Side Of Mountain Research Articles

Long‐Term Foehn Reconstruction Combining Unsupervised and Supervised Learning

ABSTRACTFoehn winds, characterised by abrupt temperature increases and wind speed changes, significantly impact regions on the leeward side of mountain ranges, e.g., by spreading wildfires. Understanding how foehn occurrences change under climate change is crucial. As foehn is a meteorological phenomenon, its prevalence has to be inferred from meteorological measurements employing suitable classification schemes. Hence, this approach is typically limited to specific periods for which the necessary data are available. We present a novel approach for reconstructing historical foehn occurrences using a combination of unsupervised and supervised probabilistic statistical learning methods. We utilise in situ measurements (available for recent decades) to train an unsupervised learner (finite mixture model) for automatic foehn classification. These labelled data are then linked to reanalysis data (covering longer periods) using a supervised learner (lasso or boosting). This allows us to reconstruct past foehn probabilities based solely on reanalysis data. Applying this method to ERA5 reanalysis data for six stations across Switzerland and Austria achieves accurate hourly reconstructions of north and south foehn occurrence, respectively, dating back to 1940. This paves the way for investigating how seasonal foehn patterns have evolved over the past 83 years, providing valuable insights into climate change impacts on these critical wind events.

Basin–Orogen Coupling‐Driven Meso‐Cenozoic Deformation Along the Southern Margin of the Junggar Basin, NW China: Insights From Integrated Multidisciplinary Analysis

ABSTRACTThe southern margin of the Junggar Basin (SMJB) represents the typical intra‐continental basin–orogen coupling structure of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt and is a key area to study the deformation mechanisms and the geodynamic evolution processes of the North Tianshan Orogen. Herein, we compiled data from boreholes, gravity and magnetism, seismicity‐ and magnetotellurics‐derived geological profiles and field data to recover the sedimentary history of the SMJB and discuss the intra‐continental deformation driven by the basin–orogen coupling mechanism. The results show that the sedimentary and tectonic evolution of the SMJB were both profoundly controlled by the intra‐continental orogeny of the North Tianshan Orogen and its coupling with the Junggar Basin during the Meso‐Cenozoic period. Consequently, the SMJB is dominated by thick‐skinned thrust nappes accompanied with strike‐slip faulting and thrusting. The foreland thrust belt of the SMJB is characterised by three structural belts, from south to north, including the basement‐involved thrust belt, the cover‐detached foreland thrust‐fold belt and the thrusted foreland basement uplifts, respectively. Meanwhile, as indicated by the geometry of the basement thrusts, the thickness of décollements and the structure of the foreland basement, the stress field in the SMJB is obviously stronger in the west and weaker in the east. The sedimentation and deformation migrated northwards into the basin area in a stepwise process, that corresponded to the pace of the overthrusting of the North Tianshan Orogen onto the Junggar Block. Intense regional compression induced the rapid uplifting of the North Tianshan and the significant crustal shortening of the Junggar Block, driving the three structural belts to form accordingly during the Late Jurassic to the Neogene. There are at least one or two décollements within the SMJB, representing one of the main features of basin–orogen coupling structure in most cases. The décollement of some layers represents the decoupling of the sedimentary cover with the basement, which helps to accommodate the lateral crustal shortening of the SMJB by a translation into vertical uplift. As a result, the detached foreland thrust‐fold belts in the shallow level of the upper crust overthrusted upon the basement‐involved nappes of the mountain's side, forming the opposite thrust system. Coevally, the basement of the basin, in the deep level of the upper crust keeps underthrusting beneath the North Tianshan Orogen, forming a typical crocodile mouth‐like structure. In general, both the shallow and deep deformation in the SMJB have been formed by the intense intra‐continental compression during the Meso‐Cenozoic, which were driven by the basin–orogen coupling mechanism.

Mathematical Analysis of the Wind Field Characteristics at a Towering Peak Protruding out of a Steep Mountainside

Wind field characteristics in a complex topography are significantly influenced by the nature of the surrounding terrains. This study employs onsite measurements to investigate the wind field characteristics at a towering peak protruding out of a steep mountainside, where butterfly−lookalike landscape platform will be constructed; the impact of the surrounding topography on the wind flow is highlighted. The results showed that the blocking effect of the mountains in the mountainous side of the valley caused a significant drop in the mean wind speed from that direction. The stationary test (reverse arrangement test) indicated that the wind speed had a strong nonstationary characteristic, necessitating the employment of a steady and nonstationary wind speed model to assess the wind turbulence characteristics. The three directions’ wind turbulence integral scales were critically influenced by the occurrence of the wind speedup effect, unexpectedly resulting in the vertical turbulence integral scale being the greatest of the three. Furthermore, the measured wind turbulence properties under both wind speed models showed certain variations from the recommended specifications. Consequently, the impact of the local terrain and the speedup effect on the wind characteristics must be thoroughly evaluated to ensure the structural stability of structures installed at a similar topography.

Forecasting High Wind Events in the HRRR Model over Wyoming and Colorado. Part I: Evaluation of Wind Speeds and Gusts

Abstract Strong wind events cause significant societal damage ranging from loss of property and disruption of commerce to loss of life. Over portions of the United States, the strongest winds occur in the cold season and may be driven by interactions with the terrain (downslope winds, gap flow, and mountain wave activity). In the first part of this two-part series, we evaluate the High-Resolution Rapid Refresh (HRRR) model wind speed and gust forecasts for the 2016–22 winter months over Wyoming and Colorado, an area prone to downslope windstorms and gap flows due to its complex topography. The HRRR model exhibits a positive bias for low wind speeds/gusts and a large negative bias for strong wind speeds/gusts. In general, the model misses many strong wind events, but when it does predict strong winds, there is a high false alarm probability. An analysis of proxies for surface winds is conducted. Specifically, 700- and 850-mb (1 mb = 1 hPa) geopotential height gradients are found to be good proxies for strong wind speeds and gusts at two wind-prone locations in Wyoming. Given the good agreement between low-level height gradients and surface wind speeds yet a strong negative bias for strong wind speeds and gusts, there is a potential shortcoming in the boundary layer physics in the HRRR model with regard to predicting strong winds over complex terrain, which is the focus of the second part of this two-part study. Last, the sites with the largest strong wind speed bias are found to mostly sit on the leeward side of high mountains, suggesting that the HRRR model performs poorly in the prediction of downslope windstorms. Significance Statement We investigate the performance of the High-Resolution Rapid Refresh (HRRR) model with respect to strong wintertime wind speeds and gusts over the complex terrain of Wyoming and Colorado. We show that the overall performance of the HRRR model is low with regard to strong wind speed and wind gust forecasts across the investigated winter seasons, with a large negative bias in predicted strong wind speeds and gusts and a small positive bias for weak wind speeds and gusts. The largest biases are found to be on the leeward side of high mountains, indicating poor prediction of downslope winds. This study also utilizes National Weather Service forecasting metrics to understand their performance with respect to strong wind forecasts, and we find that they provide skill in forecasting these events.

Mitigating inflow acceleration effects in twin mountains using air jets: Emphasis on anti-wind for high-speed railways

The twin mountains, a common terrain in mountainous areas, tend to induce the acceleration effect under crosswinds, which enhances the wind speed and the turbulence performance of the flow field. To mitigate the impact of the acceleration effect on high-speed trains, structures, and aircraft near the twin mountains, this study investigates the effectiveness of the jet strategies, which are realized on natural mountain slopes by mechanical ventilation, with different jet angles on the flow field and the train. Wind speed tests, flow visualization, wind field prediction, and research on the train's aerodynamic behavior are conducted in this paper using the wind tunnel and the improved delayed detached eddy simulation dynamic models. The results indicate that the wind velocity on the leeward side of the twin mountains increases up to 1.42 folds of the wind velocity of the incoming flow under crosswinds. The jet streams with 0° and 30° angles are the most effective in mitigating the acceleration effect among those tested (0°, 15°, 30°, and 45°), reducing the maximum wind speed by 11.87% and 16%, respectively. Compared with the mitigation effect of the jet stream with the 30° angle, the jet stream with the 0° angle has a better mitigation effect on the aerodynamic loads (4.0%–13.2%) and its fluctuation amplitude (24.4%–42.7%) of the train. These findings are valuable for studying the flow field characteristics of the twin mountains and the designing anti-wind measures for high-speed railways.

Exploring Tree Density Increases after Fire Exclusion in the Northern Front Range and Great Plains, Colorado, USA

Since Euro-American settlement and associated fire exclusion, grasslands and open forests have converted to forests throughout the United States. Contributing to the weight of evidence, we determined if forestation also occurred in forests and grasslands of Colorado. Our study extent encompassed landscapes of the 0.5 million ha Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forests in the northern Front Range (eastern side) of the southern Rocky Mountains and the 1 million ha Weld County, which contains Pawnee National Grassland, in the Great Plains grasslands. We quantified tree composition, cover, and densities from historical (years 1863 to 1886) tree surveys, current surveys (2002 to 2011), and land cover (2016) to identify departures. In the Arapaho and Roosevelt, historical lack of tree presence and overall low tree densities suggested an open landscape, due to about 70% of 7134 survey points without two trees within 60 m. The treed landscape, which was not continuously forested, had density estimates of about 153 trees/ha. In contrast, the current landscape was 68% forested with high tree densities; fire-dependent pines decreased relative to subalpine fir (Abies lasiocarpa) increases. In Weld County, seven trees were surveyed historically, whereas currently, woody cover totaled 2555 ha. Uniquely applying historical surveys at landscape scales, we documented an open landscape in the northern Front Range, unlike previous research, and rare tree presence in the relatively understudied grasslands of Colorado. Forestation corresponded with changes in U.S. grasslands and forests following Euro-American settlement and associated fire exclusion.

Observation of Ice Pellets and its Association with Meteorological Conditions in the Yeongdong Region of Korea

The microphysical properties of ice pellets (IP) are analyzed, and associated relevant thermodynamic conditions are investigated using rawinsonde soundings and model reanalysis data in the Yeongdong region of Korea. During the intensive observation campaign of snowfall, two distinctive IP events of 1 March 2021 (IP1) and 15 March 2018 (IP2) were observed when strong cold advection was prevalent below about 2 km as accompanied by distinctive inversion strength (4.7 ~ 9.3 ℃) above the cold layers. Cold air intrusion along the eastern side of Taebaek mountains appeared to abruptly decrease low level (850 hPa) temperature up to -4.7 ~ -3.4 ℃, but warmer than 8-year average (-9.5 ℃), respectively. Both episodes had smaller maximum size (1.8 mm in average) of ice pellets with greater fallspeed (4.2 m s−1) in comparison to general snow crystals. Ice pellets occurred in the synoptic condition of the High in the north and the Low passing by the south, which resulted in cold northeasterly over the Yeongdong region. Rawinsonde soundings show a melting layer between 800 and 700 hPa just above the freezing layer of 900 ~ 800 hPa existed, such as a reversed S temperature profile, which is also consistent with the model reanalysis. The IPs’ life time was short within a couple of hours since it occurred along with low-level strong cold advection (IP1) or rapidly-moving squall line (IP2).

Do changing circulation types raise the frequency of summertime thunderstorms and large hail in Europe?

We study the role of changes in circulation type frequency on the evolution of summertime thunderstorm and large hail frequency across Europe since 1950 until 2020 to find out if they are responsible for the changes that an additive regression convective hazard models model (AR-CHaMo) predicts to have happened. To define circulation types, the 500 hPa geopotential height anomaly field on each day was clustered into 14 distinct patterns using principal component analysis and k-means clustering. We show that lightning and hail occurrence, both observed and modeled by AR-CHaMo, strongly depend on the circulation type, with a higher frequency observed in poleward flow downstream of a trough and on the lee side of mountains. AR-CHaMo predicts strong increases in hail frequency across central parts of Europe to have occurred in the 1950–2020 period. During this period, changes in circulation type frequency are small and only significant for 2 of the 14 clusters. The trends in both lightning and hail frequency to be expected if they were solely determined by circulation patterns, are small, with typical values of 1%–3% per decade relative to the mean, whereas the trends expected by AR-CHaMo are on the order of 4%–10% in most areas. Across many regions, the sign of the changes does not agree in sign, in particular across European Russia where circulation types have become more favorable for lightning and hail, but a decreasing probability was modeled by AR-CHaMo. We conclude that changing circulation types are, in general, not responsible for changes in thunderstorm and hail frequency, which included the strong increase of conditions favorable for large hail in central Europe.

Phylogenetic systematics of the enigmatic genus Horologion Valentine, 1932 (Coleoptera, Carabidae, Trechinae, Horologionini), with description of a new species from Bath County, Virginia

Horologion Valentine, one of the rarest and most enigmatic carabid beetle genera in the world, was until now known only from the holotype of Horologion speokoites Valentine, discovered in 1931 in a small cave in West Virginia. A single specimen of a new species from Virginia was collected in 1991, but overlooked until 2018. DNA sequence data from specimens of this new species, Horologion hubbardisp. nov., collected in 2022 and 2023, as well as a critical examination of the external morphology of both species, allow us to confidently place Horologion in the supertribe Trechitae, within a clade containing Bembidarenini and Trechini. A more specific placement as sister to the Gondwanan Bembidarenini is supported by DNA sequence data. Previous hypotheses placing Horologion in or near the tribes Anillini, Tachyini, Trechini, Patrobini, and Psydrini are rejected. The existence of two species of Horologion on opposite sides of the high mountains of the middle Appalachians suggests that these mountains are where the ancestral Horologion populations dispersed from, and predicts the discovery of additional populations and species. All specimens of H. hubbardi were collected in or near drip pools, and most were found dead, suggesting that the terrestrial epikarst, rather than caves, is the true habitat of Horologion, which explains their extreme rarity since epikarst has not been directly sampled. We recognize the tribe Horologionini, a relict lineage without any close relatives known in the Northern Hemisphere, and an important part of Appalachian biodiversity.

Battlefield Archaeology of the First World War in Norhteastern Slovakia

On the Slovak side of the Carpathian mountains, the archaeology of the First World War had long been completely outside the scope of research interest. At the same time, conflicts in this region had played a very important role in the initial phase of the war. Here, the Austro-Hungarian army blocked the invasion of the Russian army into Hungary with all its might. This lack of attention changed in the last decade with surveys conducted by our team from Masaryk University. In this short overview we describe and evaluate our main research conclusions so far based on surveys conducted at sites bearing the names of the hills of Staviská, Kobyla, Cingov and Wertyszów. Each of the sites is a place where various military events took place, so we have applied different, mostly non-destructive, methods to their study. Our results are mostly an introduction to the state of research and a review of a decade of expeditions to this unique field of conflict, where the armies learned how to fight in mountainous areas.

Topoclimate and diurnal cycle of summer rain over the Ethiopian highlands in a convection‐permitting simulation

AbstractTopoclimate, orographically enhanced rain on windward slopes and leeward rain shadows, control rainfall variability in tropical mountains. Such variability may cause a substantial societal impact in populated highlands such as in Ethiopia. This study aims at understanding the rainfall diurnal cycle and the orographic driving factors over the Ethiopian highlands using the ALARO‐0 regional climate model at convection‐permitting resolution, over a period of 21 years. While the evaluation against satellite‐based observations shows a too early onset of the model diurnal cycle and a too low nocturnal rainfall, several conclusions can be drawn from the model simulations presented here. Elevation is the most important determining factor for modelled rainfall with increased average rainfall and rainfall per rainfall event towards higher elevations. Ethiopia's simulated summer rain exhibits a pronounced diurnal cycle with the highest rainfall occurring during the early afternoon hours and the minimum values occurring in the late night. Average rainfall and rainfall per rainfall event are substantially larger on the windward sides than on the leeward sides of the mountains, except during the peak hours. The diurnal cycles of temperature and humidity start earlier in the morning and recede later than the cycles of wind speed and rainfall. Moreover, rainfall peaks occur earlier in the day at higher elevations, and at night in valleys and in Afar Triangle. Rain intensities around noon on the leeward side are slightly higher than those on the windward side of the highest mountains (>3000 m). This could be due to delayed onset of cloudiness and larger morning insolation on the leeward side of the mountain, but this needs further study. The prevalence of windward over leeward rainfall, the stark contrast in wind‐speed diurnal cycle between windward and leeward slopes, and the early peak hour of surface air and dew point temperature all point towards temperature‐induced rather than wind‐induced convection. These differences are likely to determine hydrology and vegetation distribution, and farmers economy at large. Hence, the need for a way out from the ‘one‐size‐fits‐all’ agro‐ecosystem management approach towards a site‐specific policy that takes into account climatic differences.

Causal mediation of urban temperature by geopotential height in U.S. cities

Excessive warming is the source of many environmental challenges in urban areas. Finding causal interactions between urban ambient temperature and other meteorological variables will greatly facilitate our understanding of the underlying mechanisms of urban heat. In this study, we use the data of 2-m air temperature and 500 hPa geopotential height (GPH) in 520 cities in the contiguous United States (CONUS), from 2016 to 2022, to detect their local and nonlocal causal interactions based on the convergent cross-mapping method. For local (within the same city) interactions between temperature and GPH, there are hubs of strong causal interactions in the northern Appalachian Mountain and inland southwestern CONUS, whereas the leeward side of the southern Rocky Mountains exhibit low causation due to the baroclinic in this area. The nonlocal causal networks exhibit potential long-range connections (teleconnections), largely attributable to the influence of the upstream and downstream westerly circulations on local atmospheric variables. This study can be informative to stakeholders in design sustainable countermeasures to mitigate excessive heat in urban areas.

Analysis of Water Vapor Transport and Trigger Mechanisms for Severe Rainstorms Associated with a Northeast China Cold Vortex in 2022

Rainstorms always occur in the southeast and northeast quadrants of the Northeast China Cold Vortex (NCCV), resulting in significant flooding. This study investigated water vapor and trigger mechanisms for rainstorms within these two regions of an NCCV event during 11–14 June 2022 in terms of Lagrangian backward tracking, stratification stability, and upward motion using the ERA5 reanalysis. In the mid-troposphere, a quasi-stationary “ridge-NCCV-ridge” pattern resided over northeastern China, with an “anticyclonic-cyclonic-anticyclonic” airflow in the lower troposphere. As a result, water vapor originated from the Yellow Sea and was transported in an “L” shape toward both two regions. The southeast region was influenced by southwesterly and northwesterly airflows, resulting in the convergence of moist air from the Yangtze River and Lake Baikal and significant vertical shear of positive vorticity advection. This dynamic created deep and pronounced upward currents in the southeast of the NCCV, leading to the development of intensive and extensive rainstorms in situ. In contrast, the northeast region of the NCCV was dominated by southerly airflow. The moist air converged against the lee side of the Great Khingan Mountains and generated shallow, unstable stratification. The upward motion in this area was relatively weaker and thus induced regional rainstorms.

The Utilisation of Africa’s Environmental Resources and the Challenges of Globalisation: A Case Study from Eastern Tanzania

This paper concerns the micro-environment and globalisation nexus. With the effectiveparticipation of the leadership in Morogoro region, Melela village on the leeward side of the Uluguru mountains was identified as an ecologically and economically problem area typified by, among others, periodic drought, crop failure, food shortage and famine, relief food supplies, urban-rural migration, land use conflicts and a community sensitive to agricultural market signals. It is indeed thisstate of affairs that makes Melela village an interesting diagnostic case that calls for in-depth analysis of agro-biodiversity conditions under economic globalisation and indeed for urgent resource planning and management.

Effectiveness of Adas Leaf Infusion (Foeniculum vulgare L.) in Post-Best White Rats (Rattus Sp.) On The Growth Of Children

Adas leaf (Foeniculum vulgare L.) was known by the people around the mountain sides of Merbabu as one type of vegetable to increase breast milk secretion. Increased breast milk secretion has positive effect on pups development in early period of life. The aim of this study is to determine the effect of infusion of adas leaves, the effective dose of infusion against the growth of body weight and body length of pups and the levels of flavonoids, steroids, and stigmasterol on adas leaf. The study was conducted using 12 post-partum rats that have each 5 pups. White rats were divided into 4 groups: control group; the G1 (20 grams/300 ml dose infusion); the G2 (40 grams/300 ml dose infusion); and G3 (60 grams/300 ml dose infusion). Each group consisted of three replications. All of rats mother treated with the adas leaves by infuse feeding (sonde). Adas leaves was infused by 1 ml for 2 times a day on the rats mother (morning and evening). Rats mother were given pellets and also drinking water by adlibitum. Both mother and inbred rats were weighed, length of its body weight was measured every 5 days for 15 days. Data were analyzed by Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) two way and continued by Duncan Multiple Range Test (DMRT). Quantitatively measurements of total flavonoids, steroids and stigmasterol of adas leaves analyzed using Thin Layer Chromatography (TLC). The results showed that infusion of adas leaves significant difference in the growth of body weight and body length between control and treatment groups (p < 0.05). A dose of 60 grams/300 ml of distilled water can effectively increase the growth of body weight and body length of pups. Levels of total flavonoids, steroids and stigmasterol of adas leaves, respectively, are 0.43 %, 0.029 %, and < 0.011 %.

Hieracium purkynei (Asteraceae): an endemic to the Sudetes rediscovered after a century

Hieracium purkynei was described from specimens collected in 1884 in the Giant Mountains, Sudetes, in Czechia. Since 1914, the species was considered extinct. In 2019, two new localities of H. purkynei were found on the Polish side of the Giant Mountains. The species is illustrated with photographs of the holotype (kept at PR) and, for the first time, living plants in the field.

Climatology of Low-Level Clouds over Western Equatorial Africa Based on Ground Observations and Satellites

Abstract The tropical cloud forest ecosystem in western equatorial Africa (WEA) is known to be sensitive to the presence of an extensive and persistent low-level stratiform cloud deck during the long dry season from June to September (JJAS). Here, we present a new climatology of the diurnal cycle of the low-level cloud cover from surface synoptic stations over WEA during JJAS 1971–2019. For the period JJAS 2008–19, we also utilized estimates of cloudiness from four satellite products, namely, the Satellite Application Facility on Support to Nowcasting and Very Short Range Forecasting (SAFNWC) cloud classification, the Day and Night Microphysical Schemes (DMS/NMS), and cross sections from CALIPSO and CloudSat (2B-GEOPROF-lidar). A comparison with surface stations reveals that the NMS at night together with SAFNWC at daytime yield the smallest biases. The climatological analysis reveals that low-level clouds persist during the day over the coastal plains and windward side of the low mountain ranges. Conversely, on their leeward sides, i.e., over the plateaus, a decrease of the low-level cloud frequency is observed in the afternoon, together with a change from stratocumulus to cumulus. At night, the low-level cloud deck reforms over this region with the largest cloud occurrence frequencies in the morning. Vertical profiles from 2B-GEOPROF-lidar reveal cloud tops below 3000 m even at daytime. The station data and the suitable satellite products form the basis to better understand the physical processes controlling the clouds and to evaluate cloudiness from reanalyses and models.

The sedimentological characteristics of the intermontane desert system in the Jurong Basin, South China and its relationship with the Late Cretaceous hot climate

As a typical greenhouse period, the Late Cretaceous was characterized by an extremely warm and arid climate. In this period, intermontane deserts were widely distributed in South China, which can be used to inform the evolution of the palaeogeography and palaeo-wind patterns during the hot climate of the Late Cretaceous. The Jurong Basin is located at the eastern margin of South China and close to the palaeo-Pacific Ocean; it has typical aeolian deposits but is hitherto less studied. In this study, four sedimentary facies (aeolian dune, dry/damp/wet interdune, sandsheet, and desert lake facies) and three forms of aeolian dunes (simple, compound, and complex) are identified in the Upper Cretaceous Chishan Formation, confirming the development of an intermontane desert in the Jurong Basin. The dynamic evolution models show that the intermontane desert transitioned from a lacustrine-dominated to an aeolian-dominated system, which indicates a gradual drying trend. We suggest that the development of the Chishan intermontane desert was controlled by the Late Cretaceous greenhouse climate, the accelerated aridification of the subtropical high, and the rainshadow effect of the coastal mountains. Palaeo-wind directions in the Chishan desert show westerlies and possible palaeo-monsoon wind patterns. The input of palaeo-monsoon moisture led to the development of desert lake and damp/wet interdune deposits in the Chishan desert, which indicates that the Jurong Basin might have been on the windward side of the coastal mountains during the Late Cretaceous. Our study extends the eastern boundary of the South China intermontane desert system during the Late Cretaceous.

3D density structure of upper mantle beneath the Antarctic plate: The influence of Moho depth

In this study, we explore the impact of using different Moho surfaces on the reconstruction of the upper mantle geophysical parameters. The study area is the subsurface of the Antarctica continent. Using the optimization program of Sequential Integrated Inversion (SII) and the gravity anomalies synthetized by a global Gravity Field Model (GFM), we reconstructed the upper mantle density and the related 3D distribution of the ρ-vSV couplings down to the depth of 400 km, with a lateral resolution of 0.5° × 0.5°. Here, we present the results obtained for four models, built with four different Moho surfaces. A correlation analysis showed that different Moho structures affect the optimization of the intensity of the anomalies and the ρ-vSV couplings. The possibility of having both a density model and a 3D distribution of the ρ-vSV couplings enables us to highlight several significant features for all models that are not disclosed by seismic tomography. Among them, a trend of positive, presumably compositional anomalies suggests the contribution of the Lambert Rift System (LRS) to the Gamburstev Mountains (GSM) uplift, which in turn may have influenced the formation of the Maud Subglacial Basin (MSB). A continuous low-density anomaly and positive ρ-vSV phase coupling anomaly, extending from the northwestern side of the Transantarctic Mountains (TAM) to Victoria Land, support the thermal buoyancy force as the causative element of the formation of the TAM. A circumscribed negative density anomaly extending up to depth of 365 km, which is associated to a negative variation in the angular coefficients of the ρ-vSV couplings, indicates the presence of an active magmatic system in the upper mantle or a Cenozoic mantle plume beneath the region of Mary Byrd Land (MBL).

Something Beautiful and Powerful: Politics, Art, and Bread and Puppet Theater

Something Beautiful and Powerful: Politics, Art, and Bread and Puppet Theater