GeoPlanet: Earth and Planetary Sciences – serie

This book presents the concepts and tools of ice mechanics, together with examples of their application in the fields of glaciology, climate research and civil engineering in cold regions. It starts with an account of the most important physical properties of sea and polar ice treated as an anisotropic polycrystalline material, and reviews relevant field observations and experimental measurements. The book focuses on theoretical descriptions of the material behaviour of ice in different stress, deformation and deformation-rate regimes on spatial scales ranging from single ice crystals, those typical in civil engineering applications, up to scales of thousands of kilometres, characteristic of large, grounded polar ice caps in Antarctica and Greenland. In addition, it offers a range of numerical formulations based on either discrete (finite-element, finite-difference and smoothed particle hydrodynamics) methods or asymptotic expansion methods, which have been used by geophysicists, theoretical glaciologists and civil engineers to simulate the behaviour of ice in a number of problems of importance to glaciology and civil engineering, and discusses the results of these simulations. The book is intended for scientists, engineers and graduate students interested in mathematical and numerical modelling of a wide variety of geophysical and civil engineering problems involving natural ice.

Despite significant development in earthquake analysis and design in the last 50 years or more, different structures related to industry, infra structure and human habitats get destroyed with monotonic regularity under strong motion earthquake. Even the recent earthquake in Mexico in September 2017 killed a number of people and destroyed national assets amounting to hundreds of millions of dollars.Careful evaluation of the technology reveals that, despite significant development in earthquake engineering, most of the books that are available on the market for reference are primarily focused towards buildings and framed type structures. It is accepted that during an earthquake it is buildings that get destroyed most and has been the biggest killers of human life. Yet, there are a number of structures like retaining walls, water tanks, Bunkers, silos, tall chimneys, bridge piers etc that are equally susceptible to earthquake, and if damaged can cause serious trouble and great economic distress. Unfortunately, many of these systems are analyzed by techniques that are too simplified, unrealistic/obsolete or nothing is done about them, ignoring completely the seismic effects, as no guidelines exist for their analysis/design (like seismic analysis of counterfort retaining walls or dynamic pressures on bunker walls etc.).This highly informative book addresses many of these items for which there exists a significant gap in technology and yet remain an important life line of considerable commercial significance.The book is an outcome of authors' academic research and practice across the four continents (USA, Europe, Africa and Asia) in the last thirty two years, where many of these technologies have been put in practice, that got tested against real time earthquakes. All methods presented herein have been published previously in peer reviewed research journals and international conferences of repute before being put to practice. Professionals working in international EPC and consulting engineering firms, graduates taking advanced courses in earthquake engineering, doctoral scholars pursuing research in earthquake engineering in the area of dynamic soil structure interaction (DSSI) and advanced under graduates wanting to self-learn and update themselves on earthquake analysis and design are greatly benefited from this book.

This book presents a study that establishes a set of diagnostic parameters for characterizing the behavior of a geological medium stimulated by external fields and their interactions as a physical basis for developing new methods in exploration geophysics. It describes in detail the investigation methods and instruments (including laboratory, field and borehole devices), and discusses experimental, field and modeling investigations of the interaction of mechanic/electromagnetic fields in reservoir rocks. Lastly, the book also evaluates and the proposed methodology and demonstrates its effectiveness using case studies in which certain geophysical diagnostic/exploration problems have been solved.

This book presents a study that establishes a set of diagnostic parameters for characterizing the behavior of a geological medium stimulated by external fields and their interactions as a physical basis for developing new methods in exploration geophysics. It describes in detail the investigation methods and instruments (including laboratory, field and borehole devices), and discusses experimental, field and modeling investigations of the interaction of mechanic/electromagnetic fields in reservoir rocks. Lastly, the book also evaluates and the proposed methodology and demonstrates its effectiveness using case studies in which certain geophysical diagnostic/exploration problems have been solved.

This book presents an overview of current research problems and advances in theoretical and applied aspects of environmental hydraulics. The rapid development of this branch of water studies in recent years has contributed to our fundamental understanding of processes in natural aquatic systems and helped provide solutions for civil engineering and water resources management. The book features comprehensively reviewed versions of invited lectures and regular presentations given at the 38th International School of Hydraulics, held May 21–24, 2019, in Łąck, Poland. With papers by leading international experts as well as young researchers from around the globe, it covers recent findings from laboratory and field studies, numerical modeling related to sediment and pollutant transport processes in rivers, fluvial morphodynamics, flow in vegetated channels and hydraulic structures in rivers and estuaries.

This book presents an overview of current research problems and advances in theoretical and applied aspects of environmental hydraulics. The rapid development of this branch of water studies in recent years has contributed to our fundamental understanding of processes in natural aquatic systems and helped provide solutions for civil engineering and water resources management. The book features comprehensively reviewed versions of invited lectures and regular presentations given at the 38th International School of Hydraulics, held May 21–24, 2019, in Łąck, Poland. With papers by leading international experts as well as young researchers from around the globe, it covers recent findings from laboratory and field studies, numerical modeling related to sediment and pollutant transport processes in rivers, fluvial morphodynamics, flow in vegetated channels and hydraulic structures in rivers and estuaries.

This book continues the process of systematization of knowledge about convection. It is important to put the current knowledge on weakly and strongly stratified convection in order, and provide a comprehensive description of the marginal, weakly nonlinear and fully developed stages of convective flow in both cases. The book provides a short compendium of knowledge on the linear and weakly nonlinear limits of the Boussinesq convection, and a review of the theory on fully developed Boussinesq convection. The third chapter is devoted to a detailed derivation and a study of the three aforementioned stages of stratified (anelastic) convection, with a full solution in the marginal stage provided for the first time. Detailed and systematic explanations are given. The book is intended mainly as a textbook for courses on hydrodynamics and convective flows, for the use of lecturers and students; however, it also serves for the entire scientific community as a practical reference.

This book continues the process of systematization of knowledge about convection. It is important to put the current knowledge on weakly and strongly stratified convection in order, and provide a comprehensive description of the marginal, weakly nonlinear and fully developed stages of convective flow in both cases. The book provides a short compendium of knowledge on the linear and weakly nonlinear limits of the Boussinesq convection, and a review of the theory on fully developed Boussinesq convection. The third chapter is devoted to a detailed derivation and a study of the three aforementioned stages of stratified (anelastic) convection, with a full solution in the marginal stage provided for the first time. Detailed and systematic explanations are given. The book is intended mainly as a textbook for courses on hydrodynamics and convective flows, for the use of lecturers and students; however, it also serves for the entire scientific community as a practical reference.

This book indicates the most optimal solutions for the growing civilization problem related to climate change that takes place more and more rapidly on our planet. It is divided into two parts: In the first part, the authors - based on the available analyses and reports on climate change taking place on Earth - present their own point of view in relation to the above issue, while trying to find answers to the following questions:· Why is it so difficult to admit that humans are responsible for the ongoing climate change?· Will climate change destroy life on Earth?· Can science and modern technologies stop this process?In the second part of the book, the authors propose a solution for the advancing climate change, regarding the reduction of CO2 emissions coming mainly from the energy sector. On the basis of scientific achievements and implementations of research institutions in Poland, especially the Institute of Fluid-Flow Machinery ofthe Polish Academy of Sciences in Gdansk, the book proposes directions of development of the energy transformation in Poland and other countries for which fossil fuels currently make a large contribution to the energy production process and are the main emitter of CO2 to the atmosphere. The book is addressed to citizens, ecologists, climatologists as well as politicians and experts responsible for shaping the climate and energy policy of the country level and also the world.

This book indicates the most optimal solutions for the growing civilization problem related to climate change that takes place more and more rapidly on our planet. It is divided into two parts: In the first part, the authors - based on the available analyses and reports on climate change taking place on Earth - present their own point of view in relation to the above issue, while trying to find answers to the following questions:· Why is it so difficult to admit that humans are responsible for the ongoing climate change?· Will climate change destroy life on Earth?· Can science and modern technologies stop this process?In the second part of the book, the authors propose a solution for the advancing climate change, regarding the reduction of CO2 emissions coming mainly from the energy sector. On the basis of scientific achievements and implementations of research institutions in Poland, especially the Institute of Fluid-Flow Machinery ofthe Polish Academy of Sciences in Gdansk, the book proposes directions of development of the energy transformation in Poland and other countries for which fossil fuels currently make a large contribution to the energy production process and are the main emitter of CO2 to the atmosphere. The book is addressed to citizens, ecologists, climatologists as well as politicians and experts responsible for shaping the climate and energy policy of the country level and also the world.

The book provides the solutions to the unsolved problems given in the book titled Fluvial Hydrodynamics: Hydrodynamic and Sediment Transport Phenomena. The manual includes the solutions to the problems on Chapters 1 to 11, including the properties of fluid and sediment, hydrodynamic principles, turbulence in open-channel flows, sediment threshold, bedload transport, suspended-load transport, total-load transport, bedforms, river processes, scour, and dimensional analysis and similitude. It, therefore, serves as a guide for graduate students, researchers, and field engineers to solve the problems in fluvial hydrodynamics. As a prerequisite, the background of the readers should have a knowledge in fluvial hydrodynamics described in the said book and an understanding of fundamentals of calculus.

This revised second edition of the book presents an improvement of the original version in terms of recent research, corrections, and outline. The state of the art in fluvial hydrodynamics can be examined only through a careful exploration of the theoretical development and applied engineering technology. This second, updated edition focuses, since most up-to-date research findings in the field are presented, on the research aspects that involve a comprehensive knowledge of sediment dynamics in turbulent flows. It begins with the fundamentals of hydrodynamics and particle motion followed by turbulence characteristics related to sediment motion. Sediment dynamics are described from a classical perspective by applying the mean bed shear approach and additionally incorporating a statistical description for the role of turbulence. It is intended to design as a course textbook in graduate / research level and a guide for the field engineers as well, keeping up with modern technological developments. One of the most important additions is that at the end of each chapter, varieties of problems were given. Therefore, as a simple prerequisite, the background of the readers should have a basic knowledge in hydraulics in undergraduate level and an understanding of fundamentals of calculus.

The book presents the first comprehensive description of parts of the Mid-Atlantic ridge subject to a contract for polymetallic sulphide exploration between the International Seabed Authority and the Ministry of Environment of the Republic of Poland. The state-of-the-art of the study area presented here takes into account a variety of aspects, including hydrological and meteorological conditions, hydrography, optical properties of water, seafloor morphology, geology, sediments and sedimentation processes, pelagic environment and its biocoenosis, benthic organisms, seabed communities, deep-sea environmental protection, as well as many other. Also, the research methods and tools are enumerated, and the studies advised for the future are outlined. The Atlantic seabed area described in this monograph is situated near the central part of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge (MAR), one of the major geological formations on Earth, featuring - like other mid-oceanic ridges - active and inactive hydrothermal vent fields with their unusual and unique ecosystems. The commercial interest in MAR exploration is due to the deposits of massive polymetallic sulphides, formed as a result of hydrothermal fluid precipitation.

The book presents the first comprehensive description of parts of the Mid-Atlantic ridge subject to a contract for polymetallic sulphide exploration between the International Seabed Authority and the Ministry of Environment of the Republic of Poland. The state-of-the-art of the study area presented here takes into account a variety of aspects, including hydrological and meteorological conditions, hydrography, optical properties of water, seafloor morphology, geology, sediments and sedimentation processes, pelagic environment and its biocoenosis, benthic organisms, seabed communities, deep-sea environmental protection, as well as many other. Also, the research methods and tools are enumerated, and the studies advised for the future are outlined. The Atlantic seabed area described in this monograph is situated near the central part of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge (MAR), one of the major geological formations on Earth, featuring - like other mid-oceanic ridges - active and inactive hydrothermal vent fields with their unusual and unique ecosystems. The commercial interest in MAR exploration is due to the deposits of massive polymetallic sulphides, formed as a result of hydrothermal fluid precipitation.

This book provides an overview of advances in experimental, numerical modelling, and theoretical aspects of environmental hydraulics. By highlighting the latest findings on processes in natural aquatic systems, solutions for civil engineering and water resources management, with a special focus on interdisciplinary cooperation between Earth scientists, ecologists, biologists and hydraulic engineers that have helped to mitigate the impacts of anthropopressure on river habitats, it provides both researchers and practitioners with first-hand information about the latest trends in hydraulic research.The book combines peer-reviewed versions of invited lectures and regular presentations at the 40th International School of Hydraulics, held May 23–26, 2023, in Kąty Rybackie, Poland. With contributions from world-leading experts and young researchers, many areas of environmental hydraulics are addressed here, including recent findings in numerical modelling and laboratory and field studies related to sediment and pollutant transport processes in rivers, fluvial morphodynamics, flow in vegetated channels, hydraulic structures in rivers and estuaries, and freshwater fish protection.

This book provides an overview of advances in experimental, numerical modelling, and theoretical aspects of environmental hydraulics. By highlighting the latest findings on processes in natural aquatic systems, solutions for civil engineering and water resources management, with a special focus on interdisciplinary cooperation between Earth scientists, ecologists, biologists and hydraulic engineers that have helped to mitigate the impacts of anthropopressure on river habitats, it provides both researchers and practitioners with first-hand information about the latest trends in hydraulic research.The book combines peer-reviewed versions of invited lectures and regular presentations at the 40th International School of Hydraulics, held May 23–26, 2023, in Kąty Rybackie, Poland. With contributions from world-leading experts and young researchers, many areas of environmental hydraulics are addressed here, including recent findings in numerical modelling and laboratory and field studies related to sediment and pollutant transport processes in rivers, fluvial morphodynamics, flow in vegetated channels, hydraulic structures in rivers and estuaries, and freshwater fish protection.

This book offers a comprehensive exploration of sediment management in reservoirs and regulated rivers in Europe and China, addressing critical issues at the intersection of water resource management, environmental conservation, and infrastructure sustainability. As the demand for water resources intensifies, understanding and effectively managing sediment, a crucial yet often overlooked aspect, becomes paramount.Exploring the intricate dynamics of sediment characteristics, transport processes, and the impacts of sedimentation on aquatic ecosystems, the book navigates readers through the challenges posed by reservoir sedimentation. Via a series of advanced case studies, it provides in-depth insights into various sediment management strategies, from reservoir dredging to watershed management and the implementation of sediment bypass systems.Featuring case studies and modeling approaches, the book equips researchers, engineers, and policymakers with practical tools to assess, model, and implement effective sediment management strategies. Through a lens of sustainability, the text explores the ecological and socio-economic implications of sediment management projects, offering a roadmap for balancing the needs of water storage, infrastructure maintenance, and environmental conservation.Challenges such as climate change impacts and emerging technologies are investigated, and the book provides recommendations for future research, with emphasis on the importance of integrated sediment management. With its interdisciplinary approach, this book serves as a valuable resource for professionals and academics in civil engineering, environmental science, and water resource management.

This book offers a comprehensive overview of recent advances in environmental hydraulics, encompassing experimental research, numerical modelling, and theoretical developments. Framed by the pressing global water challenges - Too Much, Too Little, Too Polluted - the contributions emphasise the pivotal role of hydraulics in understanding and safeguarding the health of rivers, lakes, and other aquatic ecosystems. Drawing on the latest insights into natural aquatic processes and practical solutions for civil engineering and water resources management, the volume highlights the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration among ecologists, biologists, and hydraulic engineers. These cooperative efforts are essential for mitigating the impacts of anthropogenic pressures on river habitats.The book features peer-reviewed versions of invited lectures and regular presentations from the 42nd International School of Hydraulics, held May 20–23, 2025, in Radocza, Poland. With contributions from leading experts and emerging researchers alike, it spans a broad spectrum of topics in environmental hydraulics, including sediment and pollutant transport, fluvial morphodynamics, hydraulic structures in rivers and reservoirs, and innovative measures for freshwater fish protection.

The book presents a wide description of hydrographic conditions in the studied area of the Norwegian and Greenland Seas. Variability of the Atlantic Water properties have been presented on the basis of time series obtained from oceanographic measurements performed each summer from 2000 to 2007 by the Institute of Oceanology Polish Academy of Sciences. The warming observed in that period has been described in detail as well as cooling of the Atlantic Water flowing towards the Fram Strait in 2007. Furthermore, concepts regarding multi-branch structure of the West Spitsbergen Current have been presented, types of flows in individual branches as well as variability of the flows. Description of the structure, transports and variability of the sea currents is based mostly on hydrographic measurements and baroclinic calculations. The results confirm a leading role of the ocean in climate shaping and acknowledges the importance of the Thermohaline Circulation for the climate.

This book presents valuable insights on a vast array of topics in the field of environmental studies. The works published in the book were presented within the scope of the 2013 Sopot Forum of Young Scientists. The Forum is an annual event which provides a platform for young researchers to present their work and exchange ideas with their peers. The aim of the forum is to make science more popular, so the speakers talked about their work in a way that was easily understandable. The book contains actual scientific papers on their own topics of interest. The papers represent different areas of environmental sciences, from biology to physics. The main umbrella topic for this book is "WHERE THE WORLD IS HEADING" and the papers are constructed in such a way as to try to answer this from each contributor's individual perspective.

This book introduces the theory of stellar atmospheres. Almost everything we know about stars is by analysis of the radiation coming from their atmospheres. Several aspects of astrophysics require accurate atmospheric parameters and abundances. Spectroscopy is one of the most powerful tools at an astronomer’s disposal, allowing the determination of the fundamental parameters of stars: surface temperature, gravity, chemical composition, magnetic field, rotation and turbulence. These can be supplemented by distance measurements or pulsation parameters providing information about stellar interior and stellar evolution, otherwise unavailable. The volume is based on lectures presented at the Wrocław's Spectroscopic School aimed at training young researchers in performing quantitative spectral analysis of low-, mid-, and high-resolution spectra of B, A, and F-type stars.

Over the last six decades, the field of geophysics has experienced rapid development. Seismic methods, magnetic studies, hydrology and atmospheric sciences have expanded thanks to a boom in the computer sciences and measurement techniques. The frontiers of geophysics have also expanded, now including research on the polar areas, both Arctic and Antarctic. All these events are clearly reflected in the 60-year-long history of the Institute of Geophysics, Polish Academy of Sciences. This volume describes the most prominent achievements, the history of research and also the future potential of the Institute of Geophysics PAS. It describes measurements in various projects, methods of interpreting scientific data, and last but not least the people who have driven this research in many scientific projects.

This book compares the lessons learned from a wetland-perspective approach to the changing climate and the requirements of the Water Framework Directive (WFD) with regard to environmental conservation. Examples from Germany and Poland are discussed due to the efficiency of their respective implementations of water conservation policies. Although the general scientific interest in specific issues such as wetlands, climate change, nature conservation and the WFD enjoy a well established position in international environmental research, these four elements are rarely considered together due to the complexity of the processes, biased scenarios of global change and subjective policy background. Major challenges involved in carrying out environmental conservation actions that assess the potential impacts of climate change and management plans on water bodies are identified. The results of this approach are addressed to practitioners in the field of adaptive management in a wetlands context.

The aim of this book is to present an overview of the state of the art with regard to the function, application and design of TWSs in order to better protect surface water from contamination. Accordingly, it also presents applications of constructed wetlands with regard to climatic and cultural aspects.The use of artificial and natural treatment wetland systems (TWSs) for wastewater treatment is an approach that has been developed over the last thirty years. Europe is currently home to roughly 10,000 constructed wetland treatment systems (CWTSs), which simulate the aquatic habitat conditions of natural marsh ecosystems; roughly 3,500 systems are in operation in Germany alone. TWSs can also be found in many other European countries, for example 200 – 400 in Denmark, 400 – 600 in Great Britain, and ca. 1,000 in Poland. Most of the existing systems serve as local or individual household treatment systems. CWTSs are easy to operate and do not require specialized maintenance; further, no biological sewage sludge is formed during treatment processes. As TWSs are resistant to fluctuations in hydraulic loads, they are primarily used in rural areas as well as in urbanized areas with dispersed habitats, where conventional sewer systems and central conventional wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) cannot be applied due to the high costs they would entail. TWSs are usually applied at the 2nd stage of domestic wastewater treatment, after mechanical treatment, and/or at the 3rd stage of treatment in order to ensure purification of effluent from conventional biological reactors and re-naturalization. New applications of TWSs include rainwater treatment as well as industrial and landfill leachate treatment. TWSs are well suited to these fields, as they can potentially remove not only organic matter and nitrogen compounds but also trace metals and traces of persistent organic pollutants and pathogens. Based on the practical experience gathered to date, and on new research regarding the processes and mechanisms of pollutant removal and advances in the systems properties and design, TWSs continue to evolve.

This book presents a selection of conference contributions from CARO’13 (Conference on Aerospace Robotics), which was held in Warsaw from July 1 to 3, 2013. It presents the most important and crucial problems of space automation in context of future exploration programs. These programs could involve such issues as space situational awareness program, planetary protection, exploitation of minerals, assembly, manufacturing, and search for new habitable location for next human generations. The future exploration of Space and related activities will involve robots. In particular, new autonomous robots need to be developed with high degree of intelligence. Such robots would make space exploration possible but also they would make space automation an important factor in variety of activities related to Space.

This book contributes to the current discussion on global environmental changes by discussing modifications in marine ecosystems related to global climate changes. In marine ecosystems, rising atmospheric CO2 and climate changes are associated with shifts in temperature, circulation, stratification, nutrient input, oxygen concentration and ocean acidification, which have significant biological effects on a regional and global scale.Knowing how these changes affect the distribution and abundance of plankton in the ocean currents is crucial to our understanding of how climate change impacts the marine environment.Ocean temperatures, weather and climatic changes greatly influence the amount and location of nutrients in the water column. If temperatures and currents change, the plankton production cycle may not coincide with the reproduction cycle of fish.The above changes are closely related to the changes in radiative forcing, which initiate feedback mechanisms like changes in surface temperature, circulation, and atmospheric chemistry.

This book examines old and new data on some of the 18th and 19th century earthquakes that either occurred or were clearly felt in southern regions of Poland. Particular emphasis is put on a detailed study and reinterpretation of the unusually severe Outer Western Carpathians earthquake on December 3, 1786 (7 I0, 5.3 Mw, 35 km depth), which was the last in a series of seismic events in the years 1785 and 1786. An assessment is also made of what we presently know about the seismicity of the Western Carpathians in Poland based on to instrumental data. The book also presents material relating to earthquakes of 6-9 I0 that affected south Poland and the surrounding regions: Žilina in Slovakia (1858), Gera in Thuringia (1872), the Sudetes on the Czech-Polish border (1883, 1901), and Lower Silesia, Poland (1895). These are analyzed and illustrated by 17 contemporary macroseismic intensity maps, some of which are considered to be remarkable for those times. A new seismic catalog for Poland is provided with amendments and updates up to the end of 2014. Noteworthy is the data on two unforeseen events: one about 60 km NE of the Polish border in 2004 and one in central Poland in 2012. It shows how important it is, not least for practical engineering purposes, to perform seismic monitoring even in seemingly aseismic regions.

This books analyzes different approaches to modeling earthquake-induced structural pounding and shows the results of the studies on collisions between buildings and between bridge segments during ground motions. Aspects related to the mitigation of pounding effects as well as the design of structures prone to pounding are also discussed. Earthquake-induced structural pounding between insufficiently separated buildings, and between bridge segments, has been repeatedly observed during ground motions. The reports after earthquakes indicate that it may result in limited local damage in the case of moderate seismic events, or in considerable destruction or even the collapse of colliding structures during severe ground motions. Pounding in buildings is usually caused by the differences in dynamic properties between structures, which make them vibrate out-of-phase under seismic excitation. In contrast, in the case of longer bridge structures, it is more often the seismic wave propagation effect that induces collisions between superstructure segments during earthquakes.

This book describes the domain of research and investigation of physical, chemical and biological attributes of flowing water, and it deals with a cross-disciplinary field of study combining physical, geophysical, hydraulic, technological, environmental interests. It aims to equip engineers, geophysicists, managers working in water-related arenas as well as advanced students and researchers with the most up to date information available on the state of knowledge about rivers, particularly their physical, fluvial and environmental processes. Information from various but also interrelated areas available in one volume is the main benefit for potential  readers. All chapters are prepared by leading experts from the leading research laboratories from all over the world.