Review of Biometeorology of Heatwaves and Warm Extremes in Europe

Numerous extreme heatwaves producing large impacts on human health, agriculture, water resources, energy demand, regional economies, and forest ecosystems occurred during the first twenty years of the 21st century. The present study strives to provide a systematic review of recent studies of warm biometeorological extremes in Europe. The main aim of this paper is to provide a methodical summary of the observed changes in warm extremes, duration, and variability in different parts of Europe. During the last decade, much attention has been paid to the negative impacts of heat and humidity on human health. Therefore, the human biometeorology is required to appraise the human thermal environment in a way that human thermoregulation is taken into account. In many European countries and regions, future heat exposure will indeed exceed critical levels, and a steep increase in biometeorological heatwaves and warm extremes are expected. The indices that take into account human energy balance along with weather conditions should be used to examine the impacts of extreme heatwaves on human health and should be used as a basis for the determination of acclimatization to high-heat-stress conditions. A detailed description of recent studies that have used biometeorological indices such as Physiological Equivalent Temperature (PET) and Universal Thermal Climate Index (UTCI) for the estimation of warm extremes and their influence on human health is provided. Additionally, a short overview of the existence of the heat-health warning systems (HHWS), their conceptualization, and implementation across the European continent is considered, as well as the possibilities for further investigations and implementation of effective measures and programs that could reduce the adverse health impacts

Trends and multi-annual variability of water temperatures in the river Danube, Serbia

The relationship between air (Ta) and water temperature (Tw) is very important because it shows how the temperature of a water body might respond to future changes in surface Ta. Mean monthly Tw records of three gauging stations (Bezdan, Bogojevo i Veliko Gradište) were analysed alongside mean monthly discharge (Q) for the same stations. Additionally, Ta series from two meteorological stations (Sombor and Veliko Gradište) were correlated with Tw variations over the period 1950–2012. Locally weighted scatter point smoothing (LOWESS) was used to investigate long-term trends in the raw data, alongside the Mann–Kendall (MK) trend test. Trend significance was established using Yue–Pilon's pre-whitening approaches to determine trends in climate data. Also, the rescaled adjusted partial sums (RAPS) method was used to detect dates of possible changes in the time series. Statistically significant warming trends were observed for annual and seasonal minimum and maximum Tw at all investigated sites. The strongest warming was observed at Bogojevo gauging station for seasonal maximum Tw, with +0.05 °C per year on average. RAPS established that the trend began in the 1980s. This behaviour is linked to climate patterns in the North and East Atlantic which determine the amount of heat advected onto mainland Europe. Statistically significant correlations were found for all Tw on an annual basis. Overall, the strongest correlations (p < 0.01) between Tw residuals and the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) were recorded for the winter period. These findings suggest possible predictability of Tw over seasonal time-scales

Geographical information systems and remote sensing methods in the estimation of potential dew volume and its utilization in the United Arab Emirates

In a fast growing region of Middle East and with rapid depletion of fossil groundwater, possibilities for dew utilization as a limited renewable water resource play an important role in the water management of the United Arab Emirates. Despite projected changes in air temperature and rainfall, geographical and topographical features of the UAE show some potential for dew harvesting, mostly at the altitudes higher than 1000 m and some isolated oasis areas. With the help of geographical information system (GIS), remote sensing, and numerical and theoretical methods, approximate volumes of dew were estimated. Meteorological data was inputted together with theoretical and numerical calculations into grids by using pixelization processes. Methods such as zonal statistics, kriging, semi-kriging, and interpolation were implemented through GIS software. Another method used in this research is supervised classification and normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) which is being determined by means of software IDRISI terra set. After finishing all the proposed methods applied in this research, four belts of potential dew use were presented. The Arabian Desert in the territory of the United Arab Emirates has no potential for dew utilization. The zone close to the oases has very low possibility of dew use. The hilly-mountainous area between 500 and 800 m.a.s.l. has medium possibility for dew use. There is a high possibility for dew use on mountain Al Hajar, occupying the area higher than 800 m; 1.3% of the whole country’s territory has excellent potential for dew use. In this part of the country, theoretically, it is possible to use dew for farming and partial watering. Experimental study together with GIS, remote sensing, and numerical analysis may extend knowledge about dew properties. Although this research includes theoretical calculations of dew utilization and has some limitations, it still presents a new insight into climate cycles in this part of the Arabian Peninsula and a way to understand them better

The Loess “Cave” Near the Village of Surduk - an Unusual Pseudokarst Landform in the Loess of Vojvodina, Serbia

Loess “caves” (piping caverns, wells, tunnels) exposed in loess cliffs are rare pseudokarst landforms that can be regarded as morphological equivalents to collapse dolines or sinkholes formed in classical karst terrains. This study presents the results of an investigation into a loess cave exposed in a loess cliff on the right bank of the Danube River near the village of Surduk in the Vojvodina region, Serbia. This study provides a first detailed morphologic description of this young pseudokarstic landform formed by piping erosion, probably partly supported with carbonate dissolution. The loess “cave” has a height of approximately 12 m and average diameter of around 3.5 m. In the middle of the cave ceiling there is a window. Observations indicate that over the last several years, the morphological characteristics of the landform have been stable. The main aim of this study is to provide a better understanding of the evolution of the piping process in the thick loess-paleosol sequences in the Vojvodina region, northern Serbia. A key role in the genesis of this landform was the short distance between an initial loess doline and a cliff exposing loess sediments, providing the possibility for the lateral removal of loess material. The presence of Robinia pseudoakacia trees around the initial depression modulated the evolution of the doline and provides support for the loess cavern roof. The nature of the dynamic erosional processes on the steep cliffs of the soft loess sediment indicates a very limited lifetime of this pseudokarstic landform

Shaping Sustainable Urban Environments by Addressing the Hydro-Meteorological Factors in Landslide Occurrence: Ciuperca Hill (Oradea, Romania)

Romania is one of the countries severely affected by numerous natural hazards, where landslides constitute a very common geomorphic hazard with strong economic and social impacts. The analyzed area, known as the "Ciuperca Hill", is located in Oradea (NW part of Romania) and it has experienced a number of landsliding events in previous years, which have endangered anthropogenic systems. Our investigation, focused on the main causal factors, determined that landslide events have rather complex components, reflected in the joint climatological characteristics, properties of the geological substrate, and human activity that further contributed to the intensive change of landscape and acceleration of slope instability. Analysis of daily precipitation displays the occurrence and intensive distribution between May and September. Higher values of rainfall erosivity (observed for the 2014-2017 period), are occurring between April and August. Erosivity density follows this pattern and indicates high intensity events from April until October. SPI index reveals the greater presence of various wet classes during the investigated period. Geological substrate has been found to be highly susceptible to erosion and landsliding when climatological conditions are suitable. Accelerated urbanization and reduced vegetation cover intensified slope instability. The authors implemented adequate remote-sensing techniques in order to monitor and assess the temporal changes in landslide events at local level. Potential solutions for preventative actions are given in order to introduce and conduct qualitative mitigation strategies for shaping sustainable urban environments. Results from this study could have implications for mitigation strategies at national, regional, county, and municipality levels, providing knowledge for the enhancement of geohazard prevention and appropriate response plans

Loess towards (geo) tourism – proposed application on loess in Vojvodina region (north Serbia)

Loess-palaeosol sequences preserve the most important continental record of climatic and environmental changes during the Quaternary. As a significant element of global geodiversity and geoheritage, loess-palaeosol sequences could be used as resources for a contemporary trend in sustainable tourism – geotourism. This form of tourism appreciates and promotes non-living nature (geodiversity) through its conservation and interpretation. This further leads to enhancing public awareness of these sites. In this study, we report on a proposal for establishing geotourism at the most important loess sites in the Vojvodina region

Modelling and mapping of the COVID-19 trajectory and pandemic paths at global scale: A geographer's perspective

In December 2019, the virus SARS-CoV-2 responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic was detected in the Chinese city of Wuhan. The virus started to spread from China and dispersed over the rest of the world. In March 2020, WHO (World Health Organization) declared COVID-19 a pandemic. The transmission path of the pandemic was accelerated by different types of transportation. With complete analysis of spatial data, population density, types of traffic networks, and their properties, the spatial distribution of COVID-19 was estimated. GIS (Geographical Information System), numerical methods, and software for network analysis were used in this research to model scenarios of virus distribution on a global scale. The analyzed data included air, railway, marine, and road traffic. In the pandemic research, numerous models of possible trajectory of viruses can be created. Many have a stochastic character. This study includes all countries in the world affected by the COVID-19 up to date. In this study, GIS methods such as buffer, interpolations, and numerical analysis were used in order to estimate and visualize ongoing COVID-19 pandemic situation. According to the availability of new data, trajectory of virus paths was estimated. On the other hand, sparsely populated areas with poorly developed and small traffic networks (and isolated island territories) tend to be less or not affected as shown by the model. This low-cost approach can be used in order to define important measures that need to be addressed and implemented in order to successfully mitigate the implications of COVID-19 not only on global, but local and regional scales as well

Socioekonomske posledice suša i suvišnih unutrašnjih voda u Vojvodini/Srbiji

Nagy, Imre; Vuksanović, Gordana; Mesaroš, Minučer; Marković, Slobodan; Gavrilov, Milivoj; Pavić, Dragoslav; Basarin, Biljana; Lukić, Ti