High Rainfall Amounts Research Articles

Soil erosion assessment on hillslope of GCE using RUSLE model

A new method for obtaining the C factor (i.e., vegetation cover and management factor) of the RUSLE model is proposed. The method focuses on the derivation of the C factor based on the vegetation density to obtain a more reliable erosion prediction. Soil erosion that occurs on the hillslope along the highway is one of the major problems in Malaysia, which is exposed to a relatively high amount of annual rainfall due to the two different monsoon seasons. As vegetation cover is one of the important factors in the RUSLE model, a new method that accounts for a vegetation density is proposed in this study. A hillslope near the Guthrie Corridor Expressway (GCE), Malaysia, is chosen as an experimental site whereby eight square plots with the size of \(8\times 8\) and \(5\times 5\) m are set up. A vegetation density available on these plots is measured by analyzing the taken image followed by linking the C factor with the measured vegetation density using several established formulas. Finally, erosion prediction is computed based on the RUSLE model in the Geographical Information System (GIS) platform. The C factor obtained by the proposed method is compared with that of the soil erosion guideline Malaysia, thereby predicted erosion is determined by both the C values. Result shows that the C value from the proposed method varies from 0.0162 to 0.125, which is lower compared to the C value from the soil erosion guideline, i.e., 0.8. Meanwhile predicted erosion computed from the proposed C value is between 0.410 and \(3.925\, \hbox {t ha}^{-1 }\,\hbox {yr}^{-1}\) compared to 9.367 to \(34.496\, \hbox {t ha}^{-1}\,\hbox {yr}^{-1 }\) range based on the C value of 0.8. It can be concluded that the proposed method of obtaining a reasonable C value is acceptable as the computed predicted erosion is found to be classified as a very low zone, i.e. less than \(10\, \hbox {t ha}^{-1 }\,\hbox {yr}^{-1}\) whereas the predicted erosion based on the guideline has classified the study area as a low zone of erosion, i.e., between 10 and \(50\, \hbox {t ha}^{-1 }\,\hbox {yr}^{-1}\).

Assessment of the influence of fertilisation and environmental conditions on maize health

Field experiments showed the occurrence of such agrophages as the frit fly (Oscinella frit L.) and the European maize borer (Pyrausta nubilalis Hbn.). Identified diseases included fusariosis (Fusarium ssp.) and maize smut (Ustilago maydis Corda). The incidence of the frit fly was influenced by weather conditions, mainly temperature, in the period from sowing to the BBCH 15–16 phase. Moderate temperature conditions contributed to the occurrence of the pest. The significantly highest percentage of plants damaged by larvae of this pest was recorded on maize fertilised only with potassium (K) and phosphorus with potassium (PK). In turn, the lowest percentage of plants damaged by frit fly larvae was recorded for maize fertilised with nitrogen and potassium (NK). The percentage of plants damaged by the European maize borer was influenced by temperature and humidity conditions in individual years of the study. The highest percentage of plants damaged by larvae of the pest was found in the vegetation season characterised by the highest amount of rainfall with the lowest mean daily air temperature. The presence of potassium in a given fertiliser combination, the application of manure or combined application of manure and mineral fertilisation resulted in an enhanced resistance of maize plants to Fusarium ssp. fungi. The significantly greatest infestation of maize plants by the fungus Ustilago maydis Corda was recorded in the treatment in which only nitrogen was applied. In turn, the lowest percentage of plants with symptoms of this disease was recorded in the treatment with the application of potassium alone and in the application of potassium together with phosphorus.

Molecular fingerprinting of particulate organic matter as a new tool for its source apportionment: changes along a headwater drainage in coarse, medium and fine particles as a function of rainfalls

Abstract. Tracking the sources of particulate organic matter (POM) exported from catchments is important to understand the transfer of energy from soils to oceans. The suitability of investigating the molecular composition of POM by thermally assisted hydrolysis and methylation using tetramethylammonium hydroxide directly coupled to gas chromatography and mass spectrometry is presented. The results of this molecular-fingerprint approach were compared with previously published elemental (% C, % N) and isotopic data (δ13C, δ15N) acquired in a nested headwater catchment in the Piedmont region, eastern United States of America (12 and 79 ha). The concordance between these results highlights the effectiveness of this molecular tool as a valuable method for source fingerprinting of POM. It emphasizes litter as the main source of exported POM at the upstream location (80±14 %), with an increasing proportion of streambed (SBed) sediment remobilization downstream (42 ± 29 %), specifically during events characterized by high rainfall amounts. At the upstream location, the source of POM seems to be controlled by the maximum and median hourly rainfall intensity. An added value of this method is to directly investigate chemical biomarkers and to mine their distributions in terms of biogeochemical functioning of an ecosystem. In this catchment, the distribution of plant-derived biomarkers characterizing lignin, cutin and suberin inputs were similar in SBed and litter, while the proportion of microbial markers was 4 times higher in SBed than in litter. These results indicate that SBed OM was largely from plant litter that has been processed by the aquatic microbial community.

Forecasting Rainfall in Mauritius using Seasonal Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average and Artificial Neural Networks

In this paper, two forecasting methods namely, the autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) and the artificial neural network (ANN) are studied to forecast the amount of rainfall in Mauritius. Indeed due to the geographical location of Mauritius, the rainfall pattern is deeply affected by the season prevailing whereby the period of summer receives a relatively high amount of rainfall when compared to winter. As such, forecasting rainfall can help the local authorities to manage the distribution of water in the country especially during droughts. The results obtained from both methods are compared in terms of their mean square error, mean absolute difference and mean absolute percentage difference. It is then seen that artificial neural network is a much better model as it is more accurate. This is due to its nonlinearity characteristic and ability to learn and train itself.

The effects of rainfall regimes and terracing on runoff and erosion in the Three Gorges area, China.

Changes in natural rainfall regimes have taken place and are expected to become more pronounced in future decades. These changes are also likely to be accompanied by changes in crop management practices. The main purpose of this study was to analyze runoff and soil loss in relation to rainfall regimes and terracing in the Three Gorges area, China. Based on 10years of field observation and k-mean clusters, 101 rainfall events were grouped into three rainfall regimes. Rainfall regime I was the group of events with strong rainfall intensity, high frequency, and short duration. Rainfall regime III consisted of events with low intensity, long duration, and high rainfall amount. Rainfall regime II was the aggregation of events of high intensity and amount, and less frequent occurrence. The results showed that event runoff coefficients were not significantly different among rainfall regimes. However, the average soil erosion rates in rainfall regimes I and II were significantly higher than that in regime III. The average erosion rates under rainfall regimes I, II, and III were 21.6, 39.7, and 9.8gm-2, respectively. The effect of rainfall regime on soil erosion also was changed by terracing. On unterraced cropland, soil erosion rate in rainfall regime I is significantly higher than that in regime III. However, the situation did not exist in unterraced orchard. Terracing significantly reduced runoff and soil erosion, and compensated the effects of rainfall regime on soil erosion, which indicated that runoff and erosion in terraced system may be little influenced by climate change. Based on these results, it was suggested more attention should be paid to the timing of rainfall events in relation to crop development and the high erosion on unterraced citrus orchard to control soil erosion in this area.

Influence of meteorological variables on rainfall partitioning for deciduous and coniferous tree species in urban area

Rainfall partitioning is an important part of the ecohydrological cycle, influenced by numerous variables. Rainfall partitioning for pine (Pinus nigra Arnold) and birch (Betula pendula Roth.) trees was measured from January 2014 to June 2017 in an urban area of Ljubljana, Slovenia. 180 events from more than three years of observations were analyzed, focusing on 13 meteorological variables, including the number of raindrops, their diameter, and velocity. Regression tree and boosted regression tree analyses were performed to evaluate the influence of the variables on rainfall interception loss, throughfall, and stemflow in different phenoseasons. The amount of rainfall was recognized as the most influential variable, followed by rainfall intensity and the number of raindrops. Higher rainfall amount, intensity, and the number of drops decreased percentage of rainfall interception loss. Rainfall amount and intensity were the most influential on interception loss by birch and pine trees during the leafed and leafless periods, respectively. Lower wind speed was found to increase throughfall, whereas wind direction had no significant influence. Consideration of drop size spectrum properties proved to be important, since the number of drops, drop diameter, and median volume diameter were often recognized as important influential variables.

Investigation of inducements and defenses of flash floods and urban waterlogging in Fuzhou, China, from 1950 to 2010

In recent years, flash floods and urban waterlogging have become a widespread phenomenon in Fuzhou, which pose a serious threat to people’s lives and property. The primary disaster-causing factors include the intensity and duration of rainfall. Therefore, this article analyzes the characteristics, causes of rainfall, and the existing problems of the two disasters in Fuzhou. The main conclusions are as follows: (1) The rainfall in Fuzhou is concentrated in March to September, with high rainfall intensity and rainfall amounts, and frequent extreme rainfall events combined with high rainfall intensity in flash flood-prone areas are higher than that in the plains area. (2) Precipitation, geographical conditions, and urban construction mainly caused the two major disasters and are weak in technology and management. Therefore, it is necessary to adhere to both the structural measures and non-structural measures to coordinate the relationship between people and floods, to strengthen the research on the mechanisms of precipitation, and to forecast and provide early warning of flash floods and urban waterlogging, all of which can provide reference for the defensive disasters in mountainous coastal cities.

Prinos i komponente prinosa zrna tritikalea gajenog na zemljištu tipa pseudoglej

A field trial was conducted on an acid pseudogley soil during the 2011/12, 2012/13 and 2013/14 growing seasons to evaluate grain yield and its components in four triticale cultivars ('Favorit', 'Tango', 'Odisej' and 'KG-20'). The highest values of grain yield, 1,000-grain weight, number of grains per spike, spike length and plant height in all cultivars were obtained in the year characterised by moderate temperatures during grain filling and high amounts of rainfall in the second part of the growing season. 'Favorit' gave the highest grain yield, the largest number of grains per spike, the lowest 1,000-grain weight and the smallest plant height. The highest 1,000-grain weight and the lowest number of grains per spike were found in 'Tango'. 'KG-20' had the greatest plant height and the lowest average grain yield during the three experimental years, with the lowest grain yield achieved in the driest year, and the highest in the wettest year. 'Odisej' exhibited a high grain yield, fewer grains per spike, and the lowest grain weight per spike compared to the other cultivars.

Landslide Hazards in Fiji, managing the risk and not the disaster, a literature review

A literature review for a proposed study has yielded that Fiji has both a perception and a risk problem when it comes to landslide hazards. The islands experience high amounts of rainfall and violent wind-speeds combined with steep slopes, lead to erosion and mass movements. In 1980 seventy four landslides were reported in one 230 hectare area during Fiji’s cyclone season. Roads in the area suffered vast damaged leading to closures and eventual re-routing which cost $F1.6 million. This was only one such event, over 20 other events have been recorded since 1931. Landslides are identified as one of the major hazards in Fiji, causing around twenty five percent of annual cumulative deaths. They have a direct impact to farm lands as well as dwellings. The lack of understanding of slope stability has led to a mixed perception of landslide risk in the community. Financially it is more effective to mitigate against a hazard then to react to it. In other communities similar to those in Fiji, where landslides are a risk, one part of the solution has been to educate the affected community of the risks. This “bottom up” approach has worked in studies carried out in Guatemala and Eastern Caribbean. Each study differed in their approach on how they empowered the local community to understand their landslide risk, and ways to increase their resilience to that risk. Coupling the “bottom up” approach with technical trainings on emerging technologies like UAVs and 3D Printing, we teach children and adults how to create their own resources. Combining UAVs with a digital camera can allow a community to get a Birdseye view of their landscape to define the hazard and the risk. Presenting an image in 2D can show the landscape, but a 3D printed model can demonstrate how exactly their house would fare within a rain event. It provides a better visual, a tangible resource to better explain the potential hazards. Changing the perception of the hazard will aid in better planning. Understanding how to address both perception and risk may be the difference between managing the risk to and not the disaster.

Cellulolytic activity of soddy-podzolic soils on diferent biotops

The agrochemical properties of sod-podzolic soils of agricultural land of different use on the territory of Volodymyrets district, Rivne region, which, according to agro-soil zoning, belongs to the Western soil province of Ukrainian Polissia was analyzed. A cellulolytic activity of studied soils under natural pastures, fallows and arable land due to intensity of decay of linen is given. For natural pastures and forests according to the scale offered by D.G. Zviagintsev, the cellulosolytic activity of sod-podzolic soils is average, for arable land it is weak. The dependence of the activity level of cellulolytic destructive organisms on the agrochemical properties of soils is investigated. The reduction of decomposition of linen is observed in the series: natural pasture — fallow — arable land. Accordingly, in this series, a decrease in the content of alkali hydrolyzed nitrogen, a decrease in the content of humus and calcium was found. The influence of climatic factors on the activity of microorganisms was analyzed. The decomposition of the linen for the period under investigation was most active at higher air temperatures and higher rainfall amount.

Understanding Constraints and Triggering Factors of Landslides: Regional and Local Perspectives on a Drainage Basin

The Grande da Pipa River (GPR) basin (Portugal) has natural conditions that favor the occurrence of landslides. The hydrological year 2009/10 was characterized by high amounts of rainfall, which led to the occurrence of an also high number of landslides in this basin. The hydrodynamic character of the GPR basin was analyzed through a lumped parameter model of daily sequential water balances, in order to understand its influence in the stability of natural slopes. Results from the model were confronted to the inventory of landslides that occurred in the basin during the hydrological year 2009/10. Morphological, geotechnical, and hydrological local conditions affecting slope stability were also analyzed through back-analyses of two selected deep-seated landslides. Data here presented shows that the rise of water table is an important triggering factor for landslides. The most important constraint for landslides in the area is the degree of weathering and thickness of the upper layer of degraded marls. In most of the basin, the degraded layer is less than 5 m deep, causing the occurrence of shallow and intermediate landslides. However, deep-seated landslides were also found in areas, even with degraded marls that were less than 5 m-thick, where landslides have also occurred in the past.

Skill of Predicting Heavy Rainfall Over India: Improvement in Recent Years Using UKMO Global Model

The quantitative precipitation forecast (QPF) performance for heavy rains is still a challenge, even for the most advanced state-of-art high-resolution Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP) modeling systems. This study aims to evaluate the performance of UK Met Office Unified Model (UKMO) over India for prediction of high rainfall amounts (>2 and >5 cm/day) during the monsoon period (JJAS) from 2007 to 2015 in short range forecast up to Day 3. Among the various modeling upgrades and improvements in the parameterizations during this period, the model horizontal resolution has seen an improvement from 40 km in 2007 to 17 km in 2015. Skill of short range rainfall forecast has improved in UKMO model in recent years mainly due to increased horizontal and vertical resolution along with improved physics schemes. Categorical verification carried out using the four verification metrics, namely, probability of detection (POD), false alarm ratio (FAR), frequency bias (Bias) and Critical Success Index, indicates that QPF has improved by >29 and >24% in case of POD and FAR. Additionally, verification scores like EDS (Extreme Dependency Score), EDI (Extremal Dependence Index) and SEDI (Symmetric EDI) are used with special emphasis on verification of extreme and rare rainfall events. These scores also show an improvement by 60% (EDS) and >34% (EDI and SEDI) during the period of study, suggesting an improved skill of predicting heavy rains.

Recent Changes in Agricultural Land Use in the Riverine Area of Nakhon Phanom Province, Northeast Thailand

(ProQuest: ... denotes non-US-ASCII text omitted.)IntroductionAlthough it is known that the agrarian transformation in Northeast Thailand has resulted in major changes in land use in the region, including a decline in the area of natural forest due to the expansion of cash crops and the conversion of agricultural land into the new housing estates that surround the region's rapidly expanding urban centers, detailed empirical studies on the nature and causes of land use changes in specific areas are lacking. Therefore, the present study was carried out in order to describe recent changes in agricultural land use and identify the factors influencing these changes in two districts along the bank of the Mekong River in Nakhon Phanom Province. This area is of particular interest because it is characterized by more fertile soil and a higher amount of rainfall than is typical in Northeast Thailand. It also borders the Lao People's Democratic Republic, to which it has been linked by the Third Friendship Bridge between Nakhon Phanom and Khammouane Provinces, which was officially opened on November 11, 2011. This and other transportation links, which are being built in the context of the Greater Mekong Subregion Economic Corridor and ASEAN Economic Community, may be influencing changes in land use in the area.MethodologyResearch SiteThis study was conducted in Mueang and That Phanom Districts in Nakhon Phanom Province (coordinates: Upper left 17.99N, 103.96E, Upper right 17.99N, 104.86E, Lower left 16.70N, 103.96E, and Lower right 16.70N, 104.86E) in the valley of the Mekong River (Fig. 1). Neighboring provinces (clockwise from the south) are Mukdahan, Sakon Nakhon, and Bueng Kan. In the northeast, the province borders Khammouane of Laos. The northern part of the province has both uplands and forest-covered plains and is drained by the Song Kram and the smaller Oun Rivers. The southern part is mostly flatland, with the Kum the only notable river. The provincial capital, the city of Nakhon Phanom, is located directly on the bank of the Mekong.Mueang Nakhon Phanom is the capital district of Nakhon Phanom Province. Mueang District is subdivided into 15 subdistricts (tambol), which are further subdivided into 169 villages (muban). The city of Nakhon Phanom (thesaban mueang) covers all of Nai Mueang and Nong Saeng Subdistricts as well as parts of At Samat and Nong Yat Subdistricts.That Phanom District is in the southern part of Nakhon Phanom Province. The district is named after Wat Phra That Phanom, the most important Buddhist temple in the region. The district is divided into 12 subdistricts, which are further subdivided into 142 villages. That Phanom Municipality covers parts of That Phanom and That Phanom Nuea Subdistricts.Data SourcesLand use maps for 2006 and 2010 of both districts were obtained in shapefile format from Land Development Department Office 4 in Ubon Ratchatani. These maps were made from unclouded and terrain corrected Landsat images in 2006 and 2010. Image processing and data manipulation were conducted using ERDAS IMAGINE 8.6 and ArcGIS 9.1. A handheld Garmin GPS eTrex HC (12-15 m accuracy) was used to obtain the coordinates of plots with different types of land uses. Some ancillary data were also used as references in image processing (Land Development Department 2010).Information on the causes of some important types of land use changes in several localities was collected from local officials and farmers by holding focus groups. This was done after the changes in land use were analyzed and several problematic types of change were identified, especially conversion of paddy fields to forests and vice versa.Method of AnalysisSpatial analysis employing the Decision Support System Research and Development Network for Agricultural and Natural Resource Management (DSSARM)4 Program was used to identify all plots that had been converted from one land use to a different one between 2006 and 2010. …

AN ANALYSIS OF RAINFALL EXTREMES IN THE NORTHERN SOUTH AMERICA AND THEIR BEHAVIORS FOR FUTURE CLIMATE BASED ON A1B SCENARIO

The Brazilian Amazon (BAMZ) and Northeast Brazil (NEB) regions have been facing intense climate extremes since the beginning of 21st century. In BAMZ, these climate extremes can modify the Amazon forest and its essential role in the local and remote climate. This study evaluated whether the extreme rainfall events in the both regions will be more intense and frequent in the future due to the increase of greenhouse gas emissions. An adapted version of the RX5day index was applied to distinguish between different types of extreme rainfall cases in the ETA model output for the decade 2089-2099 compared to the 1980-1990 decade. The results have shown that although the total rainfall is expected to be reduced by at least 1/3 (DJF) in the case of rare events, this kind of extreme rainfall will contribute with a higher amount of rainfall and will occur more frequently in both areas by the end of the 21st century. Heavy and very heavy events decrease for both areas (total rainfall amount and frequency). Results suggest that stakeholders must be prepared to cope with the population’s need for assistance during floods and rainfall reduction and reinforces the need to adapt to worse climate extremes projections.

Heavy rainfall in Mediterranean cyclones. Part I: contribution of deep convection and warm conveyor belt

In this study, we provide an insight to the role of deep convection (DC) and the warm conveyor belt (WCB) as leading processes to Mediterranean cyclones’ heavy rainfall. To this end, we use reanalysis data, lighting and satellite observations to quantify the relative contribution of DC and the WCB to cyclone rainfall, as well as to analyse the spatial and temporal variability of these processes with respect to the cyclone centre and life cycle. Results for the period 2005–2015 show that the relationship between cyclone rainfall and intensity has high variability and demonstrate that even intense cyclones may produce low rainfall amounts. However, when considering rainfall averages for cyclone intensity bins, a linear relationship was found. We focus on the 500 most intense tracked cyclones (responsible for about 40–50% of the total 11-year Mediterranean rainfall) and distinguish between the ones producing high and low rainfall amounts. DC and the WCB are found to be the main cause of rainfall for the former (producing up to 70% of cyclone rainfall), while, for the latter, DC and the WCB play a secondary role (producing up to 50% of rainfall). Further analysis showed that rainfall due to DC tends to occur close to the cyclones’ centre and to their eastern sides, while the WCBs tend to produce rainfall towards the northeast. In fact, about 30% of rainfall produced by DC overlaps with rainfall produced by WCBs but this represents only about 8% of rainfall produced by WCBs. This suggests that a considerable percentage of DC is associated with embedded convection in WCBs. Finally, DC was found to be able to produce higher rain rates than WCBs, exceeding 50 mm in 3-h accumulated rainfall compared to a maximum of the order of 40 mm for WCBs. Our results demonstrate in a climatological framework the relationship between cyclone intensity and processes that lead to heavy rainfall, one of the most prominent environmental risks in the Mediterranean. Therefore, we set perspectives for a deeper analysis of the favourable atmospheric conditions that yield high impact weather.

Distillery anaerobic digestion residues: A new opportunity for sweet potato fertilization

This paper represents an union point between two emerging issues: the productive potential derived from anaerobic digestion residues (ADRs) and the cultivation of sweet potato, an innovative species in Europe. The trial was carried out in open field condition in 2014 and 2015 comparing three fertilization treatments. ADRs were used to partially or completely substitute mineral N crop requirements: i) 50% N through ADRs and 50% N through mineral fertilizer (T50); ii) 75% N through ADRs and 25% N through mineral fertilizer (T75); iii) 100% N through ADRs (T100). Two controls treatments were also predisposed, one unfertilized (T0), and one with only mineral fertilization (TMIN).The highest significant aerial biomass yield (>57tha−1) was showed by T75 whereas no differences were found among other treatments (46tha−1). The highest significant marketable yield was showed by T75 and T100 (16tha−1). The marketable yield showed the highest value in 2015 with almost 16tha−1 with an year effect on root size. During the experiment harvest index ranged from 20.5% (TMIN) to 26.9% (T100).The nitrogen agronomic efficiency was greatly lower (−59.1%) in 2014 as a result of the high rainfall amount compared to 2015. T75 treatment showed the highest nitrogen agronomic efficiency, apparent recovery efficiency and utilization efficiency. The highest content of nitrates in aerial biomass was detected in combination with the N organic treatments.The storage roots harvested in 2014 presented a higher concentration of glucose (+19.7%) and fructose (+29.4%) than that harvested in 2015. The concentration of glucose and fructose increased with the amount of nitrogen supplied with ADRs. The obtained results offer potentially useful data for producers order to demonstrate the usability of ADRs as an alternative to traditional mineral fertilization in sweet potato cultivation.

An Assessment of Satellite-Derived Rainfall Products Relative to Ground Observations over East Africa

Accurate and consistent rainfall observations are vital for climatological studies in support of better agricultural and water management decision-making and planning. In East Africa, accurate rainfall estimation with an adequate spatial distribution is limited due to sparse rain gauge networks. Satellite rainfall products can potentially play a role in increasing the spatial coverage of rainfall estimates; however, their performance needs to be understood across space–time scales and factors relating to their errors. This study assesses the performance of seven satellite products: Tropical Applications of Meteorology using Satellite and ground-based observations (TAMSAT), African Rainfall Climatology And Time series (TARCAT), Climate Hazards Group InfraRed Precipitation with Station data (CHIRPS), Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM-3B43), Climate Prediction Centre (CPC) Morphing technique (CMORPH), Precipitation Estimation from Remotely Sensed Information using Artificial Neural Networks Climate Data Record (PERSIANN-CDR), CPC Merged Analysis of Precipitation (CMAP), and Global Precipitation Climatology Project (GPCP), using locally developed gridded (0.05°) rainfall data for 15 years (1998–2012) over East Africa. The products’ assessments were done at monthly and yearly timescales and were remapped to the gridded rain gauge data spatial scale during the March to May (MAM) and October to December (OND) rainy seasons. A grid-based statistical comparison between the two datasets was used, but only pixel values located at the rainfall stations were considered for validation. Additionally, the impact of topography on the performance of the products was assessed by analyzing the pixels in areas of highest negative bias. All the products could substantially replicate rainfall patterns, but their differences are mainly based on retrieving high rainfall amounts, especially of localized orographic types. The products exhibited systematic errors, which decreased with an increase in temporal resolution from a monthly to yearly scale. Challenges in retrieving orographic rainfall, especially during the OND season, were identified as the main cause of high underestimations. Underestimation was observed when elevation was <2500 m and above this threshold; overestimation was evident in mountainous areas. CMORPH, CHIRPS, and TRMM showed consistently high performance during both seasons, and this was attributed to their ability to retrieve rainfall of different rainfall regimes.

Diversity of Buprestidae (Coleoptera) from El Limón de Cuauchichinola, Tepalcingo, Morelos, Mexico

Abstract. A systematic survey was conducted to assess the diversity of Buprestidae in the tropical deciduous forest at El Limon de Cuauchichinola, municipality of Tepalcingo, Morelos State, Mexico. Samples were collected five days each month for one year, and the UAEM (CIUM) insect collection was examined for Buprestidae specimens. Four subfamilies, 12 tribes, 19 genera and 73 species were recorded, with the genera Agrilus Curtis, 1825, Chrysobothris Eschscholtz, 1829, and Acmaeodera Eschscholtz, 1829 having the greatest number of species. Nonparametric estimator analysis estimates that only 68% of buprestid species occurring in the forest were recorded. The annual value of diversity calculated with the Shannon-Wiener index was 3.08. Maximum diversity and evenness values were recorded during the rainy season. Maximum richness and abundance values were recorded during July and August, the months with the highest amount of rainfall, and correlated with rainfall 78% and 72%, respectively.

Bioclimatic Analysis in Pre‐Design Stage of Passive House in Indonesia

The objective of this study is to investigate the climate characteristics of Indonesian regions using an Olgyay Bioclimatic chart, a Givoni–Milne Bioclimatic chart and a Mahoney Table as the pre‐design stage in the development of a passive house design standard for residential house construction in Indonesia. Jakarta was the city chosen for deep analysis, because it represents most of the Indonesian regions in terms of temperature and relative humidity. The Olgyay Bioclimatic chart showed that the climate needs a high wind velocity to counteract the vapor pressure and shading in order to reduce solar gain entering the building. The Givoni–Milne Bioclimatic chart proposed natural ventilation and shading devices, while the Mahoney Table recommends open spaces for protection against hot wind, rooms single‐banked and permanent provision for air movement. The composite size of the opening at body height is better to allow the wind to counter the high levels of humidity and temperature. Heavy walls and roofs are suggested, as well as the provision of protection devices for the high amount of rainfall. Energy simulation was also done to investigate the effectiveness of the passive strategy proposed by the bioclimatic analysis. These results give a contribution as the indispensable basis for the development of a passive house standard in Indonesia.

Comparison of Grain Yield and Some Characteristics of Hulled, Durum and Bread Wheat Genotypes Varieties

In spite of the low grain yield they produce, the hulled wheat have become even more important in recent years because of their resistance to negative environmental conditions and healthy nutritional content. The research was carry out in order to comparison the yield and yield characteristics of durum (Kiziltan-91 and C-1252), hulled (Einkorn and Emmer) and bread wheat (Tir) varieties in Isparta ecological conditions in 2013-14 and 2014-15 vegetation periods. In both years, the highest grain yield was obtained in Kiziltan-91 variety (3992 and 3758 kg ha-1 respectively). The grain yield of hulled wheats in the first year (Einkorn 1269 kg ha-1, Emmer 2125 kg ha-1) was around Turkey averages. However, grain yield decreased of commercial wheat varieties due to the negative effect of high amount of rainfall in June in the second year, but considerably increased in (Einkorn 2150 kg ha-1, Emmer 2533 kg ha-1). N uptake was found to be lower in the than durum wheats. In terms of grain protein content, the highest values were obtained in Emmer variety (16.4%-15.3%).