Jesuits established a large number of astronomical, geophysical and meteorological observatories during the 17th and 18th centuries and again during the 19th and 20th centuries throughout the world. The history of these observatories has never been published in a complete form. Many early European astronomical observatories were established in Jesuit colleges.
During the 17th and 18th centuries Jesuits were the first western scientists to enter into contact with China and India. It was through them that western astronomy was first introduced in these countries. They made early astronomical observations in India and China and they directed for 150 years the Imperial Observatory of Beijing.
In the 19th and 20th centuries a new set of observatories were established. Besides astronomy these now included meteorology and geophysics. Jesuits established some of the earliest observatories in Africa, South America and the Far East.
Jesuit observatories constitute an often forgotten chapter of the history of these sciences.

This thesis addresses karst development in a terrain characterized by a highly complex geological and geomorphological evolution. It tackles the extent and complexity of both epigenic and hypogenic karst development, based on morphological analyses of caves, combined with analyses and datations of cave sediments and their correlation to regional geological and geomorphological evolution. Hypogenic karst registered is mainly the result of hydrothermal speleogenesis due to increased geothermal gradient in connection with nearby Pliocene-Pleistocene volcanic centers, with occurrence of sulfuric acid speleogenesis and ghost-rock weathering due to local geological or lithological control. Epigenic speleogenesis is strongly controlled by base level oscillations, with also examples of deep phreatic (now fossil) caves connected to regional base level rise, and per-ascensum speleogenesis. Another important finding is the constraining of the timing of Mariovo Lake draining in the Pleistocene, an important event in order to understand the geomorphological evolution in Macedonia, as it led to the onset of fluvial development and incision of valleys, shaping most of the present morphology.

Land use decisions in karst terrains can have immediate and serious impacts on the local landscape and groundwater resources. The existing literature on karst and land use can be very difficult to locate in the journals of any of a half-dozen different disciplines. This book brings the interdisciplinary knowledge together in one place, in a format that academics and professionals alike will find accessible, informative and useful.

Based on an examination of existing regulations, the experiences and opinions of planners and land use professionals, and quantitative analysis of publicly-available data, the book explores how human settlement patterns and urban systems in karst terrains are affected by land use regulations intended to protect karst resources. The book pays particular attention to the questions of whether these regulations will have a noticeable impact on density and on opportunities for economic growth and development in communities that choose to implement them. This analysis serves as the basis for a regulatory framework that may be used to understand the workings of land use regulations in karst terrains, and to aid in the development of such regulations in the future.

A collection of international contributions presenting current knowledge of impact tectonics, geological and geophysical investigations of terrestrial impact structures, and suggested new impact structures, resulting from the IMPACT program.

Everything we see in our landscapes today was created by geological actions, all of them accompanied by earthquakes and volcanism. This thorough examination of the geology of the United States and its impact on people's lives explores the processes that shape the land surfaces of the United States. These processes act over long periods of time and are affected by such factors as wind, rain, and temperature. Readers will discover how they frequently catch us by surprise when unexpected events occur, as well as how we often ignore signals that indicate repeat disasters. The hazards associated with geological processes are a continuing concern, but readers will also discover the benefits of many of these so-called natural disasters.

Geologic regions define the framework for the book. Gunn provides readers with an accessible overview of geology, defining such concepts as erosion and deposition and discussing such factors as the different kinds of rocks found in the earth's crust. He also explores the concept of plate tectonics in detail. Representative states have been selected to illustrate hazards and geologic features found over large areas, and students can discover those areas that are the most dangerous in which to live. Students are encouraged to draw on the resources provided for further in-depth study of the fascinating topics introduced and discussed.

From the reviews:

..".is a "must" for serious field novices, and for seasoned middle-career and senior practitioners in hydrogeology, mainly those people who answer a calling to offer honest and accurate hydrogeological approximations and findings.

Any engineering geologist or groundwater geologist who claims capability as a "Hydrogeologist" should own this book and submit it to highlighting and page tabbing. Of course, the same goes for those who practice in karst terranes, as author LaMoreaux is one of the pioneers in this field, worldwide..." (Allen W. Hatheway)

Given that around 50 per cent of the world's population live in cities, and that urban populations are expanding rapidly, the issues are important and becoming increasingly urgent. To reduce the effects of such impacts, management is required irrespective of whether the groundwater is to be used or not. This management must be based on a sound technical understanding of the interacting processes involved. The forty papers in this volume explore the state of this understanding in the context of a wide range of countries (and therefore cultures), climates, and geologies. They are divided into topic areas covering flow, chemical water quality, biological water quality, remediation, engineering, and socio-economics. An initial section sets the scene with a range of integrated regional-scale studies.

These are exciting times for exobiology. The ubiquity of organic molecules in interstellar clouds, comets and asteroids strongly supports a cosmic perspective on the origin of life. Data from both ground-based telescopes and the recently launched Infrared Space Observatory are providing new insight into the complexity of carbon-based chemistry beyond the Earth. Meteorites give us solid evidence for extraterrestrial amino acids, and putative fossil evidence for life in a 3.6 billion-year-old Martian meteorite hints that life in our system might not be the sole prerogative of the Earth. Giant planets have now been discovered orbiting other stars, and although such planets seem unlikely to be habitable themselves, their existence strongly suggests what many astronomers have long believed - that planetary systems are commonplace. All these topics are reviewed in this volume by active researchers. The level is appropriate for graduate students in astronomy, biology, chemistry, earth sciences, physics, and related disciplines. It will also provide a valuable source of reference for active researchers in these fields.

This book brings together an overview of the recent geological history, active earth and biological processes and human settlement of New Zealand. Topics covered include the very active neotectonic and volcanic setting. Mountain geomorphic processes are examined and new ideas about landsliding are highlighted. The exceptional sedimentary archives of the Whanganui Basin are also presented. As one of two land masses that extend into the southern mid-latitudes, New Zealand is ideally located to investigate changes in Southern Ocean climate. Related to this, mountain glaciation in New Zealand is a focus in global climate change debates. New Zealand also has a unique biota due to its long isolation and is the last major land mass to be settled by people. Advances in DNA technologies have revolutionised our understanding of the histories and processes involved. The book provides a comprehensive review of existing work and highlights new ideas and major debates across all these fields.

Geoscientific modelling has some unique requirements. Modern geological applications require increasingly quantitative and accurate rock property characerizations within the three-dimensional subsurface environment. this problem differs from that faced by most other fields due to a variety of technocal and economic constriants. Three-dimensional geoscientific modelling often relies on complex stochastic concepts and thus requires the extraction of information from large multiparameter data sets, and the representation and modification of complex, and uncertain geo-objects of interest. The visualization of these three-dimensional features has been a major constraint. The ability to rapidly create and manipulate three-dimensional imgages can materially speed up the geoscientist's understanding of the subsurface environment. The wok is organized arou d four major themes: definition of the problem; description of existing 3-D geoscientific information systems; 3-D data structures and display methods; and applications of 3-D geoscientific modelling. The contributors are drawn from most of the NATO nations, Sweden and Japan, representing national geological surveys, the petroleum, mining, environmental and engineering industries, universities and computer hardware and software companies.

In diamond alluvial deposits, the information about the spatial distribution of stone size is of crucial importance for the quantitative characterisation of the different areas of the deposit. In fact, the value of the diamond reserves depends strongly on the distribution of stone sizes: between two areas with the same grade, the most valuable is the one with larger stones. The geological genesis of the mineralization, related with the transport and deposition of stones in trapsites, can create separated spatial areas, corresponding to different stone size. To characterise these distinct areas, the non smooth transitions between them should be accounted for, in the estimation of internal properties. An extended version of zonal control of geostatistical estimation (Soares et ai, 1995) proposed in this paper, aims to characterising the classes of size histogram for each geological unit, avoiding the smooth effect. For this purpose the morphology of each geological unit is obtained by using two distinct criteria: i) first, the points of each unit are classified according to the local and global probabilities of belonging to each unit (Soares, 1992); ii) in a second classification, the optimization technique of Simulated Annealing is used to rearrange the pre-classified points in order to impose, in the final morphological maps, the spatial variability of experimental samples (Goovaerts, 1994). A case study of a diamond alluvial deposit with two geological units with distinct stone size histograms is presented.

Computational Subsurface Hydrology: Fluid Flows offers practicing engineers and scientists a theoretical background, numerical methods, and computer codes for the modeling of fluid flows in subsurface media. It will also serve as a text for senior and graduate courses on fluid flows in subsurface media in disciplines such as civil and environmental engineering, agricultural engineering, geosciences, soil sciences, and chemical engineering. Computational Subsurface Hydrology: Fluid Flows presents a systematic derivation of governing equations and boundary conditions of subsurface fluid flow. It discusses a variety of numerical methods, expounds detailed procedures for constructing finite element methods, and describes precise implementation of computer codes as they are applied to subsurface flows. Four computer codes to simulate vertically integrated horizontal flows (FEWA), saturated flows with moving phreatic surfaces in three dimensions (3DFEWA), variably saturated flows in two dimensions (FEMWATER), and variable flows in three dimensions (3DFEMWATER) are attached to this book. These four computer codes are designed for generic applications to both research and practical problems. They could be used to simulate most of the practical, real-world field problems. If you would like a copy of the diskettes containing the four, basic general purpose computer codes referred to in Computational Subsurface Hydrology: Fluid Flows, please email Gour-Tsyh Yeh at the following address : [email protected]

The proceedings of the Eleventh International Basement Tectonics Conference is part of a major series of publications dealing with intraplate tectonics. The Eleventh Conference, held in Potsdam, Germany, presents aspects of the basement tectonics of Eastern and Western Europe; the first time they have been assembled in one meeting. Internationally recognised experts in a variety of fields review broad, key, integrative aspects of major fields which contribute to the understanding of the European basement and to geophysical methods of basement analysis. The book focuses mainly on the structure and history of the entire European continent. The recent political reorganisation of Europe has helped to promote several international programs aimed at understanding the deep basement of the European continental features. Accordingly, the majority of the papers included in this volume deal with different aspects on the structure and evolution of the European continent and its various orogenic belts and postorogenic features. Topics range from modelling of the thermal evolution of basement rocks, fabrics in deformed rocks, and geophysical features of basement units to intrusion and concomitant deformation of the basement. Similar aspects are addressed in further chapters focusing on other Phanerozoic cratons and are grouped around topics of current interest: the problem of extrapolation and correlation of geological and geophysical data from basement rocks, and the mechanisms of basement exhumation in the evolution of orogenic belts.

Landforms constitute boundary surfaces between different components of the earth system (atmosphere, hydrosphere, biosphere, pedosphere, lithosphere). At these locations most of the human activity on earth takes place. This central position evokes a bi-directional interaction with the other spheres of the earth system. S- tial landform structures strongly affect processes of other earth system components. At the same time, the land-surface is shaped by the in uence of these processes impacting geomorphologic processes and landform morphometry. These interactions are the focus in the Research Training Group 437 "Landform - a structured and variable boundary layer" at the University of Bonn in Germany. Funded by the German Research Foundation (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, DFG) the Research Training Group is a multidisciplinary research programme for postgraduate studies. Disciplines involved in this programme include: biology, c- matology, computer sciences, geodynamics, geology, geomorphology, geophysics, hydrology, mathematics, meteorology, pedology, and remote sensing. These diff- ent disciplines offer various scienti c approaches, theories, methods and data for the study of landforms within their speci c paradigms. Over a period of ten years (1998-2008) more than 25 PhD projects have been completed. Dedicated to ongoing and completed research activities of the Research Training Group an international symposium titled "Landform - structure, evolution, process control" was held at the Department of Geography, University of Bonn, in 2007.

This book is a collection of papers presented in the 30th International Geological Congress, held in Beijing, on structure of the lithosphere and deep processes. The papers deal with topics on the measurement of P-wave velocities in rocks, and elastic properties of crust and upper mantle.

This book is a collection of papers presented in the 30th International Geological Congress, held in Beijing, on global tectonic zones supercontinent formation and disposal. The papers deal with topics on tectonic framework, and petrology and geochemistry variations of Asian regions.

This volume presents the results on contemporary geodynamic model, crustal stress field, active faults, folds and volcanoes. It discusses the tectonophysical environments of earthquake generation and the methodology of earthquake prediction.

Focusing on issues of when and how Archean crust in the craton was formed, this PhD thesis book presents major research outcomes of field based metamorphic, geochemical and geochronological investigations on Meso-Neoarchean basement rocks from Shandong Province in the Eastern Block of the North China Craton. Based on major findings and new data, the author proposes that the formation and evolution of Archean crust was governed by mantle plumes, not by plate tectonics. As one of the oldest cratonic blocks in the world containing rocks as old as 3.85 billion years, the formation and evolution of North China Craton is still controversial. Therefore this book will be of value to anyone interested in the evolution of cratonic blocks and Precambrian geology.