Long-term thinning decreases the contribution of heterotrophic respiration to soil respiration in subalpine plantations

Interest in the dynamics of soil respiration(R_(S))in subalpine forest ecosystems is increasing due to their high soil carbon density and potential sensitivity to environmental changes.However,as a principal silvicultural practice,the long-term impacts of thinning on R_(S) and its heterotrophic and autotrophic respiration components(R_(h) and Ra,respectively)in subalpine plantations are poorly understood,espe-cially in winter.A 3-year field observation was carried out with consideration of winter CO_(2) efflux in middle-aged sub-alpine spruce plantations in northwestern China.A trench-ing method was used to explore the long-term impacts of thinning on Rs,Rn and R_(a).Seventeen years after thinning,mean annual Rs,Rn and R_(a) increased,while the contribu-tion of R_(h) to R_(s) decreased with thinning intensity.Thinning significantly decreased winter R,because of the reduction in R_(n) but had no significant effect on Ra.The temperature sensitivity(Q_(10))of R_(h) and R_(a) also increased with thinning intensity,with lower Q_(10) values for R_(h)(2.1-2.6)than for Ra(2.4-2.8).The results revealed the explanatory variables and pathways related to R_(n) and R_(a) dynamics.Thinning increased soil moisture and nitrate nitrogen(NO_(3)^(-)-N),and the enhanced nitrogen and water availability promoted R_(h) and R_(a) by improving fine root biomass and microbial activity.Our results highlight the positive roles of NO_(3)^(-)-N in stimulating R_(s) components following long-term thinning.Therefore,applications of nitrogen fertilizer are not recommended while thinning subalpine spruce plantations from the perspective of reducing soil CO_(2) emissions.The increased Q_(10) values of R_(s) components indicate that a large increase in soil CO_(2) emissions would be expected following thinning because of more pronounced climate warming in alpineregions.

A Brief Discussion on the High-impact Cold-season Tornado Outbreak During 10-11 December 2021 in the United States

An outbreak of powerful tornadoes tore through multiple states in the central and southern United States from 10 to 11 December 2021.It is claimed the deadliest tornado outbreak that has taken place on December days.The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration had confirmed 66 tornadoes as of 21 December,producing at least 90 fatalities.Most tornadoes occurred at night and thus they were difficult to be visually located,which directly increases the risk for local residents.Two violent nighttime tornadoes were rated category 4 on the enhanced Fujita scale(EF4).Although a high death toll was caused during this event,the operational service actually presented an excellent performance.This tornado outbreak has aroused extensive discussion from both the public and the research community in China.This paper presents a brief discussion on the formation environment and warning services of the tornado outbreak.Recall the deadliest violent tornado in the past 45 years in China,the radar-based tornadic vortex signatures at the locations with EF4 damages show a comparable strength with those in the current cases.Some views on the tornado warning issuance and receiving and damage surveys in China are also presented.

Planting and Maintenance Strategy of Cold Season Lawn

At present, the scale of landscaping projects continues to expand, and lawn is a common construction project. The planting and maintenance of cold season lawn is crucial, which has great influence on the effect of landscaping projects. The paper expounds the planting methods of cold season lawn, then puts forward maintenance strategies from the aspects of timely pruning, reasonable irrigation, watering, pest control, etc., and finally summarizes the content of the full text.

Numerical simulation of underground seasonal cold energy storage for a 10 MW solar thermal power plant in north-western China using TRNSYS

This paper aims to explore an efficient, cost-effective, and water-saving seasonal cold energy storage technique based on borehole heat exchangers to cool the condenser water in a 10 MW solar thermal power plant. The proposed seasonal cooling mechanism is designed for the areas under typical weather conditions to utilize the low ambient temperature during the winter season and to store cold energy. The main objective of this paper is to utilize the storage unit in the peak summer months to cool the condenser water and to replace the dry cooling system. Using the simulation platform transient system simulation program (TRNSYS), the borehole thermal energy storage (BTES) system model has been developed and the dynamic capacity of the system in the charging and discharging mode of cold energy for one-year operation is studied. The typical meteorological year (TMY) data of Dunhuang, Gansu province, in north-western China, is utilized to determine the lowest ambient temperature and operation time of the system to store cold energy. The proposed seasonal cooling system is capable of enhancing the efficiency of a solar thermal power plant up to 1.54% and 2.74% in comparison with the water-cooled condenser system and air-cooled condenser system respectively. The techno-economic assessment of the proposed technique also supports its integration with the condenser unit in the solar thermal power plant. This technique has also a great potential to save the water in desert areas.