Soil moisture content and maize grain yield under conventional and conservation agriculture practices - results of short term field tests in liselo, Namibia

Christian Thierfelder (2023, [Artículo])

This article focuses on the results from trials developed to monitor the short-term effects of conventionally tilled systems versus CA on soil quality and crop productivity under conditions of the major cropping systems in central, north-central and north-eastern regions of Namibia. Conventional tillage (CT), Minimum tillage (MT), Minimum tillage, mulch (MT-M), Minimum tillage, rotation (MT-R) and Minimum tillage, mulch and rotation (MT-MR) were the primary treatments tested. Significant differences (p≤0.000) among the treatments were observed in the 0-60 cm soil profiles where MT-M plots had the highest soil moisture content (39.8 mm, Standard Error of Mean 0.2815) over the study period. A significant difference (p=0.0206) in grain yield was observed in the second season with CT plots yielding the highest grain yield (3852.3 kg ha-1, standard error of mean 240.35). Results suggest that CA has the potential to increase water conservation and contribute to reduction of the risk of crop failure. Climate change driven degradation under conventional tillage necessitate alternative sustainable tillage methods. Conservation tillage methods and conservation agricultural practices that minimize soil disturbance while maintaining soil cover need to be adopted more locally as viable alternatives to conventional tillage.

Grain Yield Soil Moisture Content CIENCIAS AGROPECUARIAS Y BIOTECNOLOGÍA CONSERVATION AGRICULTURE CONVENTIONAL TILLAGE GRAIN YIELDS SOIL WATER CONTENT MAIZE

Modelado y acoplamiento de la conductividad eléctrica e hidráulica a partir de tomografía de rocas

Modeling and coupling of electrical and hydraulic conductivity from rock tomography

Miguel Ángel Martínez Rodríguez (2022, [Tesis de maestría])

En este trabajo se emplearon técnicas de modelado numérico para simular el flujo de corriente eléctrica y de fluido a través de medios porosos con el fin de determinar el factor de resistividad y la permeabilidad, así como la distribución de los campos de densidad de corriente eléctrica y velocidad de flujo. Para el modelado de flujo eléctrico se desarrolló un algoritmo basado en diferencias finitas, mientras que para el modelado hidráulico se empleó una librería reportada en la literatura, basada en el método de redes de Boltzmann. En ambos esquemas de modelado se establecieron condiciones en la frontera poro-grano para modelar los procesos físicos exclusivamente en el espacio poroso. Los valores estimados de factor de resistividad y de permeabilidad, así como la porosidad, se emplearon para estudiar las correlaciones entre estas propiedades a través de relaciones petrofísicas. Para esto, se propuso una expresión que relaciona la permeabilidad y la porosidad y, empleando una relación existente entre el factor de resistividad y la porosidad, se propuso también una relación directa entre la permeabilidad y el factor de resistividad. Las relaciones propuestas fueron aplicadas a los valores numéricos obtenidos para paquetes de esferas generados numéricamente y se encontró que se ajustan mejor a los datos en comparación con las relaciones más comúnmente utilizadas, especialmente para porosidades altas. Se mostró también que estas relaciones petrofísicas toman la forma de las relaciones más comunes conocidas cuando se trata con porosidades bajas. Valores obtenidos de imágenes digitales de un paquete de esferas sintético y una muestra de dolomita mostraron que las expresiones para porosidades bajas son suficientes para ajustar datos de medios porosos con porosidades menores a un valor entre 0.3 y 0.4. Finalmente, se analizaron el factor de resistividad, la permeabilidad, las relaciones petrofísicas, y las distribuciones espaciales y estadísticas de los campos vectoriales de flujo se analizaron para comparar los fenómenos de transporte eléctrico e hidráulico, encontrando que algunos factores, como la porosidad efectiva, son importantes en ambos fenómenos de flujo; mientras que otros, como la adherencia del fluido a las paredes del poro, son particularmente relevantes para el flujo hidráulico.

In this work, numerical modeling techniques were used to simulate the flow of electric current and fluid through porous media in order to determine the resistivity factor and permeability, as well as the distribution of electric current density and flow velocity fields. For electric flow modeling, an algorithm based on finite differences was developed, while for hydraulic modeling, a library reported in the literature, based on lattice Boltzmann method, was used. In both modeling schemes, pore-grain boundary conditions were established to model the physical processes exclusively in the pore space. The estimated values of resistivity factor and permeability, as well as porosity, were used to study the correlations between these properties through petrophysical relationships. An expression relating permeability and porosity was proposed and, using an existing relationship between the resistivity factor and the porosity, a direct relation between permeability and resistivity factor was also proposed. The proposed relations were applied to data obtained for numerically generated sphere packs and were found to fit the data better than the most commonly used relationships, especially for high porosities. It was also shown that these petrophysical relationships take the form of the most common relationships known when dealing with low porosities. Modeling data on digital images of a synthetic sphere pack and a dolomite sample showed that the expressions for low porosities are sufficient to fit data from porous media with porosities lower than 0.3 to 0.4. Finally, resistivity factors, permeabilities, petrophysical relationships, and spatial and statistical distributions of flow vector fields were analyzed to compare electrical and hydraulic transport phenomena, finding that some factors, such as the effective porosity, are important in both flow phenomena; whereas some other, such as the pore-wall adherence, are particularly relevant to hidraulic flux.

Física de rocas, modelado numérico, relaciones petrofísicas, fenómenos de transporte, factor de resistividad, permeabilidad, porosidad, tomografía de rocas, campos vectoriales, distribución estadística Rock physics, numerical modelling, petrophysical relations, transport phenomena, resistivity factor, permeability, porosity, rock tomography, vector fields, statistical distribution CIENCIAS FÍSICO MATEMÁTICAS Y CIENCIAS DE LA TIERRA CIENCIAS DE LA TIERRA Y DEL ESPACIO GEOFÍSICA GEOFÍSICA DE LA MASA SÓLIDA TERRESTRE GEOFÍSICA DE LA MASA SÓLIDA TERRESTRE

Low thermal conductivity solar domestic water heater

MIGUEL ANGEL PORTA GANDARA JOSE LUIS FERNANDEZ ZAYAS JUAN FRANCISCO VILLA MEDINA NORBERTO CHARGOY DEL VALLE (2022, [Artículo])

"Solar domestic water heaters (SWH) with thermosyphon circulation are the most common commercial applications of solar energy in Mexico. They are also becoming popular in the rest of the world, given their simplicity, good economic returns, and sustainability. Traditionally the solar collector, the piping, and the storage tank are built of copper and steel. However, wáter quality in many parts of the Mexican Northwest has high mineral contents and, when heated, results in early metal pitting corrosion of SWH parts. Short-lived water heaters are bad promoters of the technology. In this work, a SWH thermoplastic Chlorinated Polyvinyl Chloride (CPVC) is built and tested under real operating conditions in La Paz, BCS, Mexico. The optimal design is detected with the aid of a suitable numerical model. Results reveal that a full SWH-CPVC can be technically and economically convenient for the weather conditions of the Northwestern states of Mexico."

Low thermal conductivity solar water heater CPVC solar water heater Solar water heater cooper pitting corrosion Thermosiphon circulation INGENIERÍA Y TECNOLOGÍA CIENCIAS TECNOLÓGICAS TECNOLOGÍA ELECTRÓNICA DISPOSITIVOS TERMOELÉCTRICOS DISPOSITIVOS TERMOELÉCTRICOS

Agricultura, agua y cambio climático en zonas áridas de México

SALVADOR EMILIO LLUCH COTA JUAN ALBERTO VELAZQUEZ ZAPATA César Nieto Delgado (2022, [Artículo])

"En este artículo se expone cómo a pesar de que la ciencia y la tecnología han permitido aumentar históricamente la productividad agrícola, hoy día existen grandes retos derivados del cambio climático y la crisis global de abastecimiento de agua. Se comentan algunas medidas de adaptación y manejo del recurso agua, con algunas referencias a nuestra realidad nacional, y se argumenta cómo el enfoque de Nexo, que implica la toma de decisiones sobre el uso del recurso agua de forma transectorial, representa una alternativa de adaptación al cambio climático."

Cambio climático, agricultura, agua, Nexo, adaptación Climate change, agriculture, water, nexus, adaptation CIENCIAS FÍSICO MATEMÁTICAS Y CIENCIAS DE LA TIERRA CIENCIAS DE LA TIERRA Y DEL ESPACIO CLIMATOLOGÍA CLIMATOLOGÍA REGIONAL CLIMATOLOGÍA REGIONAL

Waterhole detection using a vegetation index in desert bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis cremnobates) habitat

Jonathan Gabriel Escobar Flores (2019, [Artículo])

In arid ecosystems, desert bighorn sheep are dependent on natural waterholes, particularly in summer when forage is scarce and environmental temperatures are high. To detect waterholes in Sierra Santa Isabel, which is the largest area of desert bighorn sheep habitat in the state of Baja California, Mexico, we used the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) and normalized difference water index (NDWI) from Sentinel-2 satellite images. Waterhole detection was based on the premise that sites with greater water availability, where NDVI was higher, can be identified by their density of vegetation greenness. For the detected waterholes, we estimated the escape terrain (presence of cliffs or steep, rocky slopes) around each by the vector ruggedness measure to determine their potential use by desert bighorn sheep based on the animals’ presence as documented by camera traps. We detected 14 waterholes with the NDVI of which 11 were known by land owners and 3 were unrecorded. Desert bighorn were not detected in waterholes with high values of escape terrain, i.e., flat areas. Waterhole detection by NDVI is a simple method, and with the assistance and knowledge of the inhabitants of the Sierra, it was possible to confirm the presence each waterhole in the field. © 2019 Escobar-Flores et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

Article, bighorn sheep, environmental aspects and related phenomena, environmental parameters, habitat, Mexico, nonhuman, normalized difference vegetation index, normalized difference water index, water availability, waterhole, animal, bighorn sheep, CIENCIAS AGROPECUARIAS Y BIOTECNOLOGÍA CIENCIAS AGRARIAS CIENCIA FORESTAL CIENCIA FORESTAL

Utilización de aguajes por el borrego cimarrón (Ovis canadensis cremnobates) y análisis de calidad del agua en Sierra Santa Isabel, Baja California, México

Watering sites use by bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis cremnobates) and water quality analysis in Sierra Santa Isabel, Baja California, Mexico

Jonathan Gabriel Escobar Flores SERGIO ALVAREZ CARDENAS Sara Cecilia Díaz Castro Aradit Castellanos Vera Jorge Torres Rodriguez MARIANA DELGADO FERNANDEZ (2016, [Artículo])

"Se analizó la utilización de aguajes por el borrego cimarrón en la Sierra Santa Isabel, Baja California, México durante la temporada de sequía de 2011 y 2013 y el periodo de lluvias e inicio de la temporada de sequía del 2015. Asimismo, se estudió la calidad del agua, con base en siete parámetros fisicoquímicos. Se obtuvieron 260 registros fotográficos de borregos cimarrones, donde hembras, añeros y corderos representaron el 73%. En el periodo de lluvias, en dos de los aguajes se obtuvieron valores de conductividad de 1.31 µS/cm2 y 1.92 µS/cm2, y de sólidos disueltos totales de l0.65 ppt y 0.95 ppt, indicando un bajo contenido de sales en el agua. Los valores de oxígeno disuelto mayores a 6.4 ppm, dureza del agua menor a 100 ppm y PH entre 6.5 y 8.5, sugieren que el agua tiene condiciones óptimas para ser bebida por los borregos cimarrones. Los aguajes con mayor utilización por los borregos fueron El Zamora (n = 120) y El Cordero (n = 67), donde se registraron las mejores condiciones de calidad de agua en este estudio. El mayor registro de hembras y añeros, asociado a condiciones óptimas de calidad del agua, confirman la importancia de los aguajes para la crianza y reclutamiento del borrego cimarrón."

"Water used by bighorn sheep during the 2011 and 2013 dry seasons and the rainy season and drought of 2015 in the Sierra Santa Isabel of the State of Baja California, Mexico was analyzed for seven physicochemical parameters. At four watering sites, 260 photographs of sheep were obtained. Females, yearlings, and lambs accounted for 73% of the photographs. In the rainy season at two watering sites, conductivity was 1.31 µS/cm2 and 1.92 µS/cm2 and total dissolved solids was 0.65 and 0.95 ppt, indicating low salt content and safe for bighorn sheep. The watering sites with greater use by bighorn sheep were El Zamora (n = 120) and El Cordero (n = 67), which also had the best water quality. The frequent use by females and yearlings of the two sites with optimal water quality support the belief that watering sites for lambing and recruitment of bighorn sheep is important."

Baja California, borrego cimarrón, calidad del agua, cámaras trampa. Baja California, bighorn sheep, water quality, camera traps. BIOLOGÍA Y QUÍMICA CIENCIAS DE LA VIDA BIOLOGÍA ANIMAL (ZOOLOGÍA) MAMÍFEROS MAMÍFEROS

Freshwater exchanges and surface salinity in the Colombian basin, Caribbean Sea

Emilio Beier (2017, [Artículo])

Despite the heavy regional rainfall and considerable discharge of many rivers into the Colombian Basin, there have been few detailed studies about the dilution of Caribbean Surface Water and the variability of salinity in the southwestern Caribbean. An analysis of the precipitation, evaporation and runoff in relation to the climate variability demonstrates that although the salt balance in the Colombian Basin overall is in equilibrium, the area south of 12N is an important dilution sub-basin. In the southwest of the basin, in the region of the Panama-Colombia Gyre, Caribbean Sea Water is diluted by precipitation and runoff year round, while in the northeast, off La Guajira, its salinity increases from December to May by upwelling. At the interannual scale, continental runoff is related to El Niño Southern Oscillation, and precipitation and evaporation south of 12°N are related to the Caribbean Low Level Jet. During El Niño years the maximum salinification occurs in the dry season (December-February) while in La Niña years the maximum dilution (or freshening), reaching La Guajira Coastal Zone, occurs in the wet season (September-November). © 2017 Beier et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

sea water, fresh water, Article, Caribbean, dilution, dry season, El Nino, environmental parameters, evaporation, freshwater exchange, geographic distribution, molecular weight, oscillation, precipitation, river basin, salinity, seasonal variation, s CIENCIAS FÍSICO MATEMÁTICAS Y CIENCIAS DE LA TIERRA CIENCIAS DE LA TIERRA Y DEL ESPACIO OCEANOGRAFÍA OCEANOGRAFÍA

Dipole-wind interactions under gap wind jet conditions in the Gulf of Tehuantepec, Mexico: A surface drifter and satellite database analysis

MAURO WILFRIDO SANTIAGO GARCIA (2019, [Artículo])

Gap wind jets (Tehuano winds) trigger supersquirts of colder water and mesoscale asymmetric dipoles in the Gulf of Tehuantepec (GT). However, the effects of successive gap wind jets on dipoles and their effects inside eddies have not yet been studied. Based on the wind fields, geostrophic currents, and surface drifter dispersion, this research documented three dipoles triggered and modified by Tehuano winds. Once a dipole develops, successive gap wind jets strengthen the vortices, and the anticyclonic eddy migrates southwestward while the cyclonic eddy is maintained on the east side of the GT. During the wind relaxation stage, the cyclonic eddy may propagate westward, but due to the subsequent re-intensification of the Tehuano winds, the vortex could break down, as was suggested by surface drifter dispersion pattern and geostrophic field data. The effect of the Tehuano winds was evaluating via eddy-Ekman pumping. Under Tehuano wind conditions, Ekman downwelling (upwelling) inside the anticyclonic (cyclonic) eddies may reach ~ -2.0 (0.5) m d-1 and decrease as the wind weakens. In the absence of Tehuano winds, Ekman downwelling inside the anticyclonic eddy was ~ 0.1 (-0.1) m d-1. The asymmetry of downwelling and upwelling inside eddies during Tehuano wind events may be associated with Tehuano wind forcing. © 2019 Santiago-García et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

article, dipole, leisure, Mexico, cold, ecosystem, factual database, geographic mapping, hurricane, Mexico, satellite imagery, season, water flow, wind, sea water, Cold Temperature, Cyclonic Storms, Databases, Factual, Ecosystem, Geographic Mapping, CIENCIAS FÍSICO MATEMÁTICAS Y CIENCIAS DE LA TIERRA CIENCIAS DE LA TIERRA Y DEL ESPACIO OCEANOGRAFÍA OCEANOGRAFÍA

Maintenance of Coastal Surface Blooms by Surface Temperature Stratification and Wind Drift

MARY CARMEN RUIZ DE LA TORRE (2013, [Artículo])

Algae blooms are an increasingly recurrent phenomenon of potentially socio-economic impact in coastal waters globally and in the coastal upwelling region off northern Baja California, Mexico. In coastal upwelling areas the diurnal wind pattern is directed towards the coast during the day. We regularly found positive Near Surface Temperature Stratification (NSTS), the resulting density stratification is expected to reduce the frictional coupling of the surface layer from deeper waters and allow for its more efficient wind transport. We propose that the net transport of the top layer of approximately 2.7 kilometers per day towards the coast helps maintain surface blooms of slow growing dinoflagellate such as Lingulodinium polyedrum. We measured: near surface stratification with a free-rising CTD profiler, trajectories of drifter buoys with attached thermographs, wind speed and direction, velocity profiles via an Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler, Chlorophyll and cell concentration from water samples and vertical migration using sediment traps. The ADCP and drifter data agree and show noticeable current shear within the first meters of the surface where temperature stratification and high cell densities of L. polyedrum were found during the day. Drifters with 1m depth drogue moved towards the shore, whereas drifters at 3 and 5 m depth showed trajectories parallel or away from shore. A small part of the surface population migrated down to the sea floor during night thus reducing horizontal dispersion. The persistent transport of the surface bloom population towards shore should help maintain the bloom in favorable environmental conditions with high nutrients, but also increasing the potential socioeconomic impact of the blooms. The coast wise transport is not limited to blooms but includes all dissolved and particulate constituents in surface waters. © 2013 Ruiz-de la Torre et al.

chlorophyll, algal bloom, article, cell count, cell density, coastal waters, controlled study, dinoflagellate, Lingulodinium polyedrum, meteorological phenomena, Mexico, near surface temperature stratification, nonhuman, nutrient concentration, popul CIENCIAS FÍSICO MATEMÁTICAS Y CIENCIAS DE LA TIERRA CIENCIAS DE LA TIERRA Y DEL ESPACIO OCEANOGRAFÍA OCEANOGRAFÍA