Search Results for: rainfall

Author: Ovington, J.D. Description: At Bedgebury the rainfall in thirteen forest plots planted with different tree species has been compared with that in the open. In all these forest plots the trees have closed canopy within 20 years of planting and the canopies differ considerably in their structure. From 6 to 93 per cent. of the gross rainfall may be retained on the tree canopies and lost to the soil. The proportion of precipitation intercepted is greatest in light rains and least in heavy rains. During light showers considerably more…

Author: Turner, A.G.; Annamalai, H. Description: The vagaries of South Asian summer monsoon rainfall on short and long timescales impact the lives of more than one billion people. Understanding how the monsoon will change in the face of global warming is a challenge for climate science, not least because our state-of-the-art general circulation models still have difficulty simulating the regional distribution of monsoon rainfall. However, we are beginning to understand more about processes driving the monsoon, its seasonal cycle and modes of variability. This gives us the hope that we…

Author: Wilkinson, C.R. Description: Coral reefs have reconstituted themselves after previous large sea-level variations, and climate changes. For the past 6000 years of unusually stable sea-level, reefs have grown without serious interruptions. During recent decades, however, new stresses threaten localized devastation of many reefs. A new period of global climate change is occurring, stimulated by anthropogenic increases in greenhouse gases. Coral reefs will cope well with predicted sea-level rises of 4.5 cm per decade, but reef islands will not. Higher sea levels will provide corals with greater room for growth…

Author: Attiwill, P.M. Description: The alteration of the ionic composition of rainwater by vegetation has been attributed in the literature both to foliar leaching (representing circulation of elements within an ecosystem) and to the washing from leaves of particulate matter (an addition of elements to the ecosystem). The purpose of this study was to estimate the magnitudes of these components in a matureEucalyptus obliqua forest on the Great Dividing Range, Australia. Rainwater samples collected both within the forest and from an opening devoid of trees at regular intervals during a…

Author: Allen, S.E.; Carlisle, A.; White, E.J.; Evans, C.C. Description: The chemistry of rainwater has been studied since the beginning of the nineteenth century, but most of the work has been concerned with sodium, chlorine and sulphur. A recent survey of the chemical composition of rainfall has been carried out in north-western Europe. This work has not been primarily concerned with the major plant nutrients although some have been included. In the past 15 years, however, it has been clearly shown that rainfall nutrients play an important part in the…

Author: Ahlgren, I.F.; Ahlgren, C.E. Description: Soil dilution plate counts on selective media for bacteria, streptomycetes, and fungi were made at intervals before and after two prescribed burns on 10—acre jack pine tracts. Carbon dioxide determinations were also made. These tracts were compared with similar tracts cut and unburned and uncut and unburned. Three—year results are given. The number and activity of most microorganisms decreased immediately after fire but rose abruptly to a very high level after the first rainfall following burning. This increase is believed caused by the leaching…

Author: Eckardt, F.D.; Soderberg, K.; Coop, L.J.; Muller, A.A.; Vickery, K.J.; Grandin, R.D.; Jack, C.; Kapalanga, T.S.; Henschel, J. Description: This paper reviews the nature of moisture at Gobabeb, Namibia with emphasis on rainfall, and fog. It introduces the observational record produced by the Gobabeb Training and Research Centre and examines nature and cause of the rainfall record from October 1st 1962 to May 30th 2011. Over this period of 17749 days only 381 rainy days produced a total of 1213 mm of rain with an annual average of 25…