Influence of climate variability on large rivers runoff

In accordance with IPCC Report the influence of climate change on the water cycle will increase hydrologic variability by means of changing of precipitation patterns, melting of ice and change of runoff. Precipitation has increased in high northern latitudes and decreased in southern latitudes. This study presents an analysis of river runoffs trends in different climatic zones of the world in condition of climate change

Twenty-three unsolved problems in hydrology (UPH) – a community perspective

This paper is the outcome of a community initiative to identify major unsolved scientific problems in hydrology motivated by a need for stronger harmonisation of research efforts. The procedure involved a public consultation through on-line media, followed by two workshops through which a large number of potential science questions were collated, prioritised, and synthesised. In spite of the diversity of the participants (230 scientists in total), the process revealed much about community priorities and the state of our science: a preference for continuity in research questions rather than radical departures or redirections from past and current work. Questions remain focussed on process-based understanding of hydrological variability and causality at all space and time scales. Increased attention to environmental change drives a new emphasis on understanding how change propagates across interfaces within the hydrological system and across disciplinary boundaries. In particular, the expansion of the human footprint raises a new set of questions related to human interactions with nature and water cycle feedbacks in the context of complex water management problems. We hope that this reflection and synthesis of the 23 unsolved problems in hydrology will help guide research efforts for some years to come

Effect of Solar Forces on Earthquakes

Information about effect of solar forces on global seismicity are presented

Predictive Analytics Application Experience for Climate Trends in Caucasus Mountain Region

Data about dependences of air temperatures and precipitation from solar activity in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey are presented

Influence of solar activity on global large rivers runoff trends

No abstract available

Landslides Triggered by Distant Earthquakes in Central Asia

Acquiring data on the triggers of slope failures, such as intensive snow falls, earthquakes and melting snow are essential to understand the mechanism of the failure and predict future natural hazards. Sudden landslides formed simultaneously in different areas triggered by deep foci Pamir-Hindu Kush earthquakes create great danger in the foothill areas of the Central Asian region. The role of distant deep-foci Pamir-Hindu Kush earthquakes as a "trigger" for formation and mechanism in dispersive soils under the influence of prolonged, low-frequency vibrations is examined. Microseismic measurements on 7 landslide sites (by Nakamura method) mainly on landslide sites with a depth of 17-30 m showed the dominant frequency characteristics 1.5-2.2Hz, which coincide with the dominant frequency of deep-focus Hindu Kush earthquakes at these distances from source. Numerical simulation used to assess and comprehend the flow behaviour and some flow-like landslides backcalculated with RAMMS: HillSlope simulation tools

Petrogenesis of gabbroic intrusions in the Valerianov-Beltau-Kurama magmatic arc, Uzbekistan: the role of arc maturity controlling the generation of giant porphyry Cu–Au deposits

Arc maturity is considered to play an important role in the mineralization of porphyry Cu–Au deposits. However, the early stage of arc is rarely preserved leading to controversies over arc evolution. Here we investigate gabbroic intrusions from the Akcha, Beleuti and Kalmakyr arc in relation to the Almalyk porphyry Cu–Au orefield in Uzbekistan. The Akcha biotite gabbro shows medium to fine grained texture, and is composed of plagioclase and biotite with minor clinopyroxene, orthopyroxene, quartz and magnetite. The Beleuti and Kalmakyr gabbros display coarse-grained texture, and are dominated by plagioclase, amphibole and clinopyroxene. Zircon LA-ICP-MS U–Pb dating yields ages of 339.9 ± 2.0 Ma for Akcha biotite gabbro, 339.0 ± 3.3 Ma for Beleuti gabbro and 335.0 ± 2.4 Ma for Kalmakyr gabbro. The emplacement ages of these intrusions are older than those of ore-bearing porphyries in the Almalyk orefield, indicating that the gabbros were emplaced during early stage of the arc evolution. The gabbroic rocks are characterized by high Mg# [100 × molar Mg²⁺/(Mg²⁺+Fe²⁺), 41–61], low SiO₂ contents (41.6–50.9 wt%), enrichment in large-ion lithophile elements and negative anomalies for high field strength elements, together with relatively depleted Sr-Nd-Hf isotopic compositions (0.7044–0.7057, —1.59-1.96, 3.38–9.96, respectively). The geochemical features suggest that these rocks were mostly derived from the partial melting of mantle wedge modified by subduction-related fluids. Estimates on water contents based on the composition of amphibole show 4.9–5.3 wt% for the Akcha biotite gabbro, and 5.6–6.8 wt% for the Beleuti gabbro. The oxygen fugacity estimated by zircon Ce/Nd, Ce⁴⁺/Ce³⁺ ratios are lower than those of porphyries from the giant porphyry deposits in the Central Asian Orogenic Belt. Our results, together with previously reported data on porphyries in the Almalyk orefield suggest that the gabbro was formed in an immature arc setting associated with the northward subduction of the Paleo-Turkestan oceanic plate, whereas the ore-bearing porphyries were formed in a mature arc.Zhiguo Cheng, Zhaochong Zhang, A. Turesebekov, B.S. Nurtaev, Lijuan Xu, M. Santos

Carboniferous porphyry Cu-Au deposits in the Almalyk orefield, Uzbekistan: the Sarycheku and Kalmakyr examples

The Almalyk porphyry cluster in the western part of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt is the second largest porphyry region in Asia and hence has attracted considerable attention of the geologists. In this contribution, we report the zircon U–Pb ages, major and trace element geochemistry as well as Sr–Nd isotopic data for the ore-related porphyries of the Sarycheku and Kalmakyr deposits. The zircon U–Pb ages (Laser Ablation Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS)) of ore-bearing quartz monzonite and granodiorite porphyries from the Kalmakyr deposit are 326.1 ± 3.4 and 315.2 ± 2.8 Ma, and those for the ore-bearing granodiorite porphyries and monzonite dike from the Sarycheku deposit are 337.8 ± 3.1 and 313.2 ± 2.5 Ma, respectively. Together with the previous ages, they confine multi-phase intrusions from 337 to 306 Ma for the Almalyk ore cluster. Geochemically, all samples belong to shoshonitic series and are enriched in large-ion lithophile elements relative to high field strength elements with very low Nb/U weight ratios (0.83–2.56). They show initial (⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr)i ratios of 0.7059–0.7068 for Kalmakyr and 0.7067–0.7072 for Sarycheku and low εNd(t) values of −1.0 to −0.1 for Kalmakyr and −2.3 to 0.2 for Sarycheku, suggesting that the magmas were dominantly derived from a metasomatized mantle wedge modified by slab-derived fluids with the contribution of the continental crust by assimilation-fractional-crystallization process. Compared to the typical porphyry Cu deposits, the ore-bearing porphyries in the Almalyk cluster are shoshonitic instead of the calc-alkaline. Moreover, although the magmatic events were genetically related to a continental arc environment, the ore-bearing porphyries at Sarycheku and Kalmakyr do not show geochemical signatures of typical adakites as reflected in some giant porphyry deposits in the Circum-Pacific Ocean, indicating that slab-melting may not have been involved in their petrogenesisZhiguo Cheng, Zhaochong Zhang, Fengmei Chai, Tong Hou, M. Santosh, A. Turesebekov and B.S. Nurtae

Rear‐edge populations are important for understanding climate change risk and adaptation potential of threatened species

This article was supported by the German Research Foundation (DFG) and the Open Access Publication Fund of Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin.Climate change disproportionately threatens alpine species, by reducing available habitat and by isolating their populations. These pressures are particularly relevant for rear-edge populations, which typically occupy more marginal habitat compared to populations at the core of species' ranges. We studied Caucasian grouse Lyrurus mlokosiewiczi in the Caucasus ecoregion, a global biodiversity hotspot where this species is endemic, to understand potential climate change impacts on the species. Specifically, we assessed how climate change impacts rear-edge populations and how important these populations are for understanding range shifts and adaptive capacity under climate change. We used maximum entropy modeling to assess changes in the distribution of climatically suitable habitat under present and 2070 climate conditions for the representative concentration pathways 8.5 (RCP8.5). Our results revealed that ignoring rear-edge populations leads to a significant underestimation of the future range (by about 14,700 km2). Rear-edge populations were better adapted to warmer climates compared to core populations, and ignoring them, therefore, also underestimates adaptive capacity. Preventing the loss of rear-edge populations should, therefore, be a priority for conservation planning in the face of climate change. Because the Caucasian grouse is associated with alpine mountain tops, conservation should focus on establishing connectivity between rear-edge and core populations (e.g., via transboundary corridors or assisted colonizations). Our study reveals how species distribution modeling can highlight the importance of rear-edge populations for mitigating climate change impacts on species of conservation concern.Peer Reviewe