. — Elongate, subparallel, gradually widening a little

Assemblages of fish larvae and mesozooplankton across the continental shelf and shelf slope of the Andaman Sea (NE Indian Ocean)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Munk, Peter; Bjørnsen, Peter Koefoed; Boonruang, P.

2004-01-01

on the sampling of fish larvae and mesozooplankton. Surveys were carried out during 2 monsoon periods in March and August 1996, using 3 cross-bathymetric transects extending to the deeper part of the shelf slope of the Andaman Sea. Station distances were either 5 or 10 n miles apart, and at each station a series...... with a hydrographic front generated where the pycnocline meets the sea-bottom. An internal wave of pronounced amplitude interacts with the shelf slope at ca. 300 m bottom depth, and findings indicated another zone of enhanced abundance in this area. Analysis of the relative abundances of fish larvae within families...

Indian symposium reviews tsunami response

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Paula Banerjee

2005-07-01

Full Text Available A symposium of academics and human rights activists organised by the Calcutta Research Group assessed the extent to which relief and rehabilitation initiatives in Tamil Nadu and the Andaman and Nicobar islands have recognised the rights of those affected to receive aid without discrimination based on caste, religion or gender.

Efficiency of remediation of technogenic barrens around the Pechenganikel works in the Kola Subarctic

Science.gov (United States)

Koptsik, G. N.; Koptsik, S. V.; Smirnova, I. E.

2014-05-01

Remediation of the technogenic barrens around the Pechenganikel works on the Kola Peninsula resulted in the improvement of the soil properties, namely, in a decrease in acidity and enrichment with nutrients, which continued for several years. However, the reaction of most of the treated soils remained strongly acid, and the concentrations of available calcium, magnesium, potassium, and phosphorus were much lower than their background levels and the demands of the plants for nutrients (especially, for magnesium and potassium). The soils were depleted in available manganese and zinc. Most of the treated soils contained the same (or higher) amounts of available nickel and copper compounds in comparison with their untreated analogues. The willow plantations on the remediated plots were in a satisfactory state, but they experienced a deficit of magnesium, manganese, and zinc; they consumed elevated amounts of nickel and copper. Recommendations on the nutrient regime of the soils aimed at decreasing the mobility and biological availability of heavy metals were made.

Fungal communities in barren forest soil after amendment with different wood substrates and their possible effects on trees’, pathogens, insects and nematodes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Małecka Monika

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Scots pine sawdust, composted bark or coarse, post-harvest woody debris from conifers had been spread over the surface of barren forest soil before planting with Scots pine. The effects of the Scots pine sawdust, composted bark or coarse, post-harvest woody debris from conifers on the abundance and diversity of culturable fungi were investigated. The amendments were aimed at increasing the soil suppressiveness to Armillaria and Heterobasidion. The classical soil-dilution method was chosen for qualitative and quantitative analyses of fungal communities in soils because of its proven reliability and consistency. The soil was inhabited by saprotrophic fungi from Ascomycota and Zygomycota, including species known to be potential antagonists of Armillaria or H. annosum (i.e. Clonostachys + Trichoderma spp., Penicillium commune, P. daleae, P. janczewskii or stimulants of Armillaria (i.e. Pseudogymnoascus roseus, Trichocladium opacum. Eleven years after treatment, the abundance and diversity of fungi, the abundance of P. commune, and locally the abundance of P. janczewskii increased, while Clonostachys + Trichoderma spp., and locally, P. daleae and T. opacum decreased. Amending the barren soil with organic matter does not guarantee effective, long-term suppressiveness of the sandy loam soil to Armillaria and Heterobasidion. Increased abundance of entomopathogenic and nematophagous species, 11 years after treatment, does suggest the long-term possibility of insect or nematode control in soil.

Redescription and sexual dimorphism of Andaman leg-skate Cruriraja andamanica (Chondrichthyes: Rajiformes) with comments on the zoogeography of the genus Cruriraja.

Science.gov (United States)

Vinu, J; Rajeeshkumar, M P; Parmeswaran, U V; Sumod, K S; Akhilesh, K V; Manjebrayakath, H; Sanjeevan, V N

2017-08-01

This paper redescribes sexually dimorphic Cruriraja andamanica based on five juvenile (four males, one female) and four adult specimens (three males, one female) collected from Andaman waters. Morphometric comparison of the present specimens with a female specimen collected off the coast of Tanzania reveals considerable dissimilarities between them. These findings, along with the wide geographical distance between collection locations, support a need for revision of the Tanzanian specimen, which, in all probability, represents a new species in the genus. The paper also addresses zoogeography of genus Cruriraja across the world's oceans and provides a revised key to the species. © 2017 The Fisheries Society of the British Isles.

Meiofauna of some sandy beaches of Andaman Islands

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Ansari, Z.A.; Ingole, B.S.

Comparatively high meiofauna numbers were recorded from beaches having fine sand particles than those having coarse to medium sand particles The fauna was dominated mainly by nematodes (53.7%), harpacticoids (13.7%) and polychaetes (12.8%) On all...

Nannoplankton from Recent sediments off the Andaman Islands

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Guptha, M.V.S.

Sixteen sediment samples have been investigated for the distribution of nannoplankton. Of the total 38 species encountered, 14 are modern and remaining 24 are reworked fossils ranging in age from Eocene to Pliocene. Majority of the reworked fossils...

Constraints on the source of Cu in a submarine magmatic-hydrothermal system, Brothers volcano, Kermadec island arc

Science.gov (United States)

Keith, Manuel; Haase, Karsten M.; Klemd, Reiner; Smith, Daniel J.; Schwarz-Schampera, Ulrich; Bach, Wolfgang

2018-05-01

Most magmatic-hydrothermal Cu deposits are genetically linked to arc magmas. However, most continental or oceanic arc magmas are barren, and hence new methods have to be developed to distinguish between barren and mineralised arc systems. Source composition, melting conditions, the timing of S saturation and an initial chalcophile element-enrichment represent important parameters that control the potential of a subduction setting to host an economically valuable deposit. Brothers volcano in the Kermadec island arc is one of the best-studied examples of arc-related submarine magmatic-hydrothermal activity. This study, for the first time, compares the chemical and mineralogical composition of the Brothers seafloor massive sulphides and the associated dacitic to rhyolitic lavas that host the hydrothermal system. Incompatible trace element ratios, such as La/Sm and Ce/Pb, indicate that the basaltic melts from L'Esperance volcano may represent a parental analogue to the more evolved Brothers lavas. Copper-rich magmatic sulphides (Cu > 2 wt%) identified in fresh volcanic glass and phenocryst phases, such as clinopyroxene, plagioclase and Fe-Ti oxide suggest that the surrounding lavas that host the Brothers hydrothermal system represent a potential Cu source for the sulphide ores at the seafloor. Thermodynamic calculations reveal that the Brothers melts reached volatile saturation during their evolution. Melt inclusion data and the occurrence of sulphides along vesicle margins indicate that an exsolving volatile phase extracted Cu from the silicate melt and probably contributed it to the overlying hydrothermal system. Hence, the formation of the Cu-rich seafloor massive sulphides (up to 35.6 wt%) is probably due to the contribution of Cu from a bimodal source including wall rock leaching and magmatic degassing, in a mineralisation style that is hybrid between Cyprus-type volcanic-hosted massive sulphide and subaerial epithermal-porphyry deposits.

Relationships between fish, sea urchins and macroalgae: The structure of shallow rocky sublittoral communities in the Cyclades, Eastern Mediterranean

Science.gov (United States)

Giakoumi, Sylvaine; Cebrian, Emma; Kokkoris, Giorgos D.; Ballesteros, Enric; Sala, Enric

2012-08-01

Historical overfishing is the most likely explanation for the depletion of the shallow sublittoral communities in many areas not least in the Cyclades Archipelago, Greece. The present study is the first quantitative study of the shallow rocky sublittoral of the Cyclades based on in situ underwater surveys of algal cover, and fish and sea urchin abundance at 181 sampling sites in 25 islands to provide a baseline and investigate the relationship between these communities. Algal turf was the most abundant algal functional group, and canopy algae of the genus Cystoseira were more abundant at the northern islands. A range in fish biomass of almost two orders of magnitude was found across islands, but overall the Cyclades displayed much lower values than fished areas of the Western Mediterranean. We observed apex predators only in 25% of our sampling sites, and their biomass was uncorrelated to total fish biomass, indicating a depleted ecosystem. Sea urchin biomass was also low but similar to values found in other Mediterranean islands and was positively correlated with barrens. We observed a gradient of benthic community complexity from sea urchin barrens to communities dominated by Cystoseira spp. There was no correlation between sea urchins and their predators Diplodus spp., which presented extremely low densities.

National Hydroelectric Power Resources Study:Regional Assessment: Volume XXIII: Alaska and Hawaii

Science.gov (United States)

1981-09-01

miles) are Niihau (73), Kauai (553), Oahu (608), Molokai (261), Lanai (140), Kahoo1awe (45), Maui (729), and Hawaii (4,038). These islands form a...Kahoolawe is barren, uninhabited and under military control; Niihau is pri- vately owned and little developed. The other six islands of Kauai, Oahu...coastline, a distance of about 225 miles. 2-1 N I N Niihau Kauai 160· ------------------ 22· City and County of Honolulu <vtr~ ~ OU

Predictive modelling of the spatial pattern of past and future forest cover changes in India

Science.gov (United States)

Reddy, C. Sudhakar; Singh, Sonali; Dadhwal, V. K.; Jha, C. S.; Rao, N. Rama; Diwakar, P. G.

2017-02-01

This study was carried out to simulate the forest cover changes in India using Land Change Modeler. Classified multi-temporal long-term forest cover data was used to generate the forest covers of 1880 and 2025. The spatial data were overlaid with variables such as the proximity to roads, settlements, water bodies, elevation and slope to determine the relationship between forest cover change and explanatory variables. The predicted forest cover in 1880 indicates an area of 10,42,008 km2, which represents 31.7% of the geographical area of India. About 40% of the forest cover in India was lost during the time interval of 1880-2013. Ownership of majority of forest lands by non-governmental agencies and large scale shifting cultivation are responsible for higher deforestation rates in the Northeastern states. The six states of the Northeast (Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Tripura) and one union territory (Andaman & Nicobar Islands) had shown an annual gross rate of deforestation of >0.3 from 2005 to 2013 and has been considered in the present study for the prediction of future forest cover in 2025. The modelling results predicted widespread deforestation in Northeast India and in Andaman & Nicobar Islands and hence is likely to affect the remaining forests significantly before 2025. The multi-layer perceptron neural network has predicted the forest cover for the period of 1880 and 2025 with a Kappa statistic of >0.70. The model predicted a further decrease of 2305 km2 of forest area in the Northeast and Andaman & Nicobar Islands by 2025. The majority of the protected areas are successful in the protection of the forest cover in the Northeast due to management practices, with the exception of Manas, Sonai-Rupai, Nameri and Marat Longri. The predicted forest cover scenario for the year 2025 would provide useful inputs for effective resource management and help in biodiversity conservation and for mitigating climate change.

Partial pressure (or fugacity) of carbon dioxide, salinity and other variables collected from Surface underway observations using Carbon dioxide (CO2) gas analyzer and other instruments from ROGER REVELLE in the Andaman Sea or Burma Sea, Bali Sea and others from 2016-02-08 to 2016-09-22 (NCEI Accession 0160548)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NCEI Accession 0160548 includes Surface underway, chemical, meteorological and physical data collected from ROGER REVELLE in the Andaman Sea or Burma Sea, Bali Sea,...

Uplift and Subsidence Associated with the Great Aceh-Andaman Earthquake of 2004

Science.gov (United States)

2006-01-01

The magnitude 9.2 Indian Ocean earthquake of December 26, 2004, produced broad regions of uplift and subsidence. In order to define the lateral extent and the downdip limit of rupture, scientists from Caltech, Pasadena, Calif.; NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.; Scripps Institution of Oceanography, La Jolla, Calif.; the U.S. Geological Survey, Pasadena, Calif.; and the Research Center for Geotechnology, Indonesian Institute of Sciences, Bandung, Indonesia; first needed to define the pivot line separating those regions. Interpretation of satellite imagery and a tidal model were one of the key tools used to do this. These pre-Sumatra earthquake (a) and post-Sumatra earthquake (b) images of North Sentinel Island in the Indian Ocean, acquired from the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) instrument on NASA's Terra spacecraft, show emergence of the coral reef surrounding the island following the earthquake. The tide was 30 plus or minus 14 centimeters lower in the pre-earthquake image (acquired November 21, 2000) than in the post-earthquake image (acquired February 20, 2005), requiring a minimum of 30 centimeters of uplift at this locality. Observations from an Indian Coast Guard helicopter on the northwest coast of the island suggest that the actual uplift is on the order of 1 to 2 meters at this site. In figures (c) and (d), pre-earthquake and post-earthquake ASTER images of a small island off the northwest coast of Rutland Island, 38 kilometers east of North Sentinel Island, show submergence of the coral reef surrounding the island. The tide was higher in the pre-earthquake image (acquired January 1, 2004) than in the post-earthquake image (acquired February 4, 2005), requiring subsidence at this locality. The pivot line must run between North Sentinel and Rutland islands. Note that the scale for the North Sentinel Island images differs from that for the Rutland Island images. The tidal model used for this study was

Sighting of Branded Yeoman Algia fasciata fasciata (Felder & Felder, 1860 (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae: Heliconiinae in Jaintia and Cachar Hills, northeastern India

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Rajkamal Goswami

2015-09-01

Full Text Available We report Branded Yeoman (Algia fasciata fasciata from the Jaintia Hills of Meghalaya and Barail Hills of Assam in India which represents a significant range extension from its known distribution across South and South East Asia including Andaman Islands. We consolidate other record of the species posted on social media website and personal communications to update the current extent and status of the species in India. 

Model simulation of storm surge potential for Andaman islands

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Kumar, V.S.; RameshBabu, V.; Babu, M.T.; Dhinakaran, G.; Rajamanickam, G.V.

Hydraulics and Oceanography, the Hydrodynamics Module Reference Manual. DHI Water and Environment, Horsholm, Denmark, 58 p. Dube, S.K., Sinha, P C , Rao, A.D., and Rao, G.S., 1985. Numerical modeling of storm surges in the Arabian Sea, Appl. Math Modelling, 9...

Environmental risks of farmed and barren alkaline coal ash landfills in Tuzla, Bosnia and Herzegovina

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dellantonio, Alex; Fitz, Walter J.; Custovic, Hamid; Repmann, Frank; Schneider, Bernd U.; Gruenewald, Holger; Gruber, Valeria; Zgorelec, Zeljka; Zerem, Nijaz; Carter, Claudia; Markovic, Mihajlo; Puschenreiter, Markus; Wenzel, Walter W.

2008-01-01

The disposal of coal combustion residues (CCR) has led to a significant consumption of land in the West Balkan region. In Tuzla (Bosnia and Herzegovina) we studied previously soil-covered (farmed) and barren CCR landfills including management practises, field ageing of CCR and the transfer of trace elements into crops, wild plants and wastewaters. Soil tillage resulted in mixing of cover soil with CCR. Medicago sativa showed very low Cu:Mo ratios (1.25) which may cause hypocuprosis in ruminants. Total loads of inorganic pollutants in the CCR transport water, but not pH (∼12), were below regulatory limits of most EU countries. Arsenic concentrations in CCR transport water were -1 whereas reductive conditions in an abandoned landfill significantly enhanced concentrations in leachates (44 μg l -1 ). The opposite pattern was found for Cr likely due to large initial leaching of CrVI. Public use of landfills, including farming, should be based on a prior risk assessment due to the heterogeneity of CCR. - Uncontrolled farming and tillage of previously soil-covered coal ash landfills resulted in exposure of ash on the surface

Methane and Root Dynamics in Arctic Soil

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

D'Imperio, Ludovica

on the global climate. We investigated two aspects of arctic ecosystem dynamics which are not well represented in climatic models: i) soil methane (CH4) oxidation in dry heath tundra and barren soils and ii) root dynamics in wetlands. Field measurements were carried out during the growing season in Disko Island...

Modelling tsunami inundation for risk analysis at the Andaman Sea Coast of Thailand

Science.gov (United States)

Kaiser, G.; Kortenhaus, A.

2009-04-01

The mega-tsunami of Dec. 26, 2004 strongly impacted the Andaman Sea coast of Thailand and devastated coastal ecosystems as well as towns, settlements and tourism resorts. In addition to the tragic loss of many lives, the destruction or damage of life-supporting infrastructure, such as buildings, roads, water & power supply etc. caused high economic losses in the region. To mitigate future tsunami impacts there is a need to assess the tsunami hazard and vulnerability in flood prone areas at the Andaman Sea coast in order to determine the spatial distribution of risk and to develop risk management strategies. In the bilateral German-Thai project TRAIT research is performed on integrated risk assessment for the Provinces Phang Nga and Phuket in southern Thailand, including a hazard analysis, i.e. modelling tsunami propagation to the coast, tsunami wave breaking and inundation characteristics, as well as vulnerability analysis of the socio-economic and the ecological system in order to determine the scenario-based, specific risk for the region. In this presentation results of the hazard analysis and the inundation simulation are presented and discussed. Numerical modelling of tsunami propagation and inundation simulation is an inevitable tool for risk analysis, risk management and evacuation planning. While numerous investigations have been made to model tsunami wave generation and propagation in the Indian Ocean, there is still a lack in determining detailed inundation patterns, i.e. water depth and flow dynamics. However, for risk management and evacuation planning this knowledge is essential. As the accuracy of the inundation simulation is strongly depending on the available bathymetric and the topographic data, a multi-scale approach is chosen in this work. The ETOPO Global Relief Model as a bathymetric basis and the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM90) have been widely applied in tsunami modelling approaches as these data are free and almost world

Heat Islands

Science.gov (United States)

EPA's Heat Island Effect Site provides information on heat islands, their impacts, mitigation strategies, related research, a directory of heat island reduction initiatives in U.S. communities, and EPA's Heat Island Reduction Program.

Island biogeography

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Whittaker, Robert James; Fernández-Palacios, José María; Matthews, Thomas J.

2017-01-01

Islands provide classic model biological systems. We review how growing appreciation of geoenvironmental dynamics of marine islands has led to advances in island biogeographic theory accommodating both evolutionary and ecological phenomena. Recognition of distinct island geodynamics permits gener...

Tenarife Island, Canary Island Archipelago, Atlantic Ocean

Science.gov (United States)

1991-01-01

Tenarife Island is one of the most volcanically active of the Canary Island archipelago, Atlantic Ocean, just off the NW coast of Africa, (28.5N, 16.5W). The old central caldera, nearly filled in by successive volcanic activity culminating in two stratocones. From those two peaks, a line of smaller cinder cones extend to the point of the island. Extensive gullies dissect the west side of the island and some forests still remain on the east side.

Environmental management and emergency preparedness plan for Tsunami disaster along Indian coast

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

P Chandramohan

2017-12-01

Full Text Available The 26 December 2004 Tsunami generated by the submarine earthquake in Andaman Sea with the magnitude of 9.2 Richter scale triggered the worst destruction, widespread inundation and extensive damage in terms of life and property along the Tamil Nadu coast and Andaman Nicobar Group of Islands. The shoreline features like dunes, vegetation and steepness of beaches played vital role in attenuating the impact of Tsunami from destruction. While the low-level Marina beach experienced minimum inundation, the coast between Adyar and Cooum was inundated heavily. As the present generation of India was not aware of Tsunami, the emergency plan and preparedness were zero and so the loss of human life was huge. In this article, the authors describe the Tsunami occurred in India on 26 December 2004 and its impacts on morphology. The appropriate Emergency Preparedness plan and the Disaster Management Plan in case of reoccurrence of such natural disaster are discussed.

Canary Islands

Science.gov (United States)

1992-01-01

This easterly looking view shows the seven major volcanic islands of the Canary Island chain (28.0N, 16.5W) and offers a unique view of the islands that have become a frequent vacation spot for Europeans. The northwest coastline of Africa, (Morocco and Western Sahara), is visible in the background. Frequently, these islands create an impact on local weather (cloud formations) and ocean currents (island wakes) as seen in this photo.

Partial pressure (or fugacity) of carbon dioxide and other variables collected from Surface underway observations using Carbon dioxide (CO2) gas analyzer, Shower head chamber equilibrator for autonomous carbon dioxide (CO2) measurement and other instruments from unknown platforms in the Andaman Sea or Burma Sea, Arabian Sea and others from 1957-10-21 to 1963-08-15 (NCEI Accession 0157734)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NCEI Accession 0157734 includes Surface underway, chemical, meteorological and physical data collected from unknown platforms in the Andaman Sea or Burma Sea,...

Partial pressure (or fugacity) of carbon dioxide, salinity and other variables collected from underway - surface observations using Carbon dioxide (CO2) gas analyzer, Shower head chamber equilibrator for autonomous carbon dioxide (CO2) measurement and other instruments from the KNORR in the Andaman Sea or Burma Sea, Arabian Sea and others from 1994-12-01 to 1996-01-21 (NODC Accession 0115589)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — NODC Accession 0115589 includes chemical, meteorological, physical and underway - surface data collected from KNORR in the Andaman Sea or Burma Sea, Arabian Sea, Bay...

Oceanographic conditions structure forage fishes into lipid-rich and lipid-poor communities in lower Cook Inlet, Alaska, USA

Science.gov (United States)

Abookire, Alisa A.; Piatt, John F.

2005-01-01

Forage fishes were sampled with a mid-water trawl in lower Cook Inlet, Alaska, USA, from late July to early August 1996 to 1999. We sampled 3 oceanographically distinct areas of lower Cook Inlet: waters adjacent to Chisik Island, in Kachemak Bay, and near the Barren Islands. In 163 tows using a mid-water trawl, 229 437 fishes with fork length lipid-poor gadids (walleye pollock and Pacific cod), and significantly increased in lipid-rich species such as Pacific sand lance, Pacific herring, and capelin. ?? Inter-Research 2005.

Multidecadal shoreline changes of atoll islands in the Marshall Islands

Science.gov (United States)

Ford, M.

2012-12-01

Atoll islands are considered highly vulnerable to the impacts of continued sea level rise. One of the most commonly predicted outcomes of continued sea level rise is widespread and chronic shoreline erosion. Despite the widespread implications of predicted erosion, the decadal scale changes of atoll island shorelines are poorly resolved. The Marshall Islands is one of only four countries where the majority of inhabited land is comprised of reef and atoll islands. Consisting of 29 atolls and 5 mid-ocean reef islands, the Marshall Islands are considered highly vulnerable to the impacts of sea level rise. A detailed analysis of shoreline change on over 300 islands on 10 atolls was undertaken using historic aerial photos (1945-1978) and modern high resolution satellite imagery (2004-2012). Results highlight the complex and dynamic nature of atoll islands, with significant shifts in shoreline position observed over the period of analysis. Results suggest shoreline accretion is the dominant mode of change on the islands studied, often associated with a net increase in vegetated island area. However, considerable inter- and intra-atoll variability exists with regards to shoreline stability. Findings are discussed with respect to island morphodynamics and potential hazard mitigation and planning responses within atoll settings.

Evaluation of antimicrobial properties from the mangrove Rhizophora apiculata and Bruguiera gymnorrhiza of Burmanallah coast, South Andaman, India

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

Rajendra Seepana; Karthick Perumal; Narayana Murthy Kada; Ramesh Chatragadda; Mohanraju Raju; VijayakumarAnnamalai

2016-01-01

Objective: To evaluate the antimicrobial potential of partially purified leaf, bark and root extracts obtained from two mangrove species Rhizophora apiculata and Bruguiera gymnorrhiza from South Andaman against clinical bacterial and fungal pathogens. Methods: Roots, bark and leaves were dried in the shade and subjected to organic solvent extraction. Antibacterial and antifungal activities were performed by agar well diffusion technique. Column purified extracts were analyzed by high performance liquid chromatography for compound identification. Results: Results of the partially purified extracts were analyzed by column chromatography. Fractions collected by high performance liquid chromatography exhibited a wide range of antimicrobial activities against several bacterial and fungal pathogens. Fungal pathogen Aspergillus niger (25 mm) was found to be more sensitive against the mangrove extracts as compared with Klebsiella pneumoniae (23 mm), Escherichia coli, Shigella flexneri, Salmonella typhi (22 mm). Active fractions were identified as tannin compounds based on the peaks obtained by high performance liquid chromatography. Conclusions: Present findings reveal that mangrove bark, roots, and leaves contain valuable metabolites, which have significant importance in the pharmacological industries. Hence, this study suggests that these two mangrove plants Rhizophora apiculata and Bruguiera gymnorrhiza are potential candidates for discovering antimicrobial compounds against clinical pathogens.

Living on the edge: demographic and phylogeographical patterns in the woodlouse-hunter spider Dysdera lancerotensis Simon, 1907 on the eastern volcanic ridge of the Canary Islands.

Science.gov (United States)

Bidegaray-Batista, Leticia; Macías-Hernández, Nuria; Oromí, Pedro; Arnedo, Miquel A

2007-08-01

The Eastern Canary Islands are the emerged tips of a continuous volcanic ridge running parallel to the northeastern African coast, originated by episodic volcanic eruptions that can be traced back to the Miocene and that, following a major period of quiescence and erosion, continued from the Pliocene to the present day. The islands have been periodically connected by eustatic sea-level changes resulting from Pleistocene glacial cycles. The ground-dwelling spider Dysdera lancerotensis Simon, 1907 occurs along the entire ridge, except on recent barren lavas and sand dunes, and is therefore an ideal model for studying the effect of episodic geological processes on terrestrial organisms. Nested clade and population genetic analyses using 39 haplotypes from 605 base pairs of mitochondrial DNA cytochrome c oxidase I sequence data, along with phylogenetic analyses including two additional mitochondrial genes, uncover complex phylogeographical and demographic patterns. Our results indicate that D. lancerotensis colonized the ridge from north to south, in contrast to what had been expected given the SSW-NNE trend of volcanism and to what had been reported for other terrestrial arthropods. The occurrence of several episodes of extinction, recolonization and expansion are hypothesized for this species, and areas that act as refugia during volcanic cycles are identified. Relaxed molecular clock methods reveal divergence times between main haplotype lineages that suggest an older origin of the northern islets than anticipated based on geological evidence. This study supports the key role of volcanism in shaping the distribution of terrestrial organisms on oceanic islands and generates phylogeographical predictions that warrant further research into other terrestrial endemisms of this fascinating region.

Effect of Climate Change on Invasion Risk of Giant African Snail (Achatina fulica Férussac, 1821: Achatinidae in India.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Roshmi Rekha Sarma

Full Text Available The Giant African Snail (Achatina fulica is considered to be one the world's 100 worst invasive alien species. The snail has an impact on native biodiversity, and on agricultural and horticultural crops. In India, it is known to feed on more than fifty species of native plants and agricultural crops and also outcompetes the native snails. It was introduced into India in 1847 and since then it has spread all across the country. In this paper, we use ecological niche modeling (ENM to assess the distribution pattern of Giant African Snail (GAS under different climate change scenarios. The niche modeling results indicate that under the current climate scenario, Eastern India, peninsular India and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands are at high risk of invasion. The three different future climate scenarios show that there is no significant change in the geographical distribution of invasion prone areas. However, certain currently invaded areas will be more prone to invasion in the future. These regions include parts of Bihar, Southern Karnataka, parts of Gujarat and Assam. The Andaman and Nicobar and Lakshadweep Islands are highly vulnerable to invasion under changed climate. The Central Indian region is at low risk due to high temperature and low rainfall. An understanding of the invasion pattern can help in better management of this invasive species and also in formulating policies for its control.

Effect of Climate Change on Invasion Risk of Giant African Snail (Achatina fulica Férussac, 1821: Achatinidae) in India.

Science.gov (United States)

Sarma, Roshmi Rekha; Munsi, Madhushree; Ananthram, Aravind Neelavara

2015-01-01

The Giant African Snail (Achatina fulica) is considered to be one the world's 100 worst invasive alien species. The snail has an impact on native biodiversity, and on agricultural and horticultural crops. In India, it is known to feed on more than fifty species of native plants and agricultural crops and also outcompetes the native snails. It was introduced into India in 1847 and since then it has spread all across the country. In this paper, we use ecological niche modeling (ENM) to assess the distribution pattern of Giant African Snail (GAS) under different climate change scenarios. The niche modeling results indicate that under the current climate scenario, Eastern India, peninsular India and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands are at high risk of invasion. The three different future climate scenarios show that there is no significant change in the geographical distribution of invasion prone areas. However, certain currently invaded areas will be more prone to invasion in the future. These regions include parts of Bihar, Southern Karnataka, parts of Gujarat and Assam. The Andaman and Nicobar and Lakshadweep Islands are highly vulnerable to invasion under changed climate. The Central Indian region is at low risk due to high temperature and low rainfall. An understanding of the invasion pattern can help in better management of this invasive species and also in formulating policies for its control.

Hibernacula and summer den sites of pine snakes (Pituophis melanoleucus) in the New Jersey pine barrens

Science.gov (United States)

Burger, J.; Zappalorti, R.T.; Gochfeld, M.; Boarman, W.I.; Caffrey, M.; Doig, V.; Garber, S.D.; Lauro, B.; Mikovsky, M.; Safina, C.; Saliva, Jorge

1988-01-01

We examined eight summer dens (used only in summer) and seven hibernacula (occupied both in winter and summer) of the snake Pituophis melanoleucus in the New Jersey Pine Barrens, comparing above ground characteristics of hibernacula and summer dens with characteristics at nearby random points. Temperatures at the soil surface and at 10 cm depth were significantly warmer, and there was less leaf cover around the random points compared to the entrances of the hibernacula and summer dens. Hibernacula had significantly more vegetation cover within 5 m, more leaf cover over the burrow entrance, and were closer to trees than were summer dens. Most hibernacula and summer dens were beside old fallen logs (73%), the entrance tunnels following decaying roots into the soil. Excavation of the hibernacula and summer dens indicated that most hibernacula appeared to be dug by the snakes and had an average of eight side chambers and 642 cm of tunnels, compared to less than one side chamber and 122 cm of tunnels for summer dens. Except for hatchlings, most snakes in hibernacula were located in individual chambers off the main tunnel; all snakes were at depths of 50-111 cm (X̄ = 79 cm). Pine snakes may select optimum hibernation sites which reduce winter mortality.

Assessment of storm surge disaster potential for the Andaman Islands

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Kumar, V.S.; RameshBabu, V.; Babu, M.T.; Dhinakaran, G.; Rajamanickam, G.V.

. Supporting volume 1: math- ematical modelling of cyclone surge and related flooding. In: Cy- clone Damage in Bangladesh. United Nations Centre for Regional Development, pp. 9–37. DHI (Danish Hydraulic Institute), 2002. MIKE 21 Coastal Hydrau- lics...

Distribution of phytoplankton and chlorophyll a around little Andaman Island

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Devassy, V.P; Bhattathiri, P

0.014 to 0.064(av.0.029). Depthwise distribution of phytoplankton chl a and phaeo-pigments showed an increasing trend up to 1% light in the 2 coral banks. Phytoplankton population ranged from 1400 to 4900 cells/litre. Dinoflagellates formed...

Diversity of Morinda citrifolia L. in Andaman and Nicobar Islands ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Morinda citrifolia L. is an important plant species for traditional medicine systems which also has immense scope in pharmaceutical industry. The aim of this study was to assess the genetic diversity of the 33 accessions using morphological traits and molecular markers. The accessions showed great variation among ...

Foundation Investigation for Ground Based Radar Project-Kwajalein Island, Marshall Islands

Science.gov (United States)

1990-04-01

iL_ COPY MISCELLANEOUS PAPER GL-90-5 i iFOUNDATION INVESTIGATION FOR GROUND BASED RADAR PROJECT--KWAJALEIN ISLAND, MARSHALL ISLANDS by Donald E...C!assification) Foundatioa Investigation for Ground Based Radar Project -- Kwajalein Island, Marshall Islands 12. PERSONAL AUTHOR(S) Yule, Donald E...investigation for the Ground Based Radar Project -- Kwajalein Island, Marshall Islands , are presented.- eophysical tests comprised of surface refrac- tion

The coastal regulation zone of Goa: Oceanographic, environmental and societal perspectives

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Mascarenhas, A.

these are documents of public interest, they were rarely available to the public. Moreover, the regional plan10 was amended several times. All these documents are now obsolete. In 1981, a letter from the Prime Minister Mrs. Indira Gandhi to the Chief Ministers... built up. CRZ IV only comprises insular stretches of Andaman, Nicobar, Lakhshadweep and small islands. Although the draft was open for public scrutiny before it was notified, pressure from various lobbies led to the formation of an apex committee...

Observed Seasonal Variations of the Upper Ocean Structure and Air-Sea Interactions in the Andaman Sea

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Yanliang; Li, Kuiping; Ning, Chunlin; Yang, Yang; Wang, Haiyuan; Liu, Jianjun; Skhokiattiwong, Somkiat; Yu, Weidong

2018-02-01

The Andaman Sea (AS) is a poorly observed basin, where even the fundamental physical characteristics have not been fully documented. Here the seasonal variations of the upper ocean structure and the air-sea interactions in the central AS were studied using a moored surface buoy. The seasonal double-peak pattern of the sea surface temperature (SST) was identified with the corresponding mixed layer variations. Compared with the buoys in the Bay of Bengal (BOB), the thermal stratification in the central AS was much stronger in the winter to spring, when a shallower isothermal layer and a thinner barrier layer were sustained. The temperature inversion was strongest from June to July because of substantial surface heat loss and subsurface prewarming. The heat budget analysis of the mixed layer showed that the net surface heat fluxes dominated the seasonal SST cycle. Vertical entrainment was significant from April to July. It had a strong cooling effect from April to May and a striking warming effect from June to July. A sensitivity experiment highlighted the importance of salinity. The AS warmer surface water in the winter was associated with weak heat loss caused by weaker longwave radiation and latent heat losses. However, the AS latent heat loss was larger than the BOB in summer due to its lower relative humidity.

Island in an island – The suggestions for transportation improvement plan for Haidian Island, Haikou, Hainan

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sia Rosalind Juo Ling

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Haidian Island, which situated at the Northern part of Haikou City of Hainan Province, is an island within a city. Haidian Island is unique in term of it's development which centered around an university, the Hainan University, besides some others important landmarks, such as Haikou city hospital, Baishamen municipal park, Golf Driving Range etc. All commercials, residential, recreational activities etc are planned to serve Hainan University in particular. The study, taking ‘Haidian Island Area Development Control Plan’ as case study, would like to look into the importance of transportation and traffic planning. The study used observation, site investigation and traffic study methods to gather data needed. Firstly the study analyzed the current state of transportation system for Haidian Island in accordance to the Island Development Control plan and Haikou master plan and identified the problems. Then, the study made some recommendations for these problems. The study highlighted the important of non-motorized, cycling and walking as the main transportation system for an education-based island and as supportive to domestic tourism activities found. The transportation planning suggested by the study took ‘green and low-carbon’ approaches considered the role of University as the core activity in the island.

Seven new species of Paleanotus (Annelida: Chrysopetalidae) described from Lizard Island, Great Barrier Reef, and coral reefs of northern Australia and the Indo-Pacific: two cryptic species pairs revealed between western Pacific Ocean and the eastern Indian Ocean.

Science.gov (United States)

Watson, Charlotte

2015-09-18

Morphological investigation into the paleate genus Paleanotus Schmarda 1861 of the family Chrysopetalidae from northern Australian coral reefs, primarily Lizard Island and outlying reefs, included a complex of very small, slender individuals (length < 5 mm). This complex resolved into 7 new species, described herein: Paleanotus inornatus n. sp., P. adornatus n. sp., P. chrysos n. sp., P. aquifolia n. sp., P. latifolia n. sp., P. silus n. sp., and P. silopsis n. sp. A key is provided to the new species and Paleanotus distinguished from Treptopale and Hyalopale, two closely related genera. Diagnostic features of the apical structure and shape of the notochaetal main paleae plus median paleae shape and raised rib pattern, differentiates each species from the other. Gametous states are described. Two cryptic species pairs (Paleanotus silopsis n. sp. and P. silus n. sp.; Paleanotus aquifolia n. sp. and P. latifolia n. sp.) were identified. In each case one species is restricted to either the NE or NW Australian coast. In each pair the most eastern point for the NW Australian species range occurs at Darwin, western Arnhemland, Northern Territory. Additional material for each species pair extends their respective ranges northwards: NW Australia to Thailand, Andaman Sea, eastern Indian Ocean or NE Australia, Great Barrier Reef to the Philippines, western Pacific Ocean. Cryptic morphology and potential genetic diversity is discussed in Paleanotus inornatus n. sp. and P. adornatus n. sp. that possess overlapping widespread distribution patterns across northern Australia and Indo-Pacific reefs. The smallest bodied taxon, Paleanotus chrysos n. sp. is the only species with a Coral Sea range encompassing Lizard Island, Heron Island and New Caledonia.

Islands and non-islands in native and heritage Korean

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Boyoung eKim

2016-02-01

Full Text Available To a large extent, island phenomena are cross-linguistically invariable, but English and Korean present some striking differences in this domain. English has wh-movement and Korean does not, and while both languages show sensitivity to wh-islands, only English has island effects for adjunct clauses. Given this complex set of differences, one might expect Korean/English bilinguals, and especially heritage Korean speakers (i.e. early bilinguals whose L2 became their dominant language during childhood to be different from native speakers, since heritage speakers have had more limited exposure to Korean, may have had incomplete acquisition and/or attrition, and may show significant transfer effects from the L2. Here we examine islands in heritage speakers of Korean in the U.S. Through a series of four formal acceptability experiments comparing these heritage speakers with native speakers residing in Korea, we show that the two groups are remarkably similar. Both show clear evidence for wh-islands and an equally clear lack of adjunct island effects. Given the very different linguistic environment that the heritage speakers have had since early childhood, this result lends support to the idea that island phenomena are largely immune to environmental influences and stem from deeper properties of the processor and/or grammar. Similarly, it casts some doubt on recent proposals that islands are learned from the input.

Class renormalization: islands around islands

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Meiss, J.D.

1986-01-01

An orbit of 'class' is one that rotates about a periodic orbit of one lower class with definite frequency. This contrasts to the 'level' of a periodic orbit which is the number of elements in its continued fraction expansion. Level renormalization is conventionally used to study the structure of quasi-periodic orbits. The scaling structure of periodic orbits encircling other periodic orbits in area preserving maps is discussed here. Fixed points corresponding to the accumulation of p/q bifurcations are found and scaling exponents determined. Fixed points for q > 2 correspond to self-similar islands around islands. Frequencies of the island boundary circles at the fixed points are obtained. Importance of this scaling for the motion of particles in stochastic regions is emphasized. (author)

Growth and abundance of Pacific Sand Lance, Ammodytes hexapterus, under differing oceanographic regimes

Science.gov (United States)

Robards, Martin D.; Gray, Floyd; Piatt, John F.

2002-01-01

Dramatic changes in seabird and marine mammal stocks in the Gulf of Alaska have been linked to shifts in abundance and composition of forage fish stocks over the past 20 years. The relative value (e.g., size and condition of individual fish, abundance) of specific forage fish stocks to predators under temporally changing oceanographic regimes is also expected to vary. We inferred potential temporal responses in abundance, growth, and age structure of a key forage fish, sand lance, by studying across spatially different oceanographic regimes. Marked meso-scale differences in abundance, growth, and mortality existed in conjunction with these differing regimes. Growth rate within stocks (between years) was positively correlated with temperature. However, this relationship did not exist among stocks (locations) and differing growth rates were better correlated to marine productivity. Sand lance were least abundant and grew slowest at the warmest site (Chisik Island), an area of limited habitat and low food abundance. Abundance and growth of juvenile sand lance was highest at the coolest site (Barren Islands), an area of highly productive upwelled waters. Sand lance at two sites located oceanographically between the Barren Islands and Chisik Island (inner- and outer-Kachemak Bay) displayed correspondingly intermediate abundance and growth. Resident predators at these sites are presented with markedly different numbers and quality of this key prey species. Our results suggest that at the decadal scale, Gulf of Alaska forage fish such as sand lance are probably more profoundly affected by changes in abundance and quality of their planktonic food, than by temperature alone.

Formation of aeolian dunes on Anholt, Denmark since AD 1560

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Clemmensen, Lars B; Bjørnsen, Mette; Murray, Andrew

2007-01-01

Sand dunes on the island of Anholt (Denmark) in the middle of Kattegat form a relatively barren, temperate climate Aeolian system, locally termed the "Desert". The dunes have developed on top of a raised beach ridge system under the influence of dominant winds from westerly directions. They are r......Sand dunes on the island of Anholt (Denmark) in the middle of Kattegat form a relatively barren, temperate climate Aeolian system, locally termed the "Desert". The dunes have developed on top of a raised beach ridge system under the influence of dominant winds from westerly directions....... They are relatively coarse-grained with an average mean grain size of 480 µm. The last phase of aeolian activity and dune formation on Anholt started after AD 1560, when the local pine forest was removed. Historical sources report intense sand mobilization in the 17th century, and new optically stimulated...... in the beginning of the 20th century probably records a temporary decrease in storminess. Ground-penetrating radar mapping of the internal structures in two dunes in the western part of the Desert (a parabolic dune and a linear dune) indicates the importance of north-westerly (storm) winds during dune formation...

Estimates of fishery potentials of the EEZ of India

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Desai, B.N.; Bhargava, R.M.S.; Sarupria, J.S.

. Introduction India has an extensive coastline of nearly 7517 km and a vast Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) ofover 2 million km', both inclusive ofAndaman and Nicobar Islands. It contrib utes about 46°° oftotal exploitable living resources ofthe Indian Ocean... Resources ofthe Oceans. London Fishing News (Books) Ltd, 255pp. Moiseev, P. A. 1971 The Living Resources of the World Ocean. Israel Program for Scientific Translation, pp. 1-334. Madhupratap, M., Achuuankuuy, C. T., Nair, S. R. S. & Nair, V. R. 1981...

Tuppiap Qeqertaa (Tobias Island): a newly discovered island off northeast Greenland

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bennike, O.; Mikkelsen, N.; Forsberg, René

2006-01-01

The small island of Tuppiap Qeqertaa, formerly known as Tobias circle divide or Tobias Island, is situated 80 km off the northeast Greenland coast. The island was discovered in 1993 and is approximately 2 km long and 1.5 km wide. Most of the island is covered by an ice cap that rises to 35 in abo...

Diomede Islands, Bering Straight

Science.gov (United States)

2008-01-01

The Diomede Islands consisting of the western island Big Diomede (also known as Imaqliq, Nunarbuk or Ratmanov Island), and the eastern island Little Diomede (also known as Krusenstern Island or Inaliq), are two rocky islands located in the middle of the Bering Strait between Russia and Alaska. The islands are separated by an international border and the International Date Line which is approximately 1.5 km from each island; you can look from Alaska into tomorrow in Russia. At the closest land approach between the United States, which controls Little Diomede, and Russia, which controls Big Diomede, they are 3 km apart. Little Diomede Island constitutes the Alaskan City of Diomede, while Big Diomede Island is Russia's easternmost point. The first European to reach the islands was the Russian explorer Semyon Dezhnev in 1648. The text of the 1867 treaty finalizing the sale of Alaska uses the islands to designate the border between the two nations. The image was acquired July 8, 2000, covers an area of 13.5 x 10.8 km, and is located at 65.8 degrees north latitude, 169 degrees west longitude. The U.S. science team is located at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. The Terra mission is part of NASA's Science Mission Directorate.

Sociodemographic Factors Influencing Island Food Consumption in the Pacific Islander Health Study

OpenAIRE

Baumhofer, Nicole Kau'i

2016-01-01

This dissertation explores the relationships between island food consumption, sociodemographic variables, and cardiovascular risk using data from the Pacific Islander Health Study (PIHS). Chapter 1 explores the associations between self-reported level of island food consumption and key covariates. Island food consumption was modeled using Poisson regression and adjusted for demographic, socioeconomic, and cultural characteristics. Increased Pacific Island cultural affinity was the strongest p...

Atmospheric processes in reaction of Northern Sumatra Earthquake sequence Dec 2004-Apr 2005

Science.gov (United States)

Ouzounov, D.; Pulinets, S.; Cervone, G.; Singh, R.; Taylor, P.

2005-05-01

This work describes our first results in analyzing data from different and independent sources ûemitted long-wavelength radiation (OLR), surface latent heat flux (SHLF) and GPS Total Electron Content (TEC) collected from ground based (GPS) and satellite TIR (thermal infra-red) data sources (NOAA/AVHRR, MODIS). We found atmosphere and ionosphere anomalies one week prior to both the Sumatra-Andaman Islands earthquake (Dec 26, 2004) and M 8.7 - Northern Sumatra, March 28, 2005. We analyzed 118 days of data from December 1, 2004 through April 1, 2005 for the area (0°-10°,north latitude and 90°-100° east longitude) which included 125 earthquakes with M>5.5. Recent analysis of the continuous OLR from the Earth surface indicates anomalous variations (on top of the atmosphere) prior to a number of medium to large earthquakes. In the case of M 9.0 - Sumatra-Andaman Islands event, compared to the reference fields for the months of December between 2001 and 2004, we found strongly OLR anomalous +80 W/m2 signals (two sigma) along the epicentral area on Dec 21, 2004 five days before the event. In the case of M8.7 March 28, 2005 anomalues signatures over the epicenter appears on March 26 is much weaker (only +20W/m2) and have a different topology. Anomalous values of SHLF associated with M9.0 - Sumatra-Andaman Islands were found on Dec 22, 2005 (SLHF +280Wm2) and less intensity on Mar 23, 2005 (SLHF +180Wm2). Ionospheric variations (GPS/TEC) associated with the Northern Sumatra events were determine by five Regional GPS network stations (COCO, BAKO, NTUS, HYDE and BAST2). For every station time series of the vertical TEC (VTEC) were computed together with correlation with the Dst index. On December 22, four days prior to the M9.0 quake GPS/TEC data reach the monthly maximum for COCO with minor DST activity. For the M 8.7-March 28 event, the increased values of GPS/TEC were observed during four days (March 22-25) in quiet geomagnetic background. Our results need additional

Paradise Islands? Island States and Environmental Performance

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sverker C. Jagers

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Island states have been shown to outperform continental states on a number of large-scale coordination-related outcomes, such as levels of democracy and institutional quality. The argument developed and tested in this article contends that the same kind of logic may apply to islands’ environmental performance, too. However, the empirical analysis shows mixed results. Among the 105 environmental outcomes that we analyzed, being an island only has a positive impact on 20 of them. For example, island states tend to outcompete continental states with respect to several indicators related to water quality but not in aspects related to biodiversity, protected areas, or environmental regulations. In addition, the causal factors previously suggested to make islands outperform continental states in terms of coordination have weak explanatory power in predicting islands’ environmental performance. We conclude the paper by discussing how these interesting findings can be further explored.

Fidelity of northern pine snakes (Pituophis m. melanoleucus) to natural and artificial hibernation sites in the New Jersey Pine Barrens.

Science.gov (United States)

Zappalorti, Robert T; Burger, Joanna; Burkett, David W; Schneider, David W; McCort, Matthew P; Golden, David M

2014-01-01

Environmental managers require information on whether human-made hibernacula are used by rare snakes before constructing large numbers of them as mitigation measures. Fidelity of northern pine snakes (Pituophis m. melanoleucus) was examined in a 6-year study in the New Jersey Pine Barrens to determine whether they used natural and artificial hibernacula equally. Pine snakes used both artificial (human-made) and natural (snake-adapted) hibernacula. Most natural hibernacula were in abandoned burrows of large mammals. Occupancy rates were similar between natural and artificial hibernacula. Only 6 of 27 radio-tracked snakes did not shift hibernacula between years, whereas 78% shifted sites at least once, and fidelity from one year to the next was 42%. For snakes that switched hibernacula (n = 21), one switched among artificial hibernacula, 14 (65%) switched among natural hibernacula, and 6 (29%) switched from artificial to natural hibernacula. Data indicate that most pine snakes switch among hibernacula, mainly selecting natural hibernacula, suggesting that artificial dens are used, but protecting natural hibernacula should be a higher conservation priority.

Mean surface fields of heat budget components over the warm pool in the Bay of Bengal during post-monsoon season

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Sadhuram, Y.; Rao, D.P.; Rao, B.P.

Andaman Islands and in the MT area there is an association between SST and Q n . But, off Sri Lanka warmer waters were noticed eventhough Q n was negative. This gives a clue that the role of advection plays a dominant role in the maintenance of SST.... Maintenance of warmwaters could be due to the transport of heat from North to South during post-monsoon season. Individual contributions from advection and air-sea fluxes towards SST would throw better light on the formation of warm pool in Bay of Bengal...

Researching Pacific island livelihoods:

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Egelund Christensen, Andreas; Mertz, Ole

2010-01-01

on contemporary theories of nissology and conceptual analytical frameworks for island research. Through a review of selected case-study-based island literature on changing livelihoods coming out of the South Pacific, we wish to illustrate and discuss advantages of finding common grounds for small island studies....... The focus is on two dimensions of island livelihood, migration and natural resource management, both of which are significant contributors in making island livelihoods and shaping Pacific seascapes. We argue that there is still a substantial lack of studies targeting small island dynamics that are empirical...

78 FR 63860 - Amendment of Class D Airspace; Kwajalein Island, Marshall Islands, RMI

Science.gov (United States)

2013-10-25

...This action amends the Kwajalein Island Class D airspace description by amending the geographic coordinates for Bucholz Army Airfield (AAF), Kwajalein Island, Marshall Islands, RMI. The Bucholz AAF geographic coordinates information was updated in the Kwajalein Island Class E airspace descriptions in 2011, but was inadvertently overlooked in the Kwajalein Island Class D airspace description. This action ensures the safety of aircraft operating in the Kwajalein Island airspace area. This is an administrative action and does not affect the operating requirements of the airspace.

Stepping-stones to the Edge: Artistic Expressions of Islandness in an Ocean of Islands

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Laurie Brinklow

2013-05-01

Full Text Available Since the earliest of times, islands have captured the artistic imagination—and, often, for the artist who finds his or her muse in being ‘islanded’, the smaller the island the better. Archipelagos offer an ideal setting for artists who take their inspiration from place: on small islands off islands they can experience an intensity of island living they might not otherwise have on a main island: boundedness and connection, isolation and community. This paper examines expressions of islandness by artists who live on islands off islands that are poles apart—‘archipelagos’ of the Canadian North Atlantic and the Great Southern Ocean. It draws upon interviews with those artists and writers to consider the nature of humans’ attachment and attraction to islands, exploring through the lens of phenomenology what Stratford et al. call the “entanglement between and among islands”.

Modeling the distribution of Norway rats (Rattus norvegicus on offshore islands in the Falkland Islands

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michael A. Tabak

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Non-native rats (Rattus spp. threaten native island species worldwide. Efforts to eradicate them from islands have increased in frequency and become more ambitious in recent years. However, the long-term success of some eradication efforts has been compromised by the ability of rats, particularly Norway rats (Rattus norvegicus which are good swimmers, to recolonize islands following eradications. In the Falkland Islands, an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean, the distance of 250 m between islands (once suggested as the minimum separation distance for an effective barrier to recolonization has shown to be insufficient. Norway rats are present on about half of the 503 islands in the Falklands. Bird diversity is lower on islands with rats and two vulnerable passerine species, Troglodytes cobbi (the only endemic Falkland Islands passerine and Cinclodes antarcticus, have greatly reduced abundances and/or are absent on islands with rats. We used logistic regression models to investigate the potential factors that may determine the presence of Norway rats on 158 islands in the Falkland Islands. Our models included island area, distance to the nearest rat-infested island, island location, and the history of island use by humans as driving variables. Models best supported by data included only distance to the nearest potential source of rats and island area, but the relative magnitude of the effect of distance and area on the presence of rats varied depending on whether islands were in the eastern or western sector of the archipelago. The human use of an island was not a significant parameter in any models. A very large fraction (72% of islands within 500 m of the nearest potential rat source had rats, but 97% of islands farther than 1,000 m away from potential rat sources were free of rats.

33 CFR 80.717 - Tybee Island, GA to St. Simons Island, GA.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... Island. (j) An east-west line from the southernmost extremity of Sea Island across Goulds Inlet to St... Tybee Island 255° true across Tybee Inlet to the shore of Little Tybee Island south of the entrance to... shoreline across Cabretta Inlet. (g) A north-south line (longitude 81°16.9′ W.) drawn from the south...

Energy Transition Initiative: Island Energy Snapshot - U.S. Virgin Islands (Fact Sheet)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

2015-03-01

This profile provides a snapshot of the energy landscape of the U.S. Virgin Islands (USVI) - St. Thomas, St. John, and St. Croix. The Virgin Islands archipelago makes up the northern portion of the Lesser Antilles and the western island group of the Leeward Islands, forming the border between the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea.

Submarine mass wasting and associated tsunami risk offshore western Thailand, Andaman Sea, Indian Ocean

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J. M. Schwab

2012-08-01

Full Text Available 2-D seismic data from the top and the western slope of Mergui Ridge in water depths between 300 and 2200 m off the Thai west coast have been investigated in order to identify mass transport deposits (MTDs and evaluate the tsunamigenic potential of submarine landslides in this outer shelf area. Based on our newly collected data, 17 mass transport deposits have been identified. Minimum volumes of individual MTDs range between 0.3 km³ and 14 km³. Landslide deposits have been identified in three different settings: (i stacked MTDs within disturbed and faulted basin sediments at the transition of the East Andaman Basin to the Mergui Ridge; (ii MTDs within a pile of drift sediments at the basin-ridge transition; and (iii MTDs near the edge of/on top of Mergui Ridge in relatively shallow water depths (< 1000 m. Our data indicate that the Mergui Ridge slope area seems to have been generally unstable with repeated occurrence of slide events. We find that the most likely causes for slope instabilities may be the presence of unstable drift sediments, excess pore pressure, and active tectonics. Most MTDs are located in large water depths (> 1000 m and/or comprise small volumes suggesting a small tsunami potential. Moreover, the recurrence rates of failure events seem to be low. Some MTDs with tsunami potential, however, have been identified on top of Mergui Ridge. Mass-wasting events that may occur in the future at similar locations may trigger tsunamis if they comprise sufficient volumes. Landslide tsunamis, emerging from slope failures in the working area and affecting western Thailand coastal areas therefore cannot be excluded, though the probability is very small compared to the probability of earthquake-triggered tsunamis, arising from the Sunda Trench.

Late Triassic granites from Bangka, Indonesia: A continuation of the Main Range granite province of the South-East Asian Tin Belt

Science.gov (United States)

Ng, Samuel Wai-Pan; Whitehouse, Martin J.; Roselee, Muhammad H.; Teschner, Claudia; Murtadha, Sayed; Oliver, Grahame J. H.; Ghani, Azman A.; Chang, Su-Chin

2017-05-01

The South-East Asian Tin Belt is one of the most tin-productive regions in the world. It comprises three north-south oriented granite provinces, of which the arc-related Eastern granite province and the collision-related Main Range granite province run across Thailand, Singapore, and Indonesia. These tin-producing granite provinces with different mineral assemblages are separated by Paleo-Tethyan sutures exposed in Thailand and Malaysia. The Eastern Province is usually characterised by granites with biotite ± hornblende. Main Range granites are sometimes characterised by the presence of biotite ± muscovite. However, the physical boundary between the two types of granite is not well-defined on the Indonesian Tin Islands, because the Paleo-Tethyan suture is not exposed on land there. Both hornblende-bearing (previously interpreted as I-type) and hornblende-barren (previously interpreted as S-type) granites are apparently randomly distributed on the Indonesian Tin Islands. Granites exposed on Bangka, the largest and southernmost Tin Island, no matter whether they are hornblende-bearing or hornblende-barren, are geochemically similar to Malaysian Main Range granites. The average ɛNd(t) value obtained from the granites from Bangka (average ɛNd(t) = -8.2) falls within the range of the Main Range Province (-9.6 to -5.4). These granites have SIMS zircon U-Pb ages of ca. 225 Ma and ca. 220 Ma, respectively that are both within the period of Main Range magmatism (∼226-201 Ma) in the Peninsular Malaysia. We suggest that the granites exposed on Bangka represent the continuation of the Main Range Province, and that the Paleo-Tethyan suture lies to the east of the island.

46 CFR 7.70 - Folly Island, SC to Hilton Head Island, SC.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... 46 Shipping 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Folly Island, SC to Hilton Head Island, SC. 7.70 Section... BOUNDARY LINES Atlantic Coast § 7.70 Folly Island, SC to Hilton Head Island, SC. (a) A line drawn from the...′ W. (Port Royal Sound Lighted Whistle Buoy “2PR”); thence to the easternmost extremity of Hilton Head...

Wave characteristics in the sea around the Andaman and Nicobar Islands

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Gouveia, A.D.; RamaRaju, D.V.; Murty, C.S.

Wave data were collected during 51 and 52 cruises (Feb. 1979) and 66 and 67 cruises (Jan. 1980) of R.V. Gaveshani using a shipborne wave recorder. Some wave records were also obtained along the 5 degrees 30'N lat. from Ceylon to the Great Nicobar...

Seismotectonics of the Nicobar Swarm and the geodynamic implications for the 2004 Great Sumatran Earthquake

Science.gov (United States)

Lister, Gordon

2017-04-01

The Great Sumatran Earthquake took place on 26th December 2004. One month into the aftershock sequence, a dense swarm of earthquakes took place beneath the Andaman Sea, northeast of the Nicobar Islands. The swarm continued for ˜11 days, rapidly decreasing in intensity towards the end of that period. Unlike most earthquake swarms, the Nicobar cluster was characterised by a large number of shocks with moment magnitude exceeding five. This meant that centroid moment tensor data could be determined, and this data in turn allows geometric analysis of inferred fault plane motions. The classification obtained using program eQuakes shows aftershocks falling into distinct spatial groups. Thrusts dominate in the south (in the Sumatran domain), and normal faults dominate in the north (in the Andaman domain). Strike-slip faults are more evenly spread. They occur on the Sumatran wrench system, for example, but also on the Indian plate itself. Orientation groups readily emerge from such an analysis. Temporal variation in behaviour is immediately evident, changing after ˜12 months. Orientation groups in the first twelve months are consistent with margin perpendicular extension beneath the Andaman Sea (i.e. mode II megathrust behaviour) whereas afterward the pattern of deformation appears to have reverted to that expected in consequence of relative plate motion. In the first twelve months, strike-slip motion appears to have taken place on faults that are sub-parallel to spreading segments in the Andaman Sea. By early 2006 however normal fault clusters formed that showed ˜N-S extension across these spreading segments had resumed, while the overall density of aftershocks in the Andaman segment had considerably diminished. Throughout this entire period the Sumatran segment exhibited aftershock sequences consistent with ongoing Mode I megathrust behaviour. The Nicobar Swarm marks the transition from one sort of slab dynamics to the other. The earthquake swarm may have been

Rhode Island unemployment

OpenAIRE

Leonard Lardaro

2010-01-01

How can a state like Rhode Island have such a high unemployment rate? This question has been asked often over the past year, especially since at one point, Rhode Island found itself with the dubious distinction of having the highest unemployment rate in the United States. Following that extreme, Rhode Island seemed to settle into a niche where its rank was third nationally.

Coastal management strategy for small island: ecotourism potency development in Karimata Island, West Kalimantan

Science.gov (United States)

Rudiastuti, A. W.; Munawaroh; Setyawan, I. E.; Pramono, G. H.

2018-04-01

Sustainable coastal management is playing an important role in coastal resources conservation, particularly on small islands. Karimata archipelago has unique characteristics and great potential to be developed as a tourism object, one of which is Karimata Island as the largest island and also reserve area. The concept of ecotourism focuses on the ecology conservation, economic benefits, and social life. Ecotourism aims to build sustainable tourism that provides economically viable and social benefits to the community. This study aims to develop coastal management strategy based on ecotourism at Karimata Island. Spatial approaching through coastal type was done. Qualitative descriptive analysis and SWOT are used to develop sustainable management strategies for the coast of Karimata Island, where the opportunities and challenges to the development of coastal ecotourism Karimata Island also included. If this potential is optimally utilized, it can be relied as an economic opportunity for local communities. Structurally shaped coast, marine depositional coast and coast build by organism are several of coastal types found at Karimata Island. Coastal ecosystems inhabited Karimata Island are mangroves, coral reefs, and macro-algae. Karimata Island have not been optimally utilized for tourist destinations. The biggest obstacle encountered is the accessibility from Kalimantan or other island at Karimata islands. Several problems related to the utilization of coastal resources were found such as mangrove and coral reef damage, also regulation that less supportive. The results of this study are expected to provide an overview of solutions for the development of coastal tourism potentials in Karimata Island.

Self-sustained magnetic islands

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chatenet, J H; Luciani, J F [Ecole Polytechnique, 91 - Palaiseau (France); Garbet, X [Association Euratom-CEA, Centre d` Etudes de Cadarache, 13 - Saint-Paul-lez-Durance (France). Dept. de Recherches sur la Fusion Controlee

1996-06-01

Numerical simulations of a single magnetic island evolution are presented in the regime where the island width is smaller than an ion Larmor radius. It is shown that the island rotation is controlled by particle diffusion due to collisions or a background of microturbulence. As expected from the theory of a stationary island, there exist cases where linearly stable magnetic perturbation are nonlinearly self-sustained. This situation corresponds to large poloidal beta and temperature gradient. The drive is due to diamagnetic frequency effects. However, this situation is not generic, and islands can also decay. It is found that a magnetic island is self-sustained for a negative off-diagonal diffusion coefficient. This case occurs in a tokamak if the inward particle pinch is due to the temperature gradient. (author). 30 refs.

Self-sustained magnetic islands

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chatenet, J.H.; Luciani, J.F.; Garbet, X.

1996-06-01

Numerical simulations of a single magnetic island evolution are presented in the regime where the island width is smaller than an ion Larmor radius. It is shown that the island rotation is controlled by particle diffusion due to collisions or a background of microturbulence. As expected from the theory of a stationary island, there exist cases where linearly stable magnetic perturbation are nonlinearly self-sustained. This situation corresponds to large poloidal beta and temperature gradient. The drive is due to diamagnetic frequency effects. However, this situation is not generic, and islands can also decay. It is found that a magnetic island is self-sustained for a negative off-diagonal diffusion coefficient. This case occurs in a tokamak if the inward particle pinch is due to the temperature gradient. (author)

Reliving Island Life: Staging Stories of the Blasket Islands

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Daithí Kearney

2017-10-01

Full Text Available The Blasket Islands are located off the south-west coast of Ireland. No longer inhabited, the Great Blasket Island and its distinctive culture have been documented by a variety of writers and are celebrated today in an interpretative centre on the mainland and in performances by Siamsa Tíre, The National Folk Theatre of Ireland. “Siamsa” developed from local initiatives in North Kerry during the early 1960s and is located today in Tralee, Co. Kerry. It aims to present Irish folklore and folk culture through the medium of theatre involving music, song, dance and mime but invariably no dialogue. In this paper, I focus on the production Oiléan, based loosely on the stories of the Blasket Islanders, which was initially devised as part of the fiftieth anniversary commemoration of the departure of the last inhabitants of the islands in 2003.

46 CFR 7.85 - St. Simons Island, GA to Little Talbot Island, FL.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... 46 Shipping 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false St. Simons Island, GA to Little Talbot Island, FL. 7.85... BOUNDARY LINES Atlantic Coast § 7.85 St. Simons Island, GA to Little Talbot Island, FL. (a) A line drawn from latitude 31°04.1′ N. longitude 81°16.7′ W. (St. Simons Lighted Whistle Buoy “ST S”) to latitude 30...

Adaptive radiation of island plants: Evidence from Aeonium (Crassulaceae) of the Canary Islands

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jorgensen, T.H.; Olesen, J.M.

2001-01-01

evidence that such traits have been acquired through convergent evolution on islands comes from molecular phylogenies; however, direct evidence of their selective value rarely is obtained. The importance of hybridization in the evolution of island plants is also considered as part of a more general......The presence of diverse and species-rich plant lineages on oceanic islands is most often associated with adaptive radiation. Here we discuss the possible adaptive significance of some of the most prominent traits in island plants, including woodiness, monocarpy and sexual dimorphisms. Indirect...... discussion of the mechanisms governing radiations on islands. Most examples are from the Hawaiian and Canarian floras, and in particular from studies on the morphological, ecological and molecular diversification of the genus Aeonium, the largest plant radiation of the Canarian Islands....

Development and characterization of 21 polymorphic microsatellite markers for the barren-ground shrew, Sorex ugyunak (Mammalia: Sorcidae), through next-generation sequencing, and cross-species amplification in the masked shrew, S. cinereus

Science.gov (United States)

Sonsthagen, Sarah A.; Sage, G. Kevin; Fowler, Megan C.; Hope, Andrew G.; Cook, J.A.; Talbot, Sandra L.

2013-01-01

We used next generation shotgun sequencing to develop 21 novel microsatellite markers for the barren-ground shrew (Sorex ugyunak), which were polymorphic among individuals from northern Alaska. The loci displayed moderate allelic diversity (averaging 6.81 alleles per locus) and heterozygosity (averaging 70 %). Two loci deviated from Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium (HWE) due to heterozygote deficiency. While the population did not deviate from HWE overall, it showed significant linkage disequilibrium suggesting this population is not in mutation-drift equilibrium. Nineteen of 21 loci were polymorphic in masked shrews (S. cinereus) from interior Alaska and exhibited linkage equilibrium and HWE overall. All loci yielded sufficient variability for use in population studies.

Heron Island, Australia

Science.gov (United States)

2002-01-01

Heron Island is located at the sourthern end of Australia's 2,050 km-long Great Barrier Reef. Surrounded by coral reef and home to over 1000 species of fish, scuba divers and scientists alike are drawn to the island's resort and research station. The true-color image above was taken by Space Imaging's Ikonos satellite with a resolution of 4 meters per pixel-high enough to see individual boats tied up at the small marina. The narrow channel leading from the marina to the ocean was blasted and dredged decades ago, before the island became a national park. Since then the Australian government has implemented conservation measures, such as limiting the number of tourists and removing or recycling, instead of incinerating, all trash. One of the applications of remote sensing data from Ikonos is environmental monitoring, including studies of coral reef health. For more information about the island, read Heron Island. Image by Robert Simmon, based on data copyright Space Imaging

Formation and adjustment of typhoon-impacted reef islands interpreted from remote imagery: Nadikdik Atoll, Marshall Islands

Science.gov (United States)

Ford, Murray R.; Kench, Paul S.

2014-06-01

In 1905, a devastating typhoon hit Nadikdik Atoll (5°54‧ N and 172°09‧ E) in the southern Marshall Islands. Evidence suggests that large sections of reef islands on Nadikdik were overwashed and destroyed. Comparison of aerial photographs taken in 1945 and modern satellite imagery provides a unique record of the geomorphic adjustment of islands after the typhoon. Between 1945 and 2010 the vegetated area of islands on Nadikdik grew from 0.74 to 0.90 km2. Observed changes to Nadikdik reef islands manifested through a range of styles and were largely accretionary. Of note, the formation of a new island was tracked from an embryonic deposit to a fully vegetated and stable island over a 61 year period. Similarly, a number of previously discrete islands have agglomerated and formed a single larger island. These changes were rapid and indicate that reef island formation can occur quickly. Evidence suggests that despite the typhoon occurring over a century ago the geomorphic adjustment of islands is still on-going.

Modeling the mitigation effect of coastal forests on tsunami

Science.gov (United States)

Kh'ng, Xin Yi; Teh, Su Yean; Koh, Hock Lye

2017-08-01

As we have learned from the 26 Dec 2004 mega Andaman tsunami that killed 250, 000 lives worldwide, tsunami is a devastating natural disaster that can cause severe impacts including immense loss of human lives and extensive destruction of properties. The wave energy can be dissipated by the presence of coastal mangrove forests, which provide some degree of protection against tsunami waves. On the other hand, costly artificial structures such as reinforced walls can substantially diminish the aesthetic value and may cause environmental problems. To quantify the effectiveness of coastal forests in mitigating tsunami waves, an in-house 2-D model TUNA-RP is developed and used to quantify the reduction in wave heights and velocities due to the presence of coastal forests. The degree of reduction varies significantly depending on forest flow-resistant properties such as vegetation characteristics, forest density and forest width. The ability of coastal forest in reducing tsunami wave heights along the west coast of Penang Island is quantified by means of model simulations. Comparison between measured tsunami wave heights for the 2004 Andaman tsunami and 2-D TUNA-RP model simulated values demonstrated good agreement.

The Role of Education on Disaster Preparedness: Case Study of 2012 Indian Ocean Earthquakes on Thailand's Andaman Coast

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Raya Muttarak

2013-12-01

Full Text Available In this paper we investigate how well residents of the Andaman coast in Phang Nga province, Thailand, are prepared for earthquakes and tsunami. It is hypothesized that formal education can promote disaster preparedness because education enhances individual cognitive and learning skills, as well as access to information. A survey was conducted of 557 households in the areas that received tsunami warnings following the Indian Ocean earthquakes on 11 April 2012. Interviews were carried out during the period of numerous aftershocks, which put residents in the region on high alert. The respondents were asked what emergency preparedness measures they had taken following the 11 April earthquakes. Using the partial proportional odds model, the paper investigates determinants of personal disaster preparedness measured as the number of preparedness actions taken. Controlling for village effects, we find that formal education, measured at the individual, household, and community levels, has a positive relationship with taking preparedness measures. For the survey group without past disaster experience, the education level of household members is positively related to disaster preparedness. The findings also show that disaster-related training is most effective for individuals with high educational attainment. Furthermore, living in a community with a higher proportion of women who have at least a secondary education increases the likelihood of disaster preparedness. In conclusion, we found that formal education can increase disaster preparedness and reduce vulnerability to natural hazards.

The Impacts of Soil Fertility and Salinity on Soil Nitrogen Dynamics Mediated by the Soil Microbial Community Beneath the Halophytic Shrub Tamarisk.

Science.gov (United States)

Iwaoka, Chikae; Imada, Shogo; Taniguchi, Takeshi; Du, Sheng; Yamanaka, Norikazu; Tateno, Ryunosuke

2018-05-01

Nitrogen (N) is one of the most common limiting nutrients for primary production in terrestrial ecosystems. Soil microbes transform organic N into inorganic N, which is available to plants, but soil microbe activity in drylands is sometimes critically suppressed by environmental factors, such as low soil substrate availability or high salinity. Tamarisk (Tamarix spp.) is a halophytic shrub species that is widely distributed in the drylands of China; it produces litter enriched in nutrients and salts that are thought to increase soil fertility and salinity under its crown. To elucidate the effects of tamarisks on the soil microbial community, and thus N dynamics, by creating "islands of fertility" and "islands of salinity," we collected soil samples from under tamarisk crowns and adjacent barren areas at three habitats in the summer and fall. We analyzed soil physicochemical properties, inorganic N dynamics, and prokaryotic community abundance and composition. In soils sampled beneath tamarisks, the N mineralization rate was significantly higher, and the prokaryotic community structure was significantly different, from soils sampled in barren areas, irrespective of site and season. Tamarisks provided suitable nutrient conditions for one of the important decomposers in the area, Verrucomicrobia, by creating "islands of fertility," but provided unsuitable salinity conditions for other important decomposers, Flavobacteria, Gammaproteobacteria, and Deltaproteobacteria, by mitigating salt accumulation. However, the quantity of these decomposers tended to be higher beneath tamarisks, because they were relatively unaffected by the small salinity gradient created by the tamarisks, which may explain the higher N mineralization rate beneath tamarisks.

论新历史主义视野下《裸地》的女性书写%Female New Historical Narrative in Barren

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

武楠

2016-01-01

Barren is Ge Shuiping's first novel with a unique female perspective to write the female individual's life experience. In the background of a family history, the tragic fate of women in social upheavals was depicted, in this novel, recording the personal life circumstance forgotten by history and showing the characteristics combined by feminism and the new historicism.%葛水平的第一部长篇小说《裸地》以独到的女性视角写出了女性个体的生命体验。在一段家族历史背景下，叙述女性于世事沧桑中的悲剧命运。以细腻的笔触记录了历史中时常被遗忘的个人生活境遇，表现出女性主义与新历史主义交融的叙事特点。

Bryophytes from Simeonof Island in the Shumagin Islands, southwestern Alaska

Science.gov (United States)

Schofield, W.B.; Talbot, S. S.; Talbot, S.L.

2004-01-01

Simeonof Island is located south of the Alaska Peninsula in the hyperoceanic sector of the middle boreal subzone. We examined the bryoflora of Simeonof Island to determine species composition in an area where no previous collections had been reported. This field study was conducted in sites selected to represent the spectrum of environmental variation within Simeonof Island. Data were analyzed using published reports to compare bryophyte distribution patterns at three levels, the Northern Hemisphere, North America, and Alaska. A total of 271 bryophytes were identified: 202 mosses and 69 liverworts. The annotated list of species for Simeonof Island expands the known range for many species and fills distribution gaps within Hulte??n's Western Pacific Coast district. Maps and notes on the distribution of 14 significant distribution records are presented. Compared with bryophyte distribution in the Northern Hemisphere, the bryoflora of Simeonof Island primarily includes taxa of boreal (55%), temperate (20%), arctic (10%), and cosmopolitan (8%) distribution; 6% of the moss flora are western North America endemics. A description of the bryophytes present in the vegetation and habitat types is provided as is a quantitative analysis of the most frequently occurring bryophytes in crowberry heath.

On the form of species–area relationships in habitat islands and true islands

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Matthews, Thomas J.; Guilhaumon, François; Triantis, Kostas A.

2016-01-01

and c vary between different island types. Location: Global. Methods: We used an information theoretic approach to compare the fit of 20 ISAR models to 207 habitat island datasets. Model performance was ranked according to pre-set criteria, including metrics of generality and efficiency. We also fitted......, and was the highest ranked model overall. In general, the more complex models performed badly. Average z-values were significantly lower for habitat island datasets than for true islands, and were higher for mountaintop and urban habitat islands than for other habitat island types. Average c-values were significantly...... multimodel comparisons demonstrated the nonlinear implementation of the power model to be the best overall model and thus to be a sensible choice for general use. As the z-value of the log–log power model varied in relation to ecological and geographical properties of the study systems, caution should...

Island formation without attractive interaction

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Jansen, A.P.J.

2008-01-01

We show that adsorbates on surfaces can form islands even if there are no attractive interactions. Instead, strong repulsion between adsorbates at short distances can lead to islands, because such islands increase the entropy of the adsorbates that are not part of the islands. We suggest that this

Tales of island tails

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Groot, de Alma V.; Oost, Albert P.; Veeneklaas, Roos M.; Lammerts, Evert Jan; Duin, van Willem E.; Wesenbeeck, van Bregje K.

2016-01-01

The Frisian islands (Southern North Sea) have extensive island tails, i.e. the entire downdrift side of an island consisting of salt marshes, dunes, beaches and beach plains, and green beaches. Currently, large parts of these tails are ageing and losing dynamics, partly due to human influence.

Energy Self-Sufficient Island

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bratic, S.; Krajacic, G.; Duic, N.; Cotar, A.; Jardas, D.

2011-01-01

In order to analyze energy self-sufficient island, example of a smaller island, connected to the power system of a bigger island with an undersea cable, was taken. Mounting substation 10/0,4 is situated on the island and for the moment it provides enough electricity using the medium voltage line. It is assumed that the island is situated on the north part of the Adriatic Sea. The most important problem that occurs on the island is the population drop that occurs for a significant number of years, therefore, life standard needs to be improved, and economic development needs to be encouraged immediately. Local authorities to stimulate sustainable development on the island through different projects, to breath in a new life to the island, open new jobs and attract new people to come live there. Because of the planned development and increase of the population, energy projects, planned as a support to sustainable development, and later achievement of the energy self-sufficiency, is described in this paper. Therefore, Rewisland methodology appliance is described taking into the account three possible scenarios of energy development. Each scenario is calculated until year 2030. Also, what is taken into the account is 100% usage of renewable sources of energy in 2030. Scenario PTV, PP, EE - This scenario includes installation of solar photovoltaic modules and solar thermal collectors on the buildings roofs, as well as well as implementation of energy efficiency on the island (replacement of the street light bulbs with LED lightning, replacement of the old windows and doors on the houses, as well as the installation of the thermal insulation). Scenario PV island - This scenario, similarly to the previous one, includes installation of solar photovoltaic modules and solar thermal collectors an the residential buildings, as well as the 2 MW photovoltaic power plant and ''Green Hotel'', a building that satisfies all of its energy needs completely from renewable energy sources

One million served: Rhode Island`s recycling facility

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Malloy, M.G.

1997-11-01

Rhode Island`s landfill and adjacent materials recovery facility (MRF) in Johnston, both owned by the quasi-public Rhode Island Resource Recovery Corp. (RIRRC, Johnston), serve the entire state. The $12-million recycling facility was built in 1989 next to the state`s sole landfill, the Central Landfill, which accepts only in-state trash. The MRF is operated for RIRRC by New England CRInc. (Hampton, N.H.), a unit of Waste Management, Inc. (WMI, Oak Brook, Ill.). It handles a wide variety of materials, from the usual newspaper, cardboard, and mixed containers to new streams such as wood waste, scrap metal, aseptic packaging (milk and juice boxes), and even textiles. State municipalities are in the process of adding many of these new recyclable streams into their curbside collection programs, all of which feed the facility.

Immigrants, islandness and perceptions of quality-of-life on Prince Edward Island, Canada

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Peter Kitchen

2014-11-01

Full Text Available This paper explores perceptions of immigrant quality-of-life (QOL and islandness in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, Canada, and compares these perceptions to those of Canadian-born residents of the same provincial capital. The study employed a mixed-methods approach, including a household telephone survey conducted in the summer of 2012 (n=302, focus group interviews with immigrants in late 2012 and observations on preliminary results by the staff of the PEI Association of Newcomers to Canada (PEIANC, the primary immigrant settlement service agency on the island. The analysis of the results suggests that immigrants have a high and undifferentiated assessment of their own QOL, sense of belonging and sense of place compared to Canadian-born islanders; immigrants are also critical of the quality of education and of the range of recreational and cultural events underway on the Island. While they express positive sentiments regarding life on the Island, immigrants still feel excluded from social and economic opportunities.

Geochemistry and geochronology of ore-bearing and barren intrusions in the Luanchuan ore fields of East Qinling metallogenic belt, China: Diverse tectonic evolution and implications for mineral exploration

Science.gov (United States)

Xue, Fei; Wang, Gongwen; Santosh, M.; Yang, Fan; Shen, Zhiwei; Kong, Liang; Guo, Nana; Zhang, Xuhuang; Jia, Wenjuan

2018-05-01

The Luanchuan ore fields form part of the East Qinling metallogenic belt in central China. In this study, we compare two ore-bearing intrusions, the Shibaogou granitic pluton (SBG) and the Zhongyuku granitic pluton (ZYK), with the ore-barren Laojunshan intrusion (LJS) from the Luanchuan ore field. Geochemically, all the three intrusions are characterized by high-Si, high-K, and alkalis, together with moderate-ASI, exhibiting I-type granite features. The rocks, especially the ore-related plutons also show enrichment in LREEs. Mineral chemistry of biotite from the intrusions exhibits similar features of high Si and Mg, and low Al and Fe. Zircon grains from the ZYK intrusion yielded a U-Pb age of 149.6 ± 2.4 Ma. The zircon grains show εHf (t) values and two stage model ages (TDM2) in the range of -16.8 to -19.7 and 1998-2156 Ma respectively. The biotite composition and Hf isotopic data indicate that the magma was derived by re-melting of deep crustal material with minor input of mantle components. We evaluate the results to understand the physico-chemical conditions, petrogenesis, and tectonic setting, and their implications for mineral exploration. The ore-bearing plutons show wide ranges of temperature and oxygen fugacity, favoring Mo-W mineralization. In addition, estimates on pressure and depth of emplacement suggest that lower solidification pressure in a decompressional setting contributed to the evolution of magmatic hydrothermal deposits. Our data suggest that the ZYK has the highest potential for Mo-W mineralization. The ore-bearing plutons of ZYK and SBG were formed in a transitional tectonic setting from compression to extension, with the large-scale metallogeny triggered by slab melts at ca. 145 Ma. However, the ore-barren LJS batholith formed in an extension-related geodynamic setting at ∼115 Ma. Our study shows that different tectonic settings and consequent physico-chemical conditions dictated the ore potential of the intrusions in the Luanchuan ore

Onilahy River, Madagascar

Science.gov (United States)

1982-01-01

Near the southern tip of Madagascar, the Onilahy River (23.5S, 44E) drains a near barren landscape, the result of rapid deforestation for quick profits from the lumber industry with no regard to the environmental impact. At the turn of the century, the island was a lush tropical paradise with about 90 percent of the surface forested. Now, at the close of the century, only about 10 percent of the forests remain in inaccessible rugged terrain.

Pathogenicity island mobility and gene content.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Williams, Kelly Porter

2013-10-01

Key goals towards national biosecurity include methods for analyzing pathogens, predicting their emergence, and developing countermeasures. These goals are served by studying bacterial genes that promote pathogenicity and the pathogenicity islands that mobilize them. Cyberinfrastructure promoting an island database advances this field and enables deeper bioinformatic analysis that may identify novel pathogenicity genes. New automated methods and rich visualizations were developed for identifying pathogenicity islands, based on the principle that islands occur sporadically among closely related strains. The chromosomally-ordered pan-genome organizes all genes from a clade of strains; gaps in this visualization indicate islands, and decorations of the gene matrix facilitate exploration of island gene functions. A %E2%80%9Clearned phyloblocks%E2%80%9D method was developed for automated island identification, that trains on the phylogenetic patterns of islands identified by other methods. Learned phyloblocks better defined termini of previously identified islands in multidrug-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae ATCC BAA-2146, and found its only antibiotic resistance island.

First record of the mycoheterotrophic orchid Gastrodia fontinalis (Orchidaceae from Takeshima Island, the Ryukyu Islands, Japan

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kenji Suetsugu

2014-12-01

Full Text Available We found Gastrodia fontinalis T. P. Lin in a bamboo forest from Takeshima Island, which is the northernmost island of the Ryukyu Islands in Japan. This species is apparently rare and was previously considered to be an endemic Taiwanese species. Because there are a few minor differences between the original description and our specimens collected in Takeshima Island, here we report Gastrodia fontinalis from Takeshima Island as the first record outside of Taiwan, with a description of the specimens from Takeshima Island.

Renewable energy islands in Europe

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Oestergaard, Iben [ed.

1998-12-31

This publication includes a compiled presentation of various aspects concerning the possible transformation of some European islands into renewable energy communities and these projects were presented by a selection of pioneer islands at the first European Seminar on Renewable Energy Islands, held on the Danish island of Samsoee, 29-30 June 1998. This issue has increased in importance with the presentation of the ambitious EU-White Paper: `Energy for the future: Renewable Sources of Energy` which was adopted in 1998. One of the key elements of the strategy for an accelerated implementation of renewable energy is to transform 100 localities within Europe into communities which are to be 100% self-sufficient with renewable energy before 2010. In line with this strategy, the Danish Government appointed the island of Samsoe towards the end of 1997 to be the first `official` Danish, renewable energy island. This is to serve as a demonstration project for other local communities, both in Denmark as well as in the rest Europe. Gothland, Madeira, Canary Islands, Cape Verde, Arki, Crete, Minorca and Orkney Islands were represented. Environmental advantages of wind, solar and wave power for distant island communities were indicated. Serious savings would be achieved by limitation of fossil fuel import and utilization of local resources. (EG)

Barrier island habitat map and vegetation survey—Dauphin Island, Alabama, 2015

Science.gov (United States)

Enwright, Nicholas M.; Borchert, Sinéad M.; Day, Richard H.; Feher, Laura C.; Osland, Michael J.; Wang, Lei; Wang, Hongqing

2017-08-04

Barrier islands are dynamic environments due to their position at the land-sea interface. Storms, waves, tides, currents, and relative sea-level rise are powerful forces that shape barrier island geomorphology and habitats (for example, beach, dune, marsh, and forest). Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and the Deep Water Horizon oil spill in 2010 are two major events that have affected habitats and natural resources on Dauphin Island, Alabama. The latter event prompted a collaborative effort between the U.S. Geological Survey, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and the State of Alabama funded by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation to investigate viable, sustainable restoration options that protect and restore the natural resources of Dauphin Island, Alabama.In order to understand the feasibility and sustainability of various restoration scenarios, it is important to understand current conditions on Dauphin Island. To further this understanding, a detailed 19-class habitat map for Dauphin Island was produced from 1-foot aerial infrared photography collected on December 4, 2015, and lidar data collected in January 2015. We also conducted a ground survey of habitat types, vegetation community structure, and elevations in November and December 2015. These products provide baseline data regarding the ecological and general geomorphological attributes of the area, which can be compared with observations from other dates for tracking changes over time.

33 CFR 80.712 - Morris Island, SC to Hilton Head Island, SC.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 33 Navigation and Navigable Waters 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Morris Island, SC to Hilton Head..., SC to Hilton Head Island, SC. (a) A line drawn from the easternmost tip of Folley Island to the... easternmost extremity of Hilton Head at latitude 32°13.0′ N. longitude 80°40.1′ W. [CGD 77-118a, 42 FR 35784...

Island dynamics and Minoan expansion in the Aegean: the Kythera Island Project

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cyprian Broodbank

1999-11-01

Full Text Available In recent years archaeologists have become increasingly interested in the investigation of island societies. At a global level, discoveries in the Pacific, Caribbean, Mediterranean and elsewhere have greatly improved our understanding of the antiquity and dynamics of island life. Now archaeologists at the Institute, together with other colleagues, have embarked on a long-term interdisciplinary study of the island of Kythera in the Aegean.

Vegetation and checklist of Inaccessible Island, central South Atlantic Ocean, with notes on Nightingale Island

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J. P. Roux

1992-10-01

Full Text Available The physiography and climate of Inaccessible and Nightingale Islands are briefly discussed. The vegetation and the major plant associations are described. Notes are given on the ecology and distribution of each taxon. Taxa newly recorded for Inaccessible Island include Agrostis goughensis, A.holgateana, A. wacei, Calamagrostis deschampsiiformis, Carex thouarsii var.  recurvata, Conyza albida, Elaphoglossum campylolepium and  Uncinia meridensis. One species, C.  albida, is alien to the Tristan group. Two native ferns Asplenium platybasis var.  subnudum and Blechnum australe were found on Nightingale Island for the first time, and the presence of introduced Malus domestica orchards was recorded. Two unidentified taxa were found that may represent new species:  Elaphoglossum sp. at Inaccessible Island and Apium sp. at both Inaccessible and Nightingale Islands. The total number of vascular plant species recorded at Inaccessible and Nightingale Islands now stands at 98 and 43, respectively, of which 26 (28% and seven (16% are introduced species. Only Airiplex plebeja and two species of Cotula occur at Nightingale Island but are absent from Inaccessible Island.

Marshall Islands

OpenAIRE

World Bank

2015-01-01

This note aims to build understanding of the existing disaster risk financing and insurance (DRFI) tools in use in The Marshall Islands and to identify gaps where potential engagement could further develop financial resilience. The likelihood that a hazardous event will have a significant impact on the Marshall Islands has risen with the increasing levels of population and assets in the urban ...

Reconstruction of paleo-inlet dynamics using sedimentologic analyses, geomorphic features, and benthic foraminiferal assemblages: former ephemeral inlets of Cedar Island, Virginia, USA

Science.gov (United States)

McBride, R.; Wood, E. T.

2017-12-01

Cedar Island, VA is a low-profile, washover-dominated barrier island that has breached at least three times in the past sixty years. Cedar Island Inlet, a former wave-dominated tidal inlet, was open for the following time periods: 1) 1956-1962, 2) 1992-1997, and 3) 1998-2007. Air photos, satellite imagery, and geomorphic features (i.e., relict flood tidal deltas, recurved-spit ridges) record the spatial and temporal extent of the three ephemeral inlets. Based on three sediment vibracores, benthic foraminiferal and sedimentologic analyses offer high resolution insights of inlet dynamics and lifecycle evolution. Four foraminiferal biofacies are completely dominated by Elphidium excavatum (54-100%) and contain unique assemblages of accessory species based on cluster analyses: tidal inlet floor (low abundance estuarine and shelf species; 23% Haynesina germanica); flood tidal delta/inlet fill (high abundance estuarine and shelf species; 2% Buccella frigida, 2% Ammonia parkinsoniana, and 2% Haynesina germanica); high-energy inlet fill (low abundance, low diversity shelf species; 9% Elphidium gunteri); and washover/beach/aeolian (low abundance, predominantly shelf species; 3% Buccella frigida and 3% Ammonia parkinsoniana). The estuarine biofacies is barren of all foraminifera. Grain size trends indicate a first order coarsening-upward succession with second order coarsening- and fining-upwards packages in inlet throat deposits, while a first order fining-upward succession is observed in flood tidal delta deposits with two second order coarsening-upward packages in the proximal flood tidal delta. Contrary to typical wave-dominated tidal inlets that open, migrate laterally in the direction of net longshore transport, and close, the 1998-2007 tidal inlet, and possibly the 1956-1962 inlet, migrated laterally and rotated, whereas the 1992-1997 inlet remained stationary and did not rotate. In the vicinity of the vibracores, preserved deposits are attributed to the 1956-1962 and

A man and his island: The island mirror in Michael Crummey’s Sweetland

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Laurie Brinklow

2016-05-01

Full Text Available Between 1946 and 1975, dozens of islands and outports in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador were abandoned as part of a government resettlement policy. Families and communities were torn apart, and a culture and way of life that revolved around the fishery changed irrevocably. The practice, which continues to this day, has been well documented, particularly by artists and writers. Michael Crummey’s 2014 novel Sweetland is a recent iteration. The relationship between humans and place is complex: on an island, with compressed space and a very real boundary that is the ocean, emotional attachments to one’s place are often heightened and distilled. What happens when a person is displaced from his or her island; when bonds of attachment are severed and one’s mirrored double is destroyed? Sweetland offers a fictional lens through which we see an example of a mirrored relationship between an island protagonist and his island setting. Exploring themes of attachment to place, and what Barry Lopez calls a “storied” or “reciprocal” relationship with the land, this paper examines what happens to a man when confronted with leaving an island he knows as deeply as his own body and soul; and how the island reacts.

Island development: Local governance under globalization

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Huei-Min Tsai

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Issues surrounding island development have generated a growing volume of research. What does it mean to develop? How can island communities maintain control over development processes to the benefit of the local economy, rather than seeing economic flows enter and exit the island with little or a primarily negative impact? And how important is local knowledge for edifying local governance and enhancing potentials for innovation in island development? Island histories have repeatedly been forwarded as exemplars and ‘lessons’ for global learning on (unsustainability. To consider these issues, we have selected a number of papers from among the presentations given at the International Geographical Union’s Commission on Islands Conference, Island Development: Local Economy, Culture, Innovation and Sustainability, which took place in the Penghu Archipelago, Taiwan, 1–5 October 2013. These papers serve as examples of how the processes of globalization have penetrated the borders and changed the political and economic structures of islands. They also explore how island-based innovations in science, technology, culture, and formal or informal governance might contribute to sustainable island development.

Energy Transition Initiative, Island Energy Snapshot - British Virgin Islands (Fact Sheet)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

2015-03-01

This profile provides a snapshot of the energy landscape of the British Virgin Islands (BVI), one of three sets of the Virgin Island territories in an archipelago making up the northern portion of the Lesser Antilles.

Demographic Ageing on Croatian Islands

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ivo Nejašmić

2013-08-01

Full Text Available This paper analyses the changes in the population structure of the Croatian islands by age, warns of the degree of ageing, provides spatial differentiation of this process and presents perspective of ageing at the level of settlement. Typing of population ageing is based on scores and has seven types. The total island population in 2011 belongs to the type 5 – very old population. Almost a half of the settlements (out of 303 have been affected by the highest levels of ageing (types 6 and 7. It was found that a quarter of island settlements will become “dead villages” in a foreseeable future; most of them are on small islands but also in the interior of larger islands. These are villages decaying in every respect, in which the way of life, as we know it, veins and goes out. The present ageing villagers are their last residents in most cases. Eve¬rything suggests that demographic recovery of the islands is not possible with the forces in situ. It is important to strike a balance between the needs and opportunities in order to successfully organize life on the islands, both small and large ones, and the fact is that there is a continuing disparity, which is especially profound in small islands. A sensitive and selective approach is needed to overcome the unfavourable demographic trends. Therefore it is necessary to respect the particularities of indi¬vidual islands and island groups in devising development strategy. Solutions to the problems must come of the local and wider community in synergy with relevant professional and scientific institutions. However, if the solutions are not found or measures do not give results, if the islands are left to desorganisation and senilisation, a part of the islands will become a wasteland. With regard to the value of this area whose wealth are people in the first place, this would be an intolerable civilization decline.

The Island Smart Energy System and Market

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ma, Zheng; Billanes, Joy Dalmacio; Jørgensen, Bo Nørregaard

2017-01-01

developing island smart energy systems with the integration of renewable energy resources can increase the energy supply and address the global island energy issues. The island smart energy system operates either in a single-island or in multi-islands. However the island characteristics and influ...

Terrestrial bird population trends on Aguiguan (Goat Island), Mariana Islands

Science.gov (United States)

Amidon, Fred; Camp, Richard J.; Marshall, Ann P.; Pratt, Thane K.; Williams, Laura; Radley, Paul; Cruz, Justine B.

2014-01-01

The island of Aguiguan is part of the Mariana archipelago and currently supports populations of four endemic species, including one endemic genus, Cleptornis. Bird population trends since 1982 were recently assessed on the neighbouring islands of Saipan, Tinian, and Rota indicating declines in some native species. Point-transect surveys were conducted in 2008 by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to assess population densities and trends on Aguiguan. Densities for six of the nine native birds—White-throated Ground-dove Gallicolumba xanthonura, Collared Kingfisher Todiramphus chloris, Rufous Fantail Rhipidura rufifrons, Golden White-eye Cleptornis marchei, Bridled White-eye Zosterops conspicillatus and Micronesian Starling Aplonis opaca—and the non-native bird—Island Collared-dove Streptopelia bitorquata—were significantly greater in 2008 than in 1982. No differences in densities were detected among the surveys for Mariana Fruit-dove Ptilinopus roseicapilla, and Micronesian MyzomelaMyzomela rubratra. Three federally and locally listed endangered birds—Nightingale Reed-warbler Acrocephalus luscinius, Mariana Swiftlet Collocalia bartschi, and Micronesian Megapode Megapodius laperous)—were either not detected during the point-transect counts, the surveys were not appropriate for the species, or the numbers of birds detected were too small to estimate densities. The factors behind the increasing trends for some species are unknown but may be related to increased forest cover on the island since 1982. With declining trends for some native species on neighbouring islands, the increasing and stable trends on Aguiguan is good news for forest bird populations in the region, as Aguiguan populations can help support conservation efforts on other islands in the archipelago.

Recovery of seabirds following the Exxon Valdez oil spill: An overview

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wiens, J.A.

1995-01-01

Following the Exxon Valdez oilspill in March 1989, over 35,000 dead birds were retrieved. Model analyses suggested that actual seabird mortality could have been in the hundreds of thousands, prompting concerns about severe and persistent impacts on populations of several species, especially murres (Uria spp.). Recovery for some populations was projected to take decades. The findings of several studies conducted following the oil spill, however, indicate that these concerns may not be justified. These studies examined colony attendance and reproduction of murres as well as habitat utilization for the prevalent species in Prince William Sound and along the Kenai Peninsula. Surveys of attendance by birds at murre breeding colonies in 1991 indicated no overall differences from prespill attendance levels when colonies were grouped by the degree of oiling in the vicinity. At a large colony in the Barren Islands, where damage was described as especially severe, counts of murres were generally similar to historical estimates made in the late 1970s. In 1990 and 1991, murres breeding at the Barren Islands colony also produced young at levels that were within the range of natural (prespill) variation for this site. Incidental observations indicated that several other species reproduced successfully in oiled areas in Prince William Sound and along the Kenai Peninsula following the spill. 161 refs., 2 figs., 2 tabs

Renewable technologies for generation systems in islands and their application to Cozumel Island, Mexico

OpenAIRE

Mendoza Vizcaino, Javier; Sumper, Andreas; Sudrià Andreu, Antoni; Ramirez, J.M.

2016-01-01

The electric generation systems on islands are based generally on fossil fuel. This fact and its supply make the electricity cost higher than in systems used in the continent. In this article, we present a review of the renewable energy generation systems on islands. To do it we analysed 77 islands from 45 different countries. This work will allow us to know how the implementation of renewable energy sources could help these islands in developing a renewable and sustainable energy sector, inc...

Some physical aspects of the surface waters around the little Andaman Island

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Murty, C.S.; Das, P.K.; Gouveia, A.D.

Along with the thermal and haline characteristics of the waters during the peak northeast monsoon period (February),observations on stratifications, inversions, mixed layers, nature and depth of thermocline, wind-induced surface drifts, zones...

CRED Gridded Bathymetry near Laysan Island (100-006), Northwestern Hawaiian Islands

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — File 100-006b is a 60-m ASCII grid of depth data collected near Laysan Island in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands as of May 2003. This grid has been produced as...

CRED Gridded Bathymetry near Lisianski Island (100-001), Northwestern Hawaiian Islands

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — File 100-001b is a 60-m ASCII grid of depth data collected near Lisianski Island in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands as of May 2003. This grid has been produced as...

75 FR 61993 - Amendment of Class E Airspace; Kwajalein Island, Marshall Islands, RMI

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-07

...This action removes the reference to the Kwajalein Tactacial Air Navigation (TACAN) System from the legal description of the Class E airspace areas for Kwajalein Island, Bucholz AAF, Marshall Islands, RMI. The U.S. Army notified the FAA that the Kwajalein TACAN was decommissioned. This action corrects the legal descriptions for the Class E airspace areas in the vicinity of the Marshall Islands.

Returning from the Horizon: Introducing Urban Island Studies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xavier Barceló Pinya

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Island studies tends to focus on peripheral, isolated, and marginal aspects of island communities, while urban studies has showed scant awareness of islandness: Although many people research cities on islands, there is little tradition of researching island cities or urban archipelagos per se. Island cities (densely populated small islands and population centres of larger islands and archipelagos nevertheless play import cultural, economic, political, and environmental roles on local, regional, and global scales. Many major cities and ports have developed on small islands, and even villages can fulfil important urban functions on lightly populated islands. Island concepts are also deployed to metaphorically describe developments in urban space. The journal Urban Island Studies explores island and urban processes around the world, taking an island approach to urban research and an urban approach to island research.

Barrier island facies models and recognition criteria

Science.gov (United States)

Mulhern, J.; Johnson, C. L.

2017-12-01

Barrier island outcrops record transgressive shoreline motion at geologic timescales, providing integral clues to understanding how coastlines respond to rising sea levels. However, barrier island deposits are difficult to recognize. While significant progress has been made in understanding the modern coastal morphodynamics, this insight is not fully leveraged in existing barrier island facies models. Excellent outcrop exposures of the paralic Upper Cretaceous Straight Cliffs Formation of southern Utah provide an opportunity to revise facies models and recognition criteria for barrier island deposits. Preserved barrier islands are composed of three main architectural elements (shorefaces, tidal inlets, and tidal channels) which occur independently or in combination to create larger-scale barrier island deposits. Barrier island shorefaces record progradation, while barrier island tidal inlets record lateral migration, and barrier island tidal channels record aggradation within the tidal inlet. Four facies associations are used to describe and characterize these barrier island architectural elements. Barrier islands occur in association with backarrier fill and internally contain lower and upper shoreface, high-energy upper shoreface, and tidal channel facies. Barrier islands bound lagoons or estuaries, and are distinguished from other shoreface deposits by their internal facies and geometry, association with backbarrier facies, and position within transgressive successions. Tidal processes, in particular tidal inlet migration and reworking of the upper shoreface, also distinguish barrier island deposits. Existing barrier island models highlight the short term heterogeneous and dynamic nature of barrier island systems, yet overlook processes tied to geologic time scales, such as multi-directional motion, erosion, and reworking, and their expressions in preserved barrier island strata. This study uses characteristic outcrop expressions of barrier island successions to

Gridded multibeam bathymetry of Howland Island, Pacific Remote Island Areas, Central Pacific

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Gridded bathymetry at 40m resolution surrounding Howland Island, within the Pacific Remote Island Areas - Central Pacific Ocean. Bottom coverage was achieved in...

Experimental Evaluation of PV Inverter Anti-Islanding with Grid Support Functions in Multi-Inverter Island Scenarios

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hoke, Anderson [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Nelson, Austin [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Miller, Brian [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Chakraborty, Sudipta [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Bell, Frances [SolarCity, San Mateo, CA (United States); McCarty, Michael [SolarCity, San Mateo, CA (United States)

2016-07-01

As PV and other DER systems are connected to the grid at increased penetration levels, island detection may become more challenging for two reasons: 1.) In islands containing many DERs, active inverter-based anti-islanding methods may have more difficulty detecting islands because each individual inverter's efforts to detect the island may be interfered with by the other inverters in the island. 2.) The increasing numbers of DERs are leading to new requirements that DERs ride through grid disturbances and even actively try to regulate grid voltage and frequency back towards nominal operating conditions. These new grid support requirements may directly or indirectly interfere with anti-islanding controls. This report describes a series of tests designed to examine the impacts of both grid support functions and multi-inverter islands on anti-islanding effectiveness. Crucially, the multi-inverter anti-islanding tests described in this report examine scenarios with multiple inverters connected to multiple different points on the grid. While this so-called 'solar subdivision' scenario has been examined to some extent through simulation, this is the first known work to test it using hardware inverters. This was accomplished through the use of power hardware-in-the-loop (PHIL) simulation, which allows the hardware inverters to be connected to a real-time transient simulation of an electric power system that can be easily reconfigured to test various distribution circuit scenarios. The anti-islanding test design was a modified version of the unintentional islanding test in IEEE Standard 1547.1, which creates a balanced, resonant island with the intent of creating a highly challenging condition for island detection. Three common, commercially available single-phase PV inverters from three different manufacturers were tested. The first part of this work examined each inverter individually using a series of pure hardware resistive-inductive-capacitive (RLC

Gridded multibeam bathymetry of Baker Island, Pacific Remote Island Areas, Central Pacific

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Gridded bathymetry at 40m resolution surrounding Baker Island, within the Pacific Remote Island Areas - Central Pacific Ocean. Bottom coverage was achieved in depths...

Vegetation assessment of forests of Pagan Island, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands

Science.gov (United States)

Pratt, Linda W.

2011-01-01

As part of the Marianas Expedition Wildlife Surveys-2010, the forest vegetation of the island of Pagan, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI), was sampled with a series of systematic plots along 13 transects established for monitoring forest bird populations. Shrubland and grassland were also sampled in the northern half of the island. Data collected were woody plant density, tree diameter at breast height, woody plant density in height classes below 2 m, and ground cover measured with the point-intercept method. Coconut forests (Cocos nucifera) were generally found to have low native tree diversity, little regeneration of trees and shrubs in the forest understory, and little live ground cover. The sole exception was a coconut-dominated forest of the northeast side of the island that exhibited high native tree diversity and a large number of young native trees in the understory. Ironwood (Casuarina equisetifolia) forests on the northern half of the island were nearly monocultures with almost no trees other than ironwood in vegetation plots, few woody plants in the understory, and low ground cover dominated by native ferns. Mixed native forests of both northern and southern sections of the island had a diversity of native tree species in both the canopy and the sparse understory. Ground cover of native forests in the north had a mix of native and alien species, but that of the southern half of the island was dominated by native ferns and woody plants.

Island biogeography of marine organisms

Science.gov (United States)

Pinheiro, Hudson T.; Bernardi, Giacomo; Simon, Thiony; Joyeux, Jean-Christophe; Macieira, Raphael M.; Gasparini, João Luiz; Rocha, Claudia; Rocha, Luiz A.

2017-09-01

Studies on the distribution and evolution of organisms on oceanic islands have advanced towards a dynamic perspective, where terrestrial endemicity results from island geographical aspects and geological history intertwined with sea-level fluctuations. Diversification on these islands may follow neutral models, decreasing over time as niches are filled, or disequilibrium states and progression rules, where richness and endemism rise with the age of the archipelago owing to the splitting of ancestral lineages (cladogenesis). However, marine organisms have received comparatively little scientific attention. Therefore, island and seamount evolutionary processes in the aquatic environment remain unclear. Here we analyse the evolutionary history of reef fishes that are endemic to a volcanic ridge of seamounts and islands to understand their relations to island evolution and sea-level fluctuations. We also test how this evolutionary history fits island biogeography theory. We found that most endemic species have evolved recently (Pleistocene epoch), during a period of recurrent sea-level changes and intermittent connectivity caused by repeated aerial exposure of seamounts, a finding that is consistent with an ephemeral ecological speciation process. Similar to findings for terrestrial biodiversity, our data suggest that the marine speciation rate on islands is negatively correlated with immigration rate. However, because marine species disperse better than terrestrial species, most niches are filled by immigration: speciation increases with the random accumulation of species with low dispersal ability, with few opportunities for in situ cladogenesis and adaptive radiation. Moreover, we confirm that sea-level fluctuations and seamount location play a critical role in marine evolution, mainly by intermittently providing stepping stones for island colonization.

The Tsunami Geology of the Bay of Bengal Shores and the Predecessors of the 2004 Indian Ocean Event

Science.gov (United States)

Rajendran, C.; Rajendran, K.; Seshachalam, S.; Andrade, V.

2010-12-01

The 2004 Aceh-Andaman earthquake exceeded the known Indian Ocean precedents by its 1,300-km long fault rupture and the height and reach of its tsunami. Literature of the ancient Chola dynasty (AD 9-11 centuries) of south India and the archeological excavations allude to a sea flood that crippled the historic port at Kaveripattinam, a trading hub for Southeast Asia. Here, we combine a variety of data from the rupture zone as well as the distant shores to build a tsunami history of the Bay of Bengal. A compelling set of geological proxies of possible tsunami inundation include boulder beds of Car Nicobar Island in the south and the East Island in the northernmost Andaman, a subsided fossil mangrove forest near Port Blair and a washover sedimentation identified in the Kaveripattinam coast of Tamil Nadu, south India. We have developed an extensive chronology for these geological proxies, and we analyze them in conjunction with the historical information culled from different sources for major sea surges along the Bay of Bengal shores. The age data and the depositional characteristics of these geological proxies suggest four major tsunamis in the last 2000 years in the Bay of Bengal, including the 1881 Car Nicobar tsunami. Among these, the evidence for the event of 800-1200 cal yr BP is fairly well represented on both sides of the Bay of Bengal shores. Thus, we surmise that the 800-1000-year old tsunami mimics the transoceanic reach of the 2004 Indian Ocean and the age constraints also agree with the sea surge during the Chola period. We also obtained clues for a possible medieval tsunami from the islands occurred probably a few hundred years after the Chola tsunami, but its size cannot constrained, nor its source. The convergence of ages and the multiplicity of sites would suggest at least one full size predecessor of the 2004 event 1000-800 years ago.

Interaction of bootstrap-current-driven magnetic islands

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hegna, C.C.; Callen, J.D.

1991-10-01

The formation and interaction of fluctuating neoclassical pressure gradient driven magnetic islands is examined. The interaction of magnetic islands produces a stochastic region around the separatrices of the islands. This interaction causes the island pressure profile to be broadened, reducing the island bootstrap current and drive for the magnetic island. A model is presented that describes the magnetic topology as a bath of interacting magnetic islands with low to medium poloidal mode number (m congruent 3-30). The islands grow by the bootstrap current effect and damp due to the flattening of the pressure profile near the island separatrix caused by the interaction of the magnetic islands. The effect of this sporadic growth and decay of the islands (''magnetic bubbling'') is not normally addressed in theories of plasma transport due to magnetic fluctuations. The nature of the transport differs from statistical approaches to magnetic turbulence since the radial step size of the plasma transport is now given by the characteristic island width. This model suggests that tokamak experiments have relatively short-lived, coherent, long wavelength magnetic oscillations present in the steep pressure-gradient regions of the plasma. 42 refs

Some data on the avifauna of the Island of Roti, Lesser Sunda Islands, Indonesia

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Verheijen, J.A.J.

1976-01-01

INTRODUCTION For several years I had been looking for an opportunity to visit the island of Roti (Rotti, Roté, Loté). Junge (1954) mentions that only once an ornithological collection was made in the island, namely by Dr. H. F. C. ten Kate, an ethnologist who visited the island in 1891. Büttikofer

Islanded operation of distribution networks

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2005-07-01

This report summarises the results of a study assessing the benefits and risks to distribution network of generator islanding and examining the technical, commercial and regulatory changes required to facilitate the operation of islanding. The background to the study is traced, and details are given of a literature review, the technical criteria for operating sections of the network in islanding mode, and the impact of islanding on trading. Case studies and a detailed implementation plan, data acquisition, and commercial incentives are discussed.

Islanded operation of distribution networks

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2005-01-01

This report summarises the results of a study assessing the benefits and risks to distribution network of generator islanding and examining the technical, commercial and regulatory changes required to facilitate the operation of islanding. The background to the study is traced, and details are given of a literature review, the technical criteria for operating sections of the network in islanding mode, and the impact of islanding on trading. Case studies and a detailed implementation plan, data acquisition, and commercial incentives are discussed

HYDROGEOLOGICAL RELATIONS ON KARSTIFIED ISLANDS - VIS ISLAND CASE STUDY

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Josip Terzić

2004-12-01

Full Text Available An approach to the hydrogeological investigations on Adriatic islands is presented on the Island of Vis case study. Infiltration, accumulation and discharge of the groundwater occur in karstified rock mass. Hydrogeological relations are mostly a consequence of the geological setting, because of the complete hydrogeologic barrier in Komiža bay, and relative barrier in the area of karst poljes. Significant research was performed in the 1999 – 2000 period aimed of better understanding of hydrogeological relations. These investigations, as well as reinterpretation of some previously known data, included structural geology, hydrogeology, hydrology and hydrochemistry. Approximate rock mass hydraulic conductivity calculation is also shown, as well as level of its usability in such terrain. Based on all these methods, it is possible to conclude that on the Island of Vis there is no saline water present underneath the entire island. There is only a saline water wedge which is formed on the top of relatively impermeable base rock, some few tens of meters under recent sea level. With such a model, and taking in account the hydrological balance, it is possible to conclude that there is possibility of higher amount of groundwater exploitation then it is today (the paper is published in Croatian.

Strategic Environmental Assessment practices in European small islands: Insights from Azores and Orkney islands

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Polido, Alexandra, E-mail: a.polido@campus.fct.unl.pt [CENSE, Center for Environmental and Sustainability Research, Departamento de Ciências e Engenharia do Ambiente, Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, Universidade NOVA de Lisboa, Campus da Caparica, 2829-516 Caparica (Portugal); João, Elsa, E-mail: elsa.joao@strath.ac.uk [Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Strathclyde, Level 5, James Weir Building, 75 Montrose Street, Glasgow G1 1XJ, Scotland (United Kingdom); Ramos, Tomás B., E-mail: tabr@fct.unl.pt [CENSE, Center for Environmental and Sustainability Research, Departamento de Ciências e Engenharia do Ambiente, Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, Universidade NOVA de Lisboa, Campus da Caparica, 2829-516 Caparica (Portugal)

2016-02-15

The literature concerning Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) often refers to the importance of context-specific approaches. However, there is a lack of systematised and consistent studies that enhance tailor-made SEA practices and procedures. Small islands are bounded units of study which may help explore SEA theory and practice in special territories. Small islands present particular features and unique values, such as, small size and population, geographic isolation, limited resources and vulnerable ecosystems. Hence, the main goal of this research was to profile SEA practices and procedures in European small islands and provide a background for future research aiming to improve context-specific SEA applications. To achieve this goal, an exploratory case study was developed using Azores (Portugal) and Orkney (Scotland) archipelagos. An analysis of the corresponding mainland was also carried out to contextualise both case studies. The data collection was achieved through a qualitative content analysis of 43 Environmental Reports. The research found that there is not an SEA context-specific approach used within these European small islands, including guidelines, assessment topics, assessment techniques, follow-up and stakeholders engagement. The debate concerning specific approaches to small islands must be re-focused on the enhancement of SEA capacity-building amongst different stakeholders (including decision-makers), on the development and implementation of collaborative approaches, and on the exchange of knowledge and experiences between small islands networks. - Highlights: • Reviewed the differences between the Portuguese and Scottish SEA system • Showed a low integration of SEA specific features in reports of European small islands • Provides background for future SEA research for small islands approaches.

Strategic Environmental Assessment practices in European small islands: Insights from Azores and Orkney islands

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Polido, Alexandra; João, Elsa; Ramos, Tomás B.

2016-01-01

The literature concerning Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) often refers to the importance of context-specific approaches. However, there is a lack of systematised and consistent studies that enhance tailor-made SEA practices and procedures. Small islands are bounded units of study which may help explore SEA theory and practice in special territories. Small islands present particular features and unique values, such as, small size and population, geographic isolation, limited resources and vulnerable ecosystems. Hence, the main goal of this research was to profile SEA practices and procedures in European small islands and provide a background for future research aiming to improve context-specific SEA applications. To achieve this goal, an exploratory case study was developed using Azores (Portugal) and Orkney (Scotland) archipelagos. An analysis of the corresponding mainland was also carried out to contextualise both case studies. The data collection was achieved through a qualitative content analysis of 43 Environmental Reports. The research found that there is not an SEA context-specific approach used within these European small islands, including guidelines, assessment topics, assessment techniques, follow-up and stakeholders engagement. The debate concerning specific approaches to small islands must be re-focused on the enhancement of SEA capacity-building amongst different stakeholders (including decision-makers), on the development and implementation of collaborative approaches, and on the exchange of knowledge and experiences between small islands networks. - Highlights: • Reviewed the differences between the Portuguese and Scottish SEA system • Showed a low integration of SEA specific features in reports of European small islands • Provides background for future SEA research for small islands approaches

Late Quaternary climate change shapes island biodiversity.

Science.gov (United States)

Weigelt, Patrick; Steinbauer, Manuel Jonas; Cabral, Juliano Sarmento; Kreft, Holger

2016-04-07

Island biogeographical models consider islands either as geologically static with biodiversity resulting from ecologically neutral immigration-extinction dynamics, or as geologically dynamic with biodiversity resulting from immigration-speciation-extinction dynamics influenced by changes in island characteristics over millions of years. Present climate and spatial arrangement of islands, however, are rather exceptional compared to most of the Late Quaternary, which is characterized by recurrent cooler and drier glacial periods. These climatic oscillations over short geological timescales strongly affected sea levels and caused massive changes in island area, isolation and connectivity, orders of magnitude faster than the geological processes of island formation, subsidence and erosion considered in island theory. Consequences of these oscillations for present biodiversity remain unassessed. Here we analyse the effects of present and Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) island area, isolation, elevation and climate on key components of angiosperm diversity on islands worldwide. We find that post-LGM changes in island characteristics, especially in area, have left a strong imprint on present diversity of endemic species. Specifically, the number and proportion of endemic species today is significantly higher on islands that were larger during the LGM. Native species richness, in turn, is mostly determined by present island characteristics. We conclude that an appreciation of Late Quaternary environmental change is essential to understand patterns of island endemism and its underlying evolutionary dynamics.

Virtually Impossible: Deleuze and Derrida on the Political Problem of Islands (and Island Studies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stewart Williams

2012-11-01

Full Text Available It is commonplace to think of an island as a discreetly bounded unit. Selected writings on islands by the poststructuralist philosophers Gilles Deleuze and Jacques Derrida reveal the island variously to be both real and imaginary, mythological and scientific, but as most problematic when constituted in political terms as an indivisible, sovereign entity. These two thinkers’ more broadly developed concepts of the virtual and the impossible, respectively, are seen to disrupt any assumptions about the fixity and closure of the island polity. Instead they emphasize its actualization through processual relations that can be difficult yet dynamic and decisive in effecting the move from being to becoming-other. As the possibilities for instituting more ethical as well as different political relations open up, the question of island studies remaining in its currently coherent, familiar form is raised for consideration.

Bamboo Diversity in Sumba Island

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

KARSONO

2005-04-01

Full Text Available Bamboo is one of the economic plant which grow widely in the villages and have been used by the local people in the villages. Indonesia has about 10% of the world bamboo, 50% among them was endemic to Indonesia. According Widjaja (2001 Lesser Sunda Island which consists of Lombok, Sumbawa, Flores, Timor, Sumba and other small island eastern of Flores has 14 bamboo species, however, the information from the Sumba Island was lacking because of lacking data from this area except one species which was proposed by S. Soenarko in 1977 where the type specimens was collected by Iboet 443 in 1925. To fullfill data from the Sumba Island, an exploration to this area has been conducted on July 2003. The observation was done in West Sumba and East Sumba District, especially in two natioal parks at both districts. According to this inventory study in the Sumba Island, there were 10 bamboo species in Sumba Island, 1 species among them (Dinochloa sp. was a new species which has not been collected before, whereas the other species (Dinochloa kostermansiana has a new addition record from this area. The bamboo species in Sumba Island were Bambusa blumeana, Bambusa vulgaris, Dendocalamus asper, Dinochloa kostermansiana, Dinochloa sp., Gigantochloa atter, Nastus reholtumianus, Phyllostachys aurea, Schisotachyum brachycladum and Schizostachyum lima. From 10 recorded species, the genera Dinochloa and Nastus grow wild in the forest, whereas another species grow widly or cultivated in the garden. Furthermore, the genus Dinochloa was the only genus grow climbing. The endemic species found in Sumba Island was Nastus reholttumianus, whereas Dinochloa kostermansiana was also found in Flores Island.

Biological invasions on oceanic islands: Implications for island ecosystems and avifauna

Science.gov (United States)

Dean E. Pearson

2009-01-01

Biological invasions present a global threat to biodiversity, but oceanic islands are the systems hardest hit by invasions. Islands are generally depauperate in species richness, trophic complexity, and functional diversity relative to comparable mainland ecosystems. This situation results in low biotic resistance to invasion and many empty niches for invaders to...

Oak restoration trials: Santa Catalina Island

Science.gov (United States)

Lisa Stratton

2002-01-01

Two restoration trials involving four oak species have been implemented as part of a larger restoration program for Catalina Island. In 1997 the Catalina Island Conservancy began an active program of restoration after 50 years of ranching and farming activities on the island. The restoration program includes removing feral goats and pigs island-wide and converting 80...

Island history affects faunal composition: the treeshrews (Mammalia: Scandentia: Tupaiidae) from the Mentawai and Batu Islands, Indonesia

Science.gov (United States)

Sargis, Eric J.; Woodman, Neal; Morningstar, Natalie C.; Reese, Aspen T.; Olson, Link E.

2014-01-01

The Mentawai and Batu Island groups off the west coast of Sumatra have a complicated geological and biogeographical history. The Batu Islands have shared a connection with the Sumatran ‘mainland’ during periods of lowered sea level, whereas the Mentawai Islands, despite being a similar distance from Sumatra, have remained isolated from Sumatra, and probably from the Batu Islands as well. These contrasting historical relationships to Sumatra have influenced the compositions of the respective mammalian faunas of these island groups. Treeshrews (Scandentia, Tupaiidae) from these islands have, at various times in their history, been recognized as geographically circumscribed populations of a broadly distributed Tupaia glis, subspecies, or distinct species. We used multivariate analyses of measurements from the skull and hands to compare the island populations from Siberut (Mentawai Islands) and Tanahbala (Batu Islands) with the geographically adjacent species from the southern Mentawai Islands (T. chrysogaster) and Sumatra (T. ferruginea). Results from both the skull and manus of the Siberut population show that it is most similar to T. chrysogaster, whereas the Tanahbala population is more similar to T. ferruginea, confirming predictions based on island history. These results are further corroborated by mammae counts. Based on these lines of evidence, we include the Siberut population in T. chrysogaster and the Tanahbala population in T. ferruginea. Our conclusions expand the known distributions of both the Mentawai and Sumatran species. The larger geographical range of the endangered T. chrysogaster has conservation implications for this Mentawai endemic, so populations and habitat should be re-evaluated on each of the islands it inhabits. However, until such a re-evaluation is conducted, we recommend that the IUCN Red List status of this species be changed from ‘Endangered’ to ‘Data Deficient’.

Sable Island: A heritage to preserve

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Villeneuve, C.

1997-09-01

Sable Island is strategically located on the edge of the teeming fisheries of the Newfoundland Grand Banks and near one of the main sea routes between North America and Europe. It has been the bane of navigators from 1583 onward, with 250 ships running aground, the latest in 1947. Marine productivity around Sable Island is very high owing to the temperature differences between the currents and the adjacent underwater topography. Dolphins and whales abound in the area known as the `Gully`, and there are no fewer than 36 fish species present in the waters surrounding the Island. Approximately 35 per cent of the Island is covered by vegetation which is limited to species adapted to sandy soil containing little organic matter and few nutrients. Some plants, such as the American beachgrass, grow in dense colonies and help to stabilize the dunes. Bird diversity is limited to species adapted to open areas, ponds and the littoral. Some 324 species have been recorded on the Island, but only 25 are known to nest there. The Island is one of world`s most important breeding sites for grey seals where they can be observed in great numbers during mating, whelping and moulting season. Among the many introduced animals only the legendary horses of Sable Island remain to this day. Despite its remoteness and isolation, the Island faces many threats, one of the most worrysome being the erosion of the eastern extremity of the Island during severe winter storms. The Island benefits from its status as a Migratory Bird Sanctuary, and is legally protected under Sable Island Regulations of the Navigation Act.

Islanded operation of distributed networks

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2005-07-01

This report summarises the findings of a study to investigate the regulatory, commercial and technical risks and benefits associated with the operation of distributed generation to power an islanded section of distributed network. A review of published literature was carried out, and UK generators were identified who could operate as part of an island network under the existing technical, regulatory, and safety framework. Agreement on case studies for consideration with distributed network operators (DNOs) is discussed as well as the quantification of the risks, benefits and costs of islanding, and the production of a case implementation plan for each case study. Technical issues associated with operating sections of network in islanded mode are described, and impacts of islanding on trading and settlement, and technical and commercial modelling are explored.

Islanded operation of distributed networks

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2005-01-01

This report summarises the findings of a study to investigate the regulatory, commercial and technical risks and benefits associated with the operation of distributed generation to power an islanded section of distributed network. A review of published literature was carried out, and UK generators were identified who could operate as part of an island network under the existing technical, regulatory, and safety framework. Agreement on case studies for consideration with distributed network operators (DNOs) is discussed as well as the quantification of the risks, benefits and costs of islanding, and the production of a case implementation plan for each case study. Technical issues associated with operating sections of network in islanded mode are described, and impacts of islanding on trading and settlement, and technical and commercial modelling are explored

Coastal groundwater exchange on a small Pacific atoll island: Roi Namur, Republic of the Marshall Islands

Science.gov (United States)

Oberle, Ferdinand K. J.; Swarzenski, Peter W.; Storlazzi, Curt

2017-04-01

Atoll islands, most of which only average 1-2 meters above today's sea level, provide a tremendous natural laboratory in which to study and better understand the intensifying impacts of high rates of sea-level rise on tropical reef-lined islands globally due to their unique geologic structure and limited water supply. Groundwater resources of atolls are typically minimal due to the low elevation and small surface area of the islands and are also subject to recurring droughts, and more frequent, storm-driven seawater overwash events. Although groundwater is the principal means of freshwater storage on atoll islands and is a major factor in determining the overall sustainability of island communities, hydrological data on how an aquifer will response to changes in sea-level rise or storm-driven overwash remain limited. We here present high-resolution time series hydrogeological and geochemical data to determine the role of the atoll's carbonate geology, land use, and atmospheric and oceanographic forcing in driving coastal groundwater exchange on the island of Roi Namur on Kwajalein Atoll in the Republic of the Marshall Islands. This information can provide new estimates on the recovery and resilience of coastal groundwater resources on such islands to expected climate change-driven perturbations.

The coastline remote sensing survey for Zhao Shu Island in Xisha Islands based on WorldView-2

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Li; Zhong, Chang; Kong, Fanping

2014-11-01

Due to diastrophism, tide action and human activities, the coastline is always in flux. There are lots of coral islands in the south sea of China. Remote sensing survey for the coastline not only can reassert the necessity and importance of coral protection, but also can provide basic data and scientific basis for island ecologic protection, reasonable utilization of land resources. The study area named Zhao Shu Island lies in Jintong Islands of Xisha. It is a coral island which has people inhabited. Using WorldView-2 satellite remote sensing images as data sources we carry out three phases of coastline investigation and monitoring. The satellite data phases are 2002, 2010 and 2013. Firstly, affirm the bands valuable for color composition on the basis of spectral and correlation analysis. Then extract the coastline by a series of image process, such as image correction, fusion, waterline extraction and coastline revision. Finally determine the coastline types and length by artificial interpretation. The results show that the island length is gradually smaller, which means the island area is reducing. The beach bedrock coast in northern island was eroded seriously especially during the period between 2010 and 2013. In addition, the shoal head shape in the western island changed a lot.

Late Quaternary climate change shapes island biodiversity

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Weigelt, Patrick; Steinbauer, Manuel; Cabral, Juliano

2016-01-01

Island biogeographical models consider islands either as geologically static with biodiversity resulting from ecologically neutral immigration–extinction dynamics1, or as geologically dynamic with biodiversity resulting from immigration–speciation–extinction dynamics influenced by changes in island...... sea levels3, 4 and caused massive changes in island area, isolation and connectivity5, orders of magnitude faster than the geological processes of island formation, subsidence and erosion considered in island theory2, 6. Consequences of these oscillations for present biodiversity remain unassessed5, 7...

Autumn monitoring of resident avifauna on Guana Island, British Virgin Islands

Science.gov (United States)

C.W. Boal; J.M. Wunderle Jr.; W.J. Arendt

2013-01-01

Although the Caribbean region is considered a biodiversity hotspot and a priority for ecological conservation efforts, little information exists on population trends of West Indian landbirds. We combined avian survey data collected from three studies spanning a 16-year period on a small island with a minimal human presence in the British Virgin Islands. Although...

The pacific island health care project.

Science.gov (United States)

Person, Donald Ames

2014-01-01

US Associated/Affiliated Pacific Islands (USAPI) include three freely associated states: Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Palau, and three Territories: American Samoa, Guam, and Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. The Pacific Island Health Care Project (PIHCP) provides humanitarian medical referral/consultation/care to >500,000 indigenous people of these remote islands. In the mid-1990s, we developed a simple store-and-forward program to link the USAPI with Tripler Army Medical Center. This application allowed image attachment to email consultations. More than 8000 Pacific Islanders have benefited from the program. Three thousand Pacific Islanders prior to telemedicine (1990-1997) and since store-and-forward telemedicine (1997-present), the PIHCP has helped an additional 5000. Records post dynamically and are stored in an archival database. The PIHCP is the longest running telemedicine program in the world delivering humanitarian medical care. It has bridged the Developing World of the remote Pacific Islands with advanced medical and surgical care available at a major US military teaching hospital. (The opinions expressed here are those of the author and not that of the Army, Department of Defense, or the US Government.).

The Pacific Island Health Care Project

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Donald Ames Person

2014-10-01

Full Text Available Introduction/BackgroundUS Associated/Affiliated Pacific Islands (USAPI include 3 Freely Associated States: Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Palau and 3 Territories: American Samoa, Guam, and Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. ObjectiveThe Pacific Island Health Care Project (PIHCP provides humanitarian medical referral/consultation/care to >500,000 indigenous people of these remote islands. Methods In the mid-1990s, we developed a simple store-and-forward program to link the USAPI with Tripler Army Medical Center (TAMC. This application allowed image attachment to email consultations. ResultsMore than 8000 Pacific Islanders have benefited from the program. 3000 Pacific Islanders prior to telemedicine (1990-1997 and since store-and-forward telemedicine (1997-present, the PIHCP has helped an additional 5000. Records post dynamically and are stored in an archival database. Conclusion The PIHCP is the longest running telemedicine program in the world delivering humanitarian medical care. It has bridged the Developing World of the remote Pacific islands with advanced medical and surgical care available at a major US military teaching hospital.(The opinions expressed here are those of the author and not that of the Army, Department of Defense, or the US Government.

Physically Based Modeling of Delta Island Consumptive Use: Fabian Tract and Staten Island, California

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Lucas J. Siegfried

2014-12-01

Full Text Available doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.15447/sfews.2014v12iss4art2Water use estimation is central to managing most water problems. To better understand water use in California’s Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta, a collaborative, integrated approach was used to predict Delta island diversion, consumption, and return of water on a more detailed temporal and spatial resolution. Fabian Tract and Staten Island were selected for this pilot study based on available data and island accessibility. Historical diversion and return location data, water rights claims, LiDAR digital elevation model data, and Google Earth were used to predict island diversion and return locations, which were tested and improved through ground-truthing. Soil and land-use characteristics as well as weather data were incorporated with the Integrated Water Flow Model Demand Calculator to estimate water use and runoff returns from input agricultural lands. For modeling, the islands were divided into grid cells forming subregions, representing fields, levees, ditches, and roads. The subregions were joined hydrographically to form diversion and return watersheds related to return and diversion locations. Diversions and returns were limited by physical capacities. Differences between initial model and measured results point to the importance of seepage into deeply subsided islands. The capabilities of the models presented far exceeded current knowledge of agricultural practices within the Delta, demonstrating the need for more data collection to enable improvements upon current Delta Island Consumptive Use estimates.

Population Size and Decadal Trends of Three Penguin Species Nesting at Signy Island, South Orkney Islands.

Science.gov (United States)

Dunn, Michael J; Jackson, Jennifer A; Adlard, Stacey; Lynnes, Amanda S; Briggs, Dirk R; Fox, Derren; Waluda, Claire M

2016-01-01

We report long-term changes in population size of three species of sympatrically breeding pygoscelid penguins: Adélie (Pygoscelis adeliae), chinstrap (Pygoscelis antarctica) and gentoo (Pygoscelis papua ellsworthii) over a 38 year period at Signy Island, South Orkney Islands, based on annual counts from selected colonies and decadal all-island systematic counts of occupied nests. Comparing total numbers of breeding pairs over the whole island from 1978/79 to 2015/16 revealed varying fortunes: gentoo penguin pairs increased by 255%, (3.5% per annum), chinstrap penguins declined by 68% (-3.6% per annum) and Adélie penguins declined by 42% (-1.5% per annum). The chinstrap population has declined steadily over the last four decades. In contrast, Adélie and gentoo penguins have experienced phases of population increase and decline. Annual surveys of selected chinstrap and Adélie colonies produced similar trends from those revealed by island-wide surveys, allowing total island population trends to be inferred relatively well. However, while the annual colony counts of chinstrap and Adélie penguins showed a trend consistent in direction with the results from all-island surveys, the magnitude of estimated population change was markedly different between colony wide and all island counts. Annual population patterns suggest that pair numbers in the study areas partly reflect immigration and emigration of nesting birds between different parts of the island. Breeding success for all three species remained broadly stable over time in the annually monitored colonies. Breeding success rates in gentoo and chinstrap penguins were strongly correlated, despite the differing trends in population size. This study shows the importance of effective, standardised monitoring to accurately determine long-term population trajectories. Our results indicate significant declines in the Adélie and chinstrap penguin populations at Signy Island over the last five decades, and a gradual

A roadmap for island biology

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Patino, Jairo; Whittaker, Robert J.; Borges, Paulo A.V.

2017-01-01

Aims: The 50th anniversary of the publication of the seminal book, The Theory of Island Biogeography, by Robert H. MacArthur and Edward O. Wilson, is a timely moment to review and identify key research foci that could advance island biology. Here, we take a collaborative horizon-scanning approach...... to identify 50 fundamental questions for the continued development of the field. Location: Worldwide. Methods: We adapted a well-established methodology of horizon scanning to identify priority research questions in island biology, and initiated it during the Island Biology 2016 conference held in the Azores......); global change (5); conservation and management policies (5); and invasive alien species (4). Main conclusions: Collectively, this cross-disciplinary set of topics covering the 50 fundamental questions has the potential to stimulate and guide future research in island biology. By covering fields ranging...

Pediatrics in the Marshall Islands

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dungy, C.I.; Morgan, B.C.; Adams, W.H.

1984-01-01

The delivery of health care to children living on isolated island communities presents unique challenges to health professionals. An evolved method of providing longitudinal services to infants and children residing on islands of the Marshall Island chain - a central Pacific portion of the Micronesian archipelago - is presented. The difficulties associated with provision of comprehensive health care in a vast ocean area are discussed

Genetically depauperate in the continent but rich in oceanic islands: Cistus monspeliensis (Cistaceae in the Canary Islands.

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Mario Fernández-Mazuecos

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Population genetic theory holds that oceanic island populations are expected to have lower levels of genetic variation than their mainland counterparts, due to founder effect after island colonization from the continent. Cistus monspeliensis (Cistaceae is distributed in both the Canary Islands and the Mediterranean region. Numerous phylogenetic results obtained in the last years allow performing further phylogeographic analyses in Cistus. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We analyzed sequences from multiple plastid DNA regions in 47 populations of Cistus monspeliensis from the Canary Islands (21 populations and the Mediterranean basin (26 populations. The time-calibrated phylogeny and phylogeographic analyses yielded the following results: (1 a single, ancestral haplotype is distributed across the Mediterranean, whereas 10 haplotypes in the Canary Islands; (2 four haplotype lineages are present in the Canarian Islands; (3 multiple colonization events across the archipelago are inferred; (4 the earliest split of intraspecific lineages occurred in the Early to Middle Pleistocene (<930,000 years BP. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: The contrasting pattern of cpDNA variation is best explained by genetic bottlenecks in the Mediterranean during Quaternary glaciations, while the Canarian archipelago acted as a refugium of high levels of genetic diversity. Active colonization across the Canarian islands is supported not only by the distribution of C. monspeliensis in five of the seven islands, but also by our phylogeographic reconstruction in which unrelated haplotypes are present on the same island. Widespread distribution of thermophilous habitats on every island, as those found throughout the Mediterranean, has likely been responsible for the successful colonization of C. monspeliensis, despite the absence of a long-distance dispersal mechanism. This is the first example of a plant species with higher genetic variation among oceanic island

Issues and Tensions in Island Heritage Management: A Case Study of Motuihe Island, New Zealand

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David Bade

2010-05-01

Full Text Available This paper draws on a New Zealand case study, Motuihe Island, to examine the challenges of conserving cultural heritage in places renowned for natural heritage values. In keeping with the broader trend toward the ecological restoration of islands close to Auckland, Motuihe Island is undergoing conversion into an ecosystem of native flora and fauna. Issues and tensions relating to the management of natural and cultural heritage will be discussed and influencing aspects investigated: the nature/culture dualism, the effect of New Zealand’s history and identity, and the influence of islandness on heritage management.

Status of the Island Night Lizard and Two Non-Native Lizards on Outlying Landing Field San Nicolas Island, California

Science.gov (United States)

Fellers, Gary M.; Drost, Charles A.; Murphey, Thomas G.

2008-01-01

More than 900 individually marked island night lizards (Xantusia riversiana) were captured on San Nicolas Island, California, between 1984 and 2007 as part of an ongoing study to monitor the status of this threatened species. Our data suggest that at least a few lizards are probably more than 20 years old, and one lizard would be 31.5 years old if it grew at an average rate for the population. Ages of 20 and 30 years seem reasonable given the remarkably slow growth during capture intervals of more than a decade for five of the lizards which we estimated to be 20 or more years old. Like other lizards, island night lizard growth rates vary by size, with larger lizards growing more slowly. In general, growth rates were somewhat greater on San Nicolas Island (compared with Santa Barbara Island), and this increase was sustained through all of the intermediate size classes. The higher growth rate may account for the somewhat larger lizards present on San Nicolas Island, although we cannot discount the possibility that night lizards on San Nicolas are merely living longer. The high percentage of small lizards in the Eucalyptus habitat might seem to reflect a healthy population in that habitat, but the high proportion of small lizards appears to be caused by good reproduction in the 1900s and substantially poorer reproduction in subsequent years. The Eucalyptus habitat has dried quite a bit in recent years. Night lizards in the Haplopappus/Grassland habitat have shown an increase in the proportion of larger lizards since 2000. There has also been an increase in the proportion of large lizards in the Rock Cobble habitat at Redeye Beach. However, there are has been some change in habitat with more elephant seals occupying the same area just above the high tide as do the night lizards. Southern alligator lizards and side-blotched lizards are both non-native on San Nicolas Island. Neither lizard causes obvious harm to island night lizards, and management time and effort should

Vulnerability assessment of small islands to tourism: The case of the Marine Tourism Park of the Gili Matra Islands, Indonesia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fery Kurniawan

2016-04-01

Full Text Available The Indonesian government is currently directing its focus of development on the optimum uses of marine and coastal ecosystem services including the marine and coastal tourism. One of the main locus of coastal and marine tourism is the small islands tourism such as Gili Matra Islands among others. Small islands tourism is one of the favourite touristic activities because the destination provides beauty, exotism, aesthetic and a diversity of natural habitats including the warm, clear and attractive water. Tourism is being considered as a development instrument in order to boost a country’s economy and has become part of the global industry. However, tourism is also one of the actors that is responsible for environmental depletion, due to the constructions of buildings and tourism activities. This paper aims to study the level of vulnerability in small islands to tourism as a basis of integrated small islands management in Indonesian conservation area. The group of islands in this study consists of three islands namely Gili Ayer Island, Gili Meno Island and Gili Trawangan Island (known as Gili Matra Islands that were observed using Small Islands Vulnerability Index (SIVI. The results indicate that Gili Matra Islands have a vulnerability status from low into moderate, ranging from 2.25 to 2.75. Gili Ayer Island has the highest vulnerability with SIVI of 2.75 (Moderate, followed by Gili Meno Island with SIVI of 2.50 (Low and Gili Trawangan Island with SIVI of 2.25 (Low. The driving factor of vulnerability is the intensive utilization of marine tourism activities. Tourism is the sole stress to Gili Matra Island’s ecosystem due to its direct damaging impact and reducing its environmental quality. The vulnerability index which was built from the coastline, coral reef, live coral reef, and development area was applicable to assess the small island’s vulnerability in Indonesia, especially for coral island.

Dendrochronology of Strain-Relaxed Islands

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Merdzhanova, T.; Kiravittaya, S.; Rastelli, A.; Stoffel, M.; Denker, U.; Schmidt, O.G.

2006-01-01

We report on the observation and study of tree-ring structures below dislocated SiGe islands (superdomes) grown on Si(001) substrates. Analogous to the study of tree rings (dendrochronology), these footprints enable us to gain unambiguous information on the growth and evolution of superdomes and their neighboring islands. The temperature dependence of the critical volume for dislocation introduction is measured and related to the composition of the islands. We show clearly that island coalescence is the dominant pathway towards dislocation nucleation at low temperatures, while at higher temperatures anomalous coarsening is effective and leads to the formation of a depletion region around superdomes

Dendrochronology of strain-relaxed islands.

Science.gov (United States)

Merdzhanova, T; Kiravittaya, S; Rastelli, A; Stoffel, M; Denker, U; Schmidt, O G

2006-06-09

We report on the observation and study of tree-ring structures below dislocated SiGe islands (superdomes) grown on Si(001) substrates. Analogous to the study of tree rings (dendrochronology), these footprints enable us to gain unambiguous information on the growth and evolution of superdomes and their neighboring islands. The temperature dependence of the critical volume for dislocation introduction is measured and related to the composition of the islands. We show clearly that island coalescence is the dominant pathway towards dislocation nucleation at low temperatures, while at higher temperatures anomalous coarsening is effective and leads to the formation of a depletion region around superdomes.

Aerial survey of barren-ground caribou at Adak and Kagalaska Islands, Alaska in 2012

Data.gov (United States)

Department of the Interior — Uncertainty surrounded the caribou population trend since the 2005 survey for several reasons. First, reported hunter harvest rates returned to or exceeded pre‐naval...

An oasis of fertility on a barren island: earthworms at Papadil, Isle of Rum

Science.gov (United States)

K.R. Butt; C.N.  Lowe; Mac Callaham; V.  Nuutinen

2016-01-01

The Isle of Rum, Inner Hebrides, has an impoverished earthworm fauna as the soils are generally acidic and nutrient-poor. Species associated with human habitation are found around deserted crofting settlements subjected to

The Limacidae of the Canary Islands

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Regteren Altena, van C.O.

1950-01-01

CONTENTS Introduction............... 3 Systematic survey of the Limacidae of the central and western Canary Islands 5 Biogeographical notes on the Limacidae of the Canary Islands . . . . 21 Alphabetical list of the persons who collected or observed Limacidae in the Canary Islands.............. 31

Genomic island excisions in Bordetella petrii

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Levillain Erwan

2009-07-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Among the members of the genus Bordetella B. petrii is unique, since it is the only species isolated from the environment, while the pathogenic Bordetellae are obligately associated with host organisms. Another feature distinguishing B. petrii from the other sequenced Bordetellae is the presence of a large number of mobile genetic elements including several large genomic regions with typical characteristics of genomic islands collectively known as integrative and conjugative elements (ICEs. These elements mainly encode accessory metabolic factors enabling this bacterium to grow on a large repertoire of aromatic compounds. Results During in vitro culture of Bordetella petrii colony variants appear frequently. We show that this variability can be attributed to the presence of a large number of metastable mobile genetic elements on its chromosome. In fact, the genome sequence of B. petrii revealed the presence of at least seven large genomic islands mostly encoding accessory metabolic functions involved in the degradation of aromatic compounds and detoxification of heavy metals. Four of these islands (termed GI1 to GI3 and GI6 are highly related to ICEclc of Pseudomonas knackmussii sp. strain B13. Here we present first data about the molecular characterization of these islands. We defined the exact borders of each island and we show that during standard culture of the bacteria these islands get excised from the chromosome. For all but one of these islands (GI5 we could detect circular intermediates. For the clc-like elements GI1 to GI3 of B. petrii we provide evidence that tandem insertion of these islands which all encode highly related integrases and attachment sites may also lead to incorporation of genomic DNA which originally was not part of the island and to the formation of huge composite islands. By integration of a tetracycline resistance cassette into GI3 we found this island to be rather unstable and to be lost from

CRED Gridded Bathymetry of Necker Island (100-021) in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — File 100-021b is a 60-m ASCII grid of depth data collected near Necker Island in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands as of May 2003. This grid has been produced as...

Tsunami Hazard Assessment of Coastal South Africa Based on Mega-Earthquakes of Remote Subduction Zones

Science.gov (United States)

Kijko, Andrzej; Smit, Ansie; Papadopoulos, Gerassimos A.; Novikova, Tatyana

2017-11-01

After the mega-earthquakes and concomitant devastating tsunamis in Sumatra (2004) and Japan (2011), we launched an investigation into the potential risk of tsunami hazard to the coastal cities of South Africa. This paper presents the analysis of the seismic hazard of seismogenic sources that could potentially generate tsunamis, as well as the analysis of the tsunami hazard to coastal areas of South Africa. The subduction zones of Makran, South Sandwich Island, Sumatra, and the Andaman Islands were identified as possible sources of mega-earthquakes and tsunamis that could affect the African coast. Numerical tsunami simulations were used to investigate the realistic and worst-case scenarios that could be generated by these subduction zones. The simulated tsunami amplitudes and run-up heights calculated for the coastal cities of Cape Town, Durban, and Port Elizabeth are relatively small and therefore pose no real risk to the South African coast. However, only distant tsunamigenic sources were considered and the results should therefore be viewed as preliminary.

Tsunami Hazard Assessment of Coastal South Africa Based on Mega-Earthquakes of Remote Subduction Zones

Science.gov (United States)

Kijko, Andrzej; Smit, Ansie; Papadopoulos, Gerassimos A.; Novikova, Tatyana

2018-04-01

After the mega-earthquakes and concomitant devastating tsunamis in Sumatra (2004) and Japan (2011), we launched an investigation into the potential risk of tsunami hazard to the coastal cities of South Africa. This paper presents the analysis of the seismic hazard of seismogenic sources that could potentially generate tsunamis, as well as the analysis of the tsunami hazard to coastal areas of South Africa. The subduction zones of Makran, South Sandwich Island, Sumatra, and the Andaman Islands were identified as possible sources of mega-earthquakes and tsunamis that could affect the African coast. Numerical tsunami simulations were used to investigate the realistic and worst-case scenarios that could be generated by these subduction zones. The simulated tsunami amplitudes and run-up heights calculated for the coastal cities of Cape Town, Durban, and Port Elizabeth are relatively small and therefore pose no real risk to the South African coast. However, only distant tsunamigenic sources were considered and the results should therefore be viewed as preliminary.

The geology of the Falkland Islands

OpenAIRE

Aldiss, D.T.; Edwards, E.J.

1999-01-01

This report is complementary to the 1:250 000 scale geological map of the Falkland Islands compiled in 1998. The report and map are products of the Falkland Islands Geological Mapping Project (1996-1998). Geological observation and research in the Islands date from 1764. The Islands were visited during two pioneering scientific cruises in the 19th century. Subsequently, many scientists visited en route to the Antarctic or Patagonia. Geological affinities to other parts of the sout...

The Solomon Islands tsunami of 6 February 2013 field survey in the Santa Cruz Islands

Science.gov (United States)

Fritz, H. M.; Papantoniou, A.; Biukoto, L.; Albert, G.

2013-12-01

On February 6, 2013 at 01:12:27 UTC (local time: UTC+11), a magnitude Mw 8.0 earthquake occurred 70 km to the west of Ndendo Island (Santa Cruz Island) in the Solomon Islands. The under-thrusting earthquake near a 90° bend, where the Australian plate subducts beneath the Pacific plate generated a locally focused tsunami in the Coral Sea and the South Pacific Ocean. The tsunami claimed the lives of 10 people and injured 15, destroyed 588 houses and partially damaged 478 houses, affecting 4,509 people in 1,066 households corresponding to an estimated 37% of the population of Santa Cruz Island. A multi-disciplinary international tsunami survey team (ITST) was deployed within days of the event to document flow depths, runup heights, inundation distances, sediment and coral boulder depositions, land level changes, damage patterns at various scales, performance of the man-made infrastructure and impact on the natural environment. The 19 to 23 February 2013 ITST covered 30 locations on 4 Islands: Ndendo (Santa Cruz), Tomotu Noi (Lord Howe), Nea Tomotu (Trevanion, Malo) and Tinakula. The reconnaissance completely circling Ndendo and Tinakula logged 240 km by small boat and additionally covered 20 km of Ndendo's hard hit western coastline by vehicle. The collected survey data includes more than 80 tsunami runup and flow depth measurements. The tsunami impact peaked at Manoputi on Ndendo's densely populated west coast with maximum tsunami height exceeding 11 m and local flow depths above ground exceeding 7 m. A fast tide-like positive amplitude of 1 m was recorded at Lata wharf inside Graciosa Bay on Ndendo Island and misleadingly reported in the media as representative tsunami height. The stark contrast between the field observations on exposed coastlines and the Lata tide gauge recording highlights the importance of rapid tsunami reconnaissance surveys. Inundation distance and damage more than 500 m inland were recorded at Lata airport on Ndendo Island. Landslides were

Forces in the development of remote islands in Japan : A case study of local energy enterprises in Tsushima Island

OpenAIRE

Matsumura, Yuko; Miyoshi, Emako

2018-01-01

Japan, one of the most famous islander nations in the world, has promoted the development of its remote islands for over 60 years after the Second World War. The target islands and projects for fostering development have been steadily expanded. However, the country is facing serious socio-economic challenges such as aging and recession, resulting in less available funding for preferential treatment to remote islands. Thus, the framework for boosting island development should be reconsidered, ...

Population Size and Decadal Trends of Three Penguin Species Nesting at Signy Island, South Orkney Islands.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michael J Dunn

Full Text Available We report long-term changes in population size of three species of sympatrically breeding pygoscelid penguins: Adélie (Pygoscelis adeliae, chinstrap (Pygoscelis antarctica and gentoo (Pygoscelis papua ellsworthii over a 38 year period at Signy Island, South Orkney Islands, based on annual counts from selected colonies and decadal all-island systematic counts of occupied nests. Comparing total numbers of breeding pairs over the whole island from 1978/79 to 2015/16 revealed varying fortunes: gentoo penguin pairs increased by 255%, (3.5% per annum, chinstrap penguins declined by 68% (-3.6% per annum and Adélie penguins declined by 42% (-1.5% per annum. The chinstrap population has declined steadily over the last four decades. In contrast, Adélie and gentoo penguins have experienced phases of population increase and decline. Annual surveys of selected chinstrap and Adélie colonies produced similar trends from those revealed by island-wide surveys, allowing total island population trends to be inferred relatively well. However, while the annual colony counts of chinstrap and Adélie penguins showed a trend consistent in direction with the results from all-island surveys, the magnitude of estimated population change was markedly different between colony wide and all island counts. Annual population patterns suggest that pair numbers in the study areas partly reflect immigration and emigration of nesting birds between different parts of the island. Breeding success for all three species remained broadly stable over time in the annually monitored colonies. Breeding success rates in gentoo and chinstrap penguins were strongly correlated, despite the differing trends in population size. This study shows the importance of effective, standardised monitoring to accurately determine long-term population trajectories. Our results indicate significant declines in the Adélie and chinstrap penguin populations at Signy Island over the last five decades, and a

CpG island mapping by epigenome prediction.

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Christoph Bock

2007-06-01

Full Text Available CpG islands were originally identified by epigenetic and functional properties, namely, absence of DNA methylation and frequent promoter association. However, this concept was quickly replaced by simple DNA sequence criteria, which allowed for genome-wide annotation of CpG islands in the absence of large-scale epigenetic datasets. Although widely used, the current CpG island criteria incur significant disadvantages: (1 reliance on arbitrary threshold parameters that bear little biological justification, (2 failure to account for widespread heterogeneity among CpG islands, and (3 apparent lack of specificity when applied to the human genome. This study is driven by the idea that a quantitative score of "CpG island strength" that incorporates epigenetic and functional aspects can help resolve these issues. We construct an epigenome prediction pipeline that links the DNA sequence of CpG islands to their epigenetic states, including DNA methylation, histone modifications, and chromatin accessibility. By training support vector machines on epigenetic data for CpG islands on human Chromosomes 21 and 22, we identify informative DNA attributes that correlate with open versus compact chromatin structures. These DNA attributes are used to predict the epigenetic states of all CpG islands genome-wide. Combining predictions for multiple epigenetic features, we estimate the inherent CpG island strength for each CpG island in the human genome, i.e., its inherent tendency to exhibit an open and transcriptionally competent chromatin structure. We extensively validate our results on independent datasets, showing that the CpG island strength predictions are applicable and informative across different tissues and cell types, and we derive improved maps of predicted "bona fide" CpG islands. The mapping of CpG islands by epigenome prediction is conceptually superior to identifying CpG islands by widely used sequence criteria since it links CpG island detection to

CpG island mapping by epigenome prediction.

Science.gov (United States)

Bock, Christoph; Walter, Jörn; Paulsen, Martina; Lengauer, Thomas

2007-06-01

CpG islands were originally identified by epigenetic and functional properties, namely, absence of DNA methylation and frequent promoter association. However, this concept was quickly replaced by simple DNA sequence criteria, which allowed for genome-wide annotation of CpG islands in the absence of large-scale epigenetic datasets. Although widely used, the current CpG island criteria incur significant disadvantages: (1) reliance on arbitrary threshold parameters that bear little biological justification, (2) failure to account for widespread heterogeneity among CpG islands, and (3) apparent lack of specificity when applied to the human genome. This study is driven by the idea that a quantitative score of "CpG island strength" that incorporates epigenetic and functional aspects can help resolve these issues. We construct an epigenome prediction pipeline that links the DNA sequence of CpG islands to their epigenetic states, including DNA methylation, histone modifications, and chromatin accessibility. By training support vector machines on epigenetic data for CpG islands on human Chromosomes 21 and 22, we identify informative DNA attributes that correlate with open versus compact chromatin structures. These DNA attributes are used to predict the epigenetic states of all CpG islands genome-wide. Combining predictions for multiple epigenetic features, we estimate the inherent CpG island strength for each CpG island in the human genome, i.e., its inherent tendency to exhibit an open and transcriptionally competent chromatin structure. We extensively validate our results on independent datasets, showing that the CpG island strength predictions are applicable and informative across different tissues and cell types, and we derive improved maps of predicted "bona fide" CpG islands. The mapping of CpG islands by epigenome prediction is conceptually superior to identifying CpG islands by widely used sequence criteria since it links CpG island detection to their characteristic

CRED Gridded Bathymetry of Nihoa Island (100-025) in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — File 100-025b is a 60-m ASCII grid of depth data collected near Nihoa Island in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands as of May 2003. This grid has been produced as part...

Equilibrium theory of island biogeography: A review

Science.gov (United States)

Angela D. Yu; Simon A. Lei

2001-01-01

The topography, climatic pattern, location, and origin of islands generate unique patterns of species distribution. The equilibrium theory of island biogeography creates a general framework in which the study of taxon distribution and broad island trends may be conducted. Critical components of the equilibrium theory include the species-area relationship, island-...

Nearshore coastal bathymetry data collected in 2016 from West Ship Island to Horn Island, Gulf Islands National Seashore, Mississippi

Science.gov (United States)

DeWitt, Nancy T.; Stalk, Chelsea A.; Fredericks, Jake J.; Flocks, James G.; Kelso, Kyle W.; Farmer, Andrew S.; Tuten, Thomas M.; Buster, Noreen A.

2018-04-13

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center, in cooperation with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Mobile District, conducted bathymetric surveys of the nearshore waters surrounding Ship and Horn Islands, Gulf Islands National Seashore, Mississippi. The objective of this study was to establish base-level elevation conditions around West Ship, East Ship, and Horn Islands and their associated active littoral system prior to restoration activities. These activities include the closure of Camille Cut and the placement of sediment in the littoral zone of East Ship Island. These surveys can be compared with future surveys to monitor sediment migration patterns post-restoration and can also be measured against historic bathymetric datasets to further our understanding of island evolution.The USGS collected 667 line-kilometers (km) of single-beam bathymetry data and 844 line-km of interferometric swath bathymetry data in July 2016 under Field Activity Number 2016-347-FA. Data are provided in three datums: (1) the International Terrestrial Reference Frame of 2000 (ellipsoid height); (2) the North American Datum of 1983 (NAD83) CORS96 realization and the North American Vertical Datum of 1988 with respect to the GEOID12B model (orthometric height); and (3) NAD83 (CORS96) and Mean Lower Low Water (tidal datum). Data products, including x,y,zpoint datasets, trackline shapefiles, digital and handwritten Field Activity Collection Systems logs, 50-meter digital elevation model, and formal Federal Geographic Data Committee metadata, are available for download.

Checklist of marine fishes of the Zunan Islands, located between the Izu and Ogasawara (Bonin) islands, Japan, with zoogeographical comments

OpenAIRE

Kuriiwa, Kaoru; Arihara, Hisashi; Chiba, Satoru; Kato, Shoichi; Senou, Hiroshi; Matsuura, Keiichi

2014-01-01

The Zunan Islands are located 360–650 km south of Tokyo, and consist of four uninhabited volcanoes: the Bayonnaise Rocks, the Smith Rocks, Torishima Island and the Sofugan Rock. Although all of the elements of the Zunan Islands are tiny islets and rocks, they form a series of stepping stones for shallow water fishes between the Izu Islands in the north and the Ogasawara (Bonin) Islands in the south. We report here the first comprehensive survey of marine fishes in the Zunan Islands. A total o...

Ecology and Evolution: Islands of Change.

Science.gov (United States)

Benz, Richard

This book was designed for middle and junior high school science classes and focuses on island biogeography, ecology, and evolution. Sections include: (1) "Galapagos: Frame of Reference"; (2) "Ecology and Islands"; and (3) "Evolution." Nineteen standards-based activities use the Galapagos Islands as a running theme…

Tools for sustainability assessment in island socio-ecological systems: an application to the Canary Islands

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Isabel Banos-González

2016-05-01

Full Text Available An integral dynamic model, in combination with other methods (indicators, policy and scenario analysis, is presented as a tool for sustainability assessment in island socio-ecological systems (SES. The Fuerteventura sustainability model (FSM, tested for the 1996-2011, allows a better understanding of the dynamic interactions between sustainability indicators and other factors of this island. The FSM was first applied to analyse the vulnerability of this island to climate change for the 2012-2025 period; results point to the need for urgent measures to mitigate its effects on some of the analysed indicators. A set of policy measures was then assessed from the behaviour of nine indicators and their sustainability thresholds. Finally, the FSM facilitated the development of a dynamic model of the island of El Hierro, extrapolating the features common to both SES. We propose this to be a useful tool for the quantitative sustainability assessment and the management of real island socio-ecological systems

Determination of broadband moment magnitude (Mwp) for August 11, 2009 Suruga-Bay earthquake (MJMA=6.5)

Science.gov (United States)

Tsuboi, S.; Hirshorn, B. F.

2009-12-01

We have determined Mwp for the August 11, 2009 Suruga-Bay earthquake (MJMA=6.5) using broadband seismograms recorded at close epicentral distance stations. We have used two broadband seismograph stations: JHJ2 (epicentral distance 1.9 degree) and FUJ (epicentral distance 0.44 degree). Because of the close epicentral distance of FUJ, the seismogram is clipped at about 10 second after the P-wave arrival. However, it was possible to use the first 10 second of this seismogram to compute Mwp. We get Mwp=6.4 for JHJ2 and 6.8 for FUJ(figure 1). After we apply Whitmore et al (2000)’s correction and average these two stations, we get Mwp=6.6 for this event. The epicentral distance of 0.44 degree for magnitude 6.5 earthquake is marginal to treat this seismogram as far-field. However, considering the aftershock distribution, the fault area seems to be limited to within the Suruga-Bay, which may confirm the fact that Mwp can be successfully computed at FUJ based on the far-field approximation. This result is significant in using Mwp from close epicentral distance seismograms to issue early tsunami warning. A large earthquake with Mw=7.5 (GCMT) occurred in Andaman Island, India, 10 minutes before this Suruga-Bay event. This made it very difficult to estimate Mwp for the Suruga-Bay event from broadband seismograms at teleseismic distances because of the large amplitude of Mw7.5 Andaman Island earthquake. In this case, it is therefore difficult to issue accurate tsunami warnings based on the teleseismic stations. We used broadband seismograms recorded by F-net operated by the National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Prevention.

The Idea of the Archipelago: Contemplating Island Relations

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Elaine Stratford

2013-05-01

Full Text Available Creative, innovative, and timely research on islands and island futures is warranted and pressing, not least because island(ers are poorly served by established tropes of them as subordinate to continents or mainlands. Opportunities exist to provide a more thoroughgoing account of island life and island relations, and the seven papers in this special issue address that task. In works that consider islands in the Timor Sea, the Caribbean, the Pacific, Atlantic and Southern Oceans, and that span several different disciplinary frames—archival-historical, critical theoretical, literary, cultural, geopolitical, sociological and artistic—these papers evidence both the diversity of approach to thinking with the archipelago, and numerous points in common. Among the latter is an understanding that island relations are built on connection, assemblage, mobility, and multiplicity, and a commitment to critically examine the ways in which these entanglements affect and give effect to island life. The models of island relationality brought to light by this collective focus on the archipelago reveal new and diverse connections of island peoples with their physical and cultural environments, and with the world beyond; create spaces for growing resilience, association and engagement; and invite further study.

The Caribbean Basin: A Climatological Study

Science.gov (United States)

1989-12-01

40 to200 km). A ridge in the center of theislanrises toI 1,017 feet (310 meters), but most of the island is mangrove swamp. The Isle of Pines (or Isle...The highest port of Plymouth . The southern range rises to 3,000 feet (914 point is 669 feet (204 meters). meters) in the Soufriere Hills. LES SAINTES...and de Margarita aft. from west to est: Islas de Ayes, Islas Ins barren . r; -ing from sea level to 617 feet (188 metes). Roques. La Orchila, Isla Is

seal Arctocephaius tropicaiis at Gough Island

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Population increase in the Amsterdam Island fur seal Arctocephaius tropicaiis at Gough Island. M.N. Bester. Mammal Research Institute, University of Pretoria, Pretoria. Population size of Arctocephalus tropicalis on Gough Island was determined by direct censuses of parts of the coast duro ing the summers of 1974 - 1976 ...

Simple method for calculating island widths

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cary, J.R.; Hanson, J.D.; Carreras, B.A.; Lynch, V.E.

1989-01-01

A simple method for calculating magnetic island widths has been developed. This method uses only information obtained from integrating along the closed field line at the island center. Thus, this method is computationally less intensive than the usual method of producing surfaces of section of sufficient detail to locate and resolve the island separatrix. This method has been implemented numerically and used to analyze the buss work islands of ATF. In this case the method proves to be accurate to at least within 30%. 7 refs

Recommendations for a barrier island breach management plan for Fire Island National Seashore, including the Otis Pike High Dune Wilderness Area, Long Island, New York

Science.gov (United States)

Williams, S. Jeffress; Foley, Mary K.

2007-01-01

The U.S Army Corps of Engineers, New York District is developing engineering plans, including economic costs and benefits, for storm damage reduction along an 83 mile stretch of the coastal barrier islands and beaches on the south shore of Long Island, NY from Fire Island Inlet east to the Montauk Point headland. The plan, expected to include various alternatives for storm protection and erosion mitigation, is referred to as the Fire Island to Montauk Point Reformulation Plan (FIMP). These plans are expected to follow the Corps of Engineers’ Environmental Operating Principles striving for long term environmental sustainability and balance between environmental protection and protection of human health and property. Fire Island National Seashore (FIIS), a 19,579 acre unit of the National Park System includes a 32 mile long coastal barrier island located within the FIMP project area. A seven-mile section of the park, Otis Pike Fire Island High Dune Wilderness Area, is also a designated Federal Wilderness Area. The FIIS includes not only the barrier island and sand dunes, but also several islands, sand flats and wetlands landward of the barrier, submerged parts of Great South Bay shoreface, extending approximately 4,000 feet into the bay with the inner shelf region extending approximately 1,000 feet seaward of the Fire Island shoreline. The Fire Island barrier islands, a sand-starved system dominated by highly dynamic processes, are struggling to maintain their integrity in the face of sea-level rise and storms. Adding to the dilemma is that development on the barriers and the mainland has increased greatly during the past 50 years. As such, managers and decision makers in federal agencies, state agencies and local governments are challenged to balance tradeoffs between protection of lives and property, public access and long term conservation of natural habitats and processes and the plants and animals that depend on these habitats. National Park Service (NPS

Mosquito Surveys Carried out On Green Island, Orchid Island, and Penghu Island, Taiwan, in 2003

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Hwa-Jen Teng

2005-02-01

Full Text Available Field surveys of mosquitoes were carried out on Green, Orchid, and Penghu Islands in 2003 to ascertain the status of mosquito vectors. Eighteen species of mosquitoes were collected, including three species of Anopheles, four species of Aedes, eight species of Culex, two species of Armigeres, and one species of Malaya. Seventeen previously recorded species were not collected in this study but 11 species collected had not previously been recorded. Ten newly recorded species, An. maculatus, An. takasagoensis, Ae. alcasidi, Ae. lineatopennis, Ae. vexans vexans, Ar. omissus, Cx. vishnui, Cx. halifaxii, Cx. hayashii, and Cx. neomimulus, were collected on Green Island and one previously unrecorded species, Ar. subalbatus, was collected on Orchid Island. Potential vectors An. maculatus and An. sinensis, malaria vectors in Korea and Mainland China, Ae. albopictus, a vector of dengue in Taiwan and West Nile virus in the USA, Cx. vishnui and Cx. tritaeniorhynchus, Japanese encephalitis vectors in Taiwan, Ae. vexans vexans, an eastern equine encephalitis vector in the USA, and Cx. quinquefasciatus, a vector of filariasis in Taiwan and West Nile virus in the USA, were among the mosquito species collected.

Intersectional gene flow between insular endemics of Ilex (Aquifoliaceae) on the Bonin Islands and the Ryukyu Islands.

Science.gov (United States)

Setoguchi, H; Watanabe, I

2000-06-01

Hybridization and introgression play important roles in plant evolution, and their occurrence on the oceanic islands provides good examples of plant speciation and diversification. Restriction fragment length polymorphisms (RFLPs) and trnL (UAA) 3'exon-trnF (GAA) intergenic spacer (IGS) sequences of chloroplast DNA (cpDNA), and the sequences of internal transcribed spacer (ITS) of nuclear ribosomal DNA were examined to investigate the occurrence of gene transfer in Ilex species on the Bonin Islands and the Ryukyu Islands in Japan. A gene phylogeny for the plastid genome is in agreement with the morphologically based taxonomy, whereas the nuclear genome phylogeny clusters putatively unrelated endemics both on the Bonin and the Ryukyu Islands. Intersectional hybridization and nuclear gene flow were independently observed in insular endemics of Ilex on both sets of islands without evidence of plastid introgression. Gene flow observed in these island systems can be explained by ecological features of insular endemics, i.e., limits of distribution range or sympatric distribution in a small land area.

Seed islands driven by turbulence and NTM dynamics

Science.gov (United States)

Muraglia, M.; Agullo, O.; Poye, A.; Benkadda, S.; Horton, W.; Dubuit, N.; Garbet, X.; Sen, A.

2014-10-01

Magnetic reconnection is an issue for tokamak plasmas. Growing magnetic islands expel energetic particles from the plasma core leading to high energy fluxes in the SOL and may cause damage to the plasma facing components. The islands grow from seeds from the bootstrap current effects that oppose the negative delta-prime producing nonlinear island growth. Experimentally, the onset of NTM is quantified in terms of the beta parameter and the sawtooth period. Indeed, in experiments, (3;2) NTM magnetic islands are often triggered by sawtooth precursors. However (2;1) magnetic islands can appear without noticeable MHD event and the seed islands origin for the NTM growth is still an open question. Macroscale MHD instabilities (magnetic islands) coexist with micro-scale turbulent fluctuations and zonal flows which impact island dynamics. Nonlinear simulations show that the nonlinear beating of the fastest growing small-scale ballooning interchange modes on a low order rational surface drive a magnetic islands located on the same surface. The island size is found to be controlled by the turbulence level and modifies the NTM threshold and dynamics.

Introduced mammals on Western Indian Ocean islands

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James C. Russell

2016-04-01

Full Text Available The diversity of introduced mammals and their introduction history varies greatly across the Western Indian Ocean (WIO islands, from ancient introductions in the past millennia on islands off the East coast of Africa where extant terrestrial native mammal communities exist, to very recent invasions in the past decades on islands in the Mascarene archipelago. We compile the distribution of 16 introduced mammal taxa on 28 island groups comprising almost 2000 islands. Through an exhaustive literature review and expert consultation process we recorded all mammal eradications, and species recoveries which could be attributed to introduced mammal eradication or control. All island groups have been invaded by mammals, and invasive cats and rats in particular are ubiquitous, but cultural contingency has also led to regional invasions by other mammals such as lemurs, civets and tenrecs. Mammal eradications have been attempted on 45 islands in the WIO, the majority in the Seychelles and Mauritius, and where successful have resulted in spectacular recovery of species and ecosystems. Invasive mammalian predator eradication or control in association with habitat management has led to improved conservation prospects for at least 24 species, and IUCN red-list down-listing of eight species, in the Mascarene Islands. Future island conservation prioritisation in the region will need to take account of global climate change and predicted sea-level rises and coastal inundation. Greater investment and prioritisation in island conservation in the region is warranted, given its high biodiversity values and the extent of invasions.

Vancouver Island gas supply

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Des Brisay, C.

2005-01-01

Terasen Gas is pursuing alternatives for the supply of additional natural gas capacity to Vancouver Island. Its subsidiary, Terasen Gas (Vancouver Island) Inc. (TGVI), is responding to the need for delivery of increased gas supply and, is supporting plans for new gas-fired power generation on Vancouver Island. TGVI's proposal for new natural gas capacity involves a combination of compression and pipeline loops as well as the addition of a storage facility for liquefied natural gas (LNG) at Mt. Hayes to help manage price volatility. This presentation outlined the objectives and components of the resource planning process, including demand forecast scenarios and the preferred infrastructure options. tabs., figs

Wind energy potential on Malaysian Resort Islands: a case study of Tioman, Redang and Perhentian Island

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kamaruzzaman Sopian

2000-01-01

Wind data collected at three east coast islands of Peninsular Malaysia namely Tioman, Redang and Perhentian Island were analyzed for the wind energy potential. The results were presented as Weibull distribution and preliminary analysis indicate that the site at Redang Island have the greatest potential with a mean power density of 85.1 w/m 2 at 10 meters above sea level. (Author)

Modeling the Response of Human Altered Natural Barrier Island Dynamics Along Assateague Island National Seashore to Climate Change

Science.gov (United States)

Carroll, A.; McNamara, D.; Schupp, C.

2009-12-01

Assateague Island National Seashore comprises a long barrier island located off the coasts of Maryland and Virginia. Geological evidence suggests that over recent centuries Assateague Island has steadily transgressed up the continental shelf in response to rising sea level. More recently, the natural barrier island dynamics governing Assateague’s evolution have been altered by human activity in three ways: the construction of a jetty and the subsequent interruption of alongshore sediment transport on the north end of Assateague and both the ongoing and abandoned maintenance of a continuous dune system along portions of Assateague with the concomitant modification to overwash dynamics. It is unclear how these varied human alterations to the natural barrier island dynamics will influence the response of Assateague to climate change induced shifts in forcing such as increased rates of sea level rise and changing storm patterns. We use LIDAR detected morphological data of Assateague Island as initial conditions in an alongshore extended model for barrier island dynamics including beach erosion, island overwash and inlet cutting during storms, and beach accretion, tidal delta growth and dune and vegetation growth between storms to explore the response of the various human altered segments of Assateague Island to forcing changes. Traditional models exploring barrier island evolution contain only cross-shore dynamics therefore lacking important alongshore-spatial dynamics in aeolian and surf zone sediment transport. Results show that including alongshore dynamics alter the steady state of Assateague relative to simulations that only include cross-shore dynamics. Results will also be presented exploring the potential for regime shifts in steady state behavior under various scenarios for the rate of sea level rise and storm climate and varying management strategies.

Terrestrial radiation measurements in Marshall Islands

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gudiksen, P.H.

1978-01-01

With the prospect of habitation in the near future, radiological surveys were undertaken of Enewetak and Bikini Atolls to provide a basis for determining whether or not the atolls can be safely reinhabited. The surveys included all of the forty islands within Enewetak Atoll, but only the two principal islands, Bikini and Eneu Islands, of Bikini Atoll. These atolls were former U.S. nuclear weapons test sites in the Pacific. Integral parts of the surveys were the measurements of the distributions of radioactivity in the soil and the resulting gamma ray exposure rates for external dose estimation. Numerous soil samples were collected from both atolls for analysis by Ge (Li) gamma spectrometry and by wet chemistry techniques. At Enewetak Atoll the gamma exposure rates were measured by TLDs and a helicopter-borne array of Nal detectors, while at Bikini Atoll portable Nal detectors, pressurized ion-chambers, and TLDs were utilized. The predominant species measured in the soil samples collected from both atolls were 90 Sr, 239,240 Pu, 137 Cs and 60 Co with the latter two nuclides being the primary contributors to the gamma-ray exposure rates. The geographical distribution of the exposure rates measured on both atolls, was highly variable ranging from less than 1 μR/h on islands that had not been impacted radiologically by the testing program, to over 100 μR/h near weapon detonation sites. Thus, within Enewetak Atoll, the highest soil activities and gamma-ray exposure rates were measured on the northern islands, where the weapons testing had been most intense. Bikini Island exhibited contamination levels that were considerably higher than those on Eneu Island. Generally, the highest activity levels were observed within the island interiors or in proximity to ground zero sites, and could usually be related to the surrounding vegetation density. The island of Yvonne, within Enewetak Atoll, is the most severely contaminated land area. Particles containing as much as several

Globally threatened vertebrates on islands with invasive species.

Science.gov (United States)

Spatz, Dena R; Zilliacus, Kelly M; Holmes, Nick D; Butchart, Stuart H M; Genovesi, Piero; Ceballos, Gerardo; Tershy, Bernie R; Croll, Donald A

2017-10-01

Global biodiversity loss is disproportionately rapid on islands, where invasive species are a major driver of extinctions. To inform conservation planning aimed at preventing extinctions, we identify the distribution and biogeographic patterns of highly threatened terrestrial vertebrates (classified by the International Union for Conservation of Nature) and invasive vertebrates on ~465,000 islands worldwide by conducting a comprehensive literature review and interviews with more than 500 experts. We found that 1189 highly threatened vertebrate species (319 amphibians, 282 reptiles, 296 birds, and 292 mammals) breed on 1288 islands. These taxa represent only 5% of Earth's terrestrial vertebrates and 41% of all highly threatened terrestrial vertebrates, which occur in vertebrates was available for 1030 islands (80% of islands with highly threatened vertebrates). Invasive vertebrates were absent from 24% of these islands, where biosecurity to prevent invasions is a critical management tool. On the 76% of islands where invasive vertebrates were present, management could benefit 39% of Earth's highly threatened vertebrates. Invasive mammals occurred in 97% of these islands, with Rattus sp. as the most common invasive vertebrate (78%; 609 islands). Our results provide an important baseline for identifying islands for invasive species eradication and other island conservation actions that reduce biodiversity loss.

North Aegean island landscapes as ecomuseums: the case of Lesvos Island

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Evangelos Pavlis

2017-05-01

Full Text Available The main advantage of the Aegean islands, in generating national, regional, or international competitiveness, compared to the areas on the continental mainland, is their natural and cultural assets, their cultural landscapes. Consequently, the organized utilization of cultural heritage, rich biodiversity, and the unique Aegean landscape, could make the islands attractive as places to live or work and help them fulfill their sustainability goals. Ecomuseums are ‘in situ’ museums, aimed at local communities and managed by them, aiming at the interpretation, protection, utilization, and promotion of natural and cultural assets of a place, and at the economic revival of marginal regions through the combinational development of small-scale tourism, local manufacturing, and primary production sectors. They could function as laboratories of sustainable development. The island of Lesvos has been selected as a case study for such a potential ecomuseum.

Development of Tertiary Basins of SE Asia from the South China Sea to the Andaman Sea region ; a comparative view on structure and timing

Science.gov (United States)

Pubellier, Manuel; Sautter, Benjamin

2016-04-01

Basins of SE Asia have developed since the end of Cretaceous times to the detriment of a Mesozoic andean arc which surrounded Sundaland. The arc was broader in the Eastern part along the Pacific Subduction Zone including theSouth China Sea (SCS), than in the Western part along the Sumatra Subduction Zone (Myanmar, Andaman Sea (AS), Malay Peninsula). By the end of the Upper Cretaceous, this arc died out and a widespread rifting with astonishing resemblances started in the whole Sundaland. We compare and discuss the basins similarities and differences in structure and timing between the two sides. A relaxation stage is evidenced in Western Sunda, represented by poorly exposed Late Cretaceous red beds filling the pre-existing morphostructures without clear fault-controlled basins. These deposits are also observed on seismic data offshore in the Gulf of Thailand and AS). On the opposite side along the Chinese margin, thick molasse-type deposits of Late Cretaceous age are on the contrary well expressed offshore and restricted to narrow valleys, indicating that stretching had already begun. There, the Paleogene is marked by strong extension with large crustal blocks rotated by often counter-regional normal faults creating half grabens. Crust was extended and extremely thinned particularly around the SCS. Basins reached the spreading stage in the Celebes Sea, the North Makassar basin and the SCS. On the western side, this period corresponds to narrow deep grabens (e.g. Mergui basins and part of western Malacca) with continental deposits, meaning that the stretching was localized. There, thinning of the crust took place during the Oligocene up to the Middle Miocene where large basins develop mostly to the outer edges of the Yenshanian Arc. Extension resumed in the Pliocene with the opening of the Andaman basin in an even more external position. To the eastern side the uppermost Miocene and the Pliocene were marked mostly by a deepening of the margins and the SCS ocean

Frog size on continental islands of the coast of Rio de Janeiro and the generality of the Island Rule.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Raoni Rebouças

Full Text Available Island Rule postulated that individuals on islands tend to dwarfism when individuals from mainland populations are large and to gigantism when mainland populations present small individuals. There has been much discussion about this rule, but only few studies were carried out aiming to reveal this pattern for anurans. Our study focused on measuring the size of individuals on islands and to find a possible pattern of size modification for insular anurans. Individuals were collected on continental islands, measured and compared to mainland populations. We selected four species with different natural history aspects during these analyses. Island parameters were compared to size of individuals in order to find an explanation to size modification. Three of the four species presented size shifting on islands. Ololygon trapicheiroi and Adenomera marmorata showed dwarfism, Boana albomarginata showed gigantism and in Thoropa miliaris there was no evident size modification. Allometric analysis also revealed differential modification, which might be a result of different selective pressures on islands in respect of mainland populations. Regression model explained most of the size modification in B. albomarginata, but not for the other species. Our results indicate that previous assumptions, usually proposed for mammals from older islands, do not fit to the anurans studied here. We support the assumption that size modification on islands are population-specific. Hence, in B. albomarginata some factor associated to competition, living area and isolation time might likely be responsible for gigantism on islands.

Spatial and temporal controls of atoll island inundation: implications for urbanized atolls in the Marshall Islands.

Science.gov (United States)

Ford, M.; Becker, J. M.; Merrifield, M. A.

2012-12-01

Atoll islands are highly vulnerable to a range of inundation hazards. The impacts of such hazards are expected to be magnified as a result of continued sea-level rise. Both recent and historic inundation events provide unique insights into the requisite conditions necessary to initiate island inundation. A number of recent and historic inundation events are presented in order to examine the oceanographic and meteorological conditions driving inundation of a densely populated, urbanized atoll in the central Pacific. Analysis of inundation events suggests that a number of key drivers contribute to the spatial and temporal extent of island inundation, with unique degrees of predictability and resultant impact signatures apparent on island geomorphology and local anthropogenic activities. Results indicate three distinct drivers of inundation hazards exist. Firstly, tropical storms and typhoons elevate sea level through inverse barometric setup, wind setup and a range of wave driven processes and have caused considerable impact on atolls within the Marshall Islands. Secondly, super-elevated sea level conditions resulting from the combination of seasonal high tides and quasi-cyclical La Nina conditions drive inundation of low-lying lagoon facing coastal areas. Thirdly, long period swell conditions, typically generated by distant storms, can elevate reef-flat water levels through wave setup and infragravity wave oscillations. Such wave conditions can over wash the ocean-facing island ridge, often inundating large sections of the island. Reef-flat wave conditions are tidally modulated, with inundation events typically occurring around high tide. However, the two most recent destructive swell-driven inundation events have occurred while tide levels were significantly lower than spring tide levels, suggesting high water levels are not a necessary prerequisite for wave-driven inundation. The different modes of inundation are discussed and grounded within recent and historic

Chronic Liver Disease and Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders

Science.gov (United States)

... Cancer Asian/Pacific Islander Women Non-Hispanic White Women Asian/Pacific Islander/ Non-Hispanic White Ratio All Sites ... Cancer Asian/Pacific Islander Women Non-Hispanic White Women Asian/Pacific Islander/ Non-Hispanic White Ratio Liver & IBD* ...

Tectonic and volcanic implications of a cratered seamount off Nicobar Island, Andaman Sea

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

KameshRaju, K.A.; Ray, D.; Mudholkar, A.V.; Murty, G.P.S.; Gahalaut, V.K.; Samudrala, K.; Paropkari, A.L.; Ramachandran, R.; SuryaPrakash, L.

seamount with well-developed crater at the summit was discovered near to the center of the Nicobar swarm. Rock samples collected by TV-guided grab from the seamount crater are dacite, rhyolite and andesite type with a veneer of ferromanganese oxide coating...

An incidence of very high phosphate concentrations in the waters around Andaman Islands

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Reddy, C.V.G.; Murty, P.S.N.; Sankaranarayanan, V.N.

and have milky white appearance. It was suspected that the turbidity might be due to the presence of carbonate but qualitative tests proved negative. This is the first time that such studies are taken in this region, hence explanation for this phenomena...

Solid waste management on small islands. The case of Green Island, Taiwan

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chen, M.C.; Ruijs, A.; Wesseler, J. [Environmental Economics and Natural Resources Group, Wageningen University, P.O. Box 8130, 6700 EW Wageningen (Netherlands)

2005-09-01

Municipalities of small islands have limited capacities for waste disposal. In the case of Green Island, Taiwan, continuing with business as usual would only allow the disposal of waste on the island for another 8 years. Three alternatives for solid waste management (SWM) are compared. The cost-effective solution is the one, which is the most expensive in the short run: continuing business as usual and introducing an incineration plant in the year 2010. The results indicate furthermore that deviations from optimal timing of investment only slightly change average annual costs. In the long run, the municipality can hardly avoid transporting waste to the mainland. By investing in an incineration plant, they can buy additional time to investigate alternative SWM strategies.

CRED Gridded Bathymetry near Lisianski Island and Pioneer Bank (100-002), Northwestern Hawaiian Islands

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — File 100-002b is a 60-m ASCII grid of depth data collected near Lisianski Island and Pioneer Bank in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands as of May 2003. This grid has...

Revisiting the Metaphor of the Island: Challenging "World Culture" from an Island Misunderstood

Science.gov (United States)

Rappleye, Jeremy

2015-01-01

This article revisits the newly "discovered" island that world culture theorists have repeatedly utilised to explain their theoretical stance, conceptual preferences and methodological approach. Yet, it seeks to (re)connect world culture with the real world by replacing their imagined atoll with a real one--the island-nation of Japan. In…

A new species of iguana Brachylophus Cuvier 1829 (Sauria: Iguania: Iguanidae) from Gau Island, Fiji Islands.

Science.gov (United States)

Fisher, Robert N; Niukula, Jone; Watling, Dick; Harlow, Peter S

2017-06-06

The south Pacific iguanas (Brachylophus) currently have three recognized living species in Fiji.  Recent surveys have uncovered more specific variation (morphological and genetic) within the genus and have better defined the geographic ranges of the named species.  One of these recent discoveries is a strikingly different iguana from all other island populations in Fiji which is restricted to Gau Island of the Lomaiviti Province.  Gau is the fifth largest island in Fiji and maintains excellent upland forests in the higher elevations.  We describe this population from Gau Island as a new species, Brachylophus gau sp. nov., in recognition of its type locality.

A new species of iguana Brachylophus Cuvier 1829 (Sauria: Iguania: Iguanidae) from Gau Island, Fiji Islands

Science.gov (United States)

Fisher, Robert N.; Niukula, Jone; Watling, Dick; Harlow, Peter S.

2017-01-01

The south Pacific iguanas (Brachylophus) currently have three recognized living species in Fiji.  Recent surveys have uncovered more specific variation (morphological and genetic) within the genus and have better defined the geographic ranges of the named species.  One of these recent discoveries is a strikingly different iguana from all other island populations in Fiji which is restricted to Gau Island of the Lomaiviti Province.  Gau is the fifth largest island in Fiji and maintains excellent upland forests in the higher elevations.  We describe this population from Gau Island as a new species, Brachylophus gau sp. nov., in recognition of its type locality.

Island forming processes in the Okavango Delta, Botswana

Science.gov (United States)

McCarthy, T. S.; Humphries, M. S.; Mahomed, I.; Le Roux, P.; Verhagen, B. Th.

2012-12-01

The Okavango Delta in Botswana is a large (40,000 km2) alluvial fan that is characterised by the presence of numerous tree-covered islands. Thought to originate from the mound-building activities of termites or through fluvial processes associated with development of scroll bars and inverted channels, islands have been shown to play an important role in the structure and functioning of the Delta through the creation of habitat diversity, focusing of nutrients, and disposal of toxic salts. This study investigates the processes responsible for the maintenance and growth of two such islands in the seasonal swamps. Transpiration by vegetation is shown to result in substantial increases in groundwater salinity beneath the islands, contributing to their growth through chemical precipitation. Detailed chemical analyses revealed that the precipitation of magnesian calcite and silica within the island soils contributes 30-40% of the total island volume. Isotopic analyses of carbonate samples show that vegetation plays an important role in providing carbon for carbonate precipitation. Variations in δ13C carbonate values appear to reflect the relative proportion of C3 to C4 plants on the island, with C4 species becoming more dominant toward island centres in response to increases in groundwater salinity. The study suggests that continued island growth is also related to the deposition of aerosols and the accumulation of dust preferentially on islands and possibly to ongoing termite activity. Tall trees that characterise the island margins trap dust carried from the floodplains, resulting particularly in the lateral growth of islands. Islands in the Okavango are considered to be the product of long-term aggradation processes, with the two islands studied estimated to be in the order of tens of thousands of years old.

Elastic energies of coherent germanium islands on silicon

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vanderbilt, D.; Wickham, L.K.

1991-01-01

Motivated by recent observations of coherent Ge island formation during growth of Ge on Si (100), the authors of this paper have carried out a theoretical study of the elastic energies associated with the evolution of a uniform strained overlayer as it segregates into coherent islands. In the context of a two-dimensional model, the authors have explored the conditions under which coherent islands may be energetically favored over both uniform epitaxial films and dislocated islands. The authors find that if the interface energy (for dislocated islands) is more than about 15% of the surface energy, then there is a range of island sizes for which the coherent island structure is preferred

Shape and coarsening dynamics of strained islands

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Schifani, Guido; Frisch, Thomas; Argentina, Mederic

2016-01-01

and numerically the formation of an equilibrium island using a two-dimensional continuous model. We have found that these equilibrium island-like solutions have a maximum height h_{0} and they sit on top of a flat wetting layer with a thickness h_{w}. We then consider two islands, and we report that they undergo...... and leads to the shrinkage of the smallest island. Once its height becomes smaller than a minimal equilibrium height h_{0}^{*}, its mass spreads over the entire system. Our results pave the way for a future analysis of coarsening of an assembly of islands....

Review of islanding detection methods for distributed generation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Chen, Zhe; Mahat, Pukar; Bak-Jensen, Birgitte

2008-01-01

This paper presents an overview of power system islanding and islanding detection techniques. Islanding detection techniques, for a distribution system with distributed generation (DG), can broadly be divided into remote and local techniques. A remote islanding detection technique is associated...

Effect of island shape on dielectrophoretic assembly of metal nanoparticle chains in a conductive-island-based microelectrode system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ding, Haitao; Shao, Jinyou; Ding, Yucheng; Liu, Weiyu; Li, Xiangming; Tian, Hongmiao; Zhou, Yaopei

2015-01-01

Highlights: • Conductive island shape influences the dynamic process occurring in DEP assembly of 10 nm gold nanoparticles in a conductive-island-based microelectrode system. • The DEP-assembled nanoparticle wires form a straighter conduction path with the increase in the geometric angle of conductive island tip. • The different island shapes distort the DEP force distribution and increase the local electrothermally induced fluid flow to different extents, which is important for the morphology and electrical conductance quality of the DEP-assembled metal nanoparticle chains. - Abstract: The electrical conduction quality of an electric circuit connection formed by dielectrophoretic (DEP)-assembled metal nanoparticle wires between small conductive elements plays a significant role in electronic devices. One of the major challenges for improving the electrical conductance of nanowires is optimizing their geometric morphology. So far, the electrical conduction quality has been enhanced by optimizing the AC frequency and conductivity of nanoparticle suspensions. Herein, the effect of the conductive island shapes on the dynamic process occurring in a DEP assembly of 10 nm gold nanoparticles was investigated in a conductive-island-based microelectrode system. The nanoparticle wires between the microelectrodes were assembled in situ from colloidal suspensions. The wires were grown in a much straighter route by increasing the geometric angle of the conductive-island tip. To validate the experiments, the effects of mutual DEP interactions and electrothermally induced fluid flow on the dynamic behavior of particle motion for different island geometric configurations in the conductive-island-based microelectrode system were determined by numerical simulations. The simulation results are consistent with those of experiments. This indicates that different conductive island shapes change the distribution of DEP force and increase the electrothermally induced fluid flow to

Environmental assessment for the resettlement of Eneu Island on Bikini Atoll, Republic of the Marshall Islands

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maragos, J.E.; Agegian, Catherine

1986-01-01

This environmental assessment evaluates various alternatives to return the Bikini people to their homeland on Bikini Atoll. Eneu Island was spared the heavy nuclear contamination that rendered Bikini Island, the largest and main inhabitable island on the atoll, presently unsuitable for resettlement. The economic, social, technical and environmental consequences of all alternatives were compared, and alternative sites, purposes and scales for resettlement were included in the analysis. This environmental assessment explores these alternatives in detail and concludes that the resettlement of Eneu Island by some of the Bikini people at this time will not result in significant adverse effects to the environment nor will it foreclose any other full scale resettlement option involving the cleanup of Bikini Atoll. In addition, it concludes that the resettlement of Eneu can be accomplished independently from the planned cleanup and resettlement of Bikini Island. Plans and combination of plans involving the early resettlement of Eneu are fully feasible and implementable at this time. (author)

Environmental assessment for the resettlement of Eneu Island on Bikini Atoll, Republic of the Marshall Islands

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Maragos, J E [Environmental Resources Section, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Pacific Ocean Division, HI (United States); Agegian, Catherine [University of Hawaii, Department of Oceanography, Honolulu, HI (United States)

1986-07-01

This environmental assessment evaluates various alternatives to return the Bikini people to their homeland on Bikini Atoll. Eneu Island was spared the heavy nuclear contamination that rendered Bikini Island, the largest and main inhabitable island on the atoll, presently unsuitable for resettlement. The economic, social, technical and environmental consequences of all alternatives were compared, and alternative sites, purposes and scales for resettlement were included in the analysis. This environmental assessment explores these alternatives in detail and concludes that the resettlement of Eneu Island by some of the Bikini people at this time will not result in significant adverse effects to the environment nor will it foreclose any other full scale resettlement option involving the cleanup of Bikini Atoll. In addition, it concludes that the resettlement of Eneu can be accomplished independently from the planned cleanup and resettlement of Bikini Island. Plans and combination of plans involving the early resettlement of Eneu are fully feasible and implementable at this time. (author)

Assessing qualitative long-term volcanic hazards at Lanzarote Island (Canary Islands)

Science.gov (United States)

Becerril, Laura; Martí, Joan; Bartolini, Stefania; Geyer, Adelina

2017-07-01

Conducting long-term hazard assessment in active volcanic areas is of primary importance for land-use planning and defining emergency plans able to be applied in case of a crisis. A definition of scenario hazard maps helps to mitigate the consequences of future eruptions by anticipating the events that may occur. Lanzarote is an active volcanic island that has hosted the largest (> 1.5 km3 DRE) and longest (6 years) eruption, the Timanfaya eruption (1730-1736), on the Canary Islands in historical times (last 600 years). This eruption brought severe economic losses and forced local people to migrate. In spite of all these facts, no comprehensive hazard assessment or hazard maps have been developed for the island. In this work, we present an integrated long-term volcanic hazard evaluation using a systematic methodology that includes spatial analysis and simulations of the most probable eruptive scenarios.

Spatio-Temporal Dynamics of a Coastal Island Using Geospatial Techniques: A Case in Hatiya Island, Bangladesh

Science.gov (United States)

Ramjan, S.; Mahmud, M. S.; Hossain, M. A.; Hasan, M.; Ashrafi, Z. M.

2016-12-01

Bangladesh is recognized for its high vulnerability to sea level rise (SLR). SLR directly and indirectly (by altering morphology of river estuary) accelerates erosion processes, washes out the loose materials of the coast and coastal islands. Hatiya, highly populated coastal island, located in Meghna river estuary is under severe threat of coastal erosion, which has not been quantified yet. The accurate mapping of the shoreline and coastal changes are very important for adopting conservation measures e.g. protection of human life, property and the natural environment. The objectives of the present study are to use remote sensing and Geographical Information System techniques to evaluate spatial and temporal changes in the shoreline and coastal land area of the Hatiya Island between the year of 1985 and 2016 from multi-temporal satellite images, i.e. assessing shifting of the shoreline position through digital shoreline analysis besides the erosion-accretion measurements. Study reveals that about 67 square kilometer areas has been lost between 1985 and 2016 which was about 17 percent of original area (1985). Erosion mainly took place in northern, north-western banks of the island. In these areas, the landward movement and rate of the shoreline were higher with a highest value of the net shoreline movement (NSM) around 6.2 km. Erosion rate is significant in exposed part of the island where tidal water pressure, shoreline configuration, loose bank materials and steep slope were observed. However, the accretion was noticed in recent years (2010-2016) in southern part of the island where slopes were gentle, perhaps due to backwash sediment deposition. As erosion process is prominent in this island, significant amounnt of usable land was lost. Therefore, local livelihood pattern has changed that has noticable effect on local economy. By quantifying the erosion-accretion rate, livelihood planning can be initiated in climatically threated vulnerable islands.

Rising sea levels and small island states

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Leatherman, S.P.

1994-01-01

A review is given of the problems small island nations face with respect to sea level rise caused by global warming. Many small island nations are very vulnerable to sea level rise. Particularly at risk are coral reef atolls, which are generally quite small, lie within three metres of current sea levels, and have no land at higher elevations to relocate populations and economic activity. Volcanic islands in the Pacific have high ground, but it is largely rugged, high relief and soil-poor. The most vulnerable islands are those that consist entirely of atolls and reef islands, such as Kirabai, Maldives, Tokelau and Tuvalu. Small island states, which by themselves have little power or influence in world affairs, have banded together to form the Strategic Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS). This alliance had grown to include 42 states by the time of the 1992 U.N. Earth Summit. Although the greenhouse effect is mainly caused by industrial nations, developing countries will suffer the most from it. Choices of response strategy will depend on environmental, economic and social factors. Most small island nations do not have the resources to fight sea level rise in the way that the Dutch have. Retreat can occur as a gradual process or as catastrophic abandonment. Prohibiting construction close to the water's edge is a good approach. Sea level histories for each island state should be compiled and updated, island geomorphology and settlement patterns should be surveyed to determine risk areas, storm regimes should be determined, and information on coastal impacts of sea level rise should be disseminated to the public

Vicia vulcanorum (Fabaceae a new species from the island of Lanzarote (Canary Islands

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Morales-Mateos, J. B.

2012-12-01

Full Text Available Vicia vulcanorum J. Gil & M. L. Gil (Fabaceae, a new species of subg. Cracca (Dumort. Peterm., sect. Cracca Dumort. is described and illustrated from the island of Lanzarote, Canary Islands, north-west of Africa. It is related to and compared with Vicia cirrhosa C. Sm. ex Webb & Berthel. and Vicia filicaulis Webb & Berthel., two endemic species from the western and central group of the Canary Islands, and Vicia ferreirensis Goyder, an endemic species from Porto Santo Island, Madeira Archipelago.Se describe e ilustra Vicia vulcanorum J. Gil & M. L. Gil (Fabaceae, una nueva especie y endemismo de la isla de Lanzarote, Islas Canarias, perteneciente al subg. Cracca (Dumort. Peterm., sect. Cracca Dumort. Se encuentra relacionada y es comparada con Vicia cirrhosa C. Sm. ex Webb & Berthel. y Vicia filicaulis Webb & Berthel., especies endémicas de las islas centrales y occidentales del archipiélago canario, y con Vicia ferreirensis Goyder, especie endémica de la isla de Porto Santo, en el archipiélago de Madeira.

Neoclassical islands on COMPASS-D

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gates, D.A.; Lloyd, B.; Morris, A.W.; McArdle, G.; O'Brien, M.R.; Valovic, M.; Warrick, C.D.; Wilson, H.R.

1997-01-01

Neoclassical magnetic islands are observed to limit the achievable β in COMPASS-D low collisionality single null divertor tokamak plasmas with ITER-like geometry (R 0 = 0.56 m, B 0 1.2 T, I p = 120-180 kA, κ = 1.6, ε = 0.3). The limiting β is typically well below that expected from ideal instabilities with maximum βN in the range of 1.6 to 2.1. The plasma is heated with up to 1.8 MW of 60 GHz electron cyclotron resonance heating (ECRH) at the second harmonic with X mode polarization. The time history of the measured island width is compared with the predictions of neoclassical tearing mode theory, with good agreement between theory and experiment. The measured islands have a threshold width below which the mode will not grow. The density scaling of the point of onset of the measured instabilities is compared with two theories that predict a threshold island width for the onset of neoclassical tearing modes. Applied resonant helical error fields are used to induce islands in collisionality regimes wherein the neoclassical islands do not occur naturally, allowing the study of the behaviour of neoclassical tearing modes in this regime. The critical β for the onset of neoclassical tearing modes is seen to be ∼3 times higher in the naturally stable region. This observation is compared with the predictions of both threshold theories. A simple expression for the q scaling of the maximum achievable β N in the presence of neoclassical tearing modes is derived on the basis of the assumption of a maximum allowable island width. The predicted q scaling of this β limit is compared with data from a q scan, and the results are in good agreement. (author)

Immigration and the competitiveness of an island tourism destination: a knowledge-based reputation analysis of Lanzarote, Canary Islands

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Desiderio Juan García-Almeida

2017-05-01

Full Text Available This paper sheds light on the relationship between immigration and tourism competitiveness on the island of Lanzarote through the analysis of reputation from the demand perspective. The tourists’ knowledge about news on immigration from a destination, their contact with immigrants in the area, and the influence of the presence of immigrants there are studied, as all these factors can have a major impact on island competitiveness in tourism. The empirical work has been conducted with a survey of tourists on Lanzarote, Canary Islands, Spain. A total of 359 valid questionnaires were obtained. Results show a relatively low impact and retention of immigration news about the destination, and a low perceived contact with non-European immigrants when visiting the island. Moreover, tourists tend to recognize the positive value created by immigrants on the island, though some negative effects are also indicated. Finally, immigration seems to have a positive impact on the tourist’s global satisfaction and loyalty to the island destination.

Backscatter 0.5m TIFF Mosaic of St. Croix (Buck Island), US Virgin Islands, 2004

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This image represents a 0.5 meter resolution backscatter mosaic of the north shore of Buck Island, St. Croix, US Virgin Islands. NOAA's NOS/NCCOS/CCMA Biogeography...

A comparison of controls on freshwater lens morphology of small carbonate and siliciclastic islands: examples from barrier islands in Florida, USA

Science.gov (United States)

Schneider, James C.; Kruse, Sarah E.

2003-12-01

The freshwater lens on small islands may easily be overexploited or polluted due to dense development combined with improper management. On small carbonate islands complexities in fresh groundwater distribution are most commonly driven by geologic heterogeneities and their attendant impact on permeability and effective recharge patterns. Siliciclastic islands (composed primarily of quartz sand and other silica-based minerals) have been less well studied, and fewer common patterns of lens development have emerged. On some siliciclastic islands correlations between geology and lens geometries are weak; on these islands the freshwater lens geometry may be largely determined by how vegetation and terrain elevation affect recharge. Other factors such as unequal sea level on opposite sides of an island and transient variability (natural island migration and climate variability) may also be locally significant. Two barrier islands in the northeast Gulf of Mexico fall into this category of siliciclastic islands. Relationships between lens morphology, geology, vegetation, terrain, and sea level and transient effects are documented on St George Island and Dog Island, FL. Patterns of fresh groundwater occurrence are deduced with electrical and electromagnetic geophysical methods. Although isolated cores show geologic layering that could potentially control freshwater lens development, ground penetrating radar and seismic surveys show no evidence of semi-continuous subhorizontal layering. Inferred lens thickness and geometry suggests that site geology plays a relatively minor role as a cause of complexity in lens formation. Lens geometry does appear to be related to terrain and vegetation variability, and further complicated by the continuous reforming of these islands by coastal processes and human development.

Checklist of the ants (Hymenoptera, Formicidae of the Solomon Islands and a new survey of Makira Island

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Eli Sarnat

2013-01-01

Full Text Available The intent of this paper is to facilitate future research of the Solomon Islands ant fauna by providing the first comprehensively researched species inventory in over 75 years. The species list presented here includes the names of all ant species recorded from the islands that are available in the literature together with specimen records from several museum collections and new records from our 2008 Makira field expedition. All the names of described species presented are valid in accordance with the most recent Formicidae classification. In total, the checklist is composed of 237 species and subspecies (including 30 morphospecies in 59 genera representing nine subfamilies. We report that the recent field expedition added 67 new species records to Makira and 28 new species records to the Solomon Islands. Our research recovered species occurrence records for 32 individual islands and five island groups. The five islands with the highest number of recorded species are: Makira (142 spp., Guadalcanal (107 spp., Malaita (70 spp., Santa Isabel (68 spp., and Rennell (66 spp.. Based on our results, we discuss the taxonomic composition of the archipelago’s ant fauna, which islands are most in need of additional sampling, and the importance of establishing biodiversity baselines before environmental threats such as the invasive ant Wasmannia auropunctata cause irrevocable harm to the native biodiversity.

Reduction of Islands in Full-pressure Stellarator Equilibria

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hudson, S.R.; Monticello, D.A.; Reiman, A.H.

2001-01-01

The control of magnetic islands is a crucial issue in designing Stellarators. Islands are associated with resonant radial magnetic fields at rational rotational-transform surfaces and can lead to chaos and poor plasma confinement. In this article, we show that variations in the resonant fields of a full-pressure stellarator equilibrium can be related to variations in the boundary via a coupling matrix, and inversion of this matrix determines a boundary modification for which the island content is significantly reduced. The numerical procedure is described and the results of island optimization are presented. Equilibria with islands are computed using the Princeton Iterative Equilibrium Solver, and resonant radial fields are calculated via construction of quadratic-flux-minimizing surfaces. A design candidate for the National Compact Stellarator Experiment [Phys. Plasmas 8, 2001], which has a large island, is used to illustrate the technique. Small variations in the boundary shape are used to reduce island size and to reverse the phase of a major island chain

36 CFR 13.1178 - Closed waters, islands and other areas.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... southeast of Flapjack Island; or Eider Island; or Boulder Island; or Geikie Rock; or Lone Island; or the... islands) of the easternmost point of Russell Island; or Graves Rocks (on the outer coast); or Cormorant... and Preserve Vessel Operating Restrictions § 13.1178 Closed waters, islands and other areas. The...

Functional and phylogenetic structure of island bird communities.

Science.gov (United States)

Si, Xingfeng; Cadotte, Marc W; Zeng, Di; Baselga, Andrés; Zhao, Yuhao; Li, Jiaqi; Wu, Yiru; Wang, Siyu; Ding, Ping

2017-05-01

Biodiversity change in anthropogenically transformed habitats is often nonrandom, yet the nature and importance of the different mechanisms shaping community structure are unclear. Here, we extend the classic Theory of Island Biogeography (TIB) to account for nonrandom processes by incorporating species traits and phylogenetic relationships into a study of faunal relaxation following habitat loss and fragmentation. Two possible mechanisms can create nonrandom community patterns on fragment islands. First, small and isolated islands might consist of similar or closely related species because they are environmentally homogeneous or select for certain shared traits, such as dispersal ability. Alternatively, communities on small islands might contain more dissimilar or distantly related species than on large islands because limited space and resource availability result in greater competitive exclusion among species with high niche overlap. Breeding birds were surveyed on 36 islands and two mainland sites annually from 2010 to 2014 in the Thousand Island Lake region, China. We assessed community structure of breeding birds on these subtropical land-bridge islands by integrating species' trait and evolutionary distances. We additionally analysed habitat heterogeneity and variance in size ratios to distinguish biotic and abiotic processes of community assembly. Results showed that functional-phylogenetic diversity increased with island area, and decreased with isolation. Bird communities on the mainland were more diverse and generally less clustered than island bird communities and not different than randomly assembled communities. Bird communities on islands tend to be functionally similar and phylogenetically clustered, especially on small and isolated islands. The nonrandom decline in species diversity and change in bird community structure with island area and isolation, along with the relatively homogeneous habitats on small islands, support the environmental

Deer Island Aquatic Ecosystem Restoration Project

Science.gov (United States)

2015-07-01

across the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) requires that a broad base of EWN understanding and support be built . The Deer Island Aquatic...USACE) requires that a broad base of EWN understanding and support be built . The Deer Island Aquatic Ecosystem Restoration Project (Deer Island AERP...Mississippi Wetlands Restoration Projects). The project received additional funding through several public laws in response to hurricane damages

Terror from the sky: unconventional linguistic clues to the negrito past.

Science.gov (United States)

Blust, Robert

2013-01-01

Within recorded history, most Southeast Asian peoples have been of "southern Mongoloid" physical type, whether they speak Austroasiatic, Tibeto-Burman, Austronesian, Tai-Kadai, or Hmong-Mien languages. However, population distributions suggest that this is a post-Pleistocene phenomenon and that for tens of millennia before the last glaciation ended Greater Mainland Southeast Asia, which included the currently insular world that rests on the Sunda Shelf, was peopled by short, dark-skinned, frizzy-haired foragers whose descendants in the Philippines came to be labeled by the sixteenth-century Spanish colonizers as "negritos," a term that has since been extended to similar groups throughout the region. There are three areas in which these populations survived into the present so as to become part of written history: the Philippines, the Malay Peninsula, and the Andaman Islands. All Philippine negritos speak Austronesian languages, and all Malayan negritos speak languages in the nuclear Mon-Khmer branch of Austroasiatic, but the linguistic situation in the Andamans is a world apart. Given prehistoric language shifts among both Philippine and Malayan negritos, the prospects of determining whether disparate negrito populations were once a linguistically or culturally unified community would appear hopeless. Surprisingly, however, some clues to a common negrito past do survive in a most unexpected way. Copyright © 2013 Wayne State University Press, Detroit, Michigan 48201-1309.

TSUNAMIGENIC SOURCES IN THE INDIAN OCEAN

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B. K. Rastogi

2008-01-01

Full Text Available Based on an assessment of the repeat periods of great earthquakes from past seismicity, convergence rates and paleoseismological results, possible future source zones of tsunami generating earthquakes in the Indian Ocean (possible seismic gap areas are identified along subduction zones and zones of compression. Central Sumatra, Java, Makran coast, Indus Delta, Kutch-Saurashtra, Bangladesh and southern Myanmar are identified as possible source zones of earthquakes in near future which might cause tsunamis in the Indian Ocean, and in particular, that could affect India. The Sunda Arc (covering Sumatra and Java subduction zone, situated on the eastern side of the Indian Ocean, is one of the most active plate margins in the world that generates frequent great earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and tsunamis. The Andaman- Nicobar group of islands is also a seismically active zone that generates frequent earthquakes. However, northern Sumatra and Andaman-Nicobar regions are assessed to be probably free from great earthquakes (M!8.0 for a few decades due to occurrence of 2004 Mw 9.3 and 2005 Mw 8.7 earthquakes. The Krakatau volcanic eruptions have caused large tsunamis in the past. This volcano and a few others situated on the ocean bed can cause large tsunamis in the future. List of past tsunamis generated due to earthquakes/volcanic eruptions that affected the Indian region and vicinity in the Indian Ocean are also presented.

Sedimentary Fatty Alcohols in Kapas Island, Terengganu

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Noor Farahin Amiruddin; Mohamad Iznul Muazim Mohamad Zabidi; Nurul Fathihah Mt Nanyan; Masni Mohd Ali; Masni Mohd Ali

2015-01-01

A geochemical study was carried out to identify the composition and sources of fatty alcohols in Kapas Island, Terengganu, Malaysia. Fatty alcohols in surface sediments were extracted and analyzed using Gas Chromatography - Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS). A total of 23 fatty alcohol compounds were identified in the Kapas Island sediment. Total concentrations of fatty alcohols ranged from 0.53 to 21.31 ng/ g dry weight and the highest total concentration was found at S2, which is probably due to its location profile that is located north of Kapas Island which is close to several small islands. The short chain/ long chain fatty alcohol ratio and alcohol source index (ASI) were used together to identify the dominant input in Kapas Island. Kapas Island sediments contained a mixture of organic sources, of which terrestrial sources were indicated to be the most abundant sources in these marine sediments. (author)

Assessing qualitative long-term volcanic hazards at Lanzarote Island (Canary Islands

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L. Becerril

2017-07-01

Full Text Available Conducting long-term hazard assessment in active volcanic areas is of primary importance for land-use planning and defining emergency plans able to be applied in case of a crisis. A definition of scenario hazard maps helps to mitigate the consequences of future eruptions by anticipating the events that may occur. Lanzarote is an active volcanic island that has hosted the largest (>  1.5 km3 DRE and longest (6 years eruption, the Timanfaya eruption (1730–1736, on the Canary Islands in historical times (last 600 years. This eruption brought severe economic losses and forced local people to migrate. In spite of all these facts, no comprehensive hazard assessment or hazard maps have been developed for the island. In this work, we present an integrated long-term volcanic hazard evaluation using a systematic methodology that includes spatial analysis and simulations of the most probable eruptive scenarios.

Fuelwood production in Prince Edward Island

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McCallum, B.

1992-01-01

The most recent Prince Edward Island Fuelwood Survey occurred in 1990-91. Consumption of fuelwood rose again to 49% of Prince Edward Island's 43,170 households. Total residential fuelwood consumption was estimated to be 242,000 m 3 . The fuelwood industry makes an important contribution to the economy of Prince Edward Island. In the 1990-91 heating season, fuelwood valued at USD 9 million displaced approximately 43 million litres of domestic heating oil valued at USD 16.4 million. In addition, it is estimated that 70 cents of every dollar spent on fuelwood remains in the province and contributes spin-off benefits, whereas 90 cents of every dollar spent on heating oil is lost to the economy of Prince Edward Island. The percentage of people cutting their own fuelwood decreased from 52 in 1984-85 to only 23.4 in 1990-91. The governments of Canada and Prince Edward Island have implemented a series of Forest Resource Development Agreements (FRDAs) starting in 1983. The current 1988-1993 FRDA provides USD 24 million for research and incentives for reforestation and management of Prince Edward Island woodlots. It is expected that 3,800 Prince Edward Island woodlot owners will be participating in a woodlot management program by 1993. Silviculture treatments of hardwood stands include thinning, stand conversion (removal of lowgrade softwoods such as balsam fir in mainly hardwood stands), and shelterwood (strip) cutting, particularly in marginal stands. (9 refs.)

Observation of pH Value in Electrokinetic Remediation using various electrolyte (MgSO4, KH2PO4 and Na(NO3)) for Barren Acidic Soil at Ayer Hitam, Johor, Malaysia

Science.gov (United States)

Norashira, J.; Zaidi, E.; Aziman, M.; Saiful Azhar, A. T.

2016-07-01

Barren acidic soil collected at Ayer Hitam, Johor Malaysia was recorded at pH value of 2.36 with relative humidity of 86%. This pH value is not suitable for the growth of any plants especially for the soil stabilization purposes. Gradation weathering within the range of 4 to 6 indicates an incomplete/partial weathering process. The soil grade in this range is known as a black shale mudstone. Beside, this also influences to a factor of the high surface water runoff at this particular soil species. As the acidic pH become a major problem for soil fertilizing hence an appropriate technique was implemented known as using ‘Electrokinetic Remediation’, EKR. This technique has a great potential in changing the soil pH value from acidic to less acidic and also kept maintain the pH at the saturated rate of electrochemical process. This research study presents the monitoring data of pH value due to the effect of various electrolyte consist of 0.5M of MgSO4, KH2PO4, and Na(NO3). Here, the distilled water (DW) was used as reference solution. The electric field was provided by dipping two pieces of identical rectangular aluminum foil as anode and cathode. The EKR was conducted under a constant voltage gradient of 50 V/m across the sample bulk at 0.14 m length measured between both electrodes. The data collection was conducted during the total period of 7 days surveillance. The variation of pH values at the remediation area between anode and cathode for various type of electrolyte indicates that there are a significant saturated value as it reaches 7 days of treatment. During the analysis, it is found that the highest pH value at the remediation area after 7 days treatment using Na(NO3), KH2PO4 and MgSO4 was 3.93, 3.33 and 3.39 respectively. Hence from the last stage of pH value observation, it can be conclude that the best electrolyte for barren soil treatment is Na(NO3) whereby it contribute to highest pH value and turn the soil to be less acidic.

A Novel Unscheduled Islanding Detection Method for Microgrid

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Li Hui

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Microgrid with its intelligent and flexible control characteristics conform to the trend of sustainable development of electricity, and when the microgrid in the unplanned island state, the successful detection of the island is a prerequisite, energy storage inverter as the key equipment in the microgrid system, island protection is one of the necessary functions. In this paper, an improved islanding detection method based on active frequency drift and q-axis reactive power perturbation is proposed. The method has the advantages of faster detection speed and minor influence on power quality, which makes the energy storage inverter with better output power quality when it works on grid-connected state, and can be detected the islanding state quickly from grid-connected mode to islanded mode. Finally, the validity and superiority of the improved island detection method are verified by simulation experiments.

Effects of insularity on digestion: living on islands induces shifts in physiological and morphological traits in island reptiles

Science.gov (United States)

Sagonas, Kostas; Pafilis, Panayiotis; Valakos, Efstratios D.

2015-10-01

Living on islands entails numerous challenges for animals, among which resource scarcity stands out. In order to survive, animals have to optimize energy acquisition. We examined the impact of insularity on digestion comparing a series of physiological and morphological traits of adult males between insular and mainland populations of the Balkan green lizard. Island lizards had longer gastrointestinal tracts and gut passage times and higher digestive efficiencies. The dissection of the hindgut revealed an unexpected finding, the presence of cecal valves that were more frequent in island lizards. Thanks to all above islanders retain food for longer periods and thus maximize energy income and increase the amount of the extracted nutrients. That way, they secure energy income from the limited, in time and quantity, food resources of the islands.

MARINE BOTTOM COMMUNITIES OF BLOCK ISLAND WATERS

Science.gov (United States)

The sea has long been an integral part of Block Island's natural history, beginning when the rising sea surrounded the high spot on a Pleistocene terminal moraine that became Block Island. The southern New England continental shelf, which lies around Block Island, and the Great S...

Three Mile Island revisited

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

MacLeod, G.K.

1986-01-01

The accident at Three Mile Island proved that the Pennsylvania Department of Health lacked the tools to deal with the serious health consequences that occurred during and after this emergency. Despite the relative safety of nuclear power generation, we must be better prepared for the health and medical consequences of serous radiation emergencies. The author reviews the Three Mile Island accident through the eyes of newspaper reporters

Surficial geology of the sea floor in Long Island Sound offshore of Plum Island, New York

Science.gov (United States)

McMullen, K.Y.; Poppe, L.J.; Danforth, W.W.; Blackwood, D.S.; Schaer, J.D.; Ostapenko, A.J.; Glomb, K.A.; Doran, E.F.

2010-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) have been working cooperatively to interpret surficial sea-floor geology along the coast of the Northeastern United States. NOAA survey H11445 in eastern Long Island Sound, offshore of Plum Island, New York, covers an area of about 12 square kilometers. Multibeam bathymetry and sidescan-sonar imagery from the survey, as well as sediment and photographic data from 13 stations occupied during a USGS verification cruise are used to delineate sea-floor features and characterize the environment. Bathymetry gradually deepens offshore to over 100 meters in a depression in the northwest part of the study area and reaches 60 meters in Plum Gut, a channel between Plum Island and Orient Point. Sand waves are present on a shoal north of Plum Island and in several smaller areas around the basin. Sand-wave asymmetry indicates that counter-clockwise net sediment transport maintains the shoal. Sand is prevalent where there is low backscatter in the sidescan-sonar imagery. Gravel and boulder areas are submerged lag deposits produced from the Harbor Hill-Orient Point-Fishers Island moraine segment and are found adjacent to the shorelines and just north of Plum Island, where high backscatter is present in the sidescan-sonar imagery.

From 3D to 4D seismic tomography at El Hierro Island (Canary Islands, Spain)

Science.gov (United States)

Garcia-Yeguas, A.; Koulakov, I.; Jakovlev, A.; Ibáñez, J. M.

2012-04-01

In this work we are going to show the advantages of a dynamic tomography 4D, versus a static image 3D related with a volcanic reactivation and eruption at El Hierro island (Canary Islands, Spain). In this process a high number of earthquakes before and during the eruptive processes have been registered. We are going to show a 3D image as an average of the velocity structure and then the characteristics and physical properties on the medium, including the presence or not of magma. This image will be complemented with its evolution along the time, observing its volcanic dynamic and its influence over the medium properties, including its power as an important element on early warnings protocols. After more than forty years of quiet at Canary Islands, since 1971 with Teneguía eruption at La Palma Island, and more than 200 years on El Hierro Island (The last eruption known at El Hierro took place in 1793, volcán de Lomo Negro), on 19th July on 2011 the Spanish seismic national network, administered by IGN (Instituto Geográfico Nacional), detected an increase of local seismic activity below El Hierro island (Canary Islands, Spain). Since this moment an intense swarm took place, with more than 11000 events, until 11th December, with magnitudes (MLg) from 0.2 to 4.4. In this period two eruptive processes have been declared in front of the South coast of El Hierro island, and they have not finished yet. This seismic swarm has allowed carrying out a 3D seismic tomography, using P and S waves traveltimes. It has showed a low velocity from the North to the South. On the other hand, we have performed a 4D seismic tomography, taking the events occurred at different intervals of time. We can observe the evolution of the negative anomaly along the time, from the North to the South, where has taken place La Restinga submarine eruption. 4D seismic tomography is an innovative and powerful tool able to show the evolution in time of a volcanic process.

Hypersonic drift-tearing magnetic islands in tokamak plasmas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fitzpatrick, R.; Waelbroeck, F. L.

2007-01-01

A two-fluid theory of long wavelength, hypersonic, drift-tearing magnetic islands in low-collisionality, low-β plasmas possessing relatively weak magnetic shear is developed. The model assumes both slab geometry and cold ions, and neglects electron temperature and equilibrium current gradient effects. The problem is solved in three asymptotically matched regions. The 'inner region' contains the island. However, the island emits electrostatic drift-acoustic waves that propagate into the surrounding 'intermediate region', where they are absorbed by the plasma. Since the waves carry momentum, the inner region exerts a net force on the intermediate region, and vice versa, giving rise to strong velocity shear in the region immediately surrounding the island. The intermediate region is matched to the surrounding 'outer region', in which ideal magnetohydrodynamic holds. Isolated hypersonic islands propagate with a velocity that lies between those of the unperturbed local ion and electron fluids, but is much closer to the latter. The ion polarization current is stabilizing, and increases with increasing island width. Finally, the hypersonic branch of isolated island solutions ceases to exist above a certain critical island width. Hypersonic islands whose widths exceed the critical width are hypothesized to bifurcate to the so-called 'sonic' solution branch

Floristic account of the marine benthic algae from Jarvis Island and Kingman Reef, Line Islands, Central Pacific

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Vroom, P.S.

2012-05-01

Full Text Available The marine benthic algae from Jarvis Island and Kingman Reef were identified from collections obtained from the Whippoorwill Expedition in 1924, the Itasca Expedition in 1935, the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Taney in 1938, the Smithsonian Institution’s Pacific Ocean Biological Survey Program in 1964 and the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Reef Assessment and Monitoring Program (RAMP in 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004 and 2006. A total of 124 species, representing 8 Cyanobacteria (blue-green algae, 82 Rhodophyta (red algae, 6 Heterokontophyta (brown algae and 28 Chlorophyta (green algae, are reported from both islands. Seventy-nine and 95 species of marine benthic algae are recorded from Jarvis Island and Kingman Reef, respectively. Of the 124 species, 77 species or 62% (4 blue-green algae, 57 red algae, 2 brown algae and 14 green algae have never before been reported from the 11 remote reefs, atolls and low islands comprising the Line Islands in the Central Pacific.

Small Island Visitor Attractions

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Haven Allahar

2015-03-01

Full Text Available This article proposes a process framework for developing and managing visitor attractions (VA in small island developing states with Trinidad and Tobago, a two-island state in the Caribbean, as the case study. An extensive literature review was conducted, supported by field observations, individual depth interviews, and small and large focus group meetings. The process framework identified four sets of processes: national policy formulation and legislation; inventory, classification, evaluation, and ranking of VA; general operations management involving project management activities; and site specific activities of development, operations, and maintenance. The value of the framework lies in the fact that no similar framework applicable to small islands was covered in the literature and validation was obtained from a panel of experts and a cross section of tourism stakeholders in Tobago.

Predictable evolution toward flightlessness in volant island birds.

Science.gov (United States)

Wright, Natalie A; Steadman, David W; Witt, Christopher C

2016-04-26

Birds are prolific colonists of islands, where they readily evolve distinct forms. Identifying predictable, directional patterns of evolutionary change in island birds, however, has proved challenging. The "island rule" predicts that island species evolve toward intermediate sizes, but its general applicability to birds is questionable. However, convergent evolution has clearly occurred in the island bird lineages that have undergone transitions to secondary flightlessness, a process involving drastic reduction of the flight muscles and enlargement of the hindlimbs. Here, we investigated whether volant island bird populations tend to change shape in a way that converges subtly on the flightless form. We found that island bird species have evolved smaller flight muscles than their continental relatives. Furthermore, in 366 populations of Caribbean and Pacific birds, smaller flight muscles and longer legs evolved in response to increasing insularity and, strikingly, the scarcity of avian and mammalian predators. On smaller islands with fewer predators, birds exhibited shifts in investment from forelimbs to hindlimbs that were qualitatively similar to anatomical rearrangements observed in flightless birds. These findings suggest that island bird populations tend to evolve on a trajectory toward flightlessness, even if most remain volant. This pattern was consistent across nine families and four orders that vary in lifestyle, foraging behavior, flight style, and body size. These predictable shifts in avian morphology may reduce the physical capacity for escape via flight and diminish the potential for small-island taxa to diversify via dispersal.

The Stypsi-Megala Therma porphyry-epithermal mineralization, Lesvos Island, Greece: new mineralogical and geochemical data

Science.gov (United States)

Periferakis, Argyrios; Voudouris, Panagiotis; Melfos, Vasilios; Mavrogonatos, Constantinos; Alfieris, Dimitrios

2017-04-01

Lesvos Island is located at the NE part of the Aegean Sea and mostly comprises post-collisional Miocene volcanic rocks of shoshonitic to calc-alkaline geochemical affinities. In the northern part of the Island, the Stypsi Cu-Mo±Au porphyry prospect, part of the Stypsi caldera, is hosted within hydrothermally altered intrusives and volcanics [1]. Porphyry-style mineralization is developed in a microgranite porphyry that has intruded basaltic trachyandesitic lavas. Propylitic alteration occurs distal to the mineralization, whereas sodic-calcic alteration related to quartz-actinolite veinlets, and a phyllic overprint associated with a dense stockwork of banded black quartz±carbonate veinlets, characterizes the core of the system. Alunite-kaolinite advanced argillic alteration occurs at higher topographic levels and represents a barren lithocap to the porphyry mineralization. Intermediate-sulfidation (IS) milky quartz-carbonate veins overprint the porphyry mineralization along a NNE-trending fault that extends further northwards to Megala Therma, where it hosts IS base metal-rich Ag-Au mineralization [2]. New mineralogical data from the Megala Therma deposit suggest Ag-famatinite, Te-polybasite and Ag-tetrahedrite as the main carriers of Ag in the mineralization. Porphyry-style ores at Stypsi consist of magnetite postdated by pyrite and then by chalcopyrite, molybdenite, sphalerite, galena and bismuthinite within the black quartz stockworks or disseminated in the wallrock [1]. The dark coloration of quartz in the veinlets is due to abundant vapor-rich fluid inclusions. Quartz is granular and fine-grained and locally elongated perpendicular to the vein walls. Botryoidal textures are continuous through quartz grains, suggesting quartz recrystallization from a silica gel, a feature already described by [3] from banded quartz veinlets in porphyry Au deposits at Maricunga, Chile. Bulk ore analyses from porphyry-style mineralization at Stypsi displayed similar geochemical

Numerical modeling of atoll island hydrogeology.

Science.gov (United States)

Bailey, R T; Jenson, J W; Olsen, A E

2009-01-01

We implemented Ayers and Vachers' (1986) inclusive conceptual model for atoll island aquifers in a comprehensive numerical modeling study to evaluate the response of the fresh water lens to selected controlling climatic and geologic variables. Climatic factors include both constant and time-varying recharge rates, with particular attention paid to the effects of El Niño and the associated drought it brings to the western Pacific. Geologic factors include island width; hydraulic conductivity of the uppermost Holocene-age aquifer, which contains the fresh water lens; the depth to the contact with the underlying, and much more conductive, Pleistocene karst aquifer, which transmits tidal signals to the base of the lens; and the presence or absence of a semiconfining reef flat plate on the ocean side. Sensitivity analyses of steady-steady simulations show that lens thickness is most strongly sensitive to the depth to the Holocene-Pleistocene contact and to the hydraulic conductivity of the Holocene aquifer, respectively. Comparisons between modeling results and published observations of atoll island lens thicknesses suggest a hydraulic conductivity of approximately 50 m/d for leeward islands and approximately 400 m/d for windward islands. Results of transient simulations show that lens thickness fluctuations during average seasonal conditions and El Niño events are quite sensitive to island width, recharge rate, and hydraulic conductivity of the Holocene aquifer. In general, the depletion of the lens during drought conditions is most drastic for small, windward islands. Simulation results suggest that recovery from a 6-month drought requires about 1.5 years.

Climate Change in the Pacific Islands

Science.gov (United States)

Hamnett, Michael P.

Climate change have been a major concern among Pacific Islanders since the late 1990s. During that period, Time Magazine featured a cover story that read: Say Goodbye to the Marshall Islands, Kiribati, and Tuvalu from sea level rise. Since that time, the South Pacific Regional Environment Programme, UN and government agencies and academic researchers have been assessing the impacts of long-term climate change and seasonal to inter-annual climate variability on the Pacific Islands. The consensus is that long-term climate change will result in more extreme weather and tidal events including droughts, floods, tropical cyclones, coastal erosion, and salt water inundation. Extreme weather events already occur in the Pacific Islands and they are patterned. El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) events impact rainfall, tropical cyclone and tidal patterns. In 2000, the first National Assessment of the Consequences of Climate Variability and Change concluded that long-term climate change will result in more El Niño events or a more El Niño like climate every year. The bad news is that will mean more natural disasters. The good news is that El Niño events can be predicted and people can prepare for them. The reallly bad news is that some Pacific Islands are already becoming uninhabitable because of erosion of land or the loss of fresh water from droughts and salt water intrusion. Many of the most vulnerable countries already overseas populations in New Zealand, the US, or larger Pacific Island countries. For some Pacific Islander abandoning their home countries will be their only option.

Professional operation and management of nuclear island installation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ma Limin

2011-01-01

As an important part of nuclear power plant construction, nuclear island installation mainly involves main equipment installation, pipeline installation, associated procedure examination and other important tasks. However, due to the nuclear island installation management changing from single project to multi-projects, the problems such as professional management of nuclear island installation and the lack of technical staff become more and more prominent and become one of the key restricts to the work of nuclear island installation. Based on analysis of the single project, single-base nuclear island installation management and practice, combined with the current situation that multi-project and multi-base construction of nuclear power are carrying out at the same time, this paper proposes a new management model of nuclear island installation. (author)

Phytoseiid mites of the Canary Islands (Acari, Phytoseiidae. II. Tenerife and La Gomera Islands

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Ferragut, F.

2007-12-01

Full Text Available Phytoseiid mites (Acari, Phytoseiidae inhabiting plants in natural ecosystems from Tenerife and La Gomera islands (Canary Islands have been studied. Surveys were conducted from 1997 to 2002. Eleven species were collected, one of them being reported for the first time from the Canary Islands and six of them reported for the first time from Tenerife and La Gomera islands. Euseius machadoi n. sp. collected from woody plants in the Canarian laurisilva is proposed as a new species.

En muestreos realizados desde 1997 hasta 2002 se ha estudiado la fauna de ácaros fitoseidos (Acari, Phytoseiidae asociada a plantas de ecosistemas naturales de las islas de Tenerife y La Gomera (Islas Canarias. Se han recolectado un total de 11 especies, siendo una de ellas citada por vez primera en las islas Canarias y seis de ellas citadas por primera vez en las islas de Tenerife y La Gomera. Euseius machadoi n. sp., recolectado en plantas leñosas de la laurisilva canaria, se propone como una nueva especie.

Decolonizing through integration: Australia's off-shore island territories

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Roger Wettenhall

2016-11-01

Full Text Available Australia’s three small off-shore island territories – Norfolk Island in the Pacific Ocean and Christmas Island and the Cocos (Keeling Islands Group in the Indian Ocean – can be seen as monuments to 19th century British-style colonization, though their early paths to development took very different courses. Their transition to the status of external territories of the Australian Commonwealth in the 20th century – early in the case of Norfolk and later in the cases of Christmas and Cocos – put them on a common path in which serious tensions emerged between local populations which sought autonomous governance and the Commonwealth government which wanted to impose governmental systems similar to those applying to mainstream Australians. This article explores the issues involved, and seeks to relate the governmental history of the three island territories to the exploration of island jurisdictions developed in island studies research.

Stygofauna of the Canary Islands, 9. The amphipod genus Pseudoniphargus (Crustacea) in the Canary Islands

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Stock, Jan H.

1988-01-01

Pseudoniphargus was known from inland stygohabitats in the Iberian peninsula, the Azores, Madeira, N.W. Africa, and Bermuda, but not from the Canary Islands. Systematic sampling in six of the seven larger islands of the latter archipelago has revealed the presence of the genus in Tenerife (4

Reconstructed Marine Fisheries Catches at a Remote Island Group: Pitcairn Islands (1950–2014

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Amy R. Coghlan

2017-09-01

Full Text Available The remote Pitcairn Island Group in the South Pacific was designated one of the world's largest marine reserves in 2016, encompassing some of the few remaining near-pristine areas within EEZ boundaries. Pitcairn's domestic fisheries are small-scale, and consist mainly of subsistence (non-commercial and limited artisanal (commercial catches. There is no locally-based industrial (large-scale commercial fishery and the level of foreign industrial activity in recent times has been minimal, due in part to the low biomass of commercially valuable species, along with economic constraints of the EEZ's geographic isolation. Using a catch reconstruction method we estimated the total domestic marine catches for the Pitcairn Islands from 1950 to 2014. We show that overall the Pitcairn Islands' small-scale fisheries catches were almost 2.5 times higher than the data reported by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO of the United Nations on behalf of the Pitcairn Islands, however, this primarily reflects discrepancies prior to the 1980s. Overall, catches for the subsistence and artisanal sectors started with around 12 t·year−1 in 1950, but declined to 4 t·year−1 by 2014. Domestic reconstructed subsistence catch levels were entirely driven by changes in the human population on the island, with reconstructed artisanal catches only occurring in recent years (2000 onwards. Industrial fishing is entirely executed by foreign vessels, this catch is considerably variable throughout the years and ceases entirely in 2006. The implementation of one of the world's largest marine reserves surrounding the offshore waters of Pitcairn Island has been specifically designed not to affect the rates of subsistence and artisanal fishing conducted by the resident population. Although there is no industrial fishing in the Pitcairn EEZ at present, climate change is predicted to influence the routes of migrating commercially-targeted species, potentially altering fishing

33 CFR 334.1420 - Pacific Ocean off Orote Point, Apra Harbor, Island of Guam, Marianas Islands; small arms firing...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 33 Navigation and Navigable Waters 3 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Pacific Ocean off Orote Point, Apra Harbor, Island of Guam, Marianas Islands; small arms firing range. 334.1420 Section 334.1420... AND RESTRICTED AREA REGULATIONS § 334.1420 Pacific Ocean off Orote Point, Apra Harbor, Island of Guam...

The transport characteristics of passing fast ions produced by nonlocal overlapping of drift island surfaces and magnetic island surfaces

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cao, Jinjia; Gong, Xueyu, E-mail: gongxueyu-usc@163.com; Xiang, Dong; Huang, Qianhong [School of Nuclear Science and Technology, University of South China, Hengyang 421001 (China); Yu, Jun [School of Mathematics and Physics, University of South China, Hengyang 421001 (China)

2016-08-15

The structure of the drift-island surface of passing fast ions (PFIs) is investigated in the presence of the resonant interaction with a magnetic island. Two overlapping regions of the drift-island surface and the magnetic island surface are found, one corresponding to local overlapping region and the other to non-local one. Here, the word “nonlocal” denotes that the resonances in the core plasma can have effects on the PFIs near the plasma boundary, while the “local” represents that the PFIs just near the resonant location are influenced. The nonlocal overlapping constructs a transport path along which the PFIs can become losses. There are three kinds of drift-island surfaces to join in forming the transport paths. A pitch angle region, which is called pitch angle gap, is found near the plasma boundary, where the drift-island surface cannot be formed and few PFIs are lost. The pitch-angle selective features of PFI losses are obtained by analyzing the three kinds of drift-island surfaces. The coupling between the crowd drift island surfaces and the collision can induce the prompt losses of PFIs and rapidly slowing down of PFI energy. The time of the prompt losses and the slowing down rate are calculated. Qualitatively, the theoretical results are in well agreement with the experimental observations in ASDEX Upgrade [M. García-Muñoz et al., Nucl. Fusion 47, L10 (2007)].

Non-Gaussianity in island cosmology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Piao Yunsong

2009-01-01

In this paper we fully calculate the non-Gaussianity of primordial curvature perturbation of the island universe by using the second order perturbation equation. We find that for the spectral index n s ≅0.96, which is favored by current observations, the non-Gaussianity level f NL seen in an island will generally lie between 30 and 60, which may be tested by the coming observations. In the landscape, the island universe is one of anthropically acceptable cosmological histories. Thus the results obtained in some sense mean the coming observations, especially the measurement of non-Gaussianity, will be significant to clarify how our position in the landscape is populated.

The CpG island searcher: a new WWW resource.

Science.gov (United States)

Takai, Daiya; Jones, Peter A

2003-01-01

Clusters of CpG dinucleotides in GC rich regions of the genome called "CpG islands" frequently occur in the 5' ends of genes. Methylation of CpG islands plays a role in transcriptional silencing in higher organisms in certain situations. We have established a CpG-island-extraction algorithm, which we previously developed [Takai and Jones, 2002], on a web site which has a simple user interface to identify CpG islands from submitted sequences of up to 50kb. The web site determines the locations of CpG islands using parameters (lower limit of %GC, ObsCpG/ExpCpG, length) set by the user, to display the value of parameters on each CpG island, and provides a graphical map of CpG dinucleotide distribution and borders of CpG islands. A command-line version of the CpG islands searcher has also been developed for larger sequences. The CpG Island Searcher was applied to the latest sequence and mapping information of human chromosomes 20, 21 and 22, and a total of 2345 CpG islands were extracted and 534 (23%) of them contained first coding exons and 650 (28%) contained other exons. The CpG Island Searcher is available on the World Wide Web at http://www.cpgislands.com or http://www.uscnorris.com/cpgislands/cpg.cgi.

Climate change vulnerability to agrarian ecosystem of small Island: evidence from Sagar Island, India

Science.gov (United States)

Mandal, S.; Satpati, L. N.; Choudhury, B. U.; Sadhu, S.

2018-04-01

The present study assessed climate change vulnerability in agricultural sector of low-lying Sagar Island of Bay of Bengal. Vulnerability indices were estimated using spatially aggregated biophysical and socio-economic parameters by applying principal component analysis and equal weight method. The similarities and differences of outputs of these two methods were analysed across the island. From the integration of outputs and based on the severity of vulnerability, explicit vulnerable zones were demarcated spatially. Results revealed that life subsistence agriculture in 11.8% geographical area (2829 ha) of the island along the western coast falls under very high vulnerable zone (VHVZ VI of 84-99%) to climate change. Comparatively higher values of exposure (0.53 ± 0.26) and sensitivity (0.78 ± 0.14) subindices affirmed that the VHV zone is highly exposed to climate stressor with very low adaptive capacity (ADI= 0.24 ± 0.16) to combat vulnerability to climate change. Hence, food security for a population of >22 thousands comprising >3.7 thousand agrarian households are highly exposed to climate change. Another 17% area comprising 17.5% population covering 20% villages in north-western and eastern parts of the island also falls under high vulnerable (VI= 61%-77%) zone. Findings revealed large spatial heterogeneity in the degree of vulnerability across the island and thus, demands devising area specific planning (adaptation and mitigation strategies) to address the climate change impact implications both at macro and micro levels.

Diet patterns of island foxes on San Nicolas Island relative to feral cat removal

Science.gov (United States)

Cypher, Brian L.; Kelly, Erica C.; Ferrara, Francesca J.; Drost, Charles A.; Westall, Tory L.; Hudgens, Brian

2017-01-01

Island foxes (Urocyon littoralis) are a species of conservation concern that occur on six of the Channel Islands off the coast of southern California. We analysed island fox diet on San Nicolas Island during 2006–12 to assess the influence of the removal of feral cats (Felis catus) on the food use by foxes. Our objective was to determine whether fox diet patterns shifted in response to the cat removal conducted during 2009–10, thus indicating that cats were competing with foxes for food items. We also examined the influence of annual precipitation patterns and fox abundance on fox diet. On the basis of an analysis of 1975 fox scats, use of vertebrate prey – deer mice (Peromyscus maniculatus), birds, and lizards – increased significantly during and after the complete removal of cats (n = 66) from the island. Deer mouse abundance increased markedly during and after cat removal and use of mice by foxes was significantly related to mouse abundance. The increase in mice and shift in item use by the foxes was consistent with a reduction in exploitative competition associated with the cat removal. However, fox abundance declined markedly coincident with the removal of cats and deer mouse abundance was negatively related to fox numbers. Also, annual precipitation increased markedly during and after cat removal and deer mouse abundance closely tracked precipitation. Thus, our results indicate that other confounding factors, particularly precipitation, may have had a greater influence on fox diet patterns.

Aborigines of the nuclear desert

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rujula, A. de

1985-01-01

The chart of 'stable nuclides' extends from Hydrogen, to Z proportional 98, A proportional 263. It contains another island of stability - neutron stars - in a narrow range around Z proportional 10 56 , A proportional 10 57 . In between lies a supposedly barren region encompassing more than 50 orders of magnitude. This desert may be populated by strange quark balls: Stable single bags containing similar proportions of u, d and s quarks. These balls are candidates for the constituency of the 'dark mass' in galaxies and in the Universe. We describe seven ways to search for these possible inhabitants of the nuclear desert. (orig.)

Updating Rhode Island's strategic highway safety plan (SHSP).

Science.gov (United States)

2012-05-01

This report summarizes the peer exchange sponsored by the Rhode Island : Department of Transportation (RIDOT) that focused on Rhode Islands SHSP : update. : Rhode Islands goals for the peer exchange included learning from other States : expe...

Island Movements: Thinking with the Archipelago

OpenAIRE

Jonathan Pugh

2013-01-01

Whether in Homer or Plato, Shakespeare or Huxley, throughout history, thinking about islands has shaped how we think about human nature and our place in the world. However, to date archipelagos have received far less attention. This is problematic because we live, increasingly, in a world of island-island movements and not static forms. Not only in the more obvious cases of the Caribbean, Hawaii or the Philippines but, as Stratford et al (2011) say, many ‘continental forms’ like Canada and Au...

Obesity and Native Hawaiians/Pacific Islanders

Science.gov (United States)

... Population Profiles > Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander > Obesity Obesity and Native Hawaiians/Pacific Islanders Native Hawaiians/Pacific ... youthonline . [Accessed 08/18/2017] HEALTH IMPACT OF OBESITY People who are overweight are more likely to ...

Asthma and Native Hawaiians/Pacific Islanders

Science.gov (United States)

... Population Profiles > Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander > Asthma Asthma and Native Hawaiians/Pacific Islanders National data for ... very limited. While all of the causes of asthma remain unclear, children exposed to secondhand tobacco smoke ...

Immunizations and Asians and Pacific Islanders

Science.gov (United States)

... and Data > Minority Population Profiles > Asian American > Immunizations Immunizations and Asians and Pacific Islanders Asian/Pacific Islander ... 35 months reached the Healthy People goal for immunizations for hepatitis B, MMR (measles-mumps-rubella), polio ...

Control of paleoshorelines by trench forebulge uplift, Loyalty Islands

Science.gov (United States)

Dickinson, William R.

2013-07-01

Unlike most tropical Pacific islands, which lie along island arcs or hotspot chains, the Loyalty Islands between New Caledonia and Vanuatu owe their existence and morphology to the uplift of pre-existing atolls on the flexural forebulge of the New Hebrides Trench. The configuration and topography of each island is a function of distance from the crest of the uplifted forebulge. Both Maré and Lifou are fully emergent paleoatolls upon which ancient barrier reefs form highstanding annular ridges that enclose interior plateaus representing paleolagoon floors, whereas the partially emergent Ouvea paleoatoll rim flanks a drowned remnant lagoon. Emergent paleoshoreline features exposed by island uplift include paleoreef flats constructed as ancient fringing reefs built to past low tide levels and emergent tidal notches incised at past high tide levels. Present paleoshoreline elevations record uplift rates of the islands since last-interglacial and mid-Holocene highstands in global and regional sea levels, respectively, and paleoreef stratigraphy reflects net Quaternary island emergence. The empirical uplift rates vary in harmony with theoretical uplift rates inferred from the different positions of the islands in transit across the trench forebulge at the trench subduction rate. The Loyalty Islands provide a case study of island environments controlled primarily by neotectonics.

76 FR 27253 - Safety Zone; Catawba Island Club Fireworks, Catawba Island Club, Port Clinton, OH

Science.gov (United States)

2011-05-11

... environmental risk to health or risk to safety that may disproportionately affect children. Indian Tribal...-AA00 Safety Zone; Catawba Island Club Fireworks, Catawba Island Club, Port Clinton, OH AGENCY: Coast... zone in the Captain of the Port Detroit Zone on Lake Erie, Port Clinton, Ohio. This zone is intended to...

Islands on the edge: housing development and other threats to America's Pacific and Caribbean Island forests: a Forests on the Edge report

Science.gov (United States)

Susan M. Stein; Mary A. Carr; Greg C. Liknes; Sara J. Comas

2014-01-01

This report provides an overview of expected housing density changes and related impacts to private forests on America's islands in the Pacific and Caribbean, specifically Hawaii, Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. We discuss the vulnerability of island forests to conversion for housing...

Estimating the Ground Water Resources of Atoll Islands

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Arne E. Olsen

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Ground water resources of atolls, already minimal due to the small surface area and low elevation of the islands, are also subject to recurring, and sometimes devastating, droughts. As ground water resources become the sole fresh water source when rain catchment supplies are exhausted, it is critical to assess current groundwater resources and predict their depletion during drought conditions. Several published models, both analytical and empirical, are available to estimate the steady-state freshwater lens thickness of small oceanic islands. None fully incorporates unique shallow geologic characteristics of atoll islands, and none incorporates time-dependent processes. In this paper, we provide a review of these models, and then present a simple algebraic model, derived from results of a comprehensive numerical modeling study of steady-state atoll island aquifer dynamics, to predict the ground water response to changes in recharge on atoll islands. The model provides an estimate thickness of the freshwater lens as a function of annual rainfall rate, island width, Thurber Discontinuity depth, upper aquifer hydraulic conductivity, presence or absence of a confining reef flat plate, and in the case of drought, time. Results compare favorably with published atoll island lens thickness observations. The algebraic model is incorporated into a spreadsheet interface for use by island water resources managers.

CRED 40 m Gridded bathymetry of Howland Island, Pacific Remote Island Areas, Central Pacific (Arc ASCII Format)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Gridded (40 m cell size) bathymetry of the shelf and slope environments of Howland Island, Pacific Remote Island Areas, Central Pacific. Almost complete bottom...

CRED 5 m Gridded bathymetry of Jarvis Island, Pacific Remote Island Areas, Central Pacific (Arc ASCII Format)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Gridded (5 m cell size) bathymetry of the shelf and slope environments of Jarvis Island, Pacific Remote Island Areas, Central Pacific. Almost complete bottom...

CRED 40 m Gridded bathymetry of Baker Island, Pacific Remote Island Areas, Central Pacific (Arc ASCII Format)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Gridded (40 m cell size) bathymetry of the shelf and slope environments of Baker Island, Pacific Remote Island Areas, Central Pacific. Almost complete bottom...

Decay process of a magnetic island by forced reconnection

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nagasaki, K.; Itoh, K.

1991-03-01

Time evolution of a magnetic island by forced reconnection, especially the decay process is analyzed. A simple slab model is used and the magnetic island is considered to have a single helicity. The plasma is assumed to be incompressible. The evolution time is affected by the presence of an original magnetic island. In the decay process, a current flows along the separatrix of the magnetic island, and the current layer width depends on the magnetic island width, when the island is relatively wide compared to the current layer. In the presence of a magnetic island, even if the magnetic Reynolds number S increases, the current layer does not become narrower. This leads to the slow evolution of the magnetic island. It is found that the time scale S 1 τ A is required to reach the last equilibrium regardless of the nonlinear terms. This is slower than that of the growth process, S 3/5 τ A . (author)

Examples of storm impacts on barrier islands: Chapter 4

Science.gov (United States)

Plant, Nathaniel G.; Doran, Kara; Stockdon, Hilary F.

2017-01-01

This chapter focuses on the morphologic variability of barrier islands and on the differences in storm response. It describes different types of barrier island response to individual storms, as well as the integrated response of barrier islands to many storms. The chapter considers case study on the Chandeleur Island chain, where a decadal time series of island elevation measurements have documented a wide range of barrier island responses to storms and long-term processes that are representative of barrier island behaviour at many other locations. These islands are low elevation, extremely vulnerable to storms and exhibit a diversity of storm responses. Additionally, this location experiences a moderately high rate of relative sea-level rise, increasing its vulnerability to the combined impacts of storms and long-term erosional processes. Understanding how natural processes, including storm impacts and intervening recovery periods interact with man-made restoration processes is also broadly relevant to understand the natural and human response to future storms.

Researching Pacific island livelihoods: mobility, natural resource management and nissology.

Science.gov (United States)

Christensen, Andreas E; Mertz, Ole

2010-01-01

Small island literature is vast in focus and aim, and is rooted in many different disciplines. The challenge is to find common grounds for researching small islands conceptually and theoretically. The aim of this article is to comment on how to research small islands, including a discussion on contemporary theories of nissology and conceptual analytical frameworks for island research. Through a review of selected case-study-based island literature on changing livelihoods coming out of the South Pacific, we wish to illustrate and discuss advantages of finding common grounds for small island studies. The focus is on two dimensions of island livelihood, migration and natural resource management, both of which are significant contributors in making island livelihoods and shaping Pacific seascapes. We argue that there is still a substantial lack of studies targeting small island dynamics that are empirical and interdisciplinary in focus and link socio-economic and ecological processes of small island societies at temporal and analytical scales.

Groundwater flow in a relatively old oceanic volcanic island: The Betancuria area, Fuerteventura Island, Canary Islands, Spain

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Herrera, Christian, E-mail: cherrera@ucn.cl [Universidad Católica del Norte, Av. Angamos 0610, Antofagasta (Chile); Custodio, Emilio [Department of Geo-Engineering, Technical University of Catalonia (UPC), Barcelona (Spain)

2014-10-15

The island of Fuerteventura is the oldest of the Canary Islands' volcanic archipelago. It is constituted by volcanic submarine and subaerial activity and intrusive Miocene events, with some residual later volcanism and Quaternary volcanic deposits that have favored groundwater recharge. The climate is arid, with an average rainfall that barely attains 60 mm/year in the coast and up to 200 mm/year in the highlands. The aquifer recharge is small but significant; it is brackish due to large airborne atmospheric salinity, between 7 and 15 g m{sup −2} year{sup −1} of chloride deposition, and high evapo-concentration in the soil. The average recharge is estimated to be less than about 5 mm/year at low altitude and up to 10 mm/year in the highlands, and up to 20 mm/year associated to recent lava fields. Hydrochemical and water isotopic studies, supported by water table data and well and borehole descriptions, contribute a preliminary conceptual model of groundwater flow and water origin in the Betancuria area, the central area of the island. In general, water from springs and shallow wells tends to be naturally brackish and of recent origin. Deep saline groundwater is found and is explained as remnants of very old marine water trapped in isolated features in the very low permeability intrusive rocks. Preliminary radiocarbon dating indicates that this deep groundwater has an apparent age of less than 5000 years BP but it is the result of mixing recent water recharge with very old deep groundwater. Most of the groundwater flow occurs through the old raised volcanic shield of submarine and subaerial formations and later Miocene subaerial basalts. Groundwater transit time through the unsaturated zone is of a few decades, which allows the consideration of long-term quasi-steady state recharge. Transit times are up to a few centuries through the saturated old volcanics and up to several millennia in the intrusive formations, where isolated pockets of very old water may

Past, Present, Future Erosion at Locke Island

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bjornstad, Bruce N.

2006-08-08

This report describes and documents the erosion that has occurred along the northeast side of Locke Island over the last 10 to 20 years. The principal cause of this erosion is the massive Locke Island landslide complex opposite the Columbia River along the White Bluffs, which constricts the flow of the river and deflects the river's thalweg southward against the island.

Benthic substrate classification map: Gulf Islands National Seashore

Science.gov (United States)

Lavoie, Dawn; Flocks, James; Twichell, Dave; Rose, Kate

2013-01-01

The 2005 hurricane season was devastating for the Mississippi Gulf Coast. Hurricane Katrina caused significant degradation of the barrier islands that compose the Gulf Islands National Seashore (GUIS). Because of the ability of coastal barrier islands to help mitigate hurricane damage to the mainland, restoring these habitats prior to the onset of future storms will help protect the islands themselves and the surrounding habitats. During Hurricane Katrina, coastal barrier islands reduced storm surge by approximately 10 percent and moderated wave heights (Wamsley and others, 2009). Islands protected the mainland by preventing ocean waves from maintaining their size as they approached the mainland. In addition to storm protection, it is advantageous to restore these islands to preserve the cultural heritage present there (for example, Fort Massachusetts) and because of the influence that these islands have on marine ecology. For example, these islands help maintain a salinity regime favorable to oysters in the Mississippi Sound and provide critical habitats for many migratory birds and endangered species such as sea turtles (Chelonia mydas, Caretta caretta, and Dermochelys coriacea), Gulf sturgeon (Acipenser oxyrinchus desotoi), and piping plovers (Charadrius melodus) (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, 2009a). As land manager for the GUIS, the National Park Service (NPS) has been working with the State of Mississippi and the Mobile District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to provide a set of recommendations to the Mississippi Coastal Improvements Program (MsCIP) that will guide restoration planning. The final set of recommendations includes directly renourishing both West Ship Island (to protect Fort Massachusetts) and East Ship Island (to restore the French Warehouse archaeological site); filling Camille Cut to recreate a continuous Ship Island; and restoring natural regional sediment transport processes by placing sand in the littoral zone just east of Petit Bois

Natural Resource Management Plan

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Green, T. [Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL), Upton, NY (United States); Schwager, K. [Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL), Upton, NY (United States)

2016-10-01

This comprehensive Natural Resource Management Plan (NRMP) for Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) was built on the successful foundation of the Wildlife Management Plan for BNL, which it replaces. This update to the 2003 plan continues to build on successes and efforts to better understand the ecosystems and natural resources found on the BNL site. The plan establishes the basis for managing the varied natural resources located on the 5,265-acre BNL site, setting goals and actions to achieve those goals. The planning of this document is based on the knowledge and expertise gained over the past 15 years by the Natural Resources management staff at BNL in concert with local natural resource agencies including the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, Long Island Pine Barrens Joint Planning and Policy Commission, The Nature Conservancy, and others. The development of this plan works toward sound ecological management that not only benefits BNL’s ecosystems but also benefits the greater Pine Barrens habitats in which BNL is situated. This plan applies equally to the Upton Ecological and Research Reserve (Upton Reserve). Any difference in management between the larger BNL area and the Upton Reserve are noted in the text.

Alternative Fuels Data Center: Rhode Island Transportation Data for

Science.gov (United States)

stations in Rhode Island with alternative fuels Fuel Public Private Biodiesel (B20 and above) 3 3 More Rhode Island Videos on YouTube Video thumbnail for Cooking Oil Powers Biodiesel Vehicles in Rhode Island Cooking Oil Powers Biodiesel Vehicles in Rhode Island July 14, 2017 https://www.youtube.com/embed

Islands for nuclear power stations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Usher, E.F.F.W.; Fraser, A.P.

1981-01-01

The safety principles, design criteria and types of artificial island for an offshore nuclear power station are discussed with particular reference to siting adjacent to an industrial island. The paper concludes that the engineering problems are soluble and that offshore nuclear power stations will eventually be built but that much fundamental work is still required. (author)

Monitoring developments in island waters

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Crellin, L.V.

1995-01-01

The environmental effects of islands in the Irish Sea of the offshore oil and gas industry are discussed in this paper, in particular on sand and gravel resources. This information is considered by the Department of Trade and Industry when granting prospecting, exploration and production licenses. Consultation between industry and islanders forms part of the license granting process. (UK)

Runaway electrons and magnetic island confinement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Boozer, Allen H.

2016-01-01

The breakup of magnetic surfaces is a central feature of ITER planning for the avoidance of damage due to runaway electrons. Rapid thermal quenches, which lead to large accelerating voltages, are thought to be due to magnetic surface breakup. Impurity injection to avoid and to mitigate both halo and runaway electron currents utilizes massive gas injection or shattered pellets. The actual deposition is away from the plasma center, and the breakup of magnetic surfaces is thought to spread the effects of the impurities across the plasma cross section. The breakup of magnetic surfaces would prevent runaway electrons from reaching relativistic energies were it not for the persistence of non-intercepting flux tubes. These are tubes of magnetic field lines that do not intercept the walls. In simulations and in magnetic field models, non-intercepting flux tubes are found to persist near the magnetic axis and in the cores of magnetic islands even when a large scale magnetic surface breakup occurs. As long as a few magnetic surfaces reform before all of the non-intercepting flux tubes dissipate, energetic electrons confined and accelerated in these flux tubes can serve as the seed electrons for a transfer of the overall plasma current from thermal to relativistic carriers. The acceleration of electrons is particularly strong because of the sudden changes in the poloidal flux that naturally occur in a rapid magnetic relaxation. The physics of magnetic islands as non-intercepting flux tubes is studied. Expressions are derived for (1) the size of islands required to confine energetic runaway electrons, (2) the accelerating electric field in an island, (3) the increase or reduction in the size of an island by the runaway electron current, (4) the approximate magnitude of the runaway current in an island, and (5) the time scale for the evolution of an island.

Runaway electrons and magnetic island confinement

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Boozer, Allen H., E-mail: ahb17@columbia.edu [Columbia University, New York, New York 10027 (United States)

2016-08-15

The breakup of magnetic surfaces is a central feature of ITER planning for the avoidance of damage due to runaway electrons. Rapid thermal quenches, which lead to large accelerating voltages, are thought to be due to magnetic surface breakup. Impurity injection to avoid and to mitigate both halo and runaway electron currents utilizes massive gas injection or shattered pellets. The actual deposition is away from the plasma center, and the breakup of magnetic surfaces is thought to spread the effects of the impurities across the plasma cross section. The breakup of magnetic surfaces would prevent runaway electrons from reaching relativistic energies were it not for the persistence of non-intercepting flux tubes. These are tubes of magnetic field lines that do not intercept the walls. In simulations and in magnetic field models, non-intercepting flux tubes are found to persist near the magnetic axis and in the cores of magnetic islands even when a large scale magnetic surface breakup occurs. As long as a few magnetic surfaces reform before all of the non-intercepting flux tubes dissipate, energetic electrons confined and accelerated in these flux tubes can serve as the seed electrons for a transfer of the overall plasma current from thermal to relativistic carriers. The acceleration of electrons is particularly strong because of the sudden changes in the poloidal flux that naturally occur in a rapid magnetic relaxation. The physics of magnetic islands as non-intercepting flux tubes is studied. Expressions are derived for (1) the size of islands required to confine energetic runaway electrons, (2) the accelerating electric field in an island, (3) the increase or reduction in the size of an island by the runaway electron current, (4) the approximate magnitude of the runaway current in an island, and (5) the time scale for the evolution of an island.

Streamlined islands and the English Channel megaflood hypothesis

Science.gov (United States)

Collier, J. S.; Oggioni, F.; Gupta, S.; García-Moreno, D.; Trentesaux, A.; De Batist, M.

2015-12-01

Recognising ice-age catastrophic megafloods is important because they had significant impact on large-scale drainage evolution and patterns of water and sediment movement to the oceans, and likely induced very rapid, short-term effects on climate. It has been previously proposed that a drainage system on the floor of the English Channel was initiated by catastrophic flooding in the Pleistocene but this suggestion has remained controversial. Here we examine this hypothesis through an analysis of key landform features. We use a new compilation of multi- and single-beam bathymetry together with sub-bottom profiler data to establish the internal structure, planform geometry and hence origin of a set of 36 mid-channel islands. Whilst there is evidence of modern-day surficial sediment processes, the majority of the islands can be clearly demonstrated to be formed of bedrock, and are hence erosional remnants rather than depositional features. The islands display classic lemniscate or tear-drop outlines, with elongated tips pointing downstream, typical of streamlined islands formed during high-magnitude water flow. The length-to-width ratio for the entire island population is 3.4 ± 1.3 and the degree-of-elongation or k-value is 3.7 ± 1.4. These values are comparable to streamlined islands in other proven Pleistocene catastrophic flood terrains and are distinctly different to values found in modern-day rivers. The island geometries show a correlation with bedrock type: with those carved from Upper Cretaceous chalk having larger length-to-width ratios (3.2 ± 1.3) than those carved into more mixed Paleogene terrigenous sandstones, siltstones and mudstones (3.0 ± 1.5). We attribute these differences to the former rock unit having a lower skin friction which allowed longer island growth to achieve minimum drag. The Paleogene islands, although less numerous than the Chalk islands, also assume more perfect lemniscate shapes. These lithologies therefore reached island

Youth lead youth in Marshall Islands.

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, G

1988-01-01

The promotion of family planning and birth control in Pacific countries is often frustrated by traditional and religious beliefs, if not deterred by tremendous funding and logistics problems. In the central Pacific republic of the Marshall Islands, however, youthful health workers are taking a unique approach to health promotion that has spurred acceptance of the once controversial subjects of family planning and birth control. A group known as Youth to Youth in Health is spearheading a family planning outreach drive in the schools and community in the Marshall Islands. Coupling health presentations with traditional island music and dance to produce lively health shows, the group's programs on family planning, birth control, nutrition, and cancer have struck a responsive chord in a culture known for its religious and traditional conservatism. The group makes creative use of puppet shows, skits, health songs, and pantomimes, interspersed with contemporary renditions of Marshall Islands music and traditional dances. These have rekindled pride in their culture among the group and sparked a sense of urgency about the need to improve health conditions in the islands. As evidence of the group's impact, family planning staff point to a nearly 4-fold rise in the number of youth clients under 19 years since the Youth to Youth started in mid-1986. Their combination of traditional custom with family planning and other health information has proved to be an innovative and needed program for the islands.

Benthic Mapping in Long Island Sound

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — QTCView is used with an incorporated depthfinder to create a sonar map of the bottom to the west of the Charles Island, in Long Island Sound in Connecticut waters....

Bathymetry 1M Grid of St. Croix (Buck Island), US Virgin Islands 2005, UTM 20 NAD83

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This dataset contains an ESRI Grid with 1 meter cell size representing the bathymetry of the north shore of St. Croix (Buck Island), US Virgin Islands. NOAA's...

NOAA TIFF Graphic- 0.5m Backscatter Mosaic of St. Croix (Buck Island), US Virgin Islands, 2004

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This geotiff represents a 0.5 meter resolution backscatter mosaic of the north shore of Buck Island, St. Croix, US Virgin Islands.NOAA's NOS/NCCOS/CCMA Biogeography...

Bathymetry 1M GRID of St. Croix (Buck Island), US Virgin Islands, 2004, UTM 20 WGS84

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This dataset contains an ESRI Grid with 1 meter cell size representing the bathymetry of the north shore of Buck Island St. Croix, US Virgin Islands. NOAA's...

NOAA TIFF Graphic- 0.5m Backscatter Mosaic of St. Croix (Buck Island), US Virgin Islands, 2004

Data.gov (United States)