生态遥感新锐——轻小型无人机的应用

基于研究对象视角梳理轻小型无人机遥感手段在生态学研究中的应用现状,重点分析了无人机在不同生态对象应用的优势和局限：优势主要在于其能够高灵活性、高分辨率地获取各生态对象的数据,为较大规模的生态研究提供了便利。在农田生态系统应用中主要关注农田信息检测、自动化农作等方面,但在这方面的应用还比较单一,缺乏更深层更全面的系统化应用;在森林草地中主要关注植被结构参数提取、生物量反演等,在数据采集过程中应注意设备的稳定性避免对数据准确性造成影响;城市生态系统主要集中在城市环境监测和测绘方面,同时城市方面飞控政策尚待完善;水生生态系统主要关注水生动植物监测和潮间带观测等,大规模监测也对设备续航和数据标准化处理提出了要求;动物研究应用中主要关注动物迁徙规律、物种分布等方面,在监测过程中需注意不要对动物栖息造成干扰。总的来说,无人机应用局限主要在于其获取的数据处理尚未标准化,飞控政策尚未成熟和硬件续航等方面。在此基础上探讨了未来无人机遥感在生态学研究的应用趋势：随着无人机智能化的软硬件发展和云端生态大数据的建立,无人机数据的获取和处理将更加智慧化,多源的无人机遥感数据将会更好地服务于生态学研究。     

Spectral interpretation of gravity anomalies due to horizontal slab like bodies with lateral variation of density

Fourier spectrum of the gravity effect due to a horizontal slab with lateral variation of density is derived. By analysing this spectrum a procedure is formulated to determine the parameters of the causative bodyviz. depths to the upper and lower surfaces, width of the horizontal portion having the lateral density variation and the lateral density gradient. Two synthetic models and a field example are discussed to establish the validity of the procedure formulated. This is much simpler than Gendzwill’s type curves method.     

Critical evaluation and geological correlation of teleseismic phase data from Indian seismological stations

We evaluated the quality of seismic phase data from Indian seismological stations through the analysis of teleseismic travel times reported during 1976–83 and infer that only WWSSN stations (NDI, SHL, POO, KOD) apart from GBA and HYB can be rated satisfactory while the majority of stations (more than 40) produce very poor quality data sets. Detailed analysis of teleseismic P-wave travel time residuals shows that while the average structure of the upper mantle beneath India has high velocity (negative residuals) there are marked lateral variations. In particular, three zones of anomalous positive residuals (low velocity) are observed: one beneath the north western part of the Deccan trap, the second covering the southernmost peninsula (granulite terrain) and a third rather localized one, to the north of Delhi coinciding with Delhi-Haridwar ridge. New Delhi exhibits strong negative residuals in the E-SE quadrant along with negative station anomaly, implying that it is underlain by an anomalous high velocity crust/upper mantle. The negative residuals observed over India, continue beneath the Himalaya till the south of Lhasa but change sign further northward, suggesting the northern limit of the Indian upper mantle structure.     

Ostracoda as an aid in identifying 2004 tsunami sediments: a report from SE coast of India

Four short core samples were collected from the creek, estuarine regions of southeast (SE) coast of India affected by the 2004 Asian Tsunami. The study is aimed to signify the importance of ostracoda species in identifying major natural events (e.g. Tsunamis) in the coastal regions. The presence of many marine ostracoda species in the beach areas and the comparative studies with earlier reports from SE coast indicate that these species were brought by the high-energy tsunami waves. The depositional feature of ostracoda species in the beach and estuarine region also infers on the nature and force of tsunami waves in a particular region. The results clearly support that microfossils can be used to identify the major natural events close to coastal regions.     

Interpretation of gravity anomalies due to some two-dimensional structures: A Hilbert transform technique

An interpretation procedure is formulated using the Hilbert transform for analysing the gravity effect of (a) two-dimensional horizontal circular cylinder, (b) semi-infinite thin fault block, and (c) a geologic contact. In all three cases the abscissa of the point of intersection of the gravity anomaly curve or the horizontal derivative curve and its Hilbert transform yields directly the depth of the body. The proposed method is tested on theoretical models. Also, the method is applied to the field data of a geologic contact taken over the Himalayan foothills across the Brahmaputra valley.     

Gold mineralisation and alteration of Penakacherla schist belt, India, constraints on Archaean subduction and fluid processes

In the Dharwar Craton, southern India, gold deposits are found mostly along the six arcuate shear zones passing through late Archaean greenstone belts (2.7 Ga). One such shear zone complex extends for about 400 km within and along the Ramagiri–Hungund schist belt. The Penakacherla sector of this shear zone is excellently exposed, enabling a detailed investigation of synorogenic gold mineralisation and its relationship to associated hydrothermal alteration.Metamorphism and deformation under NE–SW compression associated with Archaean subduction processes converted mafic volcanic rocks into amphibolites and intermediate to felsic volcanic rocks into quartz mica schists. Continued compression generated a 50–100-m-wide shear zone complex consisting of mafic phyllonites. Advection of hydrothermal fluids through this shear zone and reaction between fluids and the mafic phyllonites resulted in a silicified, K-metasomatic assemblage mainly consisting of chlorite, amphibole, K-mica, plagioclase, ankerite, quartz, Fe-oxides, pyrite, chalcopyrite and arsenopyrite. Networks of quartz and carbonate veinlets, a few millimeters to a few centimeters thick, formed along the foliation planes giving rise to microscopic alteration envelope, in which individual veinlet systems are merged into one another to form a composite alteration system. Gold is found within these quartz veinlets, mafic phyllonites and at their mutual contacts.Hydrothermal fluids have modified the primary major, minor, trace and LREE compositions of host rocks such that their mutual behaviour became non-systematic. Some HFSE and HREE also show minor mobility but the overall REE pattern generally resembles that of the precursor mafic volcanic rocks. Mass and volume loss/gain by Si and Ca has made significant impact on Al, Ti and Zr abundances, which are generally immobile during hydrothermal alteration. However, element pairs such as Zr–Hf, V–Sc and Nb–Ta maintain primary inter-element ratios, although their absolute abundances are drastically diluted. Similarly, ΣREE in highly silicified and carbonatised samples are reduced, but patterns remain similar to those of relatively least altered mafic phyllonites with (La_N/Yb)_N between 1 and 3. In some samples, LREE enrichment is observed elevating in (La_N/Yb)_N from 3 to 11. Pathfinder elements and base metals such as As, Cd, Cu, Pb, Zn and Sb have been added along with the Au and Ag.δ¹³C of carbon varies from −16‰ to −21‰ suggesting a biogenic origin, whereas coexisting pyrite δ³⁴S ranges from 1‰ to 3‰, pointing towards the involvement of magmatic or average crustal sulphur. Overall concentrations of K, Rb, Sr, Ba, Nb, Ta, Ti, Cs, Cr, Co, V, Y and Sc and many of the ratios such as K/Rb, La/Sc, La/Yb indicate that metamorphism, devolatilisation and dehydration of an oceanic subducting slab might have partially contributed the mineralising fluids and generated the alteration assemblage observed in the host rocks. Fluid sources were mantle and greenstone belt dehydration and devolatilisation generating observed compositional and alteration diversity.     

Constrained regularization of digital terrain elevation data

A framework for geometric regularization of elevation maps is introduced in this letter. The framework takes into account errors in the data, which form part of standard elevation maps specifications, as well as possible additional user/application-dependent constraints. The algorithm is based on adapting the theory of geometric active surfaces to the problem of regularizing elevation maps. We present the underlying concepts and numerical experiments showing the effectiveness and potential of this theory.