Search Results (31)

Wave erosion of slopes can easily trigger landslides into marine environments and pose severe threats to both the ecological environment and human activities. Therefore, near-shore slope monitoring becomes crucial for preventing and alerting people to these potential disasters. To achieve a comprehensive understanding, it is imperative to conduct a detailed investigation into the dynamics of wave erosion processes acting on slopes. This research is conducted through flume tests, using a wave maker to create waves of various heights and frequencies to erode the slope models. During the tests, seismic signals, acoustic signals, and pore pressure generated by wave erosion and slope failure are recorded. Seismic and acoustic signals are analyzed, and time-frequency spectra are calculated using the Hilbert–Huang Transform to identify the erosion events and signal frequency ranges. Arias Intensity is used to assess seismic energy and explore the relationship between the amount of erosion and energy. The results show that wave height has a more decisive influence on erosion behavior and retreat than wave frequency. Rapid drawdown may potentially cause the slope to slide during cyclic swash and backwash wave action. As wave erosion changes from swash to impact, there is a significant increase in the spectral magnitude and Power Spectral Density (PSD) of both seismic and acoustic signals. An increase in pore pressure is observed due to the rise in the run-up height of waves. The amplitude of pore pressure will increase as the slope undergoes further erosion. Understanding the results of this study can aid in predicting erosion and in planning effective management strategies for slopes subject to wave action. Full article

The proposed “Guanlan” ocean science satellite, led by China’s Laoshan Laboratory, includes an interferometric radar altimeter (IRA) as a key payload. As an integral part of its development, an airborne IRA experiment was conducted on 6 November 2021, with a flight path of approximately 90 km in the South China Sea. This study investigates the IRA’s ability to observe ocean sea surface height (SSH) across scales ranging from meters to mesoscale. The sea surface height anomaly (SSHA) of the IRA is aligned with the SSHA of the AVISO at scales greater than 30 km, but also demonstrates the ability to capture small-scale SSHA changes in two dimensions. We analyzed wavenumber spectra of SSHA obtained from the airborne IRA, ICESat-2, and SARAL/AltiKa satellite for this region. The results show a good agreement in power spectral density (PSD) levels between ICESat-2, SARAL/AltiKa and IRA at scales larger than 30 km. Within the submesoscale range of 1–10 km, the IRA SSHA spectrum exhibits a distinctly negative slope and the lowest energy level. The minimum PSD level of the IRA fell in the range of 10⁻⁴–10⁻³ m²/cycle/km, at scales around 1 km, which is more than an order of magnitude lower than that of ICESat-2, forming a spectral gap that is in agreement with the theoretical expectation. Furthermore, IRA-derived wave direction and significant wave height matched well with the MFWAM wave data. The results of this study underscore the considerable potential of airborne IRA in capturing SSHA across a range of scales, from oceanic waves to submesoscale. Full article

Quantitative estimates of particle size in estuaries and shelf areas are important to understand ocean ecology and biogeochemistry. Particle size can be characterized qualitatively from satellite observations of ocean color. As a typical marginal sea, the Yellow River Delta (YRD) with the Bohai Sea experiences a complex hydrodynamic environment. Here, we attempt to quantify the particle size distribution (PSD) slope (ξ) based on its relationship with the particle backscattering exponent from Sentinel-3A/B OLCI. The PSD slope, ξ displays temporal and spatial variability in the YRD with the Bohai Sea. Its value varies between 3 and 4, and typically exceeds 5 in offshore areas. The lowest value of ξ occurs in the winter, indicating the presence of fine inorganic particles in the water, while high values are attained in the spring, when phytoplankton blooms increase the particle size. ξ decreases near the river mouth because of the large sediment-laden discharge debouching into the sea. We detected a slight increase in ξ when turbid waters were present in the period 2016–2022. Environmental factors, such as sea surface temperature, sea surface wave height, and wind, may control particle size and ξ in the long term. Inorganic suspended particle matter is derived along the YRD using the magnitude of ξ. The mean inorganic suspended particle matter area in winter approaches 23,900 km² when ξ < 4.6. This study thoroughly characterizes variations in ξ in the YRD with the Bohai Sea and clarifies the contributions of driving factors from human activities and climate change. Full article

Surface water infiltration is a primary factor responsible for engineering challenges and geological disasters on the Loess Plateau of China (LPC). Due to the extensive groundwater in this region, surface water must pass through thick unsaturated zones to recharge the groundwater reservoirs. Exploring the unsaturated hydraulic characteristics of loess, especially at varying depths, may significantly contribute to disaster prevention and mitigation and the pursuit of sustainable development in the Loess Plateau. The soil-water characteristic curve (SWCC), intricately linked to the soil’s pore structure, is a critical hydraulic parameter of loess. An exploration well with a depth of 30 m was excavated in the LPC to obtain intact specimens at depths of 5 m, 15 m, and 25 m. Basic physical property tests, SWCC measurements, and particle size distribution (PSD) analyses were conducted. Additionally, the relationship between PSD and SWCC is discussed in this paper. The findings highlight the influence of depth on the dominant pore size and distribution density, both of which decreased with increasing depth. The air occlusion value of the SWCC experienced an increase, and the slope of the SWCC in the transition zone exhibited consistency. These observations underscore the pivotal role played by pore structure in shaping the soil’s water-retention behavior. Furthermore, predictions based on PSD data demonstrated excellent accuracy in replicating the wetting SWCC of loess over a wide suction range (e.g., 10–10⁴ kPa). Full article

The magnetic domains of non-oriented electrical steel bearing cumulative thermal compressions made by a Gleeble 3500 Thermal System were observed using an atomic force microscope (AFM). The component forces, comprising the magnetic forces between the AFM probe and magnetic domains of the samples, along the freedom direction of the probe, were measured, and they formed the value fluctuation of the magnetic domains. The fluctuations of the magnetic domains were analyzed by examining the power spectral density (PSD) curves. The hysteresis curves of the samples were measured using a highly sensitive magnetic measurement system. An analysis of the magnetic force microscope (MFM) maps suggested that some magnetic domains were compressed into crushed and fragmented shapes, similar to the microstructure of deformed grains. Meanwhile, some were reconstructed within the thermal compressions, like dynamic recrystallization microstructures. Meaningfully, the MFM probe moved and deformed the proximal magnetic domains of tested samples within the region of its weak magnetic field. The peak positions of the magnetic domains with a high deformation rate were shifted and moved during the measuring processes by the weakly polarized probe. Both windward and leeward sides simultaneously expressed a slope towards each co-adjacent valley in the MFM maps and induced a statistical throbbing within a narrow band in the PSD curves. Thus, the MFM scanning mode was also analyzed and improved to obtain accurate MFM maps with low disturbances from the weak magnetic field of the probe. Swapping the order positions of the middle processes in the MFM scanning and adding a gliding step between them could offset the peak skewing of magnetic domains caused by the weakly polarized probe during MFM measurement process without incurring excessive replacement costs. Accumulative compression at a high rate (10 s⁻¹) would crush magnetic domains into irregularly decreasing sizes with messy boundaries. This investigation provides an example of the complete relationships among deformations, magnetic domains, and magnetic properties. Full article

This study examines the effects of land use and slope aspect on soil erodibility (K-factor) and the fractal dimension (D) of soil particle size distribution (PSD) in calcareous soils at the watershed scale in western Iran. The study analyzed 113 soil samples collected from four land uses (slope-farmland, farmland, pasture, and woodland) at a depth of 0–20 cm, measuring common soil properties such as soil texture, soil organic matter (SOM), calcium carbonate (CaCO₃), pH, and cation exchange capacity (CEC). The PSD of soil samples was measured using the international system of soil size fractions, and the D for PSD was calculated. The K-factor was calculated using the RUSLE model. The results showed that the K-factor was highest in slope farmlands with SOM at 1.6% and lowest in woodlands at 0.02 Mg h MJ⁻¹ mm⁻¹ with SOM at 3.5%. The study also found that there were significant correlations between D and clay content (r = 0.52), sand content (r = −0.29), and CEC (r = 0.36). Woodland soils had the highest SOM content, with a mean D value of 2.895, significantly higher than the mean D value of slope farmland soils, which had the lowest SOM at 1.6%. The study concludes that woodland soils retain finer particles, particularly clay, resulting in lower soil loss and land degradation compared to other land uses. Finally, the study suggests that shady slope aspects (south aspect) contain more organic matter due to less solar radiation and higher soil water content, resulting in lower soil erodibility (0.02 Mg h MJ⁻¹ mm⁻¹) and higher D values compared to other slope aspects. Full article

In the literature, mainly particle-size distribution (PSD) analyses in the soil catenas, of e.g., moraine and riverine landscapes were discussed. Analysis and comparison of PSD in moraine (ML) and ice-dammed lakes (ID-LL) landscapes were not studied. Since the landscape of ice-dammed lakes origin has diversified relief and is under intensive agricultural use, the aspects of erosion are of great importance. The changes in PSD were studied in 14 soil catenas (toposequences) of eroding soils at the upper slope (US) as well as colluvial soils at the middle (MS) and lower (LS) slopes and in the depressions (D). The PSD of the fine fractions (<2 mm) was analysed according to the hydrometer method. In order to describe the effect of agricultural use on the variability of PSD in soil surface horizons, sedimentological and granulometric indices were calculated. In the studied moraine landscape, the content of coarse silt fraction was increasing in the catenal sequence from 9.7% in the US to 17.7% in the D. Similar relationships were revealed for the fine silt content. Significant differences were found between the average contents of coarse and fine silt fractions at the US as well as the LS and the D. However, such a relation was not found in the soil catena in the ice-dammed lake landscape. Eroded and colluvial soil materials were very poorly sorted with a standard deviation index of 2.65–3.69. Humus horizons of analysed soils had very fine, fine skewed PSD, mesokurtic and platykurtic distribution (ML), symmetrical, fine skewed and platykurtic distribution (I-DLL). The cluster analysis enabled the separation of two groups of soils: one group in the moraine landscape and the other in the ice-dammed lakes landscape. The PSD in studied soils was similar only among the soils within one type of landscape. Full article

Tillage practices can influence the pore size distribution (PSD) of the soil, affecting soil physical and hydraulic properties as well as processes that are essential for plant growth, soil hydrology, environmental studies and modeling. A study was conducted to assess the effect of no-tillage (NT) and conventional tillage (CT) on PSD derived from soil–water retention curves (SWRCs) using the van Genuchten’s equation (vG) at 0–15 cm and 15–30 cm depths in a sandy loam soil. Values of PSD or slopes (C(h)) were calculated from the SWRCs by differentiating the vG equation. Soil water retention curves under both tillage systems and within two depths were determined using the evaporation HYPROP method. The vG equation was well fitted to measured soil water retention data. The diameter (D) of soil pores retaining water at various matric suctions (|h|) of water in soils was calculated by the capillary equation. A significant effect of tillage on soil PSD was observed in the macro-pore (D > 1000 μm, at |h| < 3 hPa) and meso-pore (D between 10 and 1000 μm, at |h| between 300 and 3 hPa) size classes, while the micro-pores size class (D < 10 μm, at |h| > 300 hPa) was unaffected at the 0–15 and 15–30 cm depths. Larger values of C(h) or PSD in CT were associated with greater soil loosening induced by the CT operations and greater proportion of large pores (structural porosity) occurred in soils under CT compared to soils under NT. Macro-pore and meso-pore proportions were significantly greater in soils under CT than in soils under NT within both soil depths. The hydraulic parameters of the vG equation and its derivative function can be used to compare soil–water retention curves and pore size distributions between soils under untilled and tilled conditions. Full article

Spondylolisthesis refers to the displacement of a vertebral body relative to the vertrabra below it, which can cause radicular symptoms, back pain or leg pain. It usually occurs in the lower lumbar spine, especially in women over the age of 60. The prevalence of spondylolisthesis is expected to rise as the global population ages, requiring prudent action to promptly identify it in clinical settings. The goal of this study was to develop a computer-aided diagnostic (CADx) algorithm, LumbarNet, and to evaluate the efficiency of this model in automatically detecting spondylolisthesis from lumbar X-ray images. Built upon U-Net, feature fusion module (FFM) and collaborating with (i) a P-grade, (ii) a piecewise slope detection (PSD) scheme, and (iii) a dynamic shift (DS), LumbarNet was able to analyze complex structural patterns on lumbar X-ray images, including true lateral, flexion, and extension lateral views. Our results showed that the model achieved a mean intersection over union (mIOU) value of 0.88 in vertebral region segmentation and an accuracy of 88.83% in vertebral slip detection. We conclude that LumbarNet outperformed U-Net, a commonly used method in medical image segmentation, and could serve as a reliable method to identify spondylolisthesis. Full article

Particle size distribution (PSD), which is an important characteristic of marine suspended particles, plays a role in how light transfers in the ocean and impacts the ocean’s inherent optical properties (IOPs). However, PSD properties and the correlations with IOPs are rarely reported in coastal waters with complex optical properties. This study investigated the PSD variabilities both for the surface water and the water in vertical planes, and the correlations between PSD and the backscattering coefficient (b_bp), scattering coefficient (b_p), and attenuation coefficient (c_p), based on in situ PSD observations (within a size range of 2.05–297 μm) and IOPs in the coastal northern South China Sea. The results show a large variety of PSDs, with a range of 41.06–263.02 μm for the median particle diameter (D_v⁵⁰) and a range of 2.61–3.74 for the PSD slope. In addition, the predominance of small particles is most likely to appear in the nearshore shallow water and estuaries with a large amount of sediment discharge, and vice versa. For the variabilities of IOPs, the particle concentration in a cross-sectional area (AC) is the first driving factor of the variations of b_bp, b_p, and c_p, and the product of the mean particle diameter (D_A) and the apparent density (ρ_a) can explain most variations of the mass-specific b_bp (b_bp/SPM), b_p (b_p/SPM), and c_p (c_p/SPM). In this study, we found that particle size is strongly correlated with volume-specific b_bp (b_bp/VC), b_p (b_p/VC), and c_p (c_p/VC), and the 10th percentile diameter of the accumulated volume concentration (D_v¹⁰) can better explain the variations of b_bp/VC. These findings suggest a potential PSD retrieval method utilizing the b_bp or b_p, which may be determined by remote sensing observations. Full article

Awareness of granulated soils’ internal instability is an important parameter when designing granulated filters, and the ability of a granulated soil’s internal stability can be verified using the soil PSD (Particle Size Distribution) curves’ secant slopes. The current work presents a new method to calculate the soil PSD curves’ secant slopes automatically, and a synthetic diagram is presented for the potential examination of the granulated soils’ internal stability. To verify the feasibility and accuracy of this synthetic diagram, 80 specimens of soil were investigated in this work and categorized into two groups: 50 sand–gravel soils and 30 (clay)–silt–sand–gravel soils. The obtained conclusions indicate that the internal stability and instability potentials of sand–gravel soils can be distinguished successfully with a synthetic chart and the Kenney and Lau criterion but cannot be assessed with the Kezdi and Sherard criteria. None of the criteria studied here can be used for the internal stability assessment of silt–sand–gravel and clay–silt–sand–gravel soils. Full article

The sodium bicarbonate cotransporter NBCn1 is an electroneutral transporter with a channel activity that conducts Na⁺ in a HCO₃^–-independent manner. This channel activity was suggested to functionally affect other membrane proteins which permeate Na⁺ influx. We previously reported that NBCn1 is associated with the NMDA receptors (NMDARs) at the molecular and physiological levels. In this study, we examined whether NBCn1 channel activity affects NMDAR currents and whether this effect involves the interaction between the two proteins. NBCn1 and the NMDAR subunits GluN1A/GluN2A were expressed in Xenopus oocytes, and glutamate currents produced by the receptors were measured using two-electrode voltage clamp. In the absence of CO₂/HCO₃^–, NBCn1 channel activity decreased glutamate currents mediated by GluN1A/GluN2A. NBCn1 also decreased the slope of the current–voltage relationships for the glutamate current. Similar effects on the glutamate current were observed with and without PSD95, which can cluster NBCn1 and NMDARs. The channel activity was also observed in the presence of CO₂/HCO₃^–. We conclude that NBCn1 channel activity decreases NMDAR function. Given that NBCn1 knockout mice develop a downregulation of NMDARs, our results are unexpected and suggest that NBCn1 has dual effects on NMDARs. It stabilizes NMDAR expression but decreases receptor function by its Na⁺ channel activity. The dual effects may play an important role in fine-tuning the regulation of NMDARs in the brain. Full article

Long-lasting radial interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) intervals in which IMF points along the solar wind velocity for several hours have many interesting properties. We investigate the average parameters and the behavior of magnetic field fluctuations within 419 such radial intervals. The power spectral density (PSD) calculated over 1-h intervals of a radial IMF is compared with PSDs in adjacent regions prior to and after the radial IMF. We concentrate on (1) the power of IMF fluctuations, (2) the median slopes of PSDs in both inertial and kinetic ranges, (3) the proton temperature and its anisotropy, and (4) the occurrence rate of wavy structures and their polarization. We have shown that the fluctuation amplitude is low in the radial IMF intervals in both magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) and kinetic ranges, and the spectral power increases with the cone angle in the MHD range. We discuss this effect in the light of present knowledge on plasma turbulence and peculiarities of observations of magnetic field variations under the radial background magnetic field. We found that in the radial IMF events, the proton temperature is more isotropic, the occurrence rate of waves is higher, and the waves have no preferred polarization in the frequency range from 0.1 to 1 Hz. It suggests that the radial IMF structure leads to a different development of turbulence than the typical Parker-spiral structure. Full article

Soils developed from the parent materials of highly weathered granite are particularly susceptible to soil erosion. Therefore, it is of great significance to conduct in-depth research on runoff characteristics and soil loss mechanisms in weathered granite areas. Using the weathered granite area in the hilly region of southeastern China as the research object, we conducted indoor artificial rainfall simulation experiments involving three slope steepnesses (SSs), 8°, 15°, and 25°, and five rainfall intensities (RIs), 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0, and 2.5 mm/min. The results showed that sediment load (SL) has positively linear relationships with mean runoff velocity (V), Reynolds number (Re), Froude number (Fr), shear stress (τ), and stream power (w). The eroded sediment was principally composed of silt and clay that accounted for 65.41–73.41% of the total SL. There was a boundary point at 0.02 mm for the particle size distribution (PSD) of the eroded sediment. The enrichment ratio (Er) of sand-grained particles (0.02–2 mm) ranged from approximately 0.45 to 0.65, while the Er of fine-grained particles (<0.02 mm) ranged from approximately 1.37 to 1.80. These results increase our understanding of the relationships among RI, SS, runoff, and soil losses from weathered granite hillslopes, particularly the relationships between different hydraulic parameters and sediment size characteristics. Full article

Understanding plasma turbulence below the ion characteristic scales is one of the key open problems of solar wind physics. The bulk of our knowledge about the nature of the kinetic-scale fluctuations comes from the high-cadence measurements of the magnetic field. The spacecraft frame frequencies of the sub-ion scale fluctuations are frequently around the Nyquist frequencies of the magnetic field sampling rate. Thus, the resulting ‘measured’ time series may significantly differ from the ‘true’ ones. It follows that second-order moments (e.g., power spectral density, PSD) of the signal may also be highly affected in both their amplitude and their slope. In this paper, we focus on the estimation of the PSD slope for finitely sampled data and we unambiguously define a so-called local slope in the framework of Continuous Wavelet Transform. Employing Monte Carlo simulations, we derive an empirical formula that assesses the statistical error of the local slope estimation. We illustrate the theoretical results by analyzing measurements of the magnetic field instrument (MFI) on board the Wind spacecraft. Our analysis shows that the trace power spectra of magnetic field measurements of MFI can be modeled as the sum of PSD of an uncorrelated noise and an intrinsic signal. We show that the local slope strongly depends on the signal-to-noise (S/N) ratio, stressing that noise can significantly affect the slope even for S/N around 10. Furthermore, we show that the local slopes below the frequency corresponding to proton inertial length, $5\gtrsim k{\lambda }_{\mathrm{pi}}>1$, depend on the level of the magnetic field fluctuations in the inertial range ($P_{\mathrm{in}}$), exhibiting a gradual flattening from about −11/3 for high $P_{\mathrm{in}}$ toward about −8/3 for low $P_{\mathrm{in}}$. Full article