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To investigate an appropriate wind load design for buildings considering dynamic air density changes, classical extreme value and copula theories were utilized. Using wind speed, air temperature, and air pressure data from 123 meteorological stations in Shandong Province from 2004 to 2017, a joint probability distribution model was established for extreme wind speed and air density. The basic wind pressure was calculated for various conditional return periods. The results indicated that the Gumbel and Gaussian mixture model distributions performed well in extreme wind speed and air density fitting, respectively. The joint extreme wind speed and air density distribution exhibited a distinct bimodal pattern. The higher the wind speed was, the greater the air density for the same return conditional period. For the 10-year return period, the air density surpassed the standard air density, exceeding 1.30 kg/m3. The basic wind pressures under the different conditional return periods were more than 10% greater than those calculated from standard codes. Applying the air density based on the conditional return period in engineering design could enhance structural safety regionally.

The basic wind pressure or the reference wind pressure for structural design varies greatly across complex terrain. Since only a few meteorological stations can provide adequate extreme wind speed records, it is very difficult to appropriately determine the basic wind pressure for a specific site without a long history of meteorological records. To solve this problem, a mesoscale CFD model was developed and optimized based on geographic information data for Taizhou and suitable turbulence models were selected for CFD simulation. The mean extreme wind speed and the corresponding direction at five main weather stations with long observation histories in Taizhou were used as the verification conditions to perform the CFD simulation of the extreme wind field. The maximum wind speeds of the rural areas, cities, and streets of Taizhou were obtained from the results of the mesoscale CFD simulations. Then, the 50-year return period reference wind pressures were calculated and could be used for the wind-resistant structural design of buildings for sites without a long history of meteorological records. The reliability of the results was verified by comparing the simulation results with the observation data at five main stations with a long history.

Tree mortality rates appear to be increasing in moist tropical forests (MTFs) with significant carbon cycle consequences. Here, we review the state of knowledge regarding MTF tree mortality, create a conceptual framework with testable hypotheses regarding the drivers, mechanisms and interactions that may underlie increasing MTF mortality rates, and identify the next steps for improved understanding and reduced prediction. Increasing mortality rates are associated with rising temperature and vapor pressure deficit, liana abundance, drought, wind events, fire and, possibly, CO2 fertilization-induced increases in stand thinning or acceleration of trees reaching larger, more vulnerable heights. The majority of these mortality drivers may kill trees in part through carbon starvation and hydraulic failure. The relative importance of each driver is unknown. High species diversity may buffer MTFs against large-scale mortality events, but recent and expected trends in mortality drivers give reason for concern regarding increasing mortality within MTFs. Models of tropical tree mortality are advancing the representation of hydraulics, carbon and demography, but require more empirical knowledge regarding the most common drivers and their subsequent mechanisms. We outline critical datasets and model developments required to test hypotheses regarding the underlying causes of increasing MTF mortality rates, and improve prediction of future mortality under climate change.

Sound production rates of fishes can be used as an indicator for coral reef health, providing an opportunity to utilize long-term acoustic recordings to assess environmental change. As acoustic datasets become more common, computational techniques need to be developed to facilitate analysis of the massive data files produced by long-term monitoring. Machine learning techniques demonstrate an advantage in the identification of fish sounds over manual sampling approaches. Here we evaluated the ability of convolutional neural networks to identify and monitor call patterns for pomacentrids (damselfishes) in a tropical reef region of the western Pacific. A stationary hydrophone was deployed for 39 mo (2014−2018) in the National Park of American Samoa to continuously record the local marine acoustic environment. A neural network was trained — achieving 94% identification accuracy of pomacentrids—to demonstrate the applicability of machine learning in fish acoustics and ecology. The distribution of sound production was found to vary on diel and interannual timescales. Additionally, the distribution of sound production was correlated with wind speed, water temperature, tidal amplitude, and sound pressure level. This research has broad implications for state-of-the-art acoustic analysis and promises to be an efficient, scalable asset for ecological research, environmental monitoring, and conservation planning.

This paper presents a general procedure for evaluating a proper target reliability index and corresponding wind load factor for a wind load-governed limit state in reliability-based design codes. The Monte-Carlo simulation is conducted to reveal relationships between statistical parameters of wind velocity and pressure. The normalized wind pressure is defined and used in the simulations. The analytical form of the wind load factor is presented in terms of the statistical parameters of wind velocity and the target reliability index. The return period of a nominal wind velocity is expressed for the target reliability index and the wind load factor. An approach determining the target reliability index based on the return period of wind velocity at the limit state is proposed. The return period of wind velocity at the limit state is set to that of the design earthquake in a design code. The proposed approach is applied to calculate the target reliability index for the Korean Highway Bridge Design Code-Cable supported Bridge. The target reliability index is found as 2.25, and the corresponding wind load factor ranges from 1.60 to 1.82 depending on the Coefficient of Variation (COV) of wind velocity. Detailed discussions on the return period of wind velocity, target reliability index and wind load factor are made. A simplified expression of the wind load factor corresponding to the target reliability of 2.25 is proposed. The basic wind velocities for five regions in the Korean Highway Bridge Design Code (Limit State Design) are estimated through the proposed procedure.

Based on statistical analyses of long-term reanalysis data, we have investigated the interdecadal variations of autumn precipitation in central China (APC-d) and the associated atmospheric teleconnection. It reveals that the increased autumn rainfall in central China during the last decade is a portion of the APC-d, which exhibits a high correlation coefficient of 0.7 with the interdecadal variations of the Europe–China pattern (EC-d pattern) teleconnection. The EC-d pattern teleconnection presents in a “+-+” structure over Eurasia, putting central China into the periphery of a quasi-barotropic anticyclonic high-pressure anomaly. Driven by positive vorticity advection and the inflow of warmer and moist air from the south, central China experiences enhanced ascending motion and abundant water vapor supply, resulting in increased rainfall. Further analysis suggests that the EC-d pattern originates from the exit of the North Atlantic jet and propagates eastward. It is captured by the Asian westerly jet stream and proceeds towards East Asia through the wave–mean flow interaction. The wave train acquires effective potential energy from the mean flow by the baroclinic energy conversion and simultaneously obtains kinetic energy from the basic westerly jet zones across the North Atlantic and the East Asian coasts. The interdecadal variation of the mid-latitude North Atlantic sea surface temperature (MAT-d) exhibits a significant negative relationship with EC-d, serving as a modulating factor for the EC-d pattern teleconnection. Experiments with CMIP6 models predict that the interdecadal variations in APC-d, EC-d, and MAT-d will maintain stable high correlations for the rest of the 21st century. These findings may contribute to forecasting the interdecadal autumn dry–wet conditions in central China.

We proposed new basic equations and the approximate model for gravitational ventilation through a single openingm which can be incorporated into a ventilation network analysis. The new basic equations are the mass flow balance and the conversion equations of pressure difference and dynamic pressure at an indoor‐outdoor boundary. In order to calculate the mass flow rate by gravitational ventilation using these equations, the following two values at the boundary are required: (1) windward speed, (2) temperature profile. 1. We have shown calculation methods based on the one‐dimensional flow for (1), and used a flow tube model for (2). 2. The neutral pressure level and the inflow‐outflow wind speed can be obtained by steady‐state analysis of basic equations. The coefficients that optimize the calculation results were also shown. 3. We compared the approximate model with the CFD and verified their validity. Finally, the basic characteristics of single‐opening gravitational ventilation were discussed.

This paper focused on investigating impact factors and relationships of the aerodynamic frictional drag on the surface of flexible fabrics. Firstly, based on fluid dynamics, a preliminary model for aerodynamic frictional drag was defined as P = f ρ v n , where P is pressure difference between both sides of the fabric, f is the air frictional drag coefficient, and v is wind speed. Wind tunnel testing was carried out on 27 groups of textile samples of varying fibers, blending ratios, and structures. Utilizing a Visual Basic program, the model was established as P = f ρ v 2 , which was proven to be reliable by model fitting of experimental data by the least-squares theory. The air frictional drag coefficients of 27 samples were calculated accordingly. Finally, correlation analysis was made on the blending ratio, structure, and air frictional drag of nine groups of textile samples. As a result of this work, the blending ratio of fibers was found to be positively correlated with air frictional resistance on the surface of the fabric such that the higher the ratio of cotton fiber, the lower the air frictional resistance of the fabric, which was due to the fuzz irregularly distributed on the surface of the yarn that brought forward the transition point from laminar to turbulent flow. Meanwhile, the evaporation rate of the textile was also positively correlated with air frictional drag. The study could provide the basis for the development of low drag fabrics and sportswear, thus promoting athletes’ performance in competitions.

In this study,we found that the intensity of interannual variability in the summer upper-tropospheric zonal wind has significantly weakened over Northeast Asia and the subtropical western North Pacific（WNP） since the mid-1990s,concurrent with the previously documented decrease of the westerly jet over North China and Northwest China.Corresponding to this weakening of zonal wind variability,the meridional displacement of the East Asian westerly jet（EAJ） manifested as the leading mode of zonal wind variability over the WNP and East Asia（WNP-EA） before the mid-1990s but not afterward.The energetics of the anomalous pattern associated with the meridional displacement of the EAJ suggests that barotropic energy conversion,from basic flow to anomalous patterns,has led to the weakening of the variability in the EAJ meridional displacement and to a change in the leading dominant mode since the mid-1990s.The barotropic energy conversion efficiently maintained the anomalies associated with the variability in the EAJ meridional displacement during 1979-1993 but acted to dampen the anomalies during 1994-2008.A further investigation of the energetics suggests that the difference in the patterns of the circulation anomaly associated with either the first leading mode or the meridional displacement of the EAJ,i.e.,a southwest-northeast tilted pattern during 1979-1993 and a zonally oriented pattern during 1994-2008,has contributed greatly to the change in barotropic energy conversion.

A set of multiscale, nested, idealized numerical simulations of mesoscale convective systems (MCSs) and mesoscale convective vortices (MCVs) was conducted. The purpose of these simulations was to investigate the dependence of MCV development and evolution on background conditions and to explore the relationship between MCVs and larger, moist baroclinic cyclones. In all experiments, no mesoscale convective system (MCS) developed until a larger-scale, moist baroclinic system with surface pressure amplitude of at least 2 hPa was present. The convective system then enhanced the development of the moist baroclinic system by its diabatic production of eddy available potential energy (APE), which led to the enhanced baroclinic conversion of basic-state APE to eddy APE. The most rapid potential vorticity (PV) development occurred in and just behind the leading convective line. The entire system grew upscale with time as the newly created PV rotated cyclonically around a common center as the leading convective line continued to expand outward. Ten hours after the initiation of deep moist convection, the simulated MCV radii, heights of maximum winds, tangential velocity, and shear corresponded reasonably well to their counterparts in BAMEX. The increasing strength of the simulated MCVs with respect to larger values of background CAPE and shear supports the hypothesis that as long as convection is present, CAPE and shear both add to the strength of the MCV.