Moisture Profiles Research Articles

Winter storm Uri and temporary drought relief in the western climate divisions of Texas

Texas ranks first in the United States in the variety and frequency of most natural disasters, such as flooding, wildfires, hurricanes, winter storms, and droughts. In February 2021, the winter storm named Uri caused an abnormal decline in the air temperature in the southcentral United States, notably in Texas. Right before Uri, most of Texas was going through a drought spell. Thus, this study analyzed how Uri influenced the drought severity, soil profile moisture content, and vegetation cover (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index, NDVI) across Texas. Data used in this analysis was obtained from the web-based geospatial applications gridMET and Crop-CASMA. The collected datasets include the Palmer Drought Severity Index (PDSI), Snow Water Equivalent (SWE), soil moisture, and NDVI at different spatial resolutions. These datasets were aggregated to the county scale using the zonal statistics analysis. The strength of the correlation between SWE and soil moisture was quantified based on the Pearson correlation coefficient. The percentage change in live vegetation cover due to the impact of the frigid temperature and snow coverage across the state was quantified by analyzing the average weekly NDVI before and after the winter storm. There was a reasonably strong correlation between the SWE contribution of Uri and the increase of the rootzone soil moisture (Pearson's r = 0.42). Similarly, the SWE showed a higher correlation with daily rootzone soil moisture with a Pearson's correlation coefficient of 0.49 on March 1. Furthermore, our results revealed a reduction in the NDVI values to less than 0.60 across Texas during the third week of February. Overall, Texas NDVI values seriously decreased due to Uri. Despite its disruptive effects on the state infrastructures and the economy, Uri snow lessened the drought conditions relatively for a short time.

Scientific Irrigation Scheduling for Sustainable Production in Olive Groves

The present study aimed at investigating scientific irrigation scheduling (SIS) for the sustainable production of olive groves. The SIS allows farmers to schedule water rotation in their fields to abate crop water stress and maximize yields, which could be achieved through the precise monitoring of soil moisture. For this purpose, the study used three kinds of soil moisture sensors, including tensiometer sensors, irrometer sensors, and gypsum blocks for precise measurement of the soil moisture. These soil moisture sensors were calibrated by performing experiments in the field and laboratory at Barani Agricultural Research Institute, Chakwal in 2018 and 2019. The calibration curves were obtained by performing gravimetric analysis at 0.3 and 0.6 m depths, thereby equations were developed using regression analysis. The coefficient of determination (R2) at 0.3 and 0.6 m depth for tensiometer, irrometer, and gypsum blocks was found to be equal to 0.98, 0.98; 0.75, 0.89; and 0.82, and 0.95, respectively. After that, a drip irrigation system was installed with the calibrated soil moisture sensors at 0.3 and 0.6 m depth to schedule irrigation for production of olive groves as compared to conventional farmer practice, thereby soil moisture profiles of these sensors were obtained to investigate the SIS. The results showed that the irrometer sensor performed as expected and contributed to the irrigation water savings between 17% and 25% in 2018 and 2019, respectively, by reducing the number of irrigations as compared toother soil moisture sensors and farmer practices. Additionally, olive yield efficiencies of 8% and 9%were observed by the tensiometer in 2018 and 2019, respectively. The outcome of the study suggests that an effective method in providing sustainable production of olive groves and enhancing yield efficiency.

Effects of Drying Temperature on Phenolic Compounds and Antioxidant Activities of Wood Apple Fruit (Limonia acidissima L.)

Wood apple (Limonia acidissima L.) is a very nutritious fruit grown in Southeast Asia for its natural source of antioxidants and medicinal properties, which are attributable to large bioactive compounds such as phenols, alkaloids, carotenoids, flavonoids, coumarins, carbohydrates, minerals, vitamins and anti-carcinogenic compounds. However, the high moisture content of wood apple can result in rapid degeneration after cropping and drying is one of the most common methods for preservation of wood apple as well as extending its lifetime. This study aimed to investigate the effects of various drying temperatures (50ºC, 60ºC, 70ºC, and 80ºC) on the moisture profile, total phenolic content (TPC), antioxidant activity and sensory quality of wood apple pulp. TPC and antioxidant activity were tested via the Folin-Ciocalteu method and free radical scavenging ability of 1,1-diphenyl-2-picryl hydrazyl (DPPH), respectively. Optimal results were obtained at the drying temperature of 70ºC for 150 minutes which yielded the highest TPC (30.871±0.31 mgGAE/100g of dry matter (DM)), antioxidant activity (20.655±0.29%), and highest mean sensory score.

An Australian climate-based characterization of hygrothermal risks for buildings

Moisture-related issues in buildings can accelerate the decay of building materials and increase occurrence of mould, resulting in significant economic and health implications. Transient hygrothermal risks assessment proved to be the most reliable approach, yet its application at early design stages is impeded by the high number of assumptions, input and skills required to be robustly applied. Climate-based indicators can assist in determining effective prevention design strategies based on the magnitude of the potential hygrothermal risks. However, in Australia, the National Construction Code relies on a climate zoning originally developed for thermal and energy efficiency provisions, clustering locations that present different moisture profiles. This paper investigates the suitability of the existing climate zones for hygrothermal risk indications by calculating the moisture index for several representative cites across Australia. Results reveal the current climate mapping to be unsuitable and too coarse to reliably provide robust indications for moisture management. Further, a new characterization of Australian climates for hygrothermal assessment purposes is proposed as a first step towards a better representation of moisture risks within the building code.

Wind Farms and Humidity

Several investigations have shown that enhanced mixing brought about by wind turbines alters near-surface meteorological conditions within and downstream of a wind farm. When scalar meteorological parameters have been considered, the focus has most often centered on temperature changes. A subset of these works has also considered humidity to various extents. These limited investigations are complemented by just a few studies dedicated to analyzing humidity changes. With onshore wind turbines often sited in agricultural areas, any changes to the microclimate surrounding a turbine can impact plant health and the length of the growing season; any changes to the environment around an offshore wind farm can change cloud and fog formation and dissipation, among other impacts. This article provides a review of observational field campaigns and numerical investigations examining changes to humidity within wind turbine array boundary layers. Across the range of empirical observations and numerical simulations, changes to humidity were observed in stably stratified conditions. In addition to the role of atmospheric stability, this review reveals that the nature of the change depends on the upstream moisture profile; robustness of the mixing; turbine array layout; distance from the turbine, in all three directions; and vertical temperature profile.

How the Interaction of Heatwaves and Urban Heat Islands Amplify Urban Warming

An increase in global temperature will likely result in more intense and frequent heatwaves that would last longer. Simultaneously, the growth of urban population requires more areas of land incorporated into urbanization, because most people are expected to live in cities, which will increase the intensity and duration of urban heat islands. However, the extent of the link between global warming induced heatwaves and urbanization caused heat islands is barely understood. Understanding the link would give a new information about catastrophic heat mitigation strategies. This paper, therefore, quantifies, at the sub-continental scale of Eastern North America, the effects of background perturbations by the synergies between heatwaves and urban heat islands using simulations from the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model, and focusing on the responses of urban energy balances, boundary layer height and vertical profiles of heat, momentum and moisture. Results showed that urban heat islands exacerbate heatwaves by deepening the turbulent boundary layer height, modifying the urban surface energy and regional winds. The fractional energy shift from latent to sensible heat fluxes and the consequent changes to the urban planetary boundary layer tends to amplify the intensity, extent and duration of extensive heatwaves. The response of ground heat fluxes to urban surfaces lags, while urban canopy humidity dissipates earlier because at the onset of the heatwave the surface water evaporates quickly to the point where there is less water left for evaporation leaving the urbanized regions vulnerable to more heating. During the heatwave event, the mean wind speed dropped by 2.5 m/s, hence less cool air is available for ventilation. The planetary boundary layer deepens by a maximum of 90-m over urban compared to rural and this may prolong urban surface heating. Based on the results, it can be concluded that the best heat-stress management strategies from the perspectives of urban energy balance and planetary boundary layer height is an integral approach that would lower sensible heat fluxes and increase surface albedo, latent heat fluxes and wind flows towards urban centers.

The Namib Turbulence Experiment: Investigating Surface–Atmosphere Heat Transfer in Three Dimensions

Abstract The Namib Turbulence Experiment (NamTEX) was a multinational micrometeorological campaign conducted in the central Namib Desert to investigate three-dimensional surface layer turbulence and the spatiotemporal patterns of heat transfer between the subsurface, surface, and atmosphere. The Namib provides an ideal location for fundamental research that revisits some key assumptions in micrometeorology that are implicitly included in the parameterizations describing energy exchange in weather forecasting and climate models: homogenous flat surfaces, no vegetation, little moisture, and cloud-free skies create a strong and consistent diurnal forcing, resulting in a wide range of atmospheric stabilities. A novel combination of instruments was used to simultaneously measure variables and processes relevant to heat transfer: a 3-km fiber-optic distributed temperature sensor (DTS) was suspended in a pseudo-three-dimensional array within a 300 m × 300 m domain to provide vertical cross sections of air temperature fluctuations. Aerial and ground-based thermal imagers recorded high-resolution surface temperature fluctuations within the domain and revealed the spatial thermal imprint of atmospheric structures responsible for heat exchange. High-resolution soil temperature and moisture profiles together with heat flux plates provided information on near-surface soil dynamics. Turbulent heat exchange was measured with a vertical array of five eddy-covariance point measurements on a 21-m mast, as well as by collocated small- and large-aperture scintillometers. This contribution first details the scientific goals and experimental setup of the NamTEX campaign. Then, using a typical day, we demonstrate (i) the coupling of surface layer, surface, and soil temperatures using high-frequency temperature measurements, (ii) differences in spatial and temporal standard deviations of the horizontal temperature field using spatially distributed measurements, and (iii) horizontal anisotropy of the turbulent temperature field.

Long-term moisture penetration in concrete exposed to marine tidal conditions

The depth of concrete influenced by seawater penetration plays a vital role in many durability processes affecting reinforced concrete structures in the marine tidal zone. In this study, a phenomenological moisture transport model in concrete is developed and is validated with numerous experimental results reported in the literature. The boundary conditions for cyclic wetting–drying in the tidal zone are formulated based on a novel superimposed tide model that more accurately represents real-time tides. The moisture profiles over a large number of wet–dry cycles are evaluated in the tidal zone using the developed models. The long-term moisture penetration characterised by (i) the influential depth of moisture transport (IMDT) and (ii) the cyclic water absorption amount (CWAA) is compared at various locations along the entire tidal zone. Sensitivity analysis was carried out to estimate the influence of material properties and environmental conditions on the IDMTs and CWAAs. The results of the study revealed that the IDMTs and CWAAs predicted by the realistic superimposed tide model are about 3.5 times greater than those predicted by conventional diurnal tide models. This substantial difference justifies the importance of the correct choice of tide model for durability studies in the tidal zone.

Slide type landslide susceptibility assessment of the Büyük Menderes watershed using artificial neural network method.

The Büyük Menderes watershed is the largest drainage watershed in Western Anatolia with an area of approximately 26,000km2. In the study area, almost 863 landslides occurred, extending over 222km2 with a mean landslide area of 0.21km2. In this study, landslide susceptibility assessments were carried out using artificial neural network method, which is one of the data-driven methods. In this study, that will contribute to the mitigation or control of the landslides caused by the reasons controlling the spatial and temporal distribution of landslides created in the GIS and MATLAB environment by using scientific and technological approaches within the framework. Since derivative activation function is also used in back-propagation artificial neural networks, its derivative is easily calculated in order not to slow down the calculation. Levenberg-Marquardt back-propagation (LM), resilient back propagation back-propagation (trainrp), scaled conjugate gradient back-propagation (trainscg), conjugate gradient with Powell/Beale restarts back-propagation (traincgb), and Fletcher-Powell conjugate gradient back-propagation (traincgf) algorithms are used, which constantly interrogate the link between the input parameter and the result output, and at least one cell's output is given as an input to any other cell. Geology, digital elevation model, slope, topographic wetness index, roughness index, plan, profile curvatures, and proximity to active faults and rivers were used as landslide conditioning factors. In susceptibility assessments, landslides were separated by 70% analysis, 15% test, and 15% validation datasets by random selection method. The performances of the landslide susceptibility maps were assessed by the area under the ROC curve (AUC), accuracy (ACC), precision, recall, F1 score, Kappa test error histogram, and confusion matrix, respectively. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curves, analysis, testing, validation, landslides, and study areas were found between 0.873 and 0.911. The susceptibility map had a high prediction rate in which high and very high susceptible zones corresponded to 26% of the study area including 82% of the recorded landslides.

Thermodynamic analysis of convective events that occurred in Belém-PA city

The Amazon Basin is dominated by convective rainfall with significant spatial and diurnal variability. Diurnal and seasonal distributions of convective events were determined from rainfall and Cloud Top Temperature (CTT) between January 2008 and December 2010 in city Belém-PA. The decis technique was used to select the most intense events (rainfall rate ≥ 15 mm h–1), which were subsequently, subclassified into deep convection events (DCE) and shallow convection events (SCE). Ninety four cases were found, mostly occurring between 12 and 19 LT, and 55% in the rainy season. Another set of DCE and SCE with rainfall rate ≥ 1 mm h–1 was selected to analyze the effect of seasonality. Of these, 42 cases were found also between 12 and 19 LT, with a maximum at 16 LT. Temperature profiles differed between the rainy and less rainy seasons, in the intensification of shallow and deep convection. Moisture profiles showed greater variability between 850 and 500 hPa, indicative of their role in convective activity; during the rainy season the atmosphere was more humid (less humid) before (at the time) of the occurrence of DCE. Wind components showed significant shear between surface and ~850 hPa, with stronger zonal component in the cases of DCE. The highest values of CAPE were observed about 2 to 3 hours before DCE and SCE, with maximum values before DCE in the rainy season. Results presented here are relevant to improve short-term forecasts and convective event simulations with numerical weather and climate models.

Контроль и регулирование влажности бумажного полотна

Product quality is a key indicator of the positive outcome of pulp and paper production. Moisture content is one of the main paper quality characteristics. The moisture profile across the paper web width shows possible shortcomings of the process equipment which, if corrected, will improve the consumer properties of paper and enhance economic efficiency. The research aims to assess whether the moisture content measurement results meet the requirements of the process regulations in the steady-state and transient modes of paper machine operation as well as the uniformity of the moisture profile in the cross direction. Data from the scanning device at high and low resolution were processed using statistical methods in order to assess the quality of the automatic paper web moisture control system. It was determined that in the steady-state mode of paper machine operation the moisture content meets the requirements of the regulations with a confidence probability of 0.95; in the transient mode of operation it exceeds the upper limit by 6 %. It has been found that the automated moisture control system eliminates this fault in 340 s. The coefficient of variation was used as a criterion for evaluating the uniformity of the moisture profile across the paper web width. The hypothesis of a trend line in the moisture profile across the paper web width was confirmed and a trend line equation was obtained using regression analysis techniques. The moisture profile was modeled while eliminating the technological factor that systematically affects the uniformity. It is proven that the elimination of the fault will reduce the coefficient of variation and therefore improve the uniformity of the profile by 41.2 % in the steady-state mode of paper machine operation. In the transition mode of operation the moisture profile improves slightly. The proposed algorithm for studying the moisture profile of paper, its modeling after corrections of the control object can be used in systems for controlling the quality of paper in the transverse direction. For citation: Koryakovskaya N.V., Bederdinova O.I. Monitoring and Control of Paper Web Moisture. Lesnoy Zhurnal [Russian Forestry Journal], 2022, no. 1, pp. 188–204. DOI: 10.37482/0536-1036-2022-1-188-204

A model to characterize soil moisture and organic matter profiles in the permafrost active layer in support of radar remote sensing in Alaskan Arctic tundra

Organic matter (OM) content and a shallow water table are two key variables that govern the physical properties of the subsurface within the active layer of arctic soils underlain by permafrost, where the majority of biogeochemical activities take place. A detailed understanding of the soil moisture and OM profile behavior over short vertical distances through the active layer is needed to adequately model the subsurface physical processes. To observe and characterize the profiles of soil properties in the active layer, we conducted detailed soil sampling at five sites along Dalton Highway on Alaska’s North Slope. These data were used to derive a generalized logistics function to characterize the total OM and water saturation fraction behavior through the profile. Furthermore, a new pedotransfer function was developed to estimate the soil bulk density and porosity—information that is largely missing from existing soil datasets—within each layer, solely from the soil texture (organic and mineral properties). Given the currently sparse soil database of the Alaskan Arctic, these profile models can be highly beneficial for radar remote sensing models to study active layer dynamics.

Characterization of site‐specific vegetation activity in Alaskan wet and dry tundra as related to climate and soil state

AbstractWe present discrete (2‐h resolution) multi‐year (2008–2017) in situ measurements of seasonal vegetation growth and soil biophysical properties from two sites on Alaska's North Slope, USA, representing dry and wet sedge tundra. We examine measurements of vertical active soil layer temperature and soil moisture profiles (freeze/thaw status), woody shrub vegetation physiological activity, and meteorological site data to assess interrelationships within (and between) these two study sites. Vegetation phenophases (cold de‐hardening start, physiological function start, stem growth start, stem growth end, physiological function end, cold hardening completion) were found to have greater interannual day of year (DOY) occurrence variability at the dry site compared with the wet site. At the dry site, vegetation activity begins on average ~7 days earlier and ends ~11 days earlier. The mean active stem growth window lasts ~54 days for the dry site and ~51 days for the wet site. Vegetation, in both tundra environments, began cold de‐hardening functions (warm season prep) prior to atmospheric temperatures warming above 0°C. Similar results were found related to the critical soil freeze/thaw/transition dates; the dry site had a DOY phenophase occurrence range that was 8 days larger than that of the wet site. A longer continuous summer thaw period was captured at the wet site by ~26 days throughout the active layer. In addition, the dry site was measured to have longer spring and fall soil isothermal conditions than the wet site by ~9 and 5 days throughout the active layer. These results show that the dry site's willow shrub vegetation physiology and soil condition phenology is more variable than the wet site. Alongside the in situ data, a remote sensing product from NASA's MEaSUREs program was utilized; our research indicates that the AMSR‐derived satellite product is more precise over the wet tundra site with critical date alignment between remote sensing observations and in situ measurements ranging from ~4 to 11 days. Furthermore, the AMSR product was shown to preemptively estimate land surface condition change during the spring transition for both tundra types while lagging during the fall transition and freeze‐up periods.

Web lateral instability caused by nonuniform paper properties

Lateral or cross-machine direction (CD) web movement in printing or converting can cause problems such as misregistration, wrinkles, breaks, and folder issues. The role of paper properties in this problem was studied by measuring lateral web positions on commercial printing presses and on a pilot-scale roll testing facility (RTF). The findings clearly showed that CD profiles of machine direction (MD) tension were a key factor in web stability. Uneven tension profiles cause the web to move towards the low-tension side. Although extremely nonuniform tension profiles are visible as bagginess, more often, tension profiles must be detected by precision devices such as the RTF. Once detected, the profiles may be analyzed to determine the cause of web offset and weaving problems. Causes of tension profiles can originate from nonuniform paper properties. For example, by means of case studies, we show that an uneven moisture profile entering the dryer section can lead to a nonuniform tension profile and lateral web movement. Time-varying changes in basis weight or stiffness may also lead to oscillations in the web’s lateral position. These problems were corrected by identifying the root cause and making appropriate changes. In addition, we developed a mathematical model of lateral stability that explains the underlying mechanisms and can be used to understand and correct causes of lateral web instability

Real time monitoring of the through thickness moisture profile of thin sheets using NMR

The through-thickness distribution of liquids and liquid migration over time in thin, porous media is highly relevant for the production and product properties of materials such as textiles, membranes, paper, barrier materials, and thin films. We present a 1D NMR profiling method for the analysis of through-thickness liquid distribution during liquid absorption, migration, and drying of thin sheets. The good temporal resolution (1.3 s) and high spatial resolution (10 μm) make it possible to study changes of liquid distribution in sheets of about 100 μm thickness. A key aspect of our method is the simultaneous scanning of a liquid saturated reference sheet. Using a reference, local liquid saturation and absolute amount of liquid present over time can be evaluated. We studied the drying of water-based inkjet ink on paper substrates with differing water absorption behaviors. Differences in z-directional liquid distribution, penetration depth, and drying kinetics over time could be observed.

Modeling and Design of a Solar Rotary Dryer Bench Test for Phosphate Sludge

As an eco-friendlier way to manage mining waste, the use of solar energy to dry phosphate sludge in a rotary dryer is envisioned. As a first step toward this end, a design study for a bench-scale rotary dryer for phosphate sludge is detailed, using a one-dimensional mathematical model developed for this task. Using the Engineering Equation Solver (EES) software, a steady-state transport phenomena model was developed that enables an estimation of the moisture and temperature profiles for both gas and product in the dryer. A sensitivity analysis evaluated the effects and influence of different geometric parameters and operating conditions on the product moisture profile. Parameters involved include the diameter of the dryer, the residence time of the product to dry, inlet air temperature, and inlet product humidity. This allowed for the selection of suitable design parameters for the operation of a phosphate sludge dryer with a 1.5 m length and an internal diameter of 11.5 cm. The inlet air temperature of the rotary dryer was set at 200°C to achieve a reduction of moisture content in the product from 30% to 7%. The model was validated through literature and experimental datasets, with an error averaging 0.22% and 1.52%, respectively.

Analysis of the MODIS above-cloud aerosol retrieval algorithm using MCARS

Abstract. The Multi-sensor Cloud and Aerosol Retrieval Simulator (MCARS) presently produces synthetic radiance data from Goddard Earth Observing System version 5 (GEOS-5) model output as if the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) were viewing a combination of atmospheric column inclusive of clouds, aerosols, and a variety of gases and land–ocean surface at a specific location. In this paper we use MCARS to study the MODIS Above-Cloud AEROsol retrieval algorithm (MOD06ACAERO). MOD06ACAERO is presently a regional research algorithm able to retrieve aerosol optical thickness over clouds, in particular absorbing biomass-burning aerosols overlying marine boundary layer clouds in the southeastern Atlantic Ocean. The algorithm's ability to provide aerosol information in cloudy conditions makes it a valuable source of information for modeling and climate studies in an area where current clear-sky-only operational MODIS aerosol retrievals effectively have a data gap between the months of June and October. We use MCARS for a verification and closure study of the MOD06ACAERO algorithm. The purpose of this study is to develop a set of constraints a model developer might use during assimilation of MOD06ACAERO data. Our simulations indicate that the MOD06ACAERO algorithm performs well for marine boundary layer clouds in the SE Atlantic provided some specific screening rules are observed. For the present study, a combination of five simulated MODIS data granules were used for a dataset of 13.5 million samples with known input conditions. When pixel retrieval uncertainty was less than 30 %, optical thickness of the underlying cloud layer was greater than 4, and scattering angle range within the cloud bow was excluded, MOD06ACAERO retrievals agreed with the underlying ground truth (GEOS-5 cloud and aerosol profiles used to generate the synthetic radiances) with a slope of 0.913, offset of 0.06, and RMSE=0.107. When only near-nadir pixels were considered (view zenith angle within ±20∘) the agreement with source data further improved (0.977, 0.051, and 0.096 respectively). Algorithm closure was examined using a single case out of the five used for verification. For closure, the MOD06ACAERO code was modified to use GEOS-5 temperature and moisture profiles as an ancillary. Agreement of MOD06ACAERO retrievals with source data for the closure study had a slope of 0.996 with an offset of −0.007 and RMSE of 0.097 at a pixel uncertainty level of less than 40 %, illustrating the benefits of high-quality ancillary atmospheric data for such retrievals.

Pulmonary Congestion: Who is at Risk?

Previous heart failure hospitalization identifies patients at very high risk for re-congestion, up to 50% at 6 months, with the highest risk in those with recent hospitalizations. Even without hospitalization, patients with current signs and symptoms of congestion are still at high risk for heart failure events, for which an increase in outpatient diuretic dose is a harbinger. People who have chronically elevated pulmonary artery pressures are at risk even if they are not currently aware of symptoms. As for systemic hypertension, pulmonary hypertension can be a silent killer as it progresses to right heart failure, which is often the final common pathway for patients who have been compensated for years with low left ventricular ejection fraction. Congestion is the intersection of clinical HFrEF versus HFpEF, so therapy for both populations is better guided by pulmonary artery pressure information. Where the two phenotypes differ is in the causes and therapies for congestion. Neurohormonal activation play a large part in congestion for HFrEF, as the neurohormonal antagonists have had such a large cumulative benefit to decrease hospitalizations. The benefit of managing pulmonary artery pressures in HFrEF is highest when combined with the fundamental therapies of ACEI and blockers. These agents have at best minor effects to decrease hospitalizations with HFpEF. The impact of ambulatory pulmonary pressure-guided therapy is consistently shown for preserved EF. This impact extends to patients with severe obesity, in whom it may be even more helpful as other signs of congestion are unreliable. Advanced renal disease with refractory diuretic resistance confers the highest risk, which is not decreased by knowledge of pulmonary pressures. These patients usually have a persistently cold and wet profile or a profile of disproportionate right heart failure, on the way to end-stage D disease. On the other hand, patients who follow and maintain lower pulmonary artery pressures are empowered in their own care, describing increased sense of control and decrease impact of HF on their lives. It is our hope that the combination of this patient engagement and the protection of the right ventricle can map a new trajectory for patients that does not accept failure. Previous heart failure hospitalization identifies patients at very high risk for re-congestion, up to 50% at 6 months, with the highest risk in those with recent hospitalizations. Even without hospitalization, patients with current signs and symptoms of congestion are still at high risk for heart failure events, for which an increase in outpatient diuretic dose is a harbinger. People who have chronically elevated pulmonary artery pressures are at risk even if they are not currently aware of symptoms. As for systemic hypertension, pulmonary hypertension can be a silent killer as it progresses to right heart failure, which is often the final common pathway for patients who have been compensated for years with low left ventricular ejection fraction. Congestion is the intersection of clinical HFrEF versus HFpEF, so therapy for both populations is better guided by pulmonary artery pressure information. Where the two phenotypes differ is in the causes and therapies for congestion. Neurohormonal activation play a large part in congestion for HFrEF, as the neurohormonal antagonists have had such a large cumulative benefit to decrease hospitalizations. The benefit of managing pulmonary artery pressures in HFrEF is highest when combined with the fundamental therapies of ACEI and blockers. These agents have at best minor effects to decrease hospitalizations with HFpEF. The impact of ambulatory pulmonary pressure-guided therapy is consistently shown for preserved EF. This impact extends to patients with severe obesity, in whom it may be even more helpful as other signs of congestion are unreliable. Advanced renal disease with refractory diuretic resistance confers the highest risk, which is not decreased by knowledge of pulmonary pressures. These patients usually have a persistently cold and wet profile or a profile of disproportionate right heart failure, on the way to end-stage D disease. On the other hand, patients who follow and maintain lower pulmonary artery pressures are empowered in their own care, describing increased sense of control and decrease impact of HF on their lives. It is our hope that the combination of this patient engagement and the protection of the right ventricle can map a new trajectory for patients that does not accept failure.

The Challenge of Surface Type Changes Over the Aral Sea for Satellite Remote Sensing of Precipitation

Frequent false signals of precipitation in satellite passive microwave retrievals over the Aral Sea have been identified as being caused by an outdated surface database. The database includes the surface type, elevation, and the percentage of the primary surface type in each grid. It was also found that the grid resolution of 1/6 degree (∼18 km at the equator) of the outdated surface data was too coarse to process Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) Mission microwave (GMI) imager data, which have a field of view (FOV) resolution of 31.68 km <sup xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">2</sup> for channels at 89 GHz, 166.5 GHz and 183.31 GHz). In this study, we generated a new surface database at a resolution of <inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$0.05^\circ \times 0.05^\circ $</tex-math></inline-formula> (∼5.6 km at the equator). Using the new surface data, the false precipitation problem above is addressed. At the same time, the retrieval accuracy for other parameters such as total precipitable water over the Aral Sea is significantly improved as well. The resolution of the database is suitable for most microwave and infrared sounding measurements of atmospheric temperature and moisture profiles as well as precipitation. By comparing this new surface data against the outdated surface data, we also see the loss of permanent ice in Antarctica and a dramatic reduction of water surface over the Aral Sea. Using a 40-year record of remote sensing data, we can observe the steady decrease in size of the Aral Sea, as a result of regional water use policies and natural climate change.

A methodology for comparing the chloride penetration severity across different tidal zones

Corrosion of steel in reinforced concrete structures exposed to the marine tidal environment severely affects the durability of structures. Comparing the severity of corrosion vulnerability across tidal zones requires a systematic procedure encompassing various environmental factors affecting tidal zones. A mathematical framework for comparing the severity of chloride penetration in concrete structures exposed to tidal zones at different coastal stations is proposed in this study. Validated moisture and chloride transport models are used to simulate the long-term moisture and chloride profiles in concrete exposed to tidal wetting and drying. The boundary conditions are formulated using real-time tide heights and several meteorological parameters: temperatures, wind velocities, and relative humidity values. Various penetration indices are used to characterize the severity of chloride and moisture penetration in concrete from the viewpoint of corrosion initiation. The developed framework has been implemented for the case of two Indian seaports located at Visakhapatnam and Mumbai. The proposed methodology may be extended to conduct a comparative corrosion vulnerability assessment of various coastal stations and classify them into durability zones.