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Changes in the potential distribution of humid tropical forests on a warmer planet
Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences, Vol. 369. N° 1934. Zelazowski Przemyslaw; Malhi Yadvinder; Huntingford Chris; et al. - The Royal Society, 2011The future of tropical forests has become one of the iconic issues in climate-change science. A number of studies that have explored this subject have tended to focus on the output from one or a few climate models, which work at low spatial resolution, whereas society and conservation-relevant assessment of potential impacts requires a finer scale. This study focuses on the role of climate on the current and future distribution of humid tropical forests (HTFs). We first characterize their contemporary climatological niche using annual rainfall and maximum climatological water stress, which als ...
[article]Przemyslaw Zelazowski ; Yadvinder Malhi ; Chris Huntingford ; Stephen Sitch ; Joshua B. Fisher
in Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences > Vol. 369. N° 1934 (2011) . - p. 137-160The future of tropical forests has become one of the iconic issues in climate-change science. A number of studies that have explored this subject have tended to focus on the output from one or a few climate models, which work at low spatial resolution, whereas society and conservation-relevant assessment of potential impacts requires a finer scale. This study focuses on the role of climate on the current and future distribution of humid tropical forests (HTFs). We first characterize their contemporary climatological niche using annual rainfall and maximum climatological water stress, which also adequately describe the current distribution of other biomes within the tropics. As a first-order approximation of the potential extent of HTFs in future climate regimes defined by global warming of 2°C and 4°C, we investigate changes in the niche through a combination of climate-change anomaly patterns and higher resolution (5 km) maps of current climatology. The climate anomalies are derived using data from 17 coupled Atmosphere–Ocean General Circulation Models (AOGCMs) used in the Fourth Assessment of the Intergovernmental Panel for Climate Change. Our results confirm some risk of forest retreat, especially in eastern Amazonia, Central America and parts of Africa, but also indicate a potential for expansion in other regions, for example around the Congo Basin. The finer spatial scale enabled the depiction of potential resilient and vulnerable zones with practically useful detail. We further refine these estimates by considering the impact of new environmental regimes on plant water demand using the UK Met Office land-surface scheme (of the HadCM3 AOGCM). The CO2-related reduction in plant water demand lowers the risk of die-back and can lead to possible niche expansion in many regions. The analysis presented here focuses primarily on hydrological determinants of HTF extent. We conclude by discussing the role of other factors, notably the physiological effects of higher temperature.
Language(s): English
Format: Digital (Free)Tags: Climate change ; Climate ; Rainforest ; Global warming ; Scenario ; Tropics
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The perfect storm
Global Change magazine, Issue 76. IGBP, 2011
[article]
in Global Change magazine > Issue 76 (January 2011) . - 2 p.Language(s): English
Tags: Weather ; Soils ; Soil moisture ; Storm ; North Africa ; Sahel
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Vol. 27 No.2 - 2010
is an issue of Geofizika. Andrija Mohorovičić Geophysical Institute,, 20117. Janeković, I., Sikirić, M. D., Tomažić, I. and Kuzmić, M. (2010): Hindcasting the Adriatic Sea surface temperature and salinity: A recent modeling experience. Geofizika, 27, 85-100.
8. Anil Kumar, R., Dudhia, J. and Roy Bhowmik, S. K. (2010): Evaluation of physics options of the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) Model to simulate high impact heavy rainfall events over Indian Monsoon region. Geofizika, 27, 101-125.
9. Jurčec, V. and Dragojlović, D. (2010): The unexpected snowstorm of 13 - 14 January 2002 in Zagreb. Geofizika, 27, 127-145.
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Available online: http://geofizika-journal.gfz.hr/vol27.htm
7. Janeković, I., Sikirić, M. D., Tomažić, I. and Kuzmić, M. (2010): Hindcasting the Adriatic Sea surface temperature and salinity: A recent modeling experience. Geofizika, 27, 85-100.
8. Anil Kumar, R., Dudhia, J. and Roy Bhowmik, S. K. (2010): Evaluation of physics options of the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) Model to simulate high impact heavy rainfall events over Indian Monsoon region. Geofizika, 27, 101-125.
9. Jurčec, V. and Dragojlović, D. (2010): The unexpected snowstorm of 13 - 14 January 2002 in Zagreb. Geofizika, 27, 127-145.
10. Jelić, D. and Klaić, Z. B. (2010): Air quality in Rijeka, Croatia. Geofizika, 27, 147-167.
[ABSTRACT] [PDF]Language(s): English
Format: Digital (Free)Tags: Sea ; Water temperature ; Weather ; Hydrological forecast ; Precipitation ; Monsoon ; Storm ; Snow ; Adriatic Sea ; India ; Croatia
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52 (4) - 2010
is an issue of Oceanologia. IO-PAN, 2011Contains:
Invited papers
* Solar radiation in the Baltic Sea: Jerzy Dera, Bogdan Woźniak
Papers
* Solar radiation at the surface in the Baltic Proper: Sirje Keevallik, Kai Loitjärv
* Variability in aerosol optical properties at Hornsund, Spitsbergen: Anna Rozwadowska, Piotr Sobolewski
* Particulate organic carbon in the southern Baltic Sea: numerical simulations and experimental data: Lidia Dzierzbicka-Głowacka, Karol Kuliński, Anna Maciejewska, Jaromir Jakacki, Janusz Pempkowiak
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Available online: http://www.iopan.gda.pl/oceanologia/52_4.html
Contains:
Invited papers
* Solar radiation in the Baltic Sea: Jerzy Dera, Bogdan Woźniak
Papers
* Solar radiation at the surface in the Baltic Proper: Sirje Keevallik, Kai Loitjärv
* Variability in aerosol optical properties at Hornsund, Spitsbergen: Anna Rozwadowska, Piotr Sobolewski
* Particulate organic carbon in the southern Baltic Sea: numerical simulations and experimental data: Lidia Dzierzbicka-Głowacka, Karol Kuliński, Anna Maciejewska, Jaromir Jakacki, Janusz Pempkowiak
* Biogeochemical alteration of the benthic environment by the zebra mussel Dreissena polymorpha (Pallas): Anastasija Zaiko, Ričardas Paškauskas, Alina Krevš
* Distribution and fate of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in recent sediments from the Gulf of Gdańsk (SE Baltic): Ludwik Lubecki, Grażyna Kowalewska
* The inflow of 234U and 238U from the River Odra drainage basin to the Baltic Sea: Bogdan Skwarzec, Agnieszka Tuszkowska, Alicja Boryło
Communications
* First records of Ponto-Caspian gammarids in the Gulf of Gdańsk (southern Baltic Sea): Aldona Dobrzycka-Krahel, Halina RzemykowskaLanguage(s): English
Format: Digital (Free)Tags: Oceans ; Solar radiation ; Water pollution ; Baltic Sea
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WOCE Atlas volume 2 - Pacific Ocean
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Available online: https://doi.org/10.21976/C6WC77
World Meteorological Organization (WMO) ; Bundesamt für Seeschifffahrt und Hydrographie (Deutschland)
Published by: BSH ; 2011Language(s): English
Format: Digital (Free)Tags: Oceans ; Oceanography ; Oceanographic data ; Thermohaline circulation ; Vertical water mixing ; Atlas ; Pacific Ocean ; World Climate Research Programme (WCRP)
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WOCE Atlas volume 4 - Indian Ocean : hydrographic atlas
The Hydrographic Programme of the international World Ocean Circulation Experiment (WOCE) was a comprehensive global hydrographic survey of physical and chemical properties, of unprecedented scope and quality, and represents the "state of the oceans" during the 1990s.
The "Printed Atlas" is a copy of the published volume and contains full introductory text. The "Digital Atlas" presents the same graphical material, with additional properties and levels, ancillary data sets, and bibliographic material for each of the vertical sections.
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WOCE Atlas volume 3 - Atlantic Ocean : hydrographic atlas
World Meteorological Organization (WMO) ; Bundesamt für Seeschifffahrt und Hydrographie (BSH) - BSH, 2011The Hydrographic Programme of the World Ocean Circulation Experiment (WOCE) was a comprehensive global hydrographic survey of physical and chemical properties, of unprecedented scope and quality, and represents the "state of the oceans" during the 1990s.
The "Printed Atlas" is a copy of the published volume and contains full introductory text. The "Digital Atlas" presents the same graphical material, with additional properties and levels, ancillary data sets, and bibliographic material for each of the vertical sections.
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Terre, eau, et forêts: ressorts d’un développement à l’épreuve du changement climatique en Afrique
FEM, 2011
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Land, Water, and Forests: Assets for Climate resilient Development in Africa
GEF, 2011One third of all African people live today in drought-prone areas, and 250 million are exposed to drought every year. "Land, Water, and Forests" is a publication that covers the topics of land degradation, deforestation, desertification and water scarcity in the cases of the Congo Basin, Lake Chad and the Sahel region.
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Sécurité des moyens d’existence : changements climatiques, migrations et conflits au Sahel
PNUE, 2011Cette étude commune à paraître a deux objectifs : premièrement d’analyser l’évolution historique du climat dans le Sahel, d’identifier les régions où des problèmes se posent avec une acuité particulière (nommées « points chauds ») et de déterminer les implications potentielles des variations climatiques observées sur les moyens d’existence dépendants des ressources naturelles ; deuxièmement de fournir des recommandations destinées à améliorer la sensibilité des plans d’adaptations et d’investissement de la région aux problématiques de conflit et de migration.
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Growth pattern of a common feather moss, Hylocomium splendens, from contrasting water regimes in a high Arctic tundra
Antarctic Record, Vol. 54, No. 2. Ueno Takeshi; Kanda Hiroshi - Scholarly and Academic Information Navigator (CiNii), 2010Hylocomium splendens, a widespread feather moss, is one of the major plant species found in high-Arctic tundra. It occupies a variety of habitats ranging from exposed dry ground to swampy areas. To clarify the effect of the water regime on the growth pattern of H. splendens, the shoot morphology of H. splendens growing in contrasting water regimes, i.e. hydric, mesic and xeric sites, was investigated using retrospective analyses of growth. The derived growth parameters for H. splendens differed considerably among the sites. The growing period at the hydric, mesic and xeric sites was 1 year, 2 ...
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Further Study of Typhoon Tracks and the Low-Frequency (30-60 Days) Wind-Field Pattern at 850 hPa
Atmospheric and Oceanic Science Letters, Volume 3 Number 6. Tian Hua; Li Chong-Yin - Science Press, 2010The association of typhoon tracks over the western Pacific with the low-frequency wind-field pattern of atmospheric intraseasonal (30-60 days) oscillation at 850 hPa is further studied by using observational data analyses. Comparative analyses of the composite wind fields at 850 hPa, contrasting the atmospheric intraseasonal oscillation (ISO) with the original circulation, show that the typhoon tracks are closely related to the wind pattern of the ISO but are not obviously related to the original wind fields. Case studies of two typhoons in 2006 also show that the low-frequency wind-field patt ...
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Polar Vortex Response to Pacific Ocean Warming and Its Additive Nonlinearity with the Indian Ocean
A previous modeling study about Pacific Ocean warming derived polar vortex response signals, by subtracting those in the Indian Ocean warming experiments from those in the Indo-Pacific. This approach questions the resemblance of such an indirectly derived response to one directly forced by Pacific Ocean warming. This is relevant to the additive nonlinearity of atmospheric responses to separated Indian and Pacific Ocean forcing. In the present study, an additional set of ensemble experiments are performed by prescribing isolated SST forcing in the tropical Pacific Ocean to address this issue. T ...
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Vol. 88. No 3 - June 2010
is an issue of Journal of the Meteorological Society of Japan. Meteorological Society of Japan, 2010Contains:
- Mechanisms of Temporary Improvement and Rapid Changes in Visibility in Fogs
- Changes in Potential Intensity of Tropical Cyclones Approaching Japan due to Anthropogenic Warming in Sea Surface and Upper-Air Temperatures
- Convective Boundary Layer above a Subtropical Island Observed by C-band Radar and Interpretation using a Cloud Resolving Model
- Role of Large-Scale Circulation in Triggering Foehns in the Hokuriku District of Japan during Midsummer
- Diurnal Variations in Lower-Tropospheric Wind over Japan ...
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Regime Behavior in the Sea Surface Temperature-Cloud Radiative Forcing Relationships over the Pacific Cold Tongue Region
Atmospheric and Oceanic Science Letters, Volume 3 Number 5. Wu Chun-Qiang; Zhou Tian-Jun; De-Zheng Xiao-Li - Science Press, 2010Previous analyses on the estimates of water vapor and cloud-related feedbacks in the tropics usually use observations over the Earth Radiation Budget Experiment (ERBE) period (1985–89). To examine the sample dependence of previous estimates, the authors extend the analysis to two additional periods: 1990–94 and 1995–99. The results confirm our hypothesis, i.e., the values of the feedbacks depend on the period of data coverage. The differences in the feedbacks from cloud radiative forcings (CRFs) estimated from the three periods are particularly significant. Two possible causes for these differ ...
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Special issue - Atmospheric brown cloud in the Himalayas
is an issue of Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics (ACP). Copernicus GmbH, 2010
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A Forecaster's Overview of the Northwest Pacific
This module provides an introduction to the northwest Pacific for weather forecasters. It touches on major aspects of the geography, oceanography, and climatology. Geography looks at plate tectonics, topography, and human population. Oceanography examines ocean currents, coastal tidal ranges, and sea ice distribution. Climatology briefly discusses jets streams, distribution of synoptic features, storm tracks of tropical and extratropical cyclones, the fronts, and sensible weather associated with the Northeast and Southwest Monsoons.
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