Retrieval of columnar aerosol size distributions from spectral attenuation measurements over Central Himalayas

Extensive measurements of spectral aerosol optical depths (AODs) were made at Manora Peak, Nainital (29.4°N, 79.5°E, ~1958 m above mean sea level) in the central Himalayas, using a ten channel multi-wavelength solar radiometer during January 2002 to December 2005. Using these spectral AOD values, the columnar size distribution [CSD; nc(r)] function of aerosols have been derived. The CSD, retrieved from spectral AODs are, in general, bimodal (combination of power law and unimodal log normal distribution) with a prominent secondary (or coarse) mode occurring at a fairly large value of radius (r >0.5 µm), while the primary (or fine) mode either does not appear explicitly or perhaps occurs below the radius ≅ 0.1 µm. The bimodal nature of CSDs indicates the presence of fine as well as coarse mode aerosols over the observational site. The effective radius, total aerosol number content and columnar mass loading computed from deduced CSD shows minimum values during winter (November to February) and maximum during summer (March to June) months. The share of sub micron and super micron aerosols to the total aerosol number concentration (Nt) indicates the dominance of sub micron aerosols to the Nt and it accounts for > 90% during the study period

Aerosol Characteristics at a high-altitude station Nainital during the ISRO-GBP Land Campaign-II

During the second land campaign (LC-II) organised by ISRO-GBP, extensive ground-based measurements of aerosol characteristics were carried out over Manora Peak (29.4oN; 79.5oE; 1951 metres above mean sea level), Nainital (a high altitude station located in the Shivalik ranges of Central Himalayas) during the dry, winter season (December) of 2004. These measurements included the spectral aerosol optical depths (AOD), columnar water vapour content (W), Total Columnar Ozone (TCO), total number concentration (NT) of near surface aerosols, mass concentration of black carbon (MB), aerosol mass loading (MT), and Global Solar Radiation. Based on these measured parameters, we present the results on the near-surface and columnar properties of atmospheric aerosols at Nainital.Comment: Published in the Proceedings of the ISRO-GBP Land-Campaign-II meeting, Physical Research Laboratory, Ahmadabad (Inida), March 200

Certain seasonal characteristic features of oceanic heat budget components over the indian seas in relation to the summer monsoon activity over India

The present study has been undertaken to examine the oceanic heat budget components and their variability over the Indian seas in relation to the extreme monsoon activity (flood/drought) over the Indian subcontinent. For this purpose, various components of oceanic heat budget have been analysed for pre-monsoon (March-May), monsoon (June-September), post-monsoon (October-December) and winter (January-February) seasons over India. The data base used in this study consists of mean monthly marine meteorological fields for 30 years (1950-1979), which is a part of the Comprehensive Ocean Atmosphere Data Set (COADS) analysed at 1° latitude by 1° longitude resolution. The mean fields of incoming shortwave radiation flux over the Indian seas in different seasons vary in accordance to the sun's position and cloud cover variations. The latent heat flux undergoes considerable seasonal variations, particularly over the Arabian Sea. There is a dominance of latent heat flux (representing the oceanic heat loss) over shortwave solar flux (representing the oceanic heat gain) during the monsoon season, which results in a zone of net oceanic heat loss over the central Arabian Sea. This feature produces a positive feedback for the maintenance of deep cumulus convection over the Arabian Sea in this season. It is also found that oceanic heat budget components over the Indian seas exhibit significant variability in relation to the extreme monsoon activity leading to flood/drought over India. Based on the above analysis, mean monthly variations of the oceanic heat budget components over three smaller sectors of the Indian seas, namely west equatorial Indian Ocean, Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal, are also examined. The variations are found to be considerably different between the two extreme categories of the monsoon. It becomes evident from this study that the oceanic sectors of west equatorial Indian Ocean and Bay of Bengal experience a large reduction of net heat flux from April to May prior to a flood monsoon season over India. This suggests that a spectacular increase of latent heat flux and decrease of shortwave flux occurs over these oceanic sectors, leading to a sharp reduction of net heat flux

Characteristics of black carbon over Delhi and Manora Peak - a comparative study

The characteristics of aerosol black carbon (BC) were studied at two different climatic regimes, i.e. Delhi and Manora Peak during winter and spring of 2007. Spring BC was found to be similar to 59% lower at Delhi and similar to 23% higher at Manora Peak than their corresponding winter BC. Diurnal BC variation showed two enhanced peaks at Delhi (morning and night) whereas a single late afternoon peak at Manora Peak. Delhi BC showed a clear correlation with prevailing winds whereas no correlation was observed at Manora Peak. The major contribution of BC at Manora Peak can be expected from biomass burning while at Delhi fossil fuel dominates

Short-period modulations in aerosol optical depths over the central Himalayas: role of mesoscale processes

Multiyear measurements of spectral aerosol optical depths (AODs) were made at Manora Peak in the central Himalaya Range (29°22N, 79°27E, ~1950 m above mean sea level), using a 10-channel multiwavelength solar radiometer for 605 days during January 2002-December 2004. The AODs at 0.5μm were very low (≤0.1) in winter and increased steeply to reach high values (~0.5) in summer. It was observed that monthly mean AODs vary significantly (by more than a factor of 6) from January to June. Strong short-period fluctuations (within a daytime) were observed in the AODs. Further investigations of this aspect have revealed that boundary layer dynamics plays a key role in transporting aerosols from the polluted valley region to higher altitudes, causing large contrast in AODs between forenoon and afternoon. The seasonal variations in AODs, while examined in conjunction with synoptic-scale wind fields, have revealed that the transport of dust aerosols from arid regions to the valley regions adjacent to the observational site and their subsequent transport upward by boundary layer dynamics are responsible for the summer increases

Physical and optical characteristics of atmospheric aerosols during ICARB at Manora Peak, Nainital: a sparsely inhabited, high-altitude location in the Himalayas

Collocated measurements of the optical and physical properties of columnar and near-surface aerosols were carried out from Manora Peak, Nainital (a sparsely inhabited, high altitude location, ~2 km above mean sea level, in the Himalayas), during the Integrated Campaign for Aerosols, gases and Radiation Budget (ICARB) under the Geosphere Biosphere Programme of the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO-GBP). Under this, observational data of spectral aerosol optical depths (AOD), mass concentration of aerosol black carbon (MB ), mass concentration (MT ) and number concentration (Nt ) of composite (total) aerosols near the surface and meteorological parameters were collected during the period February 15 to April 30, 2006. Though very low (<0.1 at 500 nm) AODs were observed during clear days, as much as a four-fold increase was seen on hazy days. The Ångström exponent (α), deduced from the spectral AODs, revealed high values during clear days, while on hazy days α was low; with an overall mean value of 0.69 ± 0.06 for the campaign period. BC mass concentration varied between 0.36 and 2.87 μg m-3 and contributed in the range 0.7 to 1.8% to the total aerosol mass. Total aerosol number concentration and BC mass concentration showed diurnal variation with a midnight and early morning minimum and a late afternoon maximum; a pattern quite opposite to that seen in low altitude stations. These are attributed to the dynamics of the atmospheric boundary layer

Efficiency of HPV DNA test Verses Pap Smear in the screening of cervical cancer

Introduction: Cancer cervix is a common genital cancer. Human papillomavirus is the main cause of cervical cancer because of the strong association of certain HPV genotypes and the development of cervical cancer and its precursor lesions, cervical intraepithelial neoplasia CIN 2 or CIN3. Method: The study was conducted on 180 gynecological patients seen at the outpatient department of Manipal Hospital, Bangalore. A comparative study of HPV DNA test with Pap smear in the screening of cervical neoplasia was carried out over the period of 24 months from August 2011 to June 2013. Result: The incidence of cervical cancer and its associated mortality has declined in recent years, largely due to the widespread implementation of screening programs by Pap smear testing. The management and the prevention of cervical cancer should change with HPV DNA testing for high risk HPV, which is more sensitive than pap smear testing. Infection of cervix with HPV is necessary to cause cervical neoplasia and cervical cancer. Persistent infection with HPV is required for the development of cervical dysplasia and invasive cervical cancer. Conclusion: HPV testing alone for primary screening appears promising in women aged 30 years and older as this group is at greatest risk of developing CIN 3. As compared with Pap testing, HPV testing has greater sensitivity for detection of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia Keywords: HSIL, LSIL, HPV DNA, Pap smear, screening, Colposcop

Risk profile of Uterovaginal prolapse

Introduction: Pelvic Organ Prolapse is a common problem in Nepal. The aim of this study was to assess the magnitude of pelvic organ prolapse and risk factors associated with it. Method: This hospital based retrospective descriptive study was conducted in gynecological Out Patient Department of College of Medical Sciences Teaching Hospital, Bharatpur, Chitwan from October 2011 and September 2013.The data were retrieved from the records and analyzed. Women who were earlier subjected for surgical correction of prolapses Cases with pregnancy were excluded from study. Results: There were total 375 cases of genital prolapse out of total 2075 cases of total gynecological admission i.e. 18% incidence. The mean age of patients was 56.79 years with the mean parity of 5.67. 72% cases developed prolapse during their post-menopausal years. Majority of them (84%) lived in hilly area and (57.3%) cases were involved with heavy occupational activities. 50.7% of genital prolapse were from the lower socioeconomic status. Proplase was seen with patients with higher BMI (26-30). Risk factors identified were unsupervised home delivery, rapid succession of pregnancies, and no rest after delivery. Most common clinical presentation of Pelvis Organ Prolapse was mass per vagina (60%). Conclusion: Prolapse is common among rural, farmers, multiparous and post-menopausal women where most of them delivered at home with prolonged labor. Age, low socioeconomic status and heavy manual activities were associated with the prolapse. Key Words: Pelvic Organ Prolapse (POP), risk factor

Proceedings of the National Workshop on Participatory Management in Agency-managed Irrigation Systems in Nepal, Lazimpat, Kathmandu, Nepal, 29-30 April 1992

Irrigation managementGovernment managed irrigation systemsFarmer-agency interactionsFarmer participation

Waste to biodiesel: A preliminary assessment for Saudi Arabia

This study presents a preliminary assessment of biodiesel production from waste sources available in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) for energy generation and solution for waste disposal issues. A case study was developed under three different scenarios: (S1) KSA population only in 2017, (S2) KSA population and pilgrims in 2017, and (S3) KSA population and pilgrims by 2030 using the fat fraction of the municipal solid waste. It was estimated that S1, S2, and S3 scenarios could produce around 1.08, 1.10 and 1.41 million tons of biodiesel with the energy potential of 43423, 43949 and 56493 TJ respectively. Furthermore, annual savings of US $55.89, 56.56 and 72.71 million can be generated from landfill diversion of food waste and added to the country's economy. However, there are challenges in commercialization of waste to biodiesel facilities in KSA, including waste collection and separation, impurities, reactor design and biodiesel quality