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Sporadic auroras near the geomagnetic equator: in the Philippines, on 27 October 1856

A record has been found of an “aurora” observed on 27 October 1856 in the Philippines, practically at the magnetic equator. An analysis of this report indicates that it could belong to a “sporadic aurora” because of low magnetic activity at that time. We provide a possible physical mechanism that could explain the appearance of this sporadic, low-latitude aurora, according to the analyses on the observational report and magnetic observations at that time.

Population exposure to droughts in China under the 1.5 ºC global warming target

Results show that an additional 6.97 million people will be exposed to droughts in China under a 1.5 ºC target relative to reference period, mostly in the east of China. Demographic change is the primary contributor to exposure. Moderate droughts contribute the most to exposure among 3 grades of drought. Our simulations suggest that drought impact on people will continue to be a large threat to China under the 1.5 ºC target. It will be helpful in guiding adaptation and mitigation strategies.

Connecting regional aerosol emissions reductions to local and remote precipitation responses

Small particles in Earth’s atmosphere (also referred to as atmospheric aerosols) emitted by human activities impact Earth’s climate in complex ways and play an important role in Earth’s water cycle. We use a climate modeling approach and find that aerosols from the United States and Europe can have substantial effects on rainfall in far-away regions such as Africa’s Sahel or the Mediterranean. Air pollution controls in these regions may help reduce the likelihood and severity of Sahel drought.

Overflow of cold water across the Iceland–Faroe Ridge through the Western Valley

The Western Valley is one of the passages across the Iceland–Scotland Ridge through which a strong overflow of cold, dense water has been thought to feed the deep limb of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), but its strength has not been known. Based on a field experiment with instruments moored across the valley, we show that this overflow branch is much weaker than previously thought and that this is because it is suppressed by the warm countercurrent in the upper layers.

Global fatal landslide occurrence from 2004 to 2016

Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences
DOI 10.5194/nhess-18-2161-2018
23 August 2018

Landslides are a hazard in terrestrial environments with slopes. This paper presents global analysis on patterns of fatal landsliding between 2004 and 2016, using a database collated from media reporting. The data show ~ 56 000 people were killed in 4862 landslide events. Active landslide years coincide with patterns of regional rainfall: most landslides were rainfall triggered. For the first time, analysis shows the number of landslides triggered by human activity increased with time.

Dissolved Pb and Pb isotopes in the North Atlantic from the GEOVIDE transect (GEOTRACES GA-01) and their decadal evolution

During a French cruise in the northern North Atlantic Ocean in 2014, seawater samples were collected for dissolved Pb and Pb isotope analysis. Lead concentrations were highest in subsurface water flowing out of the Mediterranean Sea. The recently formed Labrador Sea Water (LSW) is much lower in Pb concentration than older LSW found in the West European Basin. Comparison of North Atlantic data from 1981 to 2014 shows decreasing Pb concentrations down to ~ 2500 m depth.

GEOVIDE transect (GEOTRACES GA-01) and their decadal evolution">Read more

Estimating time-dependent vegetation biases in the SMAP soil moisture product

Satellite soil moisture products can provide critical information on incipient droughts and the interplay between vegetation and water availability. However, time-variant systematic errors in the soil moisture products may impede their usefulness. Using a novel statistical approach, we detect such errors (associated with changing vegetation) in the SMAP soil moisture product. The vegetation-associated biases impede drought detection and the quantification of vegetation–water interactions.

SMAP soil moisture product">Read more

Improving the representation of anthropogenic CO₂ emissions in climate models: impact of a new parameterization for the Community Earth System Model (CESM)

Earth system models provide simplified accounts of human–Earth interactions. Most current models treat CO₂ emissions as a homogeneously distributed forcing. However, this paper presents a new parameterization, POPEM (POpulation Parameterization for Earth Models), that computes anthropogenic CO₂ emissions at a grid point scale. A major advantage of this approach is the increased capacity to understand the potential effects of localized pollutant emissions on long-term global climate statistics.

CESM)">Read more

Developing a global operational seasonal hydro-meteorological forecasting system: GloFAS-Seasonal v1.0

Global overviews of upcoming flood and drought events are key for many applications from agriculture to disaster risk reduction. Seasonal forecasts are designed to provide early indications of such events weeks or even months in advance. This paper introduces GloFAS-Seasonal, the first operational global-scale seasonal hydro-meteorological forecasting system producing openly available forecasts of high and low river flow out to 4 months ahead.

Climate impact on the development of Pre-Classic Maya civilisation

We present two new palaeoclimatic records for the central Maya lowlands, adding valuable new insights to the impact of climate change on the development of Maya civilisation. Lake Tuspan’s diatom record is indicative of precipitation changes at a local scale, while a beach ridge elevation record from the world’s largest late Holocene beach ridge plain provides a regional picture.

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