Climatic Areas Research Articles

POTENTIAL YIELD OF IRISH POTATOES UNDER SURFACE IRRIGATION IN SEMI ARID ZONE OF BENUE VALLEY AT MAKURDI, NIGERIA

Irish potato is a whether sensitive crop, depends on a regular water supply, to secure high quality yields. Abiotic stress factors, such as drought, heat and salinity, have severe, adverse effects on growth and yield. The production of Irish potato in any part of Nigeria is an integral part of the rural economy, as it is cultivated as a rain-fed and irrigated crop. Timing of both the rain fed and irrigated cultivation is often misplaced, which adversely affect growth and yield in some hot climate areas in some States in Nigeria.The research was experimented with cultivation of Irish potatoes under Makurdi climate in Benue valley - an area believe to be hot, not suitable for cultivating Irish potatoes. The soil of the area was studied, to be sandy clay loam, with a pH of 6.67, which is suitable for the production of Irish Potato. Three 3 varieties of Irish potatoes (Merabel,Nicola and Bertista) were used for the study.25 heads each of the seedlings was planted. Merabel produced the lowest tubers of 86, Nicola 129 tubers and the highest by Bertista with 181tubers. Bertista proved resistant to high temperatures, therefore the most suitable to be cultivated under Benue valley climate at Makurdi.

New types of organic wines with Pedro Ximenez variety grown in the Marco de Jerez Sherry region

The Pedro Ximénez grape variety is one of the authorised varieties in the Jerez-Xérès-Sherry DO, although it currently occupies only 1% of the region's total cultivated area. With the intention of promoting its cultivation, as well as diversifying production in a historic wine-growing area such as the Marco de Jerez (Spain), work is currently being carried out through a research project in which both public and private entities are participating. This project focuses, among other aspects, on the organic cultivation of this minor grapevine variety in the region, as well as on the production of naturally sweet wines. In this research, the results of the characterisation of the grape musts of overripe Pedro Ximénez grapes are presented, as well as the monitoring of its fermentation and the characterisation of the wines obtained. The resulting wines show how the over-ripening technique is presented as a viable alternative for the production of new types of wines in a warm climate area such as the Marco de Jerez.

Winegrowing strategies for adapting to climate change in a warm climate zone

Climate predictions and simulations forecast that climate change will be one of the major challenges for wine production in the future, as grape quality and vine yields depend on interactions between temperature, water availability, plant material and viticultural techniques employed. Climate change is leading to earlier harvesting, accelerated vine growth and grape over-ripening, leading to the production of grape musts with higher potential alcohol content, higher pH, lower acidity and severe nutritional deficiencies. In order to mitigate these effects, it is necessary to establish short-term viticultural or oenological strategies to minimise the effects of global warming on current wine-growing regions. Therefore, this work presents research results related to the potential of autochthonous grape cultivars from a warm climate area, which could be better adapted to the agro-climatic conditions associated with climate change; as well as the results of the application and recovery of ancestral oenological techniques in the area of sherry wine production (sun-drying and skin contact fermentation), which could contribute to this new climatic scenario as an alternative in wine production.

Simulation of roof retrofitting strategies to mitigate attic overheating issues of the terrace house under hot and humid climate

The purpose of this study is to investigate the potential mitigation strategies to overcome the overheating issue at the attic of the landed residential house located in a hot and humid climate area. An existing terrace house with 178 m2 was selected for this research. A building simulation model was created and calibrated by using the previous site measurement data collected by Ng et.al. in the year 2018. The calibrated model was subsequently used to evaluate various retrofitting methods and strategies, including roof insulation, and passive radiative cooling methods. The study shows that high albedo cool roof paint is the most effective roof retrofitting strategy compared to other approaches.

Influence of combined hydric and thermal stresses on Rosmarinus officinalis and Cistus albidus

Background Wildfires are a growing threat, especially in Mediterranean climate areas during periods of drought. The wildfire research community continues to investigate propagation mechanisms considering thermal transfer and fluid mechanics and sometimes a simplified chemistry taking into account the main combustion products such as CO, CO2, H2O, H2 and CH4. However, volatile organic compounds (VOCs) cannot be neglected and have a major role in vegetation ignition. Despite this, knowledge on the influence of wildfire on plant emissions remains lacking.Aims This work addresses the effect of combined hydric and thermal stresses on the physiology and emissions of Rosmarinus officinalis and Cistus albidus, which are widely consumed in Mediterranean wildfires.Methods Plants were submitted to hydric stress inside a greenhouse, then to thermal stress inside a heated hermetic enclosure while collecting emissions with adsorbent elements for analysis. Simultaneously, heating experiments were carried out with leaves sampled to analyse their emissions.Key results The heating tests showed significant variations in monoterpene, fatty acid and alkane emissions between stressed and unstressed plants with different results between Rosmarinus officinalis and Cistus albidus.Conclusion/implication Further experiments with other plant species and quantification of emissions may help to better know why Mediterranean wildfires are a particular threat and how to improve firefighting methods.

ЭЛЕКТРОСНАБЖЕНИЕ МАЛОМОЩНЫХ ПОТРЕБИТЕЛЕЙ, УСТАНОВЛЕННЫХ НА НЕФТЕПРОВОДАХ В УДАЛЕННЫХ РАЙОНАХ КРАЙНЕГО СЕВЕРА

Relevance The power outage in remote and inaccessible areas of the Far North can have serious consequences, including technological and ecological disasters, fires, explosions, water pollution, impact on human health, and economic losses. To ensure power supply in harsh climate areas, various autonomous power sources are being considered, including a hydrokinetic turbine installed inside the pipeline, which converts the kinetic energy of the flow into electricity using an electromechanical generator. Object of study The research focuses on the efficient power supply of oil and gas pipeline consumers in remote and inaccessible areas of the Far North. A small-scale hydraulic power station is installed on the bypass line of the oil pipeline. Aim of research The main aim of the study is to assess the feasibility of using a hydrokinetic turbine inside the pipeline for efficient power supply to linear consumers of oil and gas pipelines in remote areas. Research methods During the research, an analysis of the field of existing small-scale power plants was carried out to determine the most promising and efficient approaches to electricity generation. Additionally, a theoretical solution in the form of a hydrokinetic turbine for electricity generation was proposed. Results The results and significance of the research propose the hydrokinetic turbine installed inside the pipeline as an autonomous power source for efficient power supply to consumers. A hybrid power station model is suggested, combining the hydrokinetic turbine with other energy sources to ensure uninterrupted power supply in remote areas. The obtained results have practical significance for the energy provision of oil and gas pipelines in remote and inaccessible areas of the Far North. A new approach to power supply is proposed, which, upon implementation of the developed equipment, can ensure uninterrupted operation of the energy module of the technological equipment installed on the pipelines and help prevent technological disasters and economic losses.

Arthropods, Pests, and Diseases of Jack Bean (Canavalia Ensiformis) in Upland and Dry Climate Areas

Jack bean (Canavalia ensiformis) is one of the potential crops in tropical areas. Arthropods, plant pests, and microorganisms were observed in Jack bean crop ecosystems. The aims of this study were to observe the presence of arthropods in Jack bean plants in dry land and dry climate area, and disease symptoms caused by microorganisms. This research was conducted at Muneng experimental station Probolinggo, using a diagonal sampling method, with yellow trap, pitfall trap, and swapping net. Symptom variation, arthropod diversity, pest attack intensity, and disease incidence were recorded. The results showed that the types of arthropods, pests, and diseases that infect and the incidence of pest and disease attack on each accession do not differ between accessions. The highest number was recorded in the sweeping net with 12 families, followed by the pitfall trap with 4 families, while in yellow traps there were 3 families. Two insects as plant pest organisms were Liriomyza sp and Maruca sp with attack rates up to 70% and 80% respectively, while jack bean diseases were wilting and mosaic with 25% and 40%. It is necessary to identify the pathogens that caused the diseases in more detail and to study the proper management of pests to reduce yield loss.

Bituminous Geomembrane (BGM) in hot climates for hydraulic construction

This paper will explain the reinforced structure and key characteristics that make bituminous geomembranes (BGM) an interesting option for waterproofing hydraulic works in hot climate areas. For illustrating this, the paper will review some case studies where BGM was chosen due to its characteristics. In dam application, a project for a waterproofing of a dike in Saday (Djibouti) and a rock fill dam (42-m high) in France will be explained. For irrigation in reservoir and canal lining, a work in Goudel and a canal on laterite soil in Niamey (both in Niger) will described proving use of BGM in dry tropical climates. This paper will also review the construction of raw water storage ponds in Pirque (Chile) for the city of Santiago’s potable water system. A last project will be described on a large irrigation canal in Nagpur (India) where the Pench canal, located in the center of India, convey water from the Pench River to the surrounding agricultural areas. The old canal, originally made of concrete, collapsed due to the water seepage and the swelling clay underneath.

Color Terms in Mongolian Place Names: A Typological Perspective

With their implications for human perception and conceptualization of the physical environment, place names have been largely analyzed from a cognitive perspective. This article aims to extend such cross-disciplinary studies by investigating the use of color terms in place names. The authors use a large-scale database of 214,805 toponyms of Mongolia to identify place names that feature color terms, both basic and non-basic, and compare them with previous literature on the toponymy of other countries and languages. Our results can be summed up in three major findings. (1) The most frequently attested color terms in Mongolian toponymy (namely, ‘black,’ ‘white,’ and ‘red’) prove to be identical to the most salient “toponymic colors” in other territories and cultures as can be seen from the analysis of previous research. The phenomenon of similar behavior of color terms in place names across different languages and cultures requires an explanation based on the universal cognitive mechanisms of color perception and development of color terminology. (2) Color terms are more frequently found in the toponymy of desert and steppe areas of Mongolia than in continental climate areas, which can be explained by the topographic properties of these two zones and universal cognitive mechanisms of place naming. Along with that, it was found that all Mongolian place names feature a unified set of color terms regardless of the region and topographic environment. (3) Against the typological background, Mongolian toponyms appear to be culture-specific in that they largely feature animal coat colors, as nomadic lifestyle and stock-raising have always been an essential part of the culture and, in the past, had a major impact on the color terminology of Mongolians. Such onomastic investigation into place names with color terms helps broaden our understanding of the cognitive mechanisms of place naming in different cultures and contributes to the color studies in cognitive sciences.

Roosting and breeding behaviour of Tawny Frogmouths Podargus strigoides in central-coastal Queensland

The roosting and breeding behaviour of a pair of Tawny Frogmouths Podargus strigoides was observed on the central Queensland coast over a period of 4 years (2018–2021). The study was conducted in a subtropical climate near Rockhampton, and provides data from a different geographical and climatic area compared with previous studies that were conducted in temperate southern Australia (New England Tablelands, Moree, and Sydney, New South Wales, and the Australian Capital Territory). Breeding data matched other studies: breeding in November–December, incubation of 28–30 days, fledging at 27–31 days, care of fledglings from 1–3 months, nests located in a horizontal fork of a tree on the edge of a clearing. Breeding success was high at 80% (8 of 10 nestlings survived). Roost sites were generally in tree species with a fibrous dark bark that provided camouflage, and were mostly within the leafy canopy (average height 9.11 m above ground), which provided protection from high daytime temperatures in both winter and summer. Only early in the morning on very cool days in winter did Frogmouths seek lower perches where sun exposure was greatest. These findings are consistent with other studies identifying thermoregulation and camouflage as important determinants of roost selection, although the need for greater sun exposure in winter was much lower in this study, reflecting the generally warm winter days. Fidelity to roost trees was high (90% of roosts were in four trees) and Frogmouths nested in a different tree each year. Both roosts and nests were confined to a home range of 1.6 ha. The frequency of feeding increased with nestling age, and was higher during the early part of the night. Overall, these findings advance understanding of the breeding biology of the Tawny Frogmouth in subtropical Australia.

Экологическая оценка ареала вавиловии прекрасной (Vavilovia formosa, Fabaceae) в Республике Дагестан (Северный Кавказ): новые геосистемные технологии

The article suggests the original method for ecological suitability evaluation of the habitat for local populations of Vavilovia formosa (Steven) Al.Fed. in the Republic of Dagestan (Northern Caucasus). Particular attention is paid to the development of methodological issues of studying the state of rare species local populations. The improvement of the methodology for constructing predictive ranges and the expert evaluation procedure of the obtained results is illustrated by the example of the eastern range fragment detailed analysis of V. formosa in the North Caucasus. The research has identified the limiting factors complexes that determine the patterns of local populations spatial distribution on slopes of different exposure, steepness and absolute height in models of different spatial resolution. For the first time, the translation of the initial probability values into a new habitat suitability index has been proposed and implemented. This index allows working with probability values in the form of natural numbers, which greatly facilitated their comparison. Evaluation of predictors by their contribution to predictive models of different spatial resolution convincingly shows the need to build a full-term series of models that will include the entire range of available spatial resolutions – from 1/6 to 1/120 degrees. Only such an approach will allow the researcher to obtain the most meaningful information base for a correct assessment of the contribution of predictors, taking into account the levels of spatial climate data generalization. A promising direction for further research can be considered dis-cretization of predictive values of the habitat suitability index by dividing small climatic areas into even smaller ones, for example, with a dimension of 1/360 degrees in longitude and latitude.

Genotype by environment interaction due to heat stress in Brown Swiss cattle

Due to its geographical position and a highly variable orography, Italy is characterized by several climatic areas and thus, by many different dairy cow farming systems. Brown Swiss cattle, in this context, are a very appreciated genetic resource for their adaptability and low metabolic requirement. The significant heterogeneity in farming systems may consist of genotype by environment (G × E) interactions with neglected changes in animals' rank position. The objective of this study was to investigate G × E for heat tolerance in Brown Swiss cattle for several production traits (milk, fat, and protein yield in kilograms; fat, protein, and cheese yield in percentage) and 2 derivate traits (fat-corrected milk and energy-corrected milk). We used the daily maximum temperature-humidity index (THI) range, calculated according to weather stations' data from 2008 to 2018 in Italy, and 202,776 test-day records from 23,396 Brown Swiss cows from 639 herds. Two different methodologies were applied to estimate the effect of the environmental variable (THI) on genetic parameters: (1) the reaction norm model, which uses a continuous random covariate to estimate the animal additive effect, and (2) the multitrait model, which splits each production pattern as a distinct and correlated trait according to the first (a thermal comfort condition), third (a moderate heat stress condition), and fifth (a severe heat stress condition) mean THI value quintile. The results from the reaction norm model showed a descending trend of the additive genetic effect until THI reached the value of 80. Then we recorded an increase with high extreme THI values (THI 90). Permanent environmental variance at increasing THI values revealed an opposite trend: The plot of heritability and the ratio of animal permanent environmental variance to phenotypic variance showed that when the environmental condition worsens, the additive genetic and permanent environmental component for production traits play a growing role. The negative additive genetic correlation between slope and linear random coefficient indicates no linear relationship between the production traits or under heat stress conditions, except for milk yield and protein yield. In tridimensional wireframe plots, the extreme margin decreases until a minimum of ∼0.90 of genetic correlation in the ECM trait, showing that the magnitude of G × E interaction is greater than the other traits. Genetic correlation values in Brown Swiss suggest the possibility of moderate changes in animals' estimated breeding value in heat stress conditions. Results indicated a moderate G × E interaction but significant variability in sire response related to their production level.

Long-term assessment on performance and seasonal optimal operation of a full-scale integrated multiple constructed wetland-pond system

Constructed wetlands as natural process-based water treatment technologies are popular globally. However, lack of detailed long-term assessment on the impact of seasonal variations on their performance with focus on optimal seasonal adjustments of controllable operating parameters significantly limits their efficient and sustainable long-term operation. To address this, a full-scale integrated multiple surface flow constructed wetlands-pond system situated between slightly polluted river water and outflow-receiving waterworks in a subtropical monsoon climate area of middle-eastern China was seasonally assessed over a period of six years. During this period, the removal rate (R) and mass removal rate (MRR) of total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorus (TP) and chemical oxygen demand (COD) possessed strong seasonality (p < 0.05). The highest R (%) and MRR (mg/m2/d) were in summer for TN (51.53 %, 114.35), COD (16.30 %, 143.85) and TP (62.39 %, 23.89) and least in spring for TN (23.88 %, 39.36) and COD. Whereas for TP, the least R was in autumn (37.82 %) and least MRR was in winter (9.35). Applying a first-order kinetics model coupled with Spearman's rank correlation analysis, purification efficiency exhibited significant dependence on temperature as nutrient reaction rates constant, k generally increased with temperature and was highest in summer. Meanwhile, the R of TN, TP and COD were positively correlated with influent concentration whiles MRR of TP was negatively correlated with hydraulic retention time but positively correlated with hydraulic loading rate (HLR) (p < 0.05). Also, MRR of COD and TN were positively correlated with mass loading rates (MLR) in summer and autumn. Through linear optimization, the best operating parameters according to the compliance rate were determined and a set of guidelines were proposed to determine the optimal operational change of hydrological index in each season (Spring, 0.1–0.12 m/d; Summer, 0.14–0.16 m/d; Autumn, 0.15–0.17 m/d; Winter, 0.1–0.11 m/d) for efficient and sustainable long-term operation.

Comparing Ant Assemblages and Functional Groups across Urban Habitats and Seasons in an East Asia Monsoon Climate Area.

China's East Asia monsoon zone is undergoing rapid land-use conversion and urbanization. Safeguarding remaining biodiversity requires reducing, mitigating, and/or eliminating the negative impacts of human-induced landscape modification. In this study, we sampled ground-dwelling ants at 40 plots over 12 continuous months in a suburban area in southwestern China to examine whether and how vegetation composition and habitat fragmentation affected species richness and assemblage composition for the general ant community and, specifically, for principal functional groups (including Opportunists and Generalized Myrmicinae). Warmer seasons were associated with a higher capture rate for all functional groups. Patterns of ant species richness among Opportunists were more sensitive to vegetation and fragmentation than for Generalized Myrmicinae, and these effects generally varied with season. Patterns of ant assemblage composition for Opportunists were exclusively sensitive to vegetation, whereas Generalized Myrmicinae were sensitive to both vegetation and fragmentation with variation among seasons. Overall, our findings highlight the important role of seasonality, vegetation composition, and habitat fragmentation in mediating the impacts of human-induced landscape modification on urbanized ant communities, which make an essential functional contribution to biodiversity in the East Asia monsoon zone.

Ancient irrigation systems in Asia and Africa: Typologies, degradation and ecosystem services

CONTEXTAncient irrigation systems (AISs) have been providing a multitude of ecosystem services to rural farming and urban communities in Asia and Africa, especially in arid and semi-arid climatic areas with low rainfall. Many AISs, however have now been degraded. A systematic analysis of AISs on their typologies, causes of degradation, and their ecosystem services is lacking. OBJECTIVEThe objective of this review was to synthesize the knowledge on AISs on their typologies, status and causes of degradation, ecosystem services and functions, and identify gaps in research in Asia and Africa. METHODA critical review of peer-reviewed journal papers, conference and workshop proceedings, book chapters, grey literature, and country reports was conducted. Qualitative and quantitative information from journal papers were used to conceptualize the typologies and analyze the status and causes of degradation, and ecosystems services and functions provided by the AISs. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONBased on the review, we classified AISs into three groups by source of irrigation water: Rainwater harvesting system (RHS) with small reservoirs, ground water based system, and floodwater based system. The RHSs, which used to receive reliable rainfall and managed by well cohesive social organizations for their maintenance and functioning in past, have now been silting due to extreme rainfall pattern and breakdown of the cohesive organizations in recent decades. In ground water based systems, indiscriminate development of deep tube wells causing siltation of channels has been a major challenge. In floodwater irrigation systems, irregular rainfall in the highlands and the breakage of irrigation structures by destructive floods were the main causes of degradation. Lack of maintenance and increased soil erosion, inadequate skilled manpower, and declining support from the government for repair and maintenance were the main causes of degradation of all AISs.The main ecosystem service provided by all AISs is water for agriculture. In tank- and pond-based systems, fish farming is also practiced. Tank irrigation systems provide various types of provisioning, regulatory, cultural and supporting services, especially in India and Sri Lanka. Ground water based systems provide water for domestic purposes and various cultural services. Floodwater based systems provide water for power generation and wildlife habitat maintenance and help in flood control. SIGNIFICANCEThe knowledge generated through the review provide evidence-based information, and help aware governments, private sectors and development agencies for improved policy planning and decision making, and prioritizing the restoration, rehabilitation, and management of various AISs.

Household vulnerability and adaptive capacity on impacts of climate change and adaptability solution in Soroti District, Uganda

Abstract. Ogallo EA, Wambua BN, Mukhovi MS. 2022. Household vulnerability and adaptive capacity on impacts of climate change and adaptability solution in Soroti District, Uganda. Intl J Trop Drylands 6: 63-76. This study aimed to assess the vulnerabilities, impacts, and adaptation strategies of households in the Soroti District, Uganda. The data from household surveys, interviews with key informants, and focused group discussions were used to obtain data on climate change and variability impacts, adaptation strategies, and vulnerability. The rainfall and temperature data from Soroti meteorological station was also used to determine climate variability and change. The Microsoft Excel 2007 and Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) 16 program entered all the quantitative data. The results were then represented in tables, graphs, and charts. The temperature and rainfall analysis show that the area's climate has recently changed. These scenarios were confirmed by people's perception, along with increased drought, floods, and incidences of diseases and pests. That could have serious implications for agriculture, the major source of livelihood within the district. For instance, the delay of the 2013 March-April-May (MAM) rainfall onset and extended dry spell between the seasons led to subsequent poor harvests and serious crop failure. Other major impacts of climate change and variability on livelihoods include low fish catches, decreased water availability, lack of animal feeds, and decline in soil fertility. Although the entire district is vulnerable to the impact of climate change and variability, vulnerability is heightened for women, children, the poor, and the less educated. However, the residents have adopted certain coping and adaptation strategies to deal with the climate change impacts. The current coping strategies include selling household assets, wage labor, petty trading, and reducing consumption. Adaptation strategies include shifting planting dates, off-farm jobs, planting different crops, diversifying crops, and diversifying from farm to non–farm activities. However, these strategies are insufficient due to overarching stressors such as over-dependence on rainfed agriculture, poverty, and lack of information and technology. Moreover, there is an urgent need to alleviate poverty and unemployment within the district by creating employment opportunities for the locals and enhancing the micro-financing efficiency to improve resilience and adaptation to climate change and variability. There is also a need for robust contingency planning and the relevant institutions' involvement in early warning. Local knowledge integration in climate policies also could enhance resilience and improve adaptation.

Ralstonia solanacearum Facing Spread-Determining Climatic Temperatures, Sustained Starvation, and Naturally Induced Resuscitation of Viable but Non-Culturable Cells in Environmental Water.

Ralstonia solanacearum is a bacterial phytopathogen affecting staple crops, originally from tropical and subtropical areas, whose ability to survive in temperate environments is of concern under global warming. In this study, two R. solanacearum strains from either cold or warm habitats were stressed by simultaneous exposure to natural oligotrophy at low (4 °C), temperate (14 °C), or warm (24 °C) temperatures in environmental water. At 4 °C, the effect of temperature was higher than that of oligotrophy, since R. solanacearum went into a viable but non-culturable (VBNC) state, which proved to be dependent on water nutrient contents. Resuscitation was demonstrated in vitro and in planta. At 14 °C and 24 °C, the effect of oligotrophy was higher than that of temperature on R. solanacearum populations, displaying starvation-survival responses and morphological changes which were stronger at 24 °C. In tomato plants, starved, cold-induced VBNC, and/or resuscitated cells maintained virulence. The strains behaved similarly regardless of their cold or warm areas of origin. This work firstly describes the natural nutrient availability of environmental water favoring R. solanacearum survival, adaptations, and resuscitation in conditions that can be found in natural settings. These findings will contribute to anticipate the ability of R. solanacearum to spread, establish, and induce disease in new geographical and climatic areas.

Enhanced nighttime heatwaves over African urban clusters

Despite the threat that nighttime heatwave poses to public health and the environment in the developing world, it remains relatively understudied in Africa, especially in its rapidly expanding urban areas with large populations. Using meteorological observations, climate reanalysis, remote sensing datasets, and integrated methodology, we found that during 1981–2020, nighttime heatwaves dramatically increased with early onset dates over Africa. Large scale circulation induced dry conditions over land which explains the major heatwaves across all climate zones. Meanwhile, the increasing trend of nighttime heatwaves in urban areas than rural areas in both tropical and temperate climates is largely due to urbanization, which amplifies heatwaves with urban heat island (UHI) effects. The strongest contribution of urbanization to nighttime heatwaves was observed in temperate climate, leading to a 46% increase in the heatwave duration. In arid climate, urban expansion has a negative impact on nighttime heatwaves, due to the cool island effect of urban greens and weak urbanization. The major contribution of urbanization to the urban-rural contrast of nighttime heatwave trends in temperate climate can be attributed to stronger UHI intensity resulting from lower windspeed and less evapotranspiration. Without appropriate adaptation efforts to reduce heatwave exposure, the risks posed in Africa’s urban areas will continue to increase under future warming.

Comparing Rain Gauge and Weather RaDAR Data in the Estimation of the Pluviometric Inflow from the Apennine Ridge to the Adriatic Coast (Abruzzo Region, Central Italy)

Accurate knowledge of the rain amount is a crucial driver in several hydrometeorological applications. This is especially true in complex orography territories, which are typically impervious, thus, leaving most mountain areas ungauged. Due to their spatial and temporal coverage, weather radars can potentially overcome such an issue. However, weather radar, if not accurately processed, can suffer from several limitations (e.g., beam blocking, altitude of the observation, path attenuation, and indirectness of the measurement) that can hamper the reliability of the rain estimates performed. In this study, a comparison between rain gauge and weather radar retrievals is performed in the target area of the Abruzzo region in Italy, which is characterized by a heterogeneous orography ranging from the seaside to Apennine ridge. Consequently, the Abruzzo region has an inhomogeneous distribution of the rain gauges, with station density decreasing with the altitude reaching approximately 1500 m a.s.l. Notwithstanding, pluviometric inflow spatial distribution shows a subregional dependency as a function of four climatic and altimetric factors: coastal, hilly, mountain, and inner plain areas (i.e., Marsica). Such areas are used in this analysis to characterize the radar retrieval vs. rain gauge amounts in each of those zones. Compared to previous studies on the topic, the analysis presented the importance of an accurate selection of the climatic and altimetric subregional areas where the radar vs. rain gauge comparison is undertaken. This aspect is not only of great importance to correct biases in radar retrieval in a more selective way, but it also paves the way for more accurate hydrometeorological applications (e.g., hydrological model initialization and quantification of aquifer recharge), which, in general, require the accurate knowledge of rain amounts upstream of a basin. To fill the gap caused by the uneven rain gauge distribution, ordinary Kriging (OK) was applied on a regional scale to obtain 2D maps of rainfall data, which were cumulated on a monthly and yearly basis. Weather radar data from the Italian mosaic were also considered, in terms of rain rate retrievals and cumulations performed on the same time frame used for rain gauges. The period considered for the analysis was two continuous years: 2017 and 2018. The output of the elaborations included raster maps for both radar and interpolated rain gauges, where each pixel contained a rainfall quantity. Although the results showed a general underestimation of the weather radar data, especially in mountain and Marsica areas, they were within the 95% confidence interval of the OK estimation. Our analysis highlighted that the average bias between radar and rain gauges, in terms of precipitation amounts, was a function of altitude and was almost constant in each of the selected areas. This achievement suggests that after a proper selection of homogeneous target areas, radar retrieval can be corrected using the denser network of rain gauges typically distributed at lower altitudes, and such correction can be extended at higher altitudes without loss of generality.

Nomogram for Predicting Asphalt Pavement Roughness After Preventive Maintenance Based on Long-Term Pavement Performance Data

Relative effectiveness has been used as the primary criterion when choosing pavement preventive maintenance (PM) treatments; however, the most effective treatment is not necessarily the most cost-effective treatment because of the higher cost. Cost-effectiveness should be determined by predictive models of PM-treated pavement performance, which has rarely been investigated. In this study, a predictive model for post-treatment pavement roughness—as defined by international roughness index (IRI)—was established utilizing the data from the Long-Term Pavement Performance Program (LTPP) Specific Pavement Study 3 (SPS-3). The generalized least squares (GLS) model was employed to improve the predictive performance by exploiting the characteristics of LTPP panel data. A nomogram was also provided to help highway agencies manually obtain the predicted post-treatment IRI values. Results show that post-treatment IRI was significantly higher in dry and non-freeze areas than in other climate areas. The effect of pavement structure on post-treatment IRI was time-dependent; it was insignificant at the beginning and gradually increased after 4 years. Although post-treatment IRI was affected by pavement structures and climate, the relative effectiveness of different PM treatments was only related to the pre-treatment IRI. Thin overlay significantly improved the pavement IRI, and when pre-treatment IRI was 2.0 m/km, the post-treatment IRI of the thin overlay would be reduced to 0.6 times that of the control. However, there was no significant difference in pavement IRI between different seal treatments.