This is a definitive, masterly history and synthesis of all that has been said (by theologians and scientists) and is known (to science) about the question, How old is the Earth? It explains in a simple and straightforward way the evidence and logic that have led scientists to conclude that the Earth and the other parts of the Solar System are not several thousand years old, as some today would have it, but four and one-half billion years old. It is a fascinating story, but not so simple as single measurement. Our universe is a large, old, and complicated place. Earth and other bodies have endured a long and sometimes violent history, the events of which have frequently obscured the record that we seek to decipher. Although in detail the journey into Earth's past requires considerable scientific skill, knowledge, and imagination, the story is not so complicated that it cannot be explained to someone who wants to know and understand the basic evidence. This book, then, has been written for people with some modest background in science, but at a level that will allow the material to be useful and accessible to those without a deep knowledge of geology or physics or mathematics.

Is the Earth the right model and the only universal key to understand habitability, the origin and maintenance of life? Are we able to detect life elsewhere in the universe by the existing techniques and by the upcoming space missions? This book tries to give answers by focusing on environmental properties, which are playing a major role in influencing planetary surfaces or the interior of planets and satellites. The book gives insights into the nature of planets or satellites and their potential to harbor life. Different scientific disciplines are searching for the clues to classify planetary bodies as a habitable object and what kind of instruments and what kind of space exploration missions are necessary to detect life. Results from model calculations, field studies and from laboratory studies in planetary simulation facilities will help to elucidate if some of the planets and satellites in our solar system as well as in extra-solar systems are potentially habitable for life.

Recent advances in the modeling and remote sensing of droughts and floods Droughts and floods are causing increasing damage worldwide, often with devastating short- and long-term impacts on human society. Forecasting when they will occur, monitoring them as they develop, and learning from the past to improve disaster management is vital. Global Drought and Flood: Observation, Modeling, and Prediction presents recent advances in the modeling and remote sensing of droughts and floods. It also describes the techniques and products currently available and how they are being used in practice. Volume highlights include: Remote sensing approaches for mapping droughts and floods Physical and statistical models for monitoring and forecasting hydrologic hazards Features of various drought and flood systems and products Use by governments, humanitarian, and development stakeholders in recent disaster cases Improving the collaboration between hazard information provision and end users The American Geophysical Union promotes discovery in Earth and space science for the benefit of humanity. Its publications disseminate scientific knowledge and provide resources for researchers, students, and professionals.

Market: Researchers in solid earth geophysics and planetary geophysics. This book is a record of the one-day symposium organized by the Space Policy Institute of the George Washington University's Elliot School of International Affairs, in cooperation with NASA's Office of Mission to Planet Earth. The meeting provided an authoritative overview of the progress that had been made to date in the study of Earth from space and identified the steps being taken to ensure that future space-based Earth observation missions make as great a scientific contribution as possible in support of the Earth system science concept.

This book treats the subject of porous flow and its applications in three engineering and scientific problems. The first major part of the book is devoted to solute transport in unsaturated porous media. Dynamic hydraulic conductivity and degree of saturation associate with pore pressures are also included in the consolidation-induced solute transport process. The second part of this book focuses on tidal dynamics in coastal aquifers, including shallow water expansion for sloping beaches, two-dimensional problem in estuarine zone and leaky confined aquifers. The final part of the book summarizes the recent development of porous model in the field of liquefaction around marine infrastructures including fundamental mechanisms of momentary and residual seabed liquefaction, two-dimensional and three-dimensional porous models for fluid-seabed interactions around breakwaters, pipelines and piled foundations in marine environments. The authors' aim is to describe in detail the applications of porous models for several engineering problems. This book will provide academic researchers and industry an overview of recent development in the field of porous models and the applications. The Open Access version of this book, available at http://www.taylorfrancis.com, has been made available under a Creative Commons Non Commercial-No Derivatives (CC-BY-NC-ND) 4.0 license. Funded by Qingdao University Technology, China

The application of fractals and fractal geometry in soil science has become increasingly important over the last few years. This self-contained and timely book was designed to provide detailed and comprehensive information on the current status of the application of fractal geometry in soil science, and on prospects for its future use. With a detailed and specific introductory chapter, particular attention is paid to comparing and contrasting "fractal" and "fragmentation" concepts. Some uses of fractals, such as to quantify the retention and transport properties of soils, to describe the intricate geometry of pore surfaces and macropore networks, or to elucidate the rooting patterns of various plants, are discussed. Applications of fractals in soil science are both relatively recent and in constant evolution. This book reflects accurately existing trends, by allowing sharp differences among the viewpoints expressed in contributed chapters to be presented to the reader in one self-contained volume.

'This is an interesting and bittersweet biography. Elizabeth Alexander was a capable and energetic scientist, but circumstances meant that she was never able to settle down and develop her scientific career. The three years she spent in charge of the Operational Research Section of the Radar Development Laboratory in New Zealand was the only time that Elizabeth held a position of responsibility, and is a clear indication that, had she lived 50 years later, she would have been an effective science leader ... The book outlines the career of a remarkable scientist, and is a significant contribution to the history of several different areas of science. 'Scoop Review of BooksMany women scientists, particularly those who did crucial work in two world wars, have disappeared from history. Until they are written back in, the history of science will continue to remain unbalanced. This book tells the story of Elizabeth Alexander, a pioneering scientist who changed thinking in geology and radio astronomy during WWII and its aftermath.Building on an unpublished diary, recently declassified government records and archive material adding considerably to knowledge about radar developments in the Pacific in WWII, this book also contextualises Elizabeth's academic life in Singapore before the war, and the country's educational and physical reconstruction after it as it moved towards independence.This unique story is a must-read for readers interested in scientific, social and military history during the WWII, historians of geology, radar, as well as scientific biographies.Related Link(s)

This book considers the provisional nature of cities in relation to the Anthropocene - the proposed geological epoch of human-induced changes to the Earth system. It charts an environmental history of curfews, admonitions and alarms about dwelling on Earth. 'Provisional cities' are explored as exemplary sites for thinking about living in this unsettled time. Each chapter focuses on cities, settlements or proxy urbanisations, including past disaster zones, remote outposts in the present and future urban fossils. The book explores the dynamic, changing and contradictory relationship between architecture and the global environmental crisis and looks at how to re-position architectural and urban practice in relation to wider intellectual, environmental, political and cultural shifts. The book argues that these rounder and richer accounts can better equip humanity to think through questions of vulnerability, responsibility and opportunity that are presented by immense processes of planetary change. These are cautionary tales for the Anthropocene. Central to this project is the proposition that living with uncertainty requires that architecture is reframed as a provisional practice. This book would be beneficial to students and academics working in architecture, geography, planning and environmental humanities as well as professionals working to shape the future of cities.

With water as one of the most critical resources of nature that is necessary for sustaining life for all living things, it has become very important for designing and using spatial informational techniques for understanding the root causes behind the degradation of our water resources. This volume discusses in detail a selection of geospatial approaches, tools, and techniques. The uses of geographical information science to measure and manage water resources are diverse. Satellite remote sensing provides essential data for mapping water resources, hydrology flux measurement, monitoring drought, and flood inundation. With an abundance of informative case studies, the chapters discuss the use of the satellite remote sensing and GIS-based systems for managing urban storm water; for flood and soil erosion management; for mapping groundwater zones; for crop production, including measuring soil moisture and aridity; for gauging the impact of climate change; for evaluating glacier change dynamics; for assessing the impact of urban growth on water resources; for measuring the degradation of rivers; and more. This peer-reviewed volume imparts important information on spatial information techniques that are used for understanding the root causes behind the degradation of our water resources. GIScience for the Sustainable Management of Water Resources will be a valuable resource for urban planners, environmentalists, policymakers, ecologists, researchers, academicians, students, and professionals in the fields of remote sensing, civil engineering, social science, computer science, and information technology.

This is the 2nd edition of one of the most comprehensive accounts of debris flow, describing both theoretical and applied aspects. In the first part, the fundamental mechanical characteristics are discussed, including flow characteristics, type classification, mechanics, occurrence and development, fully developed flow, and deposition processes. The second part sheds light on the application of the theories presented in computer-simulated reproductions of real disasters. Special attention is paid to debris flow controlling structures, design effectiveness and performance, soft countermeasure problems, such as the identification of debris flow prone ravines and the prediction of occurrence by means of precipitation threshold. This new edition has been wholly revised and updated, and now includes a new chapter on sediment runoff models that include debris flow processes and new sections concerning landslides. The qualitative and fundamental character of this text makes it an excellent textbook for graduate-level courses and it is recommended reading for professionals in engineering, geosciences and water resources who are working on the mechanics and countermeasures of debris flow. The original, Japanese version of this book was awarded the 'Publishing Culture Prize' by the Japanese Society of Civil Engineers (2004). Tamotsu Takahashi is Professor Emeritus at the University of Kyoto. In addition to his academic positions, he is the Director of the Association for Disaster Prevention Research in Kyoto. Professor Takahashi began his career in flood dynamics research, and increasingly focused on debris flow and flood hazards. He has been honoured with several awards from the Japan Society of Civil Engineers and the Japan Society of Erosion Control Engineering. An earlier book entitled 'Debris Flow', by Tamotsu Takahashi, in the book series of the International Association of Hydraulic Engineering and Research, was published by Balkema Publishers, now a part of the Taylor & Francis Group.

This seventh volume of the DPER series examines imaging techniques for sedimentologists, paleolimnologists, paleoceanographers and microscopists working on issues related to paleoenvironmental reconstruction. It will help the researcher or graduate student to understand every step involved in the imaging process, from image acquisition to measurements. Procedures are described to ensure that the right protocols and methodology are selected to solve a particular issue, and to evaluate the validity of scientific results. Case studies illustrate the wide range of information that can be obtained from many kinds of sediments (marine, lacustrine and aeolian) and different types of samples (cores, embedded blocks, microscopic slides) using different regions of the electromagnetic spectrum (visible, UV, IR, X-ray). The volume provides comprehensive protocols, guidelines, and recommendations for the use of low cost image analysis techniques, to facilitate intercomparisons of measurements.

To this day, there is a great amount of controversy about where, when and how the so-called supercontinents--Pangea, Godwana, Rodinia, and Columbia--were made and broken. Continents and Supercontinents frames that controversy by giving all the necessary background on how continental crust is formed, modified, and destroyed, and what forces move plates. It also discusses how these processes affect the composition of seawater, climate, and the evolution of life.
Rogers and Santosh begin with a survey of plate tectonics, and go on to describe the composition, production, and destruction of continental and oceanic crust, and show that cratons or assemblies of cratons became the first true continents, approximately one billion years after the earliest continental crust evolved. The middle part of the book concentrates on supercontinents, beginning with a discussion of types of orogenic belts, distinguishing those that formed by closure of an ocean basin within the belt and those that formed by intracontinental deformation caused by stresses generated elsewhere. This information permits discrimination between models of supercontinent formation by accretion of numerous small terranes and by reorganization of large old continental blocks.
This background leads to a description of the assembly and fragmentation of supercontinents throughout earth history. The record is most difficult to interpret for the oldest supercontinent, Columbia, and also controversial for Rodinia, the next youngest supercontinent. The configurations and pattern of breakup of Gondwana and Pangea are well known, but some aspects of their assembly are unclear. The book also briefly describes the histories ofcontinents after the breakup of Pangea, and discusses how changes in the composition of seawater, climate, and life may have been affected by the sizes and locations of continents and supercontinents.

1. Clearly explains the geology of regions with emphasis on landscape formation. 2. Addresses issues of public interest such as earthquakes, mining, and climate change. 3. Lavishly illustrated with numerous colorful maps and breathtaking geological landscapes and their various features. 4. Describes the major geologic features of the United Kingdom through the device of a geologic tour for professionals as well as individuals without any geology training. 5. Written in easy-to-understand language, the author brings their own experience to the readers who want to explore and understand geologic sites first-hand.

One of the fundamental goals of earth system science research is to adopt a more holistic view of the earth as a 'system' comprising different domains. The Society of Earth Scientists has brought out this multidisciplinary publication to emphasize the need of an integrated approach to understand the Earth system. It focuses on natural disasters and, in particular, on climate change and its effects in Asia and understanding the significance of these developments within the context of the paleo-climatic record. The later sections of the book then focus on other types of natural disasters as well as those induced by human interaction with our environment.

Mathematical Morphology in Geomorphology and GISci presents a multitude of mathematical morphological approaches for processing and analyzing digital images in quantitative geomorphology and geographic information science (GISci). Covering many interdisciplinary applications, the book explains how to use mathematical morphology not only to perform quantitative morphologic and scaling analyses of terrestrial phenomena and processes, but also to deal with challenges encountered in quantitative spatial reasoning studies. For understanding the spatiotemporal characteristics of terrestrial phenomena and processes, the author provides morphological approaches and algorithms to: Retrieve unique geomorphologic networks and certain terrestrial features Analyze various geomorphological phenomena and processes via a host of scaling laws and the scale-invariant but shape-dependent indices Simulate the fractal-skeletal-based channel network model and the behavioral phases of geomorphologic systems based on the interplay between numeric and graphic analyses Detect strategically significant sets and directional relationships via quantitative spatial reasoning Visualize spatiotemporal behavior and generate contiguous maps via spatial interpolation Incorporating peer-reviewed content, this book offers simple explanations that enable readers-even those with no background in mathematical morphology-to understand the material. It also includes easy-to-follow equations and many helpful illustrations that encourage readers to implement the ideas.

Geology - Basics for Engineers (second edition) presents the physical and chemical characteristics of the Earth, the nature and the properties of rocks and unconsolidated deposits/sediments, the action of water, how the Earth is transformed by various phenomena at different scales of time and space. The book shows the engineer how to take geological conditions into account in their projects, and how to exploit a wide range of natural resources in an intelligent way, reduce geological hazards, and manage subsurface pollution. This second edition has been fully revised and updated. Through a problem-based learning approach, this instructional text imparts knowledge and practical experience to engineering students (undergraduate and graduate level), as well as to experts in the fields of civil engineering, environmental engineering, earth sciences, architecture, land and urban planning. Free digital supplements to the book, found on the book page, contain solutions to the problems and animations that show additional facets of the living Earth. The original French edition of the book (2007) won the prestigious Roberval Prize, an international contest organized by the University of Technology of Compiegne in collaboration with the General Council of Oise, France. Geology, Basics for Engineers was selected out of a total of 110 candidates. The jury praised the book as a "very well conceived teaching textbook" and underscored its highly didactic nature, as well as the excellent quality of its illustrations. Features: Offers an exhaustive outline of the methods and techniques used in geology, with a study of the nature and properties of the principal soils and rocks Helps students understand how geological conditions should be taken into account by the engineer by taking a problem-solving approach Contains extensive figures and examples, solutions to probems, and illustrative animations Presents a highly didactic and synthetic work intended for engineering students as well as experts in civil engineering, environmental engineering, the earth sciences, and architecture

Geology - Basics for Engineers (second edition) presents the physical and chemical characteristics of the Earth, the nature and the properties of rocks and unconsolidated deposits/sediments, the action of water, how the Earth is transformed by various phenomena at different scales of time and space. The book shows the engineer how to take geological conditions into account in their projects, and how to exploit a wide range of natural resources in an intelligent way, reduce geological hazards, and manage subsurface pollution. This second edition has been fully revised and updated. Through a problem-based learning approach, this instructional text imparts knowledge and practical experience to engineering students (undergraduate and graduate level), as well as to experts in the fields of civil engineering, environmental engineering, earth sciences, architecture, land and urban planning. Free digital supplements to the book, found on the book page, contain solutions to the problems and animations that show additional facets of the living Earth. The original French edition of the book (2007) won the prestigious Roberval Prize, an international contest organized by the University of Technology of Compiegne in collaboration with the General Council of Oise, France. Geology, Basics for Engineers was selected out of a total of 110 candidates. The jury praised the book as a "very well conceived teaching textbook" and underscored its highly didactic nature, as well as the excellent quality of its illustrations. Features: Offers an exhaustive outline of the methods and techniques used in geology, with a study of the nature and properties of the principal soils and rocks Helps students understand how geological conditions should be taken into account by the engineer by taking a problem-solving approach Contains extensive figures and examples, solutions to probems, and illustrative animations Presents a highly didactic and synthetic work intended for engineering students as well as experts in civil engineering, environmental engineering, the earth sciences, and architecture

This guide is for those who wish to understand the interplay between rocks and scenery in a truly classic geology in Europe. Nowhere else in Britain is this link to be more clearly observed. Key geological localities that make the Scottish Highlands a unique region for the study of geology are linked together geographically in a series of journeys. The Western Highlands contain some of the oldest rocks in Europe in a landscape formed more than a billion years ago that has re-emerged from the depths. Geologists have been examining these rocks since the early nineteenth century and, in spite of intense research in this tiny fraction of the Earth's surface, major controversies still surround some of the rock formations. Many fundamentally important concepts in geology were first developed here and then applied elsewhere around the world. The region is an outstanding natural laboratory for the study of mountain building and folding, including the discovery that thick sequences of rocks have been turned completely upside down, and pushed sideways for over 100 kilometres. Representatives of all the major rocks types are found here, and their ages span three-quarters of geological time since the Earth began, some four and a half billion years ago. The journeys and localities are detailed in chapters: Tongue to Lochinver; Lochinver, Assynt, Ullapool; Ullapool to Gairloch; Gairloch to Kyle of Lochalsh; Kyle of Lochalsh, Glenelg, Mallaig, Cluanie, Glen Roy; Fort William, Loch Eil, Glenfinnan, Lochailort, Ardnamurchan, Strontian; Fort William, Ballachulish, Kentallen, Oban, Easdale, Kilmartin, Tayvallich and Kilmory; Fort William, Ben Nevis and Glen Nevis, Ballachulish, Glencoe, Glen Etive, Glen Orchy and Loch Lomond. Excursions are easily accessible, along footpaths and the coast, with a few more challenging options, including Ben Nevis, Scotland's highest mountain. This is an ideal accompaniment for geologists and earth science students visiting the Western Highlands.

The third edition of this well-known textbook, first published in 1980, has been completely revised in order to adequately reflect the drastic changes which occured in the field of geodesy in the last twenty years. Reference systems are now well established by space techniques, which dominate positioning and gravity field determination. Terrestrial techniques still play an important role at local and regional applications, whereby remarkable progress has been made with respect to automatic data aquisition. Evaluation methods are now three-dimensional in principle, and have to take the gravity field into account. Geodetic control networks follow these developments, with far-reaching consequences for geodetic practice. Finally, the increased accuracy of geodetic products and high data rates have significantly increased the contributions of geodesy to geodynamics research, thus strengthening the role of geodesy within the geosciences. The present state of geodesy is illustrated by recent examples of instruments and results. An extensive reference list supports further studies.